Chapter 27
Reed
The car ride was a mix of Kidz Bop and five-year-old chatter.
Who knew there was so much kindergarten gossip?
Apparently, Chase liked to pretend he didn’t have lunch so he could get a Lunchables from Cici’s fridge, and then he’d only drink the juice and eat the M nothing had been touched, nothing changed.
And yet, I was able to enjoy the story and solace Cici brought into the space.
I’d been able to rest my head while listening to her soft voice as she read.
Enjoyed the comfort of Abi’s little foot under my leg, curling and rubbing against my knee.
It was the first time I’d been able to take a restorative breath since I stepped off the cruise ship.
Then I let myself drift back to months ago, glimpses of flowing caramel hair and linked hands.
I nearly choked on a breath thinking about the exhilaration of having Cici beside me parasailing, squealing, laughing, taking it all with me.
And here we were, seated together again.
But this time, the idea of a child-led ice cream date was somehow far more thrilling than being five hundred feet above the ocean.
After about thirty-five minutes, we pulled into the Sprinkles Ice Cream and Trinkets parking lot, and the sight of the cottage gripped my chest a little.
Caroline brought me here a few times before when Abi was just toddling around.
Even though Abi threw up on the way home, and they were out of my favorite ice cream flavor, it was still a great day that was forever stuck in my memory.
Time with my sister, chatting, laughing, and watching her be a mother, was always special to me.
As I parked, Abi’s feet kicked happily behind me in her booster seat, and a sound I could only describe as a young banshee cry left her lips. I couldn’t unbuckle her fast enough.
The shop’s smell was a mouthwatering mix of waffle, vanilla, and a hint of nostalgia. Abi bounced in line, with two people ahead of us. Cici moved closer, adding a wisp of something sweet to the air. She whispered, “What is it about cute little ice cream shops that just feels a little magical?”
I turned to Abi as she stood on her tiptoes to look at the ice cream cases.
She looked like she was about to explode with giddiness.
When it was finally our turn to order, Abi gripped her hands on the edge of the counter and jumped as she enunciated every word.
“Chocolate.” Jump. “Chip.” Jump. “Plus sprinkles.” Jump.
“And whipped cream.” Jump. “And a cherry.” She paused, then jumped once more. “Please!”
This was a girl who knew what she wanted. Just like her mom. The thought made me smile. She had probably enjoyed this ice cream concoction many times with Caroline, and her anticipation made all the more sense. Memories with taste were a special type of callback.
We took our ice cream to a picnic bench outside.
The air was a little breezy, but the spot we chose let the sun peek through two trees.
Abi and Cici sat across from me, happily eating their ice cream cones.
Abi talked Cici’s ear off, and I listened, exhausted and drowsy from the sun.
My eyes zeroed in on the ice cream cone getting all the attention I wish I had.
The way Cici sucked and licked at her strawberry ice cream, lapping up drops that were melting, nibbling and sucking on the strawberry pieces, licking around the cone, gathering all the creamy goodness on her tongue. Fuck.
A visit to the ice cream shop had never been hotter. I had to shift on the bench and avert my eyes to avoid a straight-up bo—
“Uncle Reed.”
And, gone.
The interruption of my niece cleared up the dirty thoughts playing in my head and hardening in my pants. No wonder they said time with children was the ultimate birth control.
“What flavor did you get? It looks like boogers.”
“Well, Abigail Elizabeth Marsh.” I sat up, ready to school this kid. “I got the best flavor that ever existed. It’s like a rare antique that you can only find in the most treasured of places.”
She squinted, eyeballing the ice cream cone. “It doesn’t look like it’s the best. It’s got weird green things in it.” She wasn’t wrong.
I stared down at my cone, then took a hearty bite and gave my niece a goofy grin. “Don’t let the color fool you. Pistachio is, undeniably, the best flavor that ever existed.”
Deep in conflict, she rumpled her nose, and I dipped my cone toward her, offering her a taste. “Do you want to try it?”
She twisted her lips back and forth. To taste or not to taste.
Then she dove in, right as I brought the cone to her.
The creamy green smashed into her face, but she seemed unaffected by the mess.
A dollop hit her lip, and she wiggled her tongue around it.
Her eyes widened, and for a moment, I thought I’d have to go buy her a double scoop just like mine.
But then her lips formed into a pout. Not the kind I saw so often when she was struggling with all the hurt she was processing.
No. A legit disgusted pout. She made a dramatic exit from the bench, her tongue hanging out as she moaned, “Ew, napkin, napkin.”
Cici giggled from across the bench, and I launched at her. “Wanna try, Little Miss Strawberry over there?”
She shook her head. “No, thanks, I’ll keep my germs to myself.”
Something came over me, seeing her there with the sun casting on her hair, brightening the hint of a blush on her cheeks and twinkling the highlights in her hair. The flirtatious person stuffed deep down inside me made his appearance. “Last time I checked, I didn’t mind your germs.”
Fuck, I shouldn’t have said that. I knew I was skating on thin ice, provoking her, flirting, reminding her of the heat between us, but I couldn’t resist. Something about Cici pulled it out of me.
It wasn’t fair to either of us for me to constantly remind her of our chemistry.
Her body language, her sounds, showed me I could still create a reaction.
And I lived for those. Pinkened cheeks, smirks, lip bites, fluttering eyelashes, fumbling words, sighs she probably thought I couldn’t hear.
Abi came running back, an armful of napkins hugged against her. Half of them blew away, and she huffed as she set what was left of them on the table. “I can’t take you anywhere, Uncle Reed!” The way she said it reminded me so much of her mother.
Before I could distract her and try to get to the car, Abi pulled on Cici’s arm, heading back to the shop. “Now trinkets!” Her voice was filled with so much delight that guilt pricked at my conscience for hoping to get out of this part of her ice cream trip tradition.
Cici smiled down at Abi and, not a bit begrudgingly, was escorted into the trinket shop.
I stayed a little bit behind, enjoying the sight.
Abi had more happiness emanating from her than I’d seen in a long time.
And Cici, so patient, loving, and, god, beautiful.
This level of adoration was bordering on dangerous.
Admiring her assets—her luscious curves, delicious lips—was one thing.
But reveling in the light and goodness she brought to me and Abi, that was more than I should allow to enter our world. My heart. Abi’s heart.
I gave my head a little shake. Get it together, Reed. No more flirting. No more trying to turn her red with sexual innuendo. Time to do my part and tamp down the chemistry.
When I stepped into the shop, Cici and Abi were already whispering and giggling in a nearby aisle.
I started down another, glancing at the shelves of novelty Pez dispensers and novelty candies.
The sight of the salt water taffy, the wrappers twisted closed on each side, made me smile.
It brought back memories of trips our family took to the ocean before my dad passed.
While we didn’t necessarily feast on sweets in my house, we always, always went into the candy shop and picked up salt water taffy, a bag for each of us.
I’d scoop mine to the brim with every color, even the ones I had never tried.
Mom filled her bag halfway with peppermint and vanilla, a mixture of creamy white and swirly red and pink.
Dad would steal a handful of Mom’s. And Caroline would cram as many mango pieces as she could into her bag and would “sample” them as she stuffed them.
The sound of Abi and Cici snickering, enjoying themselves nearby, was like the perfect melody to soothe my soul. I turned the corner and was greeted by two goofy faces. Both donned sunglasses with a big nose and mustache.
“Oh, hey strangers. Have you seen two ice cream princesses? One short and one tall?” With amazing curves, hips I want to grab, and a smile I want to kiss each time I see it.
A hiccup escaped Abi, and then a squeal.
She hopped up and down and then sprang down the aisle.
“I have to potty! I have to potty,” she announced as she ran to the restroom.
I watched, keeping the door in my line of sight.
The public bathroom situation was always weird for me.
I peeked back over to Cici, and her eyes were glued toward where Abi had disappeared as well.
A brief stare at her silhouette stirred something inside me, and I acted on that feeling before my mind even processed what my body insisted on.
Taking a step forward, I faced her and gazed past the obnoxious fake nose into her beautiful brown orbs. Her lips moved under the fuzzy mustache, and my focus darted to them.
I gently removed the glasses from her face, holding her gaze long enough to watch the pink cover her cheeks in that adorable way that fucking knocked my heart around.
I leaned in, my lips barely grazing hers, but with enough contact for a melting sensation to move down my body.
Her breath against my mouth sent a shock through me.
I could kiss her again, right here, right now.
I practically already was. And as I contemplated how I got to this point, a nibble on my lower lip and then the touch of a smile drew my attention.
She made the first move this time, her lips playing with mine.
I pulled back, wanting to see what I felt against my lips—wanting to see that she knew what she was doing and hadn’t accidentally fallen into my face.
Her eyes were glazed over and shining, reading both playful and thoughtful. I looked back down to her lips, ready to dive in this time. Done playing. If she was going to give me an inch, I would take a mile. Giving her T-shirt a little tug, I pulled her close. Ready to devour.
But a tap at my waist and a little whimper immediately froze the lust flooding my body. “Uncle Reed.” Sniffle. Sniffle.
I released Cici’s shirt, closed my eyes, and exhaled. Then turned around to find my niece. Her shoulders were slumped, and her arms were pulled in front of her body. Her face was tear-stained as she looked up to me, sobbing, “I had an accident.”
Okay. Shit. She’d wet the bed before. And that wasn’t much of a production. Switch bedding. Load of laundry. No biggie. But it’d never happened in public. I pressed my lips together, trying to look like a chill parental who totally knew what the fuck to do.
Cici knelt in front of Abi and held her shoulder. In a whisper, she told her, “I know you feel embarrassed, but your princess dress doesn’t show anything. No one knows. Okay?”
Abi sniffled again but nodded.
“And accidents happen, even to big girls, even to princesses.” Sniffle. Nod. “We passed an aisle that had some clothing. Want me to send your uncle on a covert mission to see if there is something there you could wear?”
With yet another sniffle and nod, I knew my orders. I found the aisle that had novelty shirts with vintage logos and quotes from old movies, grabbed a black Nirvana shirt, the smallest I could find, added hot-pink sweatpants to my pile, and headed to the register.
Out of the corner of my eye, the bright colors of the wall of taffy flavors caught my eye. Circling back, I grabbed a Nirvana shirt for myself and a bag of mango taffy, filled to the brim.