Chapter 11 Dakota
DAKOTA
He’s here.
I try to ignore that giddy, bubbly feeling in my chest as I watch his truck pull up into the drive. This is ridiculous.
I’m almost thirty years old, and I’m—what? Crushing on a guy?
This is so stupid.
But when he climbs out of his truck and raises a hand to give me the slightest wave, the smirk on his face a little crooked—yeah, I’m crushing.
Crushing hard.
On a straight, single father.
Fantastic, Dakota.
I try to keep my cool as I make my way over to his truck while he pulls some materials from the back.
The greenhouse is almost finished. All that’s left is putting soil into the beds, and he said he’d gladly help plant some things with me.
But there’s no way he won’t be finished with everything on Monday.
If he doesn’t finish it all up today.
“Do you install firepits?” I blurt out, my voice a little too loud, and of course, it startles him at first. What the hell kind of greeting was that? “I mean . . . hi.”
His smile is soft and sweet, looking pretty amused by my bumbling brain.
“Hi.” He closes the tailgate and heads over toward the greenhouse, with me following him like a little lost puppy.
“We do install firepits. And it would be an easy enough job to do by myself.” His smile grows.
“But I won’t say no to a little help if you want to.
” The wink that accompanies his words nearly sends me to my knees.
Yup. I have a crush.
He didn’t say he was straight though, to be fair, and well, I think my brain held onto the whole I’m not really sure what I am part when we had that conversation. It would be an asshole move to assume he’s straight solely because he was married to a woman.
“It’s not like I have any friends or anyone to invite over to use a firepit . . .” I muse as he gets to work. I realize how pathetic I sound, but Gabe doesn’t even give me the chance to feel embarrassed.
“Hey, you let me build you a firepit, and I can bring plenty of friends by to enjoy it.”
Does he sound excited about another project here? Is he as desperate as I am to spend more time together? Am I so desperate to spend time with him that I’m willing to invite other people over to my house?
Big strong, landscaper types . . . but maybe they’re like Gabe too. He’s a good man. I’m starting to really believe that, and I don’t think he’d be friends with bullies. And according to him, they’re all either gay, bi or pan . . .
He’s told me a little bit here and there about his friends at Oakley’s Crew, and they all sound like okay people.
Just the thought of any people here at my house—my safe space—makes my skin crawl a little.
But it’s safe to say I’m pretty damn desperate at this point to see Gabe more.
“Um . . . maybe?” I say it like a question, my voice cracking a little bit. “Do they all look like you?”
“Hell no,” he says with a grin. “All of them are butt ugly.” He winks at me again and then turns away from me to work, and I snort a laugh.
But it settles something deep inside me, being able to joke around with him. I think I trust him. “How long would a firepit take?” I ask, looking around the property and trying to find other places for him to landscape.
Hell, maybe I could use a pool. I don’t really like to swim, but for Gabe? Yeah, maybe I would.
Hot tub? I saw some pretty cool ones on their website.
“Oh, a few days,” he says, and while I’ll take it, a few days just isn’t enough. Yup, I’m going to have to look at those hot tubs.
He said he’d bring his friends over, like he’s planning to hang out after this. But surely he’s just being polite or joking around. I highly doubt he’s as infatuated with me as I seem to be with him.
This is bordering on creepy territory.
“How’s Mavis doing, by the way?” he asks, and it warms my cold heart into mush even more.
“She’s still waddling around here, but she’s been pretty affectionate lately. Forcing me to pet her even more than usual.”
“Ah, won’t be long then.”
“That’s a thing?”
He nods. “Oh yeah. The mama cats always got super needy and affectionate before they had their kittens. It was always a sign.”
I smile at that, and sure enough—I’m not sure she heard her name or not—but Mavis waddles her way over to us and starts to rub against my legs and then Gabe’s, going back and forth as we both take turns scratching her little ears.
“I hope the weather will cooperate and it stays warm. I don’t want her kittens being too cold.”
“Don’t worry. Cats are pretty resilient, and she’s used to living outside. She’ll take care of them.”
“As far as I know, she’s a first-time mom,” I say, worried as I lean down and pick her up, being cautious of her rounded belly. She just purrs loudly and butts her head up against my face.
“She’ll be okay,” he says fondly, scratching her ears as she demands pets and then that I set her back down—which I do very, very gently.
I can feel him watching me, but he doesn’t say anything. Doesn’t tell me I’m being ridiculous. Or that I need to stop fussing so much over the animal. I know my parents would be scolding me if they saw—telling me to stop acting so prissy. That means don’t fuss.
I shudder a little at the thought of my parents, and I know Gabe doesn’t miss it. He’s about to open his mouth to ask if I’m okay. I just know it, so I try my best to distract him. “Do you have any pets?”
He’s slow to answer, like he still wants to ask about the moment, but thankfully, he lets it pass. “I don’t. I wouldn’t mind a dog or some cats, but I live in town, and the house is pretty small.”
I frown because it just doesn’t seem like he’s too happy about that. “Not where you want to be?” I ask boldly.
He shrugs, but I don’t miss how his whole demeanor has changed since talking about his living situation, starting to pour soil into one of the beds and smoothing it out. “It’s close to my daughter and to the old house I used to live in with her.”
“Ah, the wife got the house,” I observe.
“I made sure the wife got the house.” He doesn’t sound defensive, and I’m glad for that, but it also sounds like he needs me to know the difference.
I’m not surprised at all. Gabe has a big heart.
Of course he would leave the house to his wife and daughter and move somewhere close—which apparently, he doesn’t love.
“Could you find something that’s still close that you actually want to live in?” I ask, and yes, I’m being nosey. But the thought of him being unhappy doesn’t sit right with me.
“I always wanted to move out into the country.” His smile is a little shy as his eyes sweep around my property. “Something like this, actually.”
My heart flutters in my chest violently. “Like this?” My mouth has gone totally dry, and my mind has flown way off track, picturing Gabe living here. Would he want to get more animals? Would he want a hot tub? What could we get up to in that hot tub?
And . . . I really need to stop this.
“Yeah,” he goes on, oblivious to the storm he’s brewed in my mind. “It’s nice out here. Quiet and comfortable.”
I hear almost a longing in his voice, but for once, I manage not to comment on it, and we just go about the day. We nearly finish the greenhouse, but just before he leaves, we go over plans for a pretty extravagant firepit he said will actually take him about a week.
It’s stupid how happy I am about that fact.