Page 24 of Summer Fling (The Kingston Brothers #5)

Chapter Fifteen

Dalton

B rady was working with me today, and I wanted to talk to him. I enjoyed my time with Lilliana. But I felt like I was in over my head with Blake. That it was just a matter of time before everything imploded in my face.

Ever since Oakley came into my life, it was as if she wanted to chip away at my happiness, and I was worried she'd escalate her attacks on Blake, pushing her out of my life.

I wouldn't stand for that, and I would do anything to head it off.

It was early, and the crew hadn't arrived yet. Brady's heavy footsteps sounded through the wood floors of the house. He popped his head out when he saw me behind the house in the space where the patio would be. "Since when do you need help? I thought Blake was watching Lilliana for you now."

"I wanted to talk to you."

Brady stepped outside, sliding the door closed. "What's up?"

Despite the early hour, it was already hot and humid.

I sighed, worried about revealing the truth but knowing Brady was the only one who could possibly understand what I was going through. "This thing between me and Blake started out as fake."

Brady's eyes widened. "You're fucking with me."

"I hired her to be a nanny, but Oakley didn't like her living with me. My attorney thought it would be better if I were dating Blake. Then she couldn't say anything about it, and it would make me look more stable."

Brady whistled, then shook his head. "I mean, I can't say much because we did the same thing."

"That's why I wanted to talk to you. What happened when you crossed that line with Hazel? Were you worried it would fuck everything up?"

He nodded. "That's why I never pursued anything with Hazel before that. I was worried about our friendship." Then he refocused on me. "But you weren't friends with Blake."

"No, but she's my nanny, and she's irreplaceable." I swallowed hard around that truth. Blake was amazing with Lilliana.

He crossed his arms over his chest. "Then why are you messing with that by getting involved?"

I shrugged. "It wasn't necessarily a conscious decision. It just happened."

Brady nodded, leaning on a nearby stack of decking. "The start of every good fling. Are you regretting that decision?"

"Not at all. It's been amazing. Every day I fall more for her." The words fell easily out of my mouth.

He considered me for a few seconds and then said carefully, "You're falling in love with her?"

"I think so." I hadn't planned on falling in love with Blake. I thought I'd have something for myself, but it had been so easy to do. I wanted to say it was because she was living in my space, and we were spending so much time together, but I was starting to think it was her.

His forehead wrinkled. "What are you going to do about it?"

"I don't know. But Oakley is a bigger problem. She went after Blake the other day when she dropped Lilliana off. She said Blake would only ever be the sitter, and that me and Oakley shared a bond because of Lilliana."

"You have your work cut out for you."

"What do you mean?" I asked, desperate to get some advice that could possibly help me in this situation.

"You have to show Blake that what you have transcends the bond between you and Oakley, as the mother of your child. That means placing Blake higher than Oakley. Make her feel important even as the strings of your life are still being pulled by Oakley."

"I'm pulling away from Oakley. I'm sticking to a schedule, pursuing custody and a visitation agreement through mediation, and if that doesn't work, we'll go to court. I don't want to be dancing at the end of her string anymore."

He gave me a pointed look. "I have a feeling Oakley is going to push back harder."

"Me too."

"You need to be sure you want this thing with Blake. Oakley is the mother of your child, but that status doesn't place her above Lilliana's and Blake's wellbeing, especially after the way she's treated you."

I let out a breath. "You're right."

"I didn't have to deal with another person interfering in my relationship with Hazel. But I like to think I would have fought them with everything I had. What we have is special, and I won't let anyone interfere."

I'd like to think that I was the same, but Oakley was an unpredictable force. I never knew what she'd do to get what she wanted. But I'd spent a long time avoiding finding out. Now I was poking the bear and hoping it wouldn't come and attack me.

"Does Blake make you happy?"

"We've only been together a short time, but yeah. We take care of each other, ya know? It feels good to be in a relationship that's not one-sided."

"You could find that same dynamic with someone else. What makes Blake special?"

I thought about how she looked when she painted, as if she were floating in the space between earth and heaven. And I wanted her to feel that way all the time. "I want to make her happy."

"Yeah, that's love all right. Now what are you going to do about it?"

"Focus on making Blake feel like she's special and loved. Then I'll tell her how I feel." I just hoped I didn't scare her off. Our relationship was supposed to be temporary, a means to an end, and now? I'd changed the rules on her.

I knew her life was elsewhere, but I got involved with her anyway. If she said she wasn't in love with me, there was nothing I could do about it. I'd be crushed. But wasn't it worth it to have at least tried?

"I'm a little jealous of you. Those first few weeks were an emotional roller coaster. I was fighting all these emotions inside me, telling myself I was imagining this attraction to my best friend. Or at the very least, setting myself up to be rejected.

"But the situation forced us to be together, heightening everything.

There were so many opportunities for us to cross that line that it was inevitable.

I found out later that she was having all the same feelings and doubts, but we weren't communicating that to each other. Is that the case with you guys?"

"I mean, we talked about doing this fake relationship for the custody case, and the need to go on dates and be seen around the island. But it started to feel real for me, and one thing led to another. It definitely wasn't something I planned on."

I heard the sound of an engine pulling up to the front of the house. The crew was arriving, and our time to talk was over.

"All I can say is, be honest with her. Let her know how you're feeling. Lay everything on the table," Brady said as Paul stepped outside with his coffee mug.

"You gabbing on the job?"

"You get to work," I shot back at him. This is what I needed, a distraction from the stuff at home. I'd get lost in the job and take a break from my thoughts. Otherwise, they were going to drive me crazy.

I was glad that I'd talked to Brady about my relationship. He made me realize that everything we were going through was normal.

There was only one wild card I had to worry about, and that was Oakley. Who knew what that girl was planning for me? It was never good. I was probably going to regret the day I decided to stand up to her. I just hoped it worked out in the end.

I volunteered for all the physical jobs, and by the time I got home, my muscles were screaming. It called for a long, hot shower. I just hoped I'd be able to get one.

When I opened the door, Blake met me with a hug and a kiss. Then I scooped up Lilliana, whose arms were lifted into the air, and she said, "Up. Up."

It would suck when Lilliana had to go home in a couple of weeks. I intended to stick with my prearranged schedule. I got Lilliana every other week, and if Oakley wanted to forego her week, she couldn't change her visitation to another week.

I'd read about a lot of custody situations in an online single dads' group I was in, and some were flexible. Unfortunately, I couldn't be that way with Oakley. She'd proven that she wasn't reasonable.

I walked in the kitchen, kissing Blake.

"We're cooking dinner for you tonight. So why don't you take a shower and relax?"

I nearly groaned out loud. "How did you know that's what I needed?"

Blake grinned. "It was a lucky guess. We wanted to do something nice for you. You're always taking care of us."

I was overcome with emotion, especially after my discussion with Brady. Blake was different from Oakley. She'd never pull that crazy manipulative crap that Oakley did. I deserved to have someone in my life like Blake. "I'm going to take you up on that."

Blake's eyes twinkled with amusement. "Now get out of here. You stink."

Lilliana waved a hand in front of her nose. "Stick. Stick."

"Thank you for teaching her that," I said to Blake dryly.

"That's what I'm here for," she singsonged.

On the way up the stairs, I said, "It's two against one now."

"And don't you forget it," she retorted.

I felt the warmth of the interaction in my chest. I liked the banter, the idea that she was taking care of me. I liked all of it. Too much. Sooner or later, I was going to have to tell her how I felt, and I was worried about how she'd take it.

Was I changing the rules on her by falling for her? In the shower, I let the warm water stream over me, soothing my aching muscles. I could be in the shower all day, but I was excited to get to my girls.

My girls . I liked the sound of that.

Downstairs, Blake was scooping cheesy noodles into bowls, and there was chicken already on plates on the table. "There's spicy chicken for us, and plain for Lilliana."

"Smells great. Thank you for cooking."

"I don't mind helping out. I live here too," Blake said simply as she moved around the kitchen, looking like she belonged there.

When I lived with Oakley, she expected me to pick up takeout or cook. I didn't always want to eat out, and that was a source of contention between us. For me, it was about my health. I liked to eat primarily at home and then go out only on occasion.

For Oakley, everything was a big deal, a spectacle. But I preferred quiet nights at home, eating good food and spending time with my girls.

I sat at the table next to Lilliana with Blake across from me. There was nothing fancy about the meal, although Blake had cooked kale chips, which weren't something I'd ever tried before.

She pushed the bowl in my direction. "Try these. I'm curious what you think."

I grabbed one leaf and dropped it into my mouth. It was crunchy and covered in oil and sea salt. "Better than I thought it would be."

"I love kale chips. They're addicting. I was hoping that Lilliana would like them too, but the texture is a bit too much for her."

I loved that she was introducing new veggies to Lilliana. I reached across the table and took her hand. "Thank you for being here, cooking dinner. All of it."

Blake smiled. "I'm happy to be here."

My heart was overflowing with love for her, but I couldn't tell her. Not yet. It was too soon, and too many things were up in the air: Oakley, the custody case. I wanted everything to be settled before I came out with my confession. I was in love with her.

We finished dinner, cleaning up the noodles that fell on the floor. Then I got her into the bath and settled for bed.

When I came out, the lights were dim, the kitchen clean. I found Blake outside, swinging in the hammock that hung underneath the deck.

"What are you doing?"

"Waiting for you," Blake said with a smile.

I attempted to climb in next to her, which made the entire swing sway erratically, and Blake giggled. I finally gave up. "I have to show you something anyway. Let me grab my laptop."

When I returned, she was seated on the couch, and I set my computer in my lap next to her. "I wanted to show you the specs for the maze I built."

"I'm excited to see this," Blake said, and I paused. When had Oakley ever expressed interest in my job outside of the money she wanted me to spend on her?

I opened the drawing of the maze, including the shrubbery, the different stations people could find with clues, the misters throughout, and a pool in the middle. "I think I need to add a lookout so that people don't get stuck. They can see where they've been and where they need to go."

"I love this. It's going to be beautiful. I can imagine Lilliana running through it when she's older, looking for the clues. Running from one row to another, laughing as she goes."

I could see that easily too. But there was something else at the periphery of my mind, another child, maybe a boy who was running to keep up with his sister.

The vision was so real; it took my breath away.

I wanted another child, a sibling for Lilliana.

And I wanted that with Blake. There was no telling if she felt the same way.

She had school to finish, a career to build.

She probably wanted to wait a while to have a family, and that was her right.

I had no business asking her for more.

She frowned at me. "What? You don't think so?"

I felt Blake's gaze on the side of my face. "I hadn't thought about what it would be like to take Lilliana through something I designed."

"It was the first thing I imagined. Lilliana running through, seeing the clues, and her excitement at seeing the pool from the lookout. Then running down to dip her hands in it. The misters are a nice touch. They will help with the heat."

The first thing Blake imagined was enjoying this thing I built with my daughter. "We have to build this. People are going to love it."

"I'm so impressed. I wouldn't know the first thing about designing a maze."

"I did a lot of research and incorporated the best elements from each one."

"Have you shown your family?"

"Not yet. I'm worried they won't like it."

"How could they not? And besides, doesn't it only matter what Phyllis at the center thinks? It's her project."

"You're right. It's hard to show people something that you worked hard on. It feels like giving them a piece of me and asking them to judge it."

She frowned. "Are your brothers hard on you? I can't imagine that they won't like it."

"I haven't been tasked with something this big before. I don't want to screw it up." I'd spent all my spare time researching options and reaching out to other's who'd already designed mazes. It was actually a small community, easily accessible online.

"I, for one, can't wait to see it," Blake said excitedly.

I set the laptop aside and cupped her face. I kissed her, pouring everything I was feeling into it. I needed her to see that I appreciated her, I wanted her, and that I wouldn't let anything come between us. I wished I could say the words, but actions spoke more loudly.

Lilliana was asleep in her crib, so there was no way she could walk in on us, and I had the monitor on the coffee table.

Blake was quickly becoming everything to me. I just hoped I wasn't getting in too deep by myself.