CHAPTER 7 #2
I steadied myself against the nearest tree, feeling the rough bark dig into my palm, and I watched them for a long moment.
Ruby whispered something, and Blaire’s head tipped back in laughter.
Ruby pressed closer to her, and the muscles in my jaw locked tight as I listened, taking another step forward.
“We should race!” Ruby giggled.
“You swim like a fish.” Blaire snorted as she tossed her hair over her shoulder. Her skin glistened as lake water trailed down her back, and I couldn’t stop myself from following the path with my eyes. “I don’t think I could ever beat you in a race.”
“That’s ’cause you’re scared!” Ruby laughed and splashed some water up at Blaire.
“Me? Scared?” Blaire made a show of clutching her chest. “I’ll have you know I was the queen of this lake before you were even born.” She gently kicked her legs back and forth, and I could see the way Ruby clung to her and soaked up every word she said.
“You were not.” Ruby laughed, her wet hair plastering against her sun-pinked cheeks.
Blaire gasped dramatically. “Excuse me? I definitely was. You can ask your dad. I used to outswim him all over this lake.”
The casual way she spoke about me caught me off guard.
“No way!” Ruby giggled so hard she had to cover her mouth with both wet hands.
“Way.” Blaire leaned down like she was sharing a secret between the two of them. “I don’t know if you know this or not, but your dad is a very sore loser.”
Ruby’s smile dropped the tiniest bit, the corners of her mouth tightening. “Is that why y’all aren’t friends anymore?”
Blaire’s spine straightened as she shifted. “I didn’t say we weren’t friends.”
“You said not exactly.” Ruby tilted her head, her eyes narrowing as if she were trying to make sense of what they were saying.
“You’re awfully smart for a five-year-old.” Blaire’s voice softened as she reached forward and pressed her finger to the tip of Ruby’s nose. “Has anyone ever told you that?”
Ruby grinned up at her, and it was too much, the way her eyes lit up, the way Blaire was looking down at her. I pushed away from the rough bark, moving closer to the water’s edge, and made my presence known as I cleared my throat.
Ruby spotted me first, her eyes widening before a smile took over her face. “Daddy!”
She released her grip on Blaire’s legs and kicked through the water toward the ladder, hauling herself up from the lake as the wooden planks creaked under my boots.
She barreled into me, water dripping down her arms and legs as I bent to scoop her up.
Her little arms looped around my neck, and I clamped my eyes closed as I breathed her in.
“You okay?” I asked before I lifted the hem of my T-shirt and dried off her face.
“Yes!” She giggled and tried to pull her face out of my reach. “Blaire taught me how to do a backflip underwater, and we counted all the minnows!”
I crouched down so I was eye level with her, brushing wet hair back out of her eyes, but my gaze caught on Blaire behind her.
She was standing now, water trailing down the curve of her thigh from the hem of her bathing suit. The sunlight worshipped her fair skin, stealing the air from my lungs.
Our eyes locked and something passed between us, an old dangerous current I’d spent years trying to forget.
She held my gaze as she reached for her T-shirt, and I watched, unable to look away, as she pulled it down over her breasts, the now damp fabric clinging to every contour before settling against her stomach.
“We had fun, Daddy.” Ruby twisted in my arms to point back at Blaire. “We’re friends now!”
“I saw.” The words scraped out of my throat, giving away more than I wanted to.
“But she’s not your friend.” The words fell from Ruby’s lips so easily, and I cocked a brow at Blaire.
“Ruby!” Blaire hissed out a laugh, but her smile faltered as something flickered across her face.
I couldn’t tell if it was guilt or hesitation, but her cheeks flushed pink as she shifted her weight to one hip, arms crossing as if she could shield herself from me.
“That’s not…I never said…” Blaire’s words tumbled over each other as she took a step forward on the dock.
“Look, June was supposed to call when she needed Ruby back at the house. I didn’t mean to?—”
“It’s okay,” I cut in, forcing my tone to steady, like I wasn’t unraveling from the inside out. “Ruby’s been asking to go swimming all week. Thank you for taking her.”
I raked a hand through Ruby’s wet hair, the fine strands knotting around my fingers, as I tried to ignore the way Blaire’s attention raked over me.
I steadied Ruby on her feet before I stood, running my hands over my jeans.
“It was nothing.” She gestured to Ruby, who was glancing back and forth between the two of us. “She’s so sweet, and she got me out of work at June’s.”
She laughed softly, and I joined in despite myself. “She is really good at getting out of work.”
Ruby stuck her tongue out at me, and I reached for her, making her squeal as I lifted her back into my arms. My fingers found the ticklish spot beneath her ribs, and her laughter erupted around us, and she cried out, “Daddy, stop!”
I heard Blaire’s breath hitch, and I looked back over at her to find her hands twisted in the hem of her shirt, wringing it tighter and tighter until her knuckles paled.
Her tongue darted over her bottom lip, and she looked like she wanted to say a hundred different things but couldn’t settle on one.
Ruby squirmed down from my arms, moving to Blaire’s side, and she grabbed her hand before Blaire could stop her. “Daddy, can Blaire come to Sunday dinner tomorrow?”
Blaire’s lips parted, and she looked completely caught off guard. “Oh, I couldn’t.” Her hand tightened around Ruby’s. “That’s family time.”
Ruby turned her eyes on Blaire then back to me. “Grandma June comes every Sunday,” Ruby said, looking up at Blaire like this was the most obvious fact in the world, and maybe to her, it was. “She always brings dessert.”
Blaire’s eyes darted up to me before she looked back at Ruby. “Ruby, I’m not sure?—”
“She’s right,” I confirmed. I ran my tongue along the back of my teeth as Blaire’s gaze snapped back to mine with a scowl. “June never misses a Sunday.”
“You have to come,” Ruby insisted, tugging at her hand until Blaire gave in and crouched beside her on the dock, their fingers linked. “Please?”
I should’ve told Ruby to quit pestering Blaire about it, but I couldn’t get the words out.
Not when Blaire’s smile was so small and uncertain as she looked at my daughter.
I could see her weighing her words, the careful calculation behind her eyes as she searched for the gentlest way to let Ruby down.
“Come to dinner, Blaire.” I offered her a smile even as I shifted on my feet. “Mom makes enough food to feed an army, and both she and Dad haven’t stopped asking about you ever since they heard you were back.”
“I got back yesterday.” A laugh escaped her.
“Trust me, I’m well aware.” The words were sharper than I intended. “Did you forget how small towns worked? Half the county probably had a group chat the minute you crossed the county line.”
Blaire’s throat bobbed before she asked, “But not you?”
“No.” I barked out a laugh, dragging my palm across the back of my neck. “Apparently, they saved that particular bombshell for you to deliver on your own last night.”
She snorted softly, but her eyes flitted away from mine.
“Blaire, please come,” Ruby begged, tugging on her hand again. “I want to have fun.”
“Ouch.” I clutched at my chest, rubbing my hand over my heart, but they were both ignoring me, eyes fixed on each other.
Blaire studied Ruby for a long moment, and I braced myself for her rejection. Ruby would be upset, but we’d survive it just like we did when her mom left.
“All right.” Blaire nodded, shocking the shit out of me. “Only because I can’t have you hanging out with your lame dad all the time, but you have to promise you’ll paint my nails like we talked about.”
She extended her pinkie finger, and Ruby didn’t hesitate. She locked pinkies with Blaire, and both of them smiled. “I promise!”
My normally guarded girl looked up at Blaire like she was half in love with her already, and something twisted in my chest. It was part joy at seeing her open up, part instinct to shield her from what might come.
Ruby had already weathered more storms than any five-year-old should, and I’d be damned if I let another one roll in on my watch.