“Yeah, we’ll have to do that next practice,” I tell her, not missing the way Tanner’s eyes light up. Lilly moves around next to him, having woken up some time into practice.
“Will do, see you guys, later.” She wrangles up Aiden and they leave quickly, getting into a sleek black car with tinted windows.
She certainly seems to have her life together, at least a lot more than me,I think as she drives out of the parking lot.
“Good job today, kiddo.” Nathan walks over, a slight sheen of sweat on his forehead. He high fives Tanner who grins widely at him. Lilly’s interest peaks as she looks over at him and holds up her own hand, looking for a high five.
Nathan smiles at her and squats down, giving her a gentle high five. She wraps her fingers in his small beard and he lets out a laugh. He picks her up and tickles her, eliciting a laugh out of her.
His eyes look up and the twinkle in them catches me off guard. My mouth goes dry. “You’re really good with kids,” I note. I haven’t seen any next door, but still I ask, “Do you have any?”
“Not yet,” he says, as he sits Lilly upright.
I raise a brow at that. “Do you have one on the way?” I question, thinking of how he not so subtly asked me out for dinner the first practice.
Lord, does he have a baby mama somewhere while trying to court me?
I knew he couldn’t have just been a decent man.
He shakes his head. “No, but I do want kids someday, just waiting on the right woman.” He places Lilly on her feet, and she isn’t happy about it as she starts to whine and tug at his pants. His eyes widen slightly but he picks her back up, looking at me.
“She’s smitten,” I say lightly, not missing his comments about kids, but deciding to gloss over it for now.
He laughs, “Yeah, I tend to do that to the ladies.”
When his eyes meet mine, I can’t help but let out a soft laugh and roll my eyes. “I’m sure you do with your chocolate covered strawberries.”
“They are delicious,” he notes. “If only you would have stopped and tried them the other day.”
“Maybe another time,” I say.
“About that, sorry for giving it to the kids without permission, I didn’t think about the fact that either of them could have been allergic to strawberries.”
The apology catches me off guard. “Oh. No, it’s okay.” I shift from foot to foot as it becomes more and more apparent that the man standing in front of me is a nice one.
I’m not used to nice men.
“You could let me fix you dinner in apology,” he says as his grin returns.
I feel my own lips pulling into an answering smile as my heart skips a beat. I shake my head, though. “No… that’s not a good idea.”
“If you say so, but if you change your mind…”
“I know where to find you.” I take Lilly from his arms and place a hand on Tanner’s head. My gaze locks with Nathan’s and for a second it feels like I can’t move as I’m pulled into his kind eyes.
Jesus.
I blink and take a shaky step back. “Well, we’ve got to be getting home now,” I say, the words rushing past my lips.
“Of course,” he says, and I don’t miss the disappointment in his eyes. “I’ll see you around… Ivy.”
Not if I ever want to breathe normally again.