Page 110 of The Irresistible One
Colson
Going home without you last night wasn’t easy. Having you in my house this morning and not being able to touch you, also not easy. I saw anopportunity and took it.
Me
I’m glad you did.
Itwirled one of Abbi’s light-blonde locks around my finger while she lay, cuddled next to me, on the couch, watching her favorite show on her tablet. She had hugged Colson goodbye when I picked her up this morning, and a tiny bit of his cologne clung to her. Within every inhale, I got the smallest whiff of him, and it was playing with my head. My heart was here, but my mind was there.
I let out a sigh and said, “What do you say we go somewhere fun for dinner tonight?”
The question was loud enough that she had no choice but to hear me. Whether she answered depended on her level of excitement. If the idea interested her, a response was inevitable. If she didn’t care, I’d be ignored.
“Can we invite Ellie?”
I laughed. Of course she had gone there. I expected nothing less. “Not tonight, baby. You both have school in the morning. But very soon, I promise.”
I didn’t care if it was only pre-K. In this house, school was a priority, and private education wasn’t cheap.
“Okay,” she groaned.
“Would it make it better if you picked the restaurant?”
“Sushi!”
“You’re going to turn into a fish.” I kissed her forehead.
“Mommy, I’m a sushi girlie for life.”
I couldn’t help but laugh again. “Where do you learn these things?”
She looked at me and giggled. “You.”
“God.” I shook my head.
My phone rang, and I reached for it on the end table, but Abbi quickly grabbed it from my fingers before it even neared my lap.
“Excuse me, Miss Abbi?—”
She saw the photo on the screen, swiped it, and yelled, “Uncle Troy,” completely ignoring the fact that I was about to reprimand her for stealing my cell. “Miss you too.” She paused. “Youarrre?” She went quiet. “I wanna be in Lauderdale! Tell Uncle Hay I love him so very, very much.” She couldn’t stop smiling. “Okay, here’s Mommy.” She handed me the phone.
“Next time, no grabbing,” I said to her.
She pouted.
“Do you hear me?” I pressed.
“Yes, Mommy.”
I held the phone to my ear. “Hey, Troy.”
“Listen, I only have a few seconds to talk, but I’m calling to see if you’ve heard back from your firm regarding the Gordon-slash-Weston situation?”
I dropped Abbi’s chunk of hair that I’d been circling around my finger and picked up a new set of curls. “Not yet. I’m assuming they’ll finalize their thoughts tomorrow morning and set up a meeting with me.” My hand stilled. He only had a few seconds, and this was what he was calling about? “Why are you asking?”
“Jenner Dalton wants to speak with you.” He let that sink in. “He just asked me for your number.”
I stared at Abbi’s forehead. “What does he want to talk to me about?”
