Page 10 of Promises & Pumpkins (Haunted in Hazy Cove #1)

Miles

“Come on, Daddy! I don’t want to be late!” Maddie dragged the words out, tugging as hard as she could on my hand to pull me across the parking lot.

“I’m right here,” I said, keeping the same pace, even when she stopped walking to whine. She was nearly vibrating—her adrenaline hung in the air around her like static. “You’re not going to be late.”

Maddie huffed, skipping ahead of me a few steps and rushing back to tug on my hand again. “But I want to be early!”

A smile stretched across her cheeks, making most of her face disappear behind her excitement.

When I opened the door to the dance studio, Maddie squealed, and my chest tightened when she spun in a circle before she went in.

I had never seen her get quite this excited before starting a new activity, and most of the time she was ready to quit and try something new within a few months. Would this be different?

“Are you coming?” she asked, her annoyance drawing attention in our direction from moms walking in with their daughters. They gave the same look I always seemed to get—one that started with judgment and quickly turned to admiration when they realized Maddie’s mother wasn’t with me.

“Right behind you, sweetheart.” I nodded at a couple of the women who continued to stare when we walked past them. I was used to it.

Maddie skipped right onto the padded dance floor and over to a couple of women in leotards that stood off to the side. “Hi!” she squealed excitedly to get their attention. The woman turned around, and I chuckled when Harper’s eyes widened.

“Hi there,” she said, looking quickly past me and down to Maddie. “You must be one of our new ballerinas!”

Maddie put her hands on the pink leotard she wore like it answered the question before she nodded. “Yup!” She looked up at me and then back to Harper before crinkling her nose with slight recognition.

“So you’re a dance coach.” I chuckled, picturing Harper tripping over stairs and produce stands. I thought dancers were more graceful than that.

Harper gulped, looking from the side of her eye at the other coach that was slowly starting to pay more attention to the exchange.

“I am. I’m Harper.” She stuck her hand out, wincing when I furrowed my brow.

Then she put her hand back at her side. “And this is Kelly.” Her teammate looked at her funny.

“It’s nice to meet you,” I said, shaking Kelly’s hand. “I’m Miles. Maddie’s dad.” And Harper’s next-door neighbor.

“Oh!” Maddie said, clapping her hands together in realization. “You’re daddy’s friend from the other day!”

“What?” Harper asked while her cheeks started to turn a darker shade of pink.

Maddie giggled and pointed at Harper. “The one in his bed!” When she said it, Harper choked on her breath and started to cough.

The pink on her cheeks turned to a deep purple when Kelly’s mouth dropped open.

I put my hand on top of her head and shushed her quietly, but Maddie beamed at me like she was proud of herself for recognizing Harper. She certainly isn’t forgettable.

“Oh, really?” Kelly stepped forward, looking first at Harper then at me and back to Harper with what resembled approval.

“Hey, Maddie, why don’t we go over here, and I’ll get you all set up with all the other ballerinas?

” Maddie nodded excitedly, grabbing her hand and following her.

The look on Harper’s face made me think she wished she was skipping away too.

“I didn’t know you were the coach,” I said, hoping to ease some of the embarrassment.

Harper shrugged. “Well, I am.” She vaguely gestured around the dance studio like it was further explanation.

I resisted the urge to memorize every curve of her body in the tight jumpsuit, and it took all of my self-control not to imagine tearing the sheer tights covering her thighs. “Why didn’t you say something?” I asked.

“When was I supposed to say something?” She planted her hands on her hips, popping one leg out to the side.

“Oh, you’re so good at eating my pussy. By the way, I coach ballet?

I mean, you didn’t even tell me you had a daughter.

When was this going to come up organically?

” When she pursed her lips, I felt a small twinge of guilt. I hadn’t meant to blindside her.

“Okay, that’s fair.” I put my hands up in gentle surrender, hoping to ease some of the tension swirling between us.

“Yeah, I thought so.” Harper relaxed her arms at her side, glancing at the class over her shoulder.

“Anyway, I should get going. Class ends at four thirty. You’re welcome to stay and watch or you can come back then.

Most of the parents do the latter.” Harper half-turned to the side like she was ready to walk away.

“Don’t talk to me like there isn’t something between us.” Wasn’t there? It had all been too easy to think we weren’t compatible.

Harper shook her head. “There isn’t. It was just one night.” A small smile pulled at her lips like she had the same thought I did. One really great night. “I really should get going. It was good to see you.”

When she turned, she stretched onto her toes, spinning slightly before she danced over to join the rest of the class and leaving me in the cloud of her sweet scent and her insistence that she wasn’t interested.

I’m just not really looking for anything serious right now.

I groaned. Everything with my new neighbor was getting a lot more complicated.