Chapter 12
Chapter Twelve
Mila fixed scrambled eggs and bacon for the kids’ breakfast. She sipped on a cup of coffee and nibbled on a piece of toast. She thought back to how well last night’s dinner at Burger Barn had gone with Carson and Lily.
Carson was unlike any other guy she had ever gone out with.
She liked how he had not played any games, instead letting her know he was interested in a relationship with her, despite the formidable obstacle standing in their way.
The fact that he immediately went to bat for them with both her dad and HR let her know just how invested he was in seeing if they might have a future together.
Her cell rang, and she saw it was her mom calling. After she left admin yesterday, she had gone straight to Coastal Charm Boutique to let her mom know about the new man in her life. As she suspected, Dad had already phoned Mom and shared the good news.
She answered. “Hey, Mom. What’s up?”
“Just checking in to see how you and the kids are. And how last night went.”
“Bobby and Gina are having breakfast now, and we’ll head to the beach once they’re done.”
“You didn’t answer everything. What about your dinner with Carson and Lily?” Mom asked.
“Carson and Lily enjoyed Burger Barn, if that’s what you’re asking. After dinner, we went our separate ways, but we’re meeting them at the beach.”
“That sounds like fun,” Mom said brightly. “You’ll need some alone time with your new fellow, Mila.”
She laughed. “That’ll have to wait until Michael and Cec get home.”
“Why don’t you let us babysit the kids tonight? That way, you and Carson can have some adult conversation.”
“I appreciate the offer, but Carson would still need to find someone to watch Lily. I’m not sure how comfortable she’d be being left with someone new so soon after arriving here.”
“Well, she met us and seemed just fine. Your dad and I can come over to Michael’s and keep all three kids. Why, Lily could even spend the night. Then Carson wouldn’t have to wake her up to take her home.”
The idea appealed to Mila, so she said, “Let me talk to him and see if he would let Lily stay over. I’ll get back with you. Thanks for the offer, Mom.”
“Talk to you soon, honey.”
She thought a moment, not knowing where Lily might sleep, since Gina’s twin bed would only fit her. She supposed the girl could sleep with her, but that might make Gina or Bobby jealous. Mila decided to run things by Carson before she dealt with logistics.
She took the last sip of her coffee as the kids were finishing up breakfast and then loaded the dishes into the dishwasher and started it.
Last night, she had taken time to gather snacks for the beach and had put drinks for everyone in a cooler this morning.
Carson had said he would contribute peanut butter sandwiches for them all.
“Time to put on your swimsuits,” she told her niece and nephew. “And potty first.”
Mila placed things into Cecily’s car since it contained car seats for the kids.
She already wore her swimsuit underneath a T-shirt and pair of gym shorts.
She placed a bag with towels and sunscreen into the car, as well as one with beach toys.
She pulled on a ball cap and sunglasses and waited for the kids to appear.
They came downstairs and raced outside, and Mila buckled them into their car seats.
The trip to the beach took less than five minutes.
She had taken for granted growing up so close to the water and had missed it during college and her years in San Antonio.
Piper and Layne said the same thing, neither ever having time to get to the coast because of their busy jobs.
Thinking of Layne reminded her that she had forgotten to talk to Mom about Mrs. Larson and Layne’s concern that her mom was slightly off-kilter these days.
She typed a quick note into her phone to remember to do so.
She wanted to check in with Mrs. Larson before they had their next FaceTime chat.
That would certainly be an interesting call, with everything that had happened with her and Carson, as well as embarking on earning her master’s degree coursework.
They reached the parking lot by eight-thirty, and Carson pulled in right after she did, parking next to her.
The kids all squealed when they saw one another, and she told them to stay close while she unloaded the car.
Carson helped since he didn’t have as much as she did, taking the cooler and the duffel with the towels and sunscreen.
“Looks like it’s going to be a pretty day,” he said as they left the parking lot and hit the sand.
“Cec is very careful with the kids not getting too much sun at their age. That’s why I wanted to bring them early. The rays are just too intense from noon on.” She grinned. “Plus, it never hurts to tire them out early so they’ll sleep well tonight.”
They found a prime spot in the sand and set out a few of the towels.
Mila took the bottle of sunscreen and shook it, spraying Gina and then Bobby’s legs before squirting some into her hand and smearing it on their faces.
Their swimsuits covered their trunks and arms and continued a high SPF factor, something very different than what she had worn at their age.
She put Gina’s sun hat on her head and tied the strings under her chin.
“I think I like that spray a lot better than the lotion I brought. It takes forever to coat Lily in it.”
“I’ll spray her. Come over here, Lily.”
The little girl scampered over, and Mila sprayed the sunscreen along her exposed skin.
Lily giggled. “That’s cold.”
“It is a little cold, but it helps protect you from the sun’s strong rays. We don’t want you to burn and peel.”
Lily then looked at her apprehensively. “Do I have to get in the water?”
“Only if you want to,” Mila assured her. “Gina likes to build sand castles on the shore.”
“So do I,” Lily said eagerly.
They took the bag of toys and walked through the soft sand to where it was firmly packed from the waves washing onto the shore.
Mila had peeled off her T-shirt and shorts and saw that Carson had removed the T-shirt he wore.
She couldn’t help but snatch quick glances at his muscular chest and flat belly.
She longed to run her fingers over the ridges of his six-pack.
The five of them embarked upon building their castle. Bobby and Gina were experts at this, having come to the beach many times. Lily was more tentative, but she soon joined in. Bobby ran to the water with a plastic cup, making numerous trips to bring back water for the moat surrounding the castle.
“Can I swim now, Mila?” he asked once their masterpiece was completed.
She hesitated, and Carson said, “I’ll take you, Bobby. We’ll leave the girls here.”
Mila mouthed thank you and watched him take Bobby’s hand in his, walking to the water’s edge.
Now she had a nice view of his broad shoulders and narrow waist. Damn, the man even had gorgeous calves.
She supposed that was from the running he did.
She had the urge to run her tongue over them, shocking herself.
She had never been adventurous when it came to
sex, but suddenly, all kinds of wicked ideas floated through her head concerning Carson Andrews.
As the girls played with plastic figures, making up a story about the king and queen who lived in the castle and a wicked witch who’d put a spell on them, Mila kept her eyes on Carson and Bobby.
Carson didn’t let them go out too far in the surf, just enough for Bobby to splash.
His laughter carried through the air as he squealed and soaked Carson.
“Bobby is having a lot of fun in the water,” she said casually, causing both girls to glance up and watch for a minute. “Would you like to go and put your feet in the water? Maybe we could even get Bobby wet.”
Gina looked to Lily, and both girls nodded.
Standing, she held out her hands, and the girls took them.
“I only get my feet wet,” Gina told her new friend.
“I’m scared of the water,” Lily admitted quietly.
Mila squeezed the young girl’s hand. “I’m right here, Lily. I won’t let go of you. I promise.”
She stopped and let the next wave glide into shore, coming to them. It splashed up to the girls’ ankles.
“Hold on to me,” she warned. “You’ll feel some of the sand under your feet pull away and head back with the water.”
“I feel that!” Lily exclaimed.
“Here comes another wave!” Gina cried.
Again, they stood as the water lapped about them before it retreated.
After several more waves came in, Gina said, “Can we go a few more steps, Mila?”
“Only if Lily wants to.” She looked down at the girl. “What do you think?”
Grinning, Lily said, “I’ll go with Gina.”
They moved farther into the water, and the next wave came in, striking the girls at the knees this time.
Gina leaned down, her hand dancing through the water. “Splash me!”
Lily echoed, “Splash me!”
Soon, everyone was wet from head to toe, especially Mila, since the girls teamed up to soak her. She took a few steps back to more shallow water and sat in the sand, both girls laughing, and they joined her.
“I like the water,” Gina said.
“Me, too,” Lily agreed, and Mila was happy progress had been made regarding Lily’s fear of the water. She was old enough to take swim lessons now, and Mila decided to suggest it to Carson. Maybe he could enroll her at the same place where Cecily took the kids.
Carson must have heard his daughter’s words as he and Bobby approached. “You like the water now, Peanut?”
“It’s fun, Daddy.” She grinned mischievously. “Gina and I splashed Mila. A lot.”
Bobby grinned. “We saw a fish. He swam by us. He touched my leg!”
“Was it a clownfish like Nemo?” she asked.
“No,” Bobby said. “Nemo is orange. This fish was gray.”
“I think it’s time for a snack,” she said, and they returned to the towels.
They dried off the kids, and Mila coated them with another layer of sunscreen. She got out juice boxes, grapes, and string cheese. The kids talked animatedly as they ate.
Pulling a bottled water from the cooler, she offered it to Carson.
“Thanks.” His eyes swept over her, and he quietly said, “You look amazing in that swimsuit.”
She had accumulated several swimsuits since her return to the Bay. This one was a form-fitting tugless tank in midnight blue. It had a scooped neck and was cut high on her legs.
He leaned closer. “Your legs seem a mile long. I had trouble keeping my eyes on Bobby because they wanted to stay on you,” he said huskily.
“I noticed you have a decent set of legs on you,” she teased. “Runner’s calves.”
“I want to get back to running,” he said. “I think when I drop off Lily at Happy Hearts each day, I’ll try to get in a workout at school before showering and starting my day. Working out always energizes me.”
The kids wanted to build shapes with shells, so they took time to walk along the shore and collect shells of various sizes in their sand pails.
By the time they had made a rectangle, circle, square, and octagon, a good hour had passed.
Carson broke out the PBJ sandwiches, and Mila added blueberries and chips for their feast.
Once they finished eating, Lily begged to go back to the water, causing Carson’s brows to arch.
“Wait a minute. Is this the same girl who didn’t like to get her big toe wet?” he teased.
“Gina and I like the water,” Lily said matter-of-factly.
“Switch with me,” he said to Mila. “I’ll keep up with the girls, and you can take Bobby.”
“Let’s race, squirt,” she told Bobby, and they ran to the water.
After playing for half an hour, she could see her nephew was quickly losing steam. She took his hand and motioned to Carson, who led the girls back to where their towels were.
As they wrapped the kids in the beach towels, she said, “Mom and Dad have offered to babysit tonight so that we could maybe go to dinner or something. Mom said it might be easier if Lily spent the night. That way, you wouldn’t have to wake her up and take her home.”
He frowned. “She’s never spent a single night away from me. I don’t know how she would handle that.”
“She would have to sleep with me. Gina only has a twin bed.”
“I hope you don’t think this is too forward, but I’d like to sleep on the couch,” he said, pulling his T-shirt over his head.
“That wouldn’t be a problem,” she assured him, sliding into her shorts and slipping into her shirt.
They gathered up all they’d brought and she quietly said, “Why don’t you ask Lily about it and see what she says? One way or another, I need to let Mom know.”
“Hey, Peanut,” he called. “Would you like to sleep over at Gina’s house tonight?”
Lily’s eyes widened. “Can I?”
“Mila and I are going to go out to dinner. Bobby and Gina’s grandparents would come stay with you while we were gone. They’d play with you and help you get ready for bed. If you’d like, I’ll spend the night, too. I’ll sleep on the couch downstairs in case you need me.”
“Okay, Daddy,” the little girl said brightly.
Bobby said, “We can play camping. When Brian came for a sleepover, we got in sleeping bags and slept in the loft.”
“Actually, that’s a great idea, Bobby,” Mila praised. “That way, all three of you can camp together.”
“If you’d like, I’ll get up early and bring back donuts for breakfast,” Carson volunteered.
“Donuts, donuts, donuts,” Gina began chanting, and the other two joined in. Gina added, “Sprinkles, sprinkles, sprinkles,” and the new chant began.
He looked at her, and Mila felt herself going warm all over. “I guess it’s a date then. Wear that dress. And tell me somewhere fancy I can take you.”
Without hesitating, she said, “Steak on a Plate. We’ll need to make a reservation, though. It’s tourist season and a Saturday night, so places get crowded.”
“I’ll make one and text you the time,” he told her.
“Bring Lily over for dinner,” she suggested. “Five-thirty. That way, we can get the kids situated before we leave. If our reservation is later, we can stop for a drink somewhere.”
“I like how you think.” Carson gave her a smile Mila wasn’t likely to forget anytime soon.