Burning the Midnight Oil: A Single Dad Small Town Romance

Chapter 1

If I had to guess, I’d say it’s too damn early to be awake right now. My eyes burn and my body feels heavy, but I know without even cracking an eyelid, the sun is pouring in through the blinds. Grumbling and silently cursing the gods for being awake already, I roll onto my side, wanting to bury my face into the pillow and will myself back to sleep. Except when I roll over and swipe an arm across the bed, it’s a tiny body I find instead.

Giggles erupt in the otherwise quiet room. “Morning, Uncle Grady.” The small, cheerful voice comes from right beside my head, sounding way too perky for how early I’m sure it is.

Peeling an eye open, I glance over at my four-year-old niece, her blonde bouncy curls falling over her shoulders messily, chocolate brown eyes staring down at me, with a wide grin aimed at me. She’s wearing her usual Disney princess pajamas—today, it’s an Elsa nightgown—and she’s got a tablet in her lap and her back pressed against my headboard.

“Morning, Suzy Q,” I reply, voice thick and raspy from sleep. “Where’s your mama?”

“Downstairs cleaning.”

“And you aren’t helping her?” I mock, appalled.

“I put my cereal bowl in the dishwasher,” she offers with a shrug.

“What a helpful girl you are.”

“I know.” Suzy giggles. “Can you please take me to the pool today?”

Scrubbing a hand over my face, I sit up, reaching for my phone on the nightstand. “What time is it?”

“I don’t know.”

I groan when the screen lights up and I see it’s barely after eight in the morning. “Child, it’s too damn early to be awake.”

“You’re not supposed to say damn, Uncle Grady.”

With a snort, I toss my legs over the side of the bed and stand up. “Yeah, neither are you.”

“Where are you going?”

“The bathroom and then downstairs to talk to your mom.”

It’s been about three weeks since I left Bishop-Presley University for summer break. About a week before my classes ended for the semester, I called my sister last minute, asking if I could come spend the summer in our hometown, Copper Lake, with her and my niece. The original plan was to stay on campus because going home seemed like too much trouble, but the more that plan set in, the more I realized there is nothing I wanted less than to stay in Colorado, in my dorm room, for the entire summer. Especially because there isn’t a single part of me that wants to return in the fall when classes resume.

Nobody knows that, though. Not even my sister. She probably wouldn’t have let me come stay with her had she known. Hell, the only reason she probably even said yes was because her husband is gone during the summer for the rodeo, and she knew I could help with her daughter. Boone Stanton is a big, famous professional bull rider—emphasis on the big—and he travels four or five months out of the year for that. Jade, my sister, usually travels with him, so I was surprised to find her home at all.

After washing and drying my hands, I pull open the door to the bathroom and find Mabel, my sister’s chocolate lab puppy, waiting for me. She’s only six or seven months old, and come to think about it, she could be the reason my sister decided to stay home instead of traveling with Boone the way she normally does. I’d imagine it would be a pain in the ass traveling so frequently with a puppy.

“Hi, pretty girl.” Her tail wags at the sound of my voice, and she prances in place like she’s so excited she can’t contain herself. Throwing a quick glance toward the bedroom I’m occupying, I spot the empty bed. Suzy must’ve already gone to find her mom.

Meandering down the stairs, I rake my fingers through my hair, wincing when I snag on a knot. I need to take a shower and take a brush to my hair, but it’s too damn early for that. My sister and Boone’s house is nice, the space open and airy. It was built for them, but it resembles old farm style homes. The bottom of the staircase opens up into the living room, which has a wall of windows that overlooks their spacious backyard. I’m not sure how many acres they live on, but it’s a lot.

White leather furniture fills the large room—which seems like a ballsy color choice to have with a small child and a puppy, but what do I know—with various throw blankets and pillows laid everywhere. An all-black rocking chair that’s only big enough for a child sits beside the couch. If I’m not mistaken, I believe Boone made that himself when Jade was pregnant with Suzy. A small Little Mermaid blanket is thrown over one of the tiny arms to the chair. There’s a fireplace on the wall straight ahead, sitting below a huge flat-screen TV mounted on the wall, and on either side of the fireplace are cream-colored wicker baskets; one that holds toys for Suzy, the other with toys for Mabel.

Padding across the space, the hardwood beneath my feet is cold, and I wish I’d slipped some socks on before I came down here. The dining room is on the other side of the wall that the fireplace is on, which leads right to the open-concept kitchen that my sister is currently occupying. She’s standing in front of the sink, the water running as she places dishes into the open dishwasher beside her. Suzy is now sitting at the bar, a bowl of mixed fruit in front of her as she watches whatever cartoon is playing on her tablet. Jade is pretty strict about tablet time during the day. She likes Suzy to play outside and run off some of the energy she carries inside of her, but morning times, I’ve noticed she lets her watch a show or two while they get ready for the day.

“Morning,” I mutter as I grab a glass out of the cabinet and fill it up with water from the door of the fridge. Even though I know this water comes directly from the tap, it’s still superior to sink water. Nobody can convince me otherwise.

Jade glances at me over her shoulder before returning her attention to the dishes again. “You’re up early.”

I snort. “Yeah, ask little miss Suzy Q about that.”

Suzy giggles.

“Got any plans today?” Jade asks.

“Yeah, actually.” I take a seat beside Suzy, plucking a strawberry out of her bowl before popping it into my mouth. Her brow furrows as she glares at me. “I’m heading down to the arena this afternoon to meet my buddy, Benji’s, sister about a photography gig.”

Jade turns off the water, grabbing a towel and drying her hands as she turns and rests her backside against the counter, meeting my gaze. “Hannah?”

“Yeah.”

“What kind of photography gig?”

“That yearly festival…” I snap my fingers while I try to place the name that’s clearly not coming to me.

“Stampede Days,” Jade finishes for me.

“That’s the one. They need a couple photographers to work that event.”

Photography has been something I’ve enjoyed since I was a teenager. My parents got me my first camera for Christmas in middle school, and I immediately found it fascinating. Getting to show people how I see the world feels special. Finding simple and otherwise ordinary things and bringing them to life, showing off their beauty, is something that brings me great joy.

For as long as I can remember, it’s something I’ve wanted to make a career out of, but never felt like I could. After years and years of my dad drilling it into my head the importance of having a real job—his words, not mine—that’s stable and reliable, and having him point out time and time again that “taking pictures for a living” is anything but, I kind of just gave up the dream. The passion never left, though; it burns inside of me.

I spent a lot of this year at college really thinking about what I wanted with my life. Where I wanted it to go. The closer I get to my senior year, the more dread fills me. I’ve never wanted to pursue a career in the field I’m going to school for. It was always something meant to appease my dad. Make him proud of me. But the more time that goes on, the more I realize I don’t want to live a life appeasing anybody. The idea of finishing out my degree sounds about as appealing as swallowing shards of glass.

Photography is what I want to do. It’s my passion. It brings me a sense of fulfillment. And I think I owe it to myself to at least try to see if I can make a solid career out of it. If I can’t, then at least I gave it my best efforts. This gig at Stampede Days pays, and I took several photography jobs while at school, so I have enough saved up. And besides, life isn’t always about making the most money. Sure, money is great, and I’d love to have enough of it to where I won’t have to worry. But happiness matters too. Doing something that fills your cup.

“That’ll be fun,” Jade mutters as she takes a seat beside Suzy.

“When does Boone get home for the event?”

I don’t miss the way Jade tenses slightly at my question. Interesting. Wonder what that’s about.

“Sunday,” she replies, not meeting my gaze.

“He’ll be home for how long?”

“A week.”

“Daddy’s coming home?” Suzy asks, wide-eyed, with a smile plastered on her face.

Jade smiles down at her, the sight warm and loving, as she brushes a hand over Suzy’s head. “Yes, baby. Daddy will be home in a few days.”

“Are you excited to have him home?” I ask Jade.

Her eyes lift to meet mine, something passing through them I can’t place before she nods. “I’m excited Suzy will get to spend some time with him before he has to leave for the road again.”

“What about you?” I ask. “Any plans?”

“I’ve gotta bring Suzy to Mom and Dad’s in a few hours. They’re taking her for a couple nights. And then I’m meeting some friends for lunch.”

“That sounds fun.” Nudging Suzy with my elbow, I add, “Bet you’ll have fun with Grammie and Pop-Pop.”

She nods. “Pop-Pop told me we could have ice cream sundaes and watch Moana after dinner.”

“Hell yeah. That’ll be a fun time.”

“You’re not supposed to say hell,” Suzy says, causing Jade to glower at me from above her head.

“Yeah, well, neither are you, kid.”

Before my sister can rip me a new one for swearing again, her phone goes off, Boone’s name flashing on the screen. Instead of answering it herself, she hands it to Suzy. “Here, Daddy’s calling to talk to you before you go to Grammie’s.”

Suzy takes the phone and runs into the living room. I can faintly hear the gruff, deep sound of Boone’s voice filling the speakers when she finally answers.

“You don’t want to talk to him?” I ask Jade, feeling the need to press. Something doesn’t feel right. She seems off, and she has the entire time since I’ve been here.

She shrugs, getting off the bar stool and avoiding my gaze. “He’s only calling briefly to talk to Suzy. I don’t need to talk to him.”

I watch my sister for a moment, eyes narrowed. “Are you okay?”

Throwing me a look from across the kitchen, her eyebrows clash together like my question caught her off guard. “Yes, I’m fine.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes, Grady.” She blows out a heavy breath.

“Okay, but…you know you can talk to me, right? If you weren’t fine.”

“Why wouldn’t I be fine?”

Holding up my hands, I reply, “I’m just saying.”

Her eyes soften around the corners. “Well, thank you, but I’m?—”

“Fine,” I finish for her. “Yeah, you said that.”

Jade rolls her eyes and breathes out a laugh, flipping me off before leaving the kitchen.

I laugh too, but can’t help feeling like there’s something she’s not telling me.