29
A iva walked through the door of the three-bedroom suite behind an excited Yasmine. Knox bringing up the rear.
“This is so cool!” Yasmine exclaimed, and Aiva couldn’t help but smile at the child’s excitement. “Which room is mine?”
“You can choose whatever room you want, Yas,” Knox stated.
She skipped off with her Princess Tiana backpack to look at a bedroom. “I’ll take this one. Ms. Aiva, do you want the one beside me?”
“Sure, sweetie. We can unpack together,” Aiva answered with a smile.
“I guess that means I’m over here,” Knox stated, gesturing to the room on the other side of the suite.
“This is the girl’s side, and that’s the boy’s side,” Yasmine announced.
Aiva turned her attention to Knox. “I’ll help Yasmine unpack, and then we can start day one of fun.”
“You sure you don’t mind?” Knox asked.
“Not at all,” Aiva responded.
Knox carried Yasmine’s suitcase into her chosen room and placed it inside the door before he grabbed Aiva’s and put it inside the other room.
“Come on. Let’s get unpacked, and then we’ll get your dad to take us to lunch,” Aiva stated as she and Yasmine walked into her bedroom.
As they unpacked, Yasmine told her everything she wanted to see and the souvenirs she wanted to buy. Her excitement was palpable, and Aiva felt it wash over her. She’d been to Disney World once when she was younger, so it would be a lie if she said she wasn’t a little excited. She’d been glad when she realized she didn’t have anything she couldn’t push off or work on remotely at night during the week of the trip. That way, she could attend.
“It’s your turn now, Ms. Aiva,” Yasmine stated after they took her toiletry bag into the bathroom. She took Aiva’s hand and pulled her from the room to where Aiva would be staying. “What are you most excited about?”
Aiva unzipped her suitcase. “Seeing the characters. I thought we could take pictures with as many of them as possible and pictures of us having fun and make a vacation scrapbook when it’s over. What do you think, Yasmine?”
“That sounds like so much fun, and Ms. Aiva, you can call me Yas. I’m only ever called Yasmine when I’m in trouble.”
Aiva smiled at her. “Then I’m sure you don’t hear it often.”
“No, just sometimes.”
Aiva put her clothes away in the dresser, placed a few of the items she brought on hangers, and hung them in the closet. She stored her suitcase in the closet, and she and Yasmine returned to the living room, where Knox sat on the couch.
“Did you get everything all squared away?” he asked.
“We did. There’s a bathroom between our rooms, and I put Yas’ bath items in there.”
“Daddy, can we have lunch now? I’m hungry.”
“Sure, Yas. There are some themed restaurants. Let’s go to one of those.”
Aiva adjusted her cross-body, and the three left the hotel suite. Yasmine slid her hand into Aiva’s as they stepped onto the elevator. Knox told Yasmine she could push the button for the first floor, and she smiled brightly.
Aiva always found herself smiling when her younger siblings fell into childish wonder at that age. It was always a reminder of how small things could brighten someone’s day and that no one was more pure in excitement than a child. It was contagious, to say the least.
When the doors opened on the first floor, Yasmine asked Knox to pick her up since she’d been walking all day, to which he chuckled before doing so. He then took Aiva’s hand in his free one, and they walked to the front desk.
They were staying at the resort, so they had plenty to do when they weren’t taking in the park. The concierge service was a fountain of information. They got a few suggestions and a map with the locations circled. Each was within walking distance. They decided on the closest one and headed in that direction.
“What an adorable family,” a lady dressed as the fairy godmother stated when they entered the restaurant.
“Thank you!” Yasmine responded with a smile before Aiva or Knox could respond.
“Just the three of you?”
“Yes, ma’am,” Aiva responded, and they were led to a round booth.
Knox put Yasmine down, and she shimmied to the middle of the booth. Aiva sat on one side of her while Knox took the other side. They’d only looked over their menus a couple of minutes before a waitress dressed as a princess without the large skirt bottom stopped at their table.
“Hello, I’m Belle, and I’ll be your waitress. What can I get you to drink?”
“Can I have lemonade, please?” Yasmine requested.
“Of course,” Belle responded.
“I’ll take a sweet tea,” Aiva answered.
“I’ll have a Dr. Pepper,” Knox responded.
“I got it. I’ll be right back.”
In her absence, they continued to look over the menu, Yasmine asking them to help her with certain words. By the time she returned with their drinks, they were ready to order. When they were left alone again, Yasmine did the activity sheet that came with her menu.
“What are we going to do after we eat?” she asked, glancing between Aiva and her dad. Aiva looked at Knox because, as far as she knew, they had nothing significant planned for arrival day or the day before they left.
“We can check out some stores and go swimming when we get back to the hotel,” he answered, and that seemed to work for Yasmine if the enthusiastic nod she gave was any indication.
They enjoyed their lunch, and when they finished, they checked out a few different stores. Yasmine found souvenirs she wanted to get for her grandparents and Mia. She also wanted to find something for her uncles, who Aiva was told were friends of Knox, but couldn’t settle on anything. They had several days, and there were more shops to check out.
After an hour and a half, they returned to their suite to change for the pool.
K nox sat on a lounge chair, watching Aiva and Yasmine play in the pool. They’d rented a circular float, and Aiva was spinning Yasmine in it. There were many people at the pool, but not as many as he thought there would be. He assumed it was because there was a water park nearby. They had plans to visit it on their third day. He’d been playing with them but got out to order drinks for them. They sat beside him on the table, but he hadn’t called them out. They were having fun, and he didn’t want to stall it.
There was something about watching them together that pulled on his heartstrings—seeing them both excited and smiling. He couldn’t remember the last time he, Mia, and Yasmine had fun like this, but it was likely Yasmine’s third birthday.
Knox shook his head, ridding his thoughts of Mia. He was trying to stop the comparisons. His new relationship shouldn’t be compared to his last. Admittedly, he was having difficulty doing it, but he was trying.
He watched them play for a few more minutes, and Aiva looked over at him. Knox held up one of the drinks, and she turned and said something to Yasmine before pulling her in the float over to the stairs.
Aiva placed the float on the side of his lounge chair when they joined him. Knox found himself staring at her again momentarily. The same way he had when she’d stepped out of her bedroom wearing the olive-colored one-piece swimsuit. He was having a hard time keeping his eyes off of her, but he wasn’t the only one. He’d caught several other men staring.
She sat on the chair beside him, Yasmine joining her after taking her apple juice.
“We don’t have to leave right now, do we?” Yasmine asked, taking a drink of her juice.
“No, not yet,” Aiva responded. “We’re just taking a break.”
“Okay. Can we watch a movie tonight?” Yasmine asked, turning to him.
“Sure, kiddo. We can watch one after dinner before you go to bed.”
“Daddy said I don’t have a bedtime while we’re here, Ms. Aiva.”
“That is not what I said, Yas. I said you could stay up if you can stay up.”
“Yeah! That means no bedtime.”
Aiva chuckled before taking a drink of her lemonade. He figured she knew what he’d meant by that and thought it was cute. Yasmine thought it meant no bedtime at all. However, kids were simple. Most kids on a routine thought they could stay up late easily, but they typically fell asleep around the same time since their bodies were conditioned.
“No bedtime. You must be excited,” Aiva stated, and Yasmine nodded. “I think we should celebrate. Have dinner at six-thirty, and then watch your favorite movie.”
“Have you seen Moana, Ms. Aiva? It’s my favorite.”
“It’s one of my favorites, too,” Aiva responded.
“That means we can watch that one.”
“Sure thing, Yas,” Knox responded. He knew Aiva had suggested a slightly earlier dinner time because they both knew Yasmine would fall asleep.
They finished their drinks and waited a bit, to Yasmine’s dismay, before they got back into the pool to play in the water a little more.
K nox looked over at nine-thirty to find Yasmine asleep on Aiva’s lap, where she’d settled to watch the movie. He wasn’t sure when she’d fallen asleep, but it was only thirty minutes past her usual bedtime. They were forty-five minutes into the film. He’d insisted that Yasmine take her bath before they started it.
“I’ll put her in bed,” he stated, standing and taking her.
He took her into the bedroom, pulling the comforter back and laying her down. Knox covered her and kissed her forehead before leaving the room. He pulled the door, leaving it cracked.
“Now that she’s asleep, we can change the movie.” Knox retook his seat.
“What? You don’t want to see Te Fiti?” she teased.
“Well, Te Fiti’s nice, but…” he trailed off, taking her chin and turning her to look at him. “I like this view far better.’
He molded his lips to hers, and it felt far too long since he’d done so. Yes, he kissed her that morning when he’d picked her up before their flight, but that was over twelve hours ago.
Knox would never get enough of kissing her. Her plush lips against his, moving in sync with his. He knew it wasn’t physically possible, but her lips always tasted so sweet to him. He got lost when kissing her, and he enjoyed every second.
Their tongues danced slowly. His pushed, hers pulled. His swirled, hers countered. It was like a sensual flow, and Knox hadn’t realized how long he’d tasted her lips before he pulled her to lie on the couch, and he was hovering over her, his hand feathering up her stomach until she let out a soft moan. Her hands came up to his chest.
“Wait, wait,” she breathed against his lips. “We’re in a compromising position, and Yas is sleeping in the other room.”
She wasn’t wrong. Knox had somehow lost himself. He knew better than to get carried away with his daughter there.
“You’re right, and as much as I want to move this to my bedroom. I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
As much as he wanted her, he’d never had sex with his daughter nearby. At least, not since he and Mia separated, and she was younger then.
“I agree. Quiet has never been my strong suit during…” she admitted, trailing off.
Her admission had done nothing to calm him, but Knox liked the sound of it. He could only imagine the sound of her moans, and he couldn’t wait to hear them. He gave her one last kiss before moving off her.
“Why don’t we put in another movie that doesn’t include Disney characters since that’s what we’ll be getting a majority of while we’re here,” he stated, helping her sit up.
Aiva laughed. “You aren’t wrong about that. But I’m good with anything that isn’t—”
“A cheesy romance,” he cut in with a smirk.
“Right.”
“Why don’t you choose, baby?”
“I think a comedy would be safe to watch. That way, if Yas wakes up, it isn’t some macabre image on the screen.”
She leaned into his side as she flipped through the different movies, and Knox couldn’t help but smile at her consideration for his daughter.