Wild Hearts (The Wilde Brothers #5)

Chapter 8

8

ADDISON

W alker texted to thank me for helping him out in the store. It wasn't a big deal, and I was positive anyone could have helped. But I was glad that I could be there for him.

Now I was supposed to meet them at the festival, and I wasn't sure why I needed to be here. It wasn't for work. I didn't need to make a follow-up report for another few weeks.

So this was purely social, which had me on edge. Why had I agreed to meet them? I told myself it was Dakota, and I couldn't say no to spending time with her. Something about her situation called out to me. Just like when I'd met Walker.

Their situations were eerily similar.

I texted when I arrived, and Walker said he'd meet me at the entrance to the festival area, which was marked with an overhead banner which read Wilde Winter Festival.

It was early, but the grounds were packed with families. When I entered, I paid the admission fee and looked for Walker and Dakota.

All of a sudden, someone wrapped their arms around me from behind. "Hey. "

I turned, my face flush. "Walker."

He let me go as quickly as he'd engulfed me in that bear hug. Then he shoved his hands in his pockets. "I thought I'd surprise you."

"You did."

"I'm so glad you're here," Dakota said and hugged me, and I exchanged a look with Walker over her head.

"Me too."

Walker rubbed his hands together. "What do you want to do? There's ice-skating, a snowball fight area, the carriage ride."

"Oh, snowballs and then ice-skating," Dakota said, and Walker grinned at me.

This was one of the first events he'd taken his daughter to, and he was clearly pleased to be here.

"Sounds good to me."

"Are we a team?" I asked as we approached the snowball-fight area.

Xander stood at the entrance. "I'm in charge of assigning people to teams. You two are on a team." He pointed to Walker and Dakota. Then Xander directed me to stand with a man in his thirties and his little boy. "You are another team."

"Hi. I'm Addison." I shook the dad's hand.

"Hunter, and this is my son, Parker."

"It's so nice to meet you." Then to Parker, I asked, "Are you good at making snowballs?"

Parker nodded solemnly. "I'm really good."

I glanced over at Walker, who was watching our exchange with a frown on his face. I wasn't sure what the problem was since it was Xander who assigned our teams. I turned my attention to Hunter and Parker. "This is going to be fun."

Xander handed us a bucket, presumably to stockpile snowballs, and yelled, "Go."

We ran into the maze, ducking behind a wall to build our arsenal. There were about five teams in here at once, so we needed to watch our backs.

"You can be the lookout," Hunter said as they frantically packed snowballs. I didn't think I'd be doing this when I woke up this morning, but it was invigorating.

An arm rose above the wall across from us and threw a snowball in my direction. "Incoming!" I cried as I ducked back down.

I hadn't realized I was so competitive.

We were pummeled for a few seconds with snowballs and then nothing. I slowly lifted my head to see Walker and Dakota grinning. "Now!"

Hunter and Parker unleashed their stash of snowballs on them. I grabbed a couple and threw them in their direction while they ran farther away.

Hunter grabbed the bucket, and we followed them, throwing the remaining balls, then ducking behind another wall to restock. Then we got caught up in a firefight, and it was constant. Parker and I made the balls, and Hunter threw them.

My cheeks were cold and my heart beat rapidly, but it was so much fun. "We need to move," was the only warning I got as Hunter and Parker took off.

I tried to follow them, but a hand reached out and grabbed me, pulling me against a hard body.

I held up my hands to ward off the snowball I knew would land in my face. "It's me."

"Are you calling a truce?" I refused to lift my face until I was positive. But I was very aware that I was basically sitting in Walker's lap, my knees pressed into the snow.

"I am." His breath was warm on the side of my face.

I carefully lifted my gaze, lowering my hands so I could see him. "What are you doing? I thought we were enemies?"

Walker grinned. "You take this seriously."

"Shouldn't I? I'm on a team and everything." I tried to get up, but Walker pulled me back down. "Speaking of my team, I'm supposed to be following them."

"Relax. They'll be okay without you."

I looked around but didn't see anyone. From the noise the firefight was farther away from our location. "Where is Dakota?"

"She teamed up with some kids. One of the kids said he works here.”

I looked at him curiously. "Wait, and you're not worried?"

His eyes widened as if he hadn’t thought to be. “I want her to meet other kids in the area.”

"Ah." Then my mind landed on why I was sitting in Walker's lap. "Why did you grab me? Am I some kind of prisoner of war?"

Walker chuckled, and I couldn't help but marvel at how much younger he looked when he let go. "I thought we could take a break. I did enough of this kind of thing in the military."

I tipped my head to the side. "You engaged in snowball fights?"

He touched my hair, tucking it behind my shoulder. "More like training."

I wondered if it brought up bad memories. I was happy to hang out with him to make him feel better. Or at least that was what I was telling myself. I had no interest in leaving. We were seated so close to each other; I could see the flecks of gold in his blue eyes. This reminded me of all the times we cuddled together when we were dating. We were very affectionate with each other. "Does this bring back memories for you?"

Walker let out a breath. "It does. Is this okay? I know you said you didn't want to revisit our relationship."

"This is fine." It was more than fine. My body was overheated despite the cold air, and my nerve endings were live wires. "We can be friends without digging into our history."

"Right."

The way he said the word made it sound like he didn't understand at all, but I wasn't willing to explain. I was fairly sure my reasoning wouldn't stand up to scrutiny. I decided to change the subject instead. "Is Dakota having fun?"

"She's having a blast."

"Coming here was a good idea."

"She's the best thing that ever happened to me," he said quietly. "She's kind of amazing."

I grinned. "She is."

"I keep wondering how I got so lucky, and then I feel bad because her mother had to die for me to meet her."

"Mmm. That's her mother's issue though, isn't it? She could have tried to find you if she wanted to. She made that decision. I wouldn't feel guilty for getting to know my daughter. Have you talked to the therapist?"

"We both went this week. I think it's going to be good for us."

"That's good." I loved when clients took my advice. It didn't always happen, but I knew talking to someone would help.

Footsteps crunched nearby. "Dad? What are you doing?"

I jumped off Walker, not wanting Dakota to think anything was happening between us. I brushed the snow off my clothes, and I hoped my cheeks weren't too red.

That's when I realized she'd called him Dad .

"We were taking a break. Couldn't keep up with you."

A boy stood next to Dakota. "The battle's over. The next group will be coming through."

"Addison, this is Christopher. He works here. Christopher, this is my friend, Addison."

I noticed he'd called me a friend, but I guess it made more sense than ex-girlfriend or Dakota's social worker. "It's nice to meet you."

"We can get going so the next group can go through," Walker offered.

As we made our way through the maze of ice forts and walls, Walker asked, "Did you have fun? "

Dakota grinned. "Yes."

Xander stood at the entrance to the maze, his gaze on Christopher. "Get back to work."

"Sorry, boss." Christopher gathered the next groups together into teams.

Xander nodded toward Christopher. "He's a good kid."

Walker tipped his head to the side. "Would you let him hang out with your teenage daughter?"

I had a feeling he was worried about his daughter dating.

"Dad—" Dakota whined.

Xander chuckled, covering his mouth with his hand. "I think you're going to have to get used to your father being overprotective, Dakota. At least until he gets used to the idea of you dating."

Dakota shook her head and looked away from us. "Whatever."

"What are you doing next?" Xander asked us.

"Dakota wanted to go ice-skating," Walker offered.

"Maybe I'll send Christopher on break," Xander teased.

"See that you don't," Walker grumbled as we headed toward the rink. We got skates and sat on the bench to lace them.

A girl paused by us. "Dakota? You want to come out with me?"

"Dad, do you mind? This is Allie. She's a girl from school."

Walker lifted his head to get a look at Allie, and then said, "Sure."

The girls walked toward the entrance and paused at the gate.

"She's making friends?" I asked him.

"She said she hadn't yet. Hopefully, seeing one of the kids outside of school will speed it along."

"It's tough being the new kid in school." Some kids are popular because of it, and others are ignored. It can be tough to break through when you're a teenager and everyone already has settled friend groups. But I hoped that Dakota would make friends soon.

"You were the one who made it easier on me."

"Yeah, but you weren't interested in making friends. You had a chip on your shoulder."

"We were partners in that shop class, and you were afraid to use the machines."

I laughed. "I almost forgot about that. I kept thinking we met for the first time at ski lessons. But I was so scared I'd cut off a finger in that class. I latched onto you, hoping you'd operate the machine for me. But you were very patient and showed me how to do it safely."

"You woke me up. I was so buried in grief and anger. You gave me a reason to feel something else."

"I'm glad I could be that for you. Hopefully, Dakota finds someone like that soon."

"And he's not a boy. I'm not ready for her to be dating and me worrying about what they're doing on the couch under the blankets."

I laughed. "You'll get through this."

"It's easier when you're around."

"Is that because I'm your social worker?" I asked lightly to clarify.

"Everything's easier when you're around. It has nothing to do with you being Dakota's social worker."

I wasn't even sure what to say to that.

Walker stood and held his hand out to me. "You ready to skate?"

"I haven't been since we were teens."

He grinned. "It will be just like riding a bike."

"Somehow I doubt that," I said as I rested my hand in his. Ice-skating was one of those things we had done together often. There weren't a lot of date-night opportunities besides the movie theater and getting ice cream. We alternated between the movie theater and the outdoor ice rink. Back then, there was one in town.

At the gate, Walker paused, searching the skaters for Dakota. She was making her way slowly around the edge with Allie looking more confident next to her. "Are you ready for this?"

"Not really." I took one tentative step, and then a second before I attempted to glide. After a few wobbles, we were moving.

"See, I told you it would be easy."

I met his gaze, marveling that I was holding Walker's hand, and we were ice-skating just like we had when we were dating. Then I wobbled again.

"Whoa there. Keep your eyes on the ice." He smirked as if he knew what I was thinking. That the years had only made Walker more attractive. He had a few extra lines on his face that told of the life he'd lived, and he'd filled out his clothes in a way he hadn't back then.

I refocused on the ice in front of my feet and concentrated on taking one step, then another, until we were gliding across the ice with a bit of speed.

We passed Dakota. Walker said, "I'd wave, but I think she's pretending she doesn't know me."

"Can you blame her? She's trying to make friends and fit in. Having an overprotective dad will cramp her style."

"What can you expect? I just found out I had a daughter. I'm a little scared; she'll be taken from me just as quick."

That confession made my heart contract. "It will be okay."

"I can't help but worry. That she won't make friends. That she'll fall into the wrong crowd. Get in too deep with a boy. The possibilities are endless and terrifying."

"Just take things one day at a time. I'm not sure she's super interested in boys yet. And she seems like the type of girl that would keep it a secret from her new dad. She's not going to confess her deepest thoughts and feelings yet. "

"She had no problem giving me advice the other day."

I stumbled slightly, then recovered. "What do you mean?"

"We were talking about my dating life, and she was engaged in the conversation."

"She wants you to date?" I asked him tentatively, my heart slowing to a soft thud.

"She seemed excited by the prospect. She said her mother felt guilty when she dated and wanted to focus on her. I think Dakota was feeling bad about that. As if it was her fault her mother never found anyone."

"That poor girl. She's got the weight of the world on her shoulders." I got the impression she felt a lot, and her mother's death was hard on her. But I didn't want her to blame herself for anything. She was just a kid. Her mom made her own decisions. Hopefully, that was something she'd explore in therapy.

It hadn't escaped my notice that Walker still held my hand. I could write it off as a way to steady me when I faltered, but it felt like more of a way to stay connected. Even if Walker wanted to rekindle our relationship, I didn't think it would last. Walker was different from any other man I'd ever met. He had the power to crush me, and I couldn't let him have that power again.

It had taken me a long time to recover after he left. I built a life I was proud of, and I couldn't fall back into an easy relationship that could end on a whim.

There was a voice in the back of my head that said he'd changed, that he didn't have a reason to leave. But there was always the chance that he'd decide to move to Virginia with Dakota. His daughter's happiness would always come first. I didn't blame him for that, but I could be smart about how much rein I gave my heart.

Walker had never been a good bet.