Chapter 15
CHAD
There’s a checklist of all the things I manage not to do during dinner, and I should get a star sticker for every one of them.
Slide my arm around Ivy’s back and scoot her chair closer to mine.
Slide my hand into hers.
Stare at her.
Kiss her on the forehead.
Kiss her on the cheeks.
Kiss the back of her neck.
Kiss her lips.
I’m as committed as ever to protecting the girls, but it’s very difficult to stick to my guns with Ivy sitting next to me, blue eyes bright, lips smiling, cheeks pink and pretty much irresistible.
When she just says, “Oops,” after Scarlett spills red juice down the front of Ivy’s pants, it’s hard not to lean in close, put my lips against her ear, and whisper a thank-you that she didn’t overreact.
When she pulls Zoey into her lap during dessert and shares a piece of pie with her, I have to focus on my own slice of peanut butter pie so I don’t get up and wrap my arms around them both from behind.
It’s insane to think about proposing to a girl after two days so you can kiss her in front of your kids, right?
Right. It really is.
“We’re switching cars,” Carlie says to me after we’ve all helped clean up and it’s time to get the girls to bed. “I’ll take the girls back to the hotel and get them settled.”
“Carlie,” Ivy says, shaking her head. “You’ve barely had any alone time with Law since you got here.”
She holds out her hand to me, ignoring Ivy. “Gimme,” she says. “I’m going back to Houston with Law tomorrow. Ivy’s going back to Nashville.”
I pull the keys from my pocket and hand them quickly to Carlie, but the weight in my stomach isn’t just that I had forgotten we have to do this long distance. Ivy doesn’t even have a real cast on her foot yet, and she’s going home alone.
“Do you have someone in Nashville to take care of you?” I ask after Carlie has handed me her keys.
Carlie raises an eyebrow at me knowingly before she crouches down to help Scarlett into her coat. I ignore her.
“It’s just crutches,” Ivy says. “I’ll be fine.”
I nod. “Probably. But you can do your job anywhere, right?” I point out. She squints at me. “You could come to Houston for a couple weeks and stay with Law so we can all help you.”
Law snorts as he lifts an already tired Zoey into his arms. “Yeah, Ivy. You need us all to take care of you.”
“I can take care of Ivy!” Scarlett cries, clapping her hands.
“Me too!” Zoey bounces in Law’s arms.
“So can I!” Law joins in with a bright voice. “How about you, Chad?”
If he wasn’t holding my girls, I’d punch him in the stomach. I ignore what he’s insinuating and turn to Ivy instead. “I’d love to help take care of you.”
She chews on her bottom lip. Add another thing to my checklist: not kissing Ivy in front of the girls when she’s being completely irresistible.
“I only brought clothes for a few days,” Ivy says, but her tone sounds more like do you really want me to stay than it’s not really feasible. At least, that’s what I choose to believe.
“You’re going to be taking it easy,” Carlie says, leaning in next to Law. “You won’t need much, and you can borrow some stuff from me.”
Ivy bites her lip again.
“You have to stop doing that,” I say in a low groan. Ivy’s cheeks go pink, and she immediately releases her full bottom lip.
It actually doesn’t help at all.
“Let’s go, girls. It’s getting late,” Carlie says, her voice filled with laughter. She nudges Law. He wiggles his eyebrows at me and follows his girlfriend out the door.
“Do you really want me to come to Houston?” Ivy asks when the door has closed behind them.
“Definitely,” I say distractedly. I peer out one of the skinny windows flanking the front door.
“It just … seems kind of crazy. Like maybe you should take a second without the rush of these last couple days and make sure—”
The girls are safely buckled. I silence Ivy by taking her hips and backing her up against the door. Then I kiss that tempting, irresistible bottom lip. Then the top lip. Then I kiss her for several more seconds to make sure all of her lips have been thoroughly kissed again.
“Ivy.” I eye her sternly when I’ve pulled away a few inches. “I barely lasted through dinner without doing that a million times. Don’t go back to Nashville yet.”
“Hmmm,” she says, cocking her head to one side and then biting her bottom lip again. Her lips are pulled up teasingly, and it makes her twice as irresistible. “I don’t know, Chad,” she says with faux indecision. “I think I need more convincing.”
I take her crutches out from under her arms and set them aside. Then I scoop her up into my arms. I might like doing this a little too much, especially how Ivy gives a little breathless “oh” every time I do it.
“Hope Ava and Gabriella don’t mind if we monopolize the library for a little longer.”