“Nothing,” he replied, his eyes wide and innocent. “The conversation about camping just kind of led to the fishing suggestion—which is a good one, by the way—and we should take advantage of what remains of the summer. It’s important to give Brady new experiences. This is Minnesota, the Land of Ten Thousand Lakes. Every little boy and girl should know how to fish.”
“Hmm. Your words sound reasonable enough, but the blush says otherwise.” She snorted. “I love that about you. It’s absolutely impossible for you to be duplicitous. So, again . . . what are you up to?”
“You said you wanted to be friends.”
“I do.”
“Well, I’m being your friend. I enjoy spending time with you and Brady. That’s all.” He cocked an eyebrow and shook his head. “Fishing isn’t a date, Kayla. Neither is taking a five-year-old to Nickelodeon Universe. Relax.”
“OK. Fair enough. I enjoy your company too.” She grinned at Brady. “What about you? Do you enjoy Wyatt’s company?”
“Yep!”
Wyatt chuckled. “We’re here,” he said, turning into a parking ramp.
“We are? This is Mallmerica?” Brady strained in his seat to peer out the window.
“Mall of America,” she corrected as Wyatt pulled into a spot and cut the engine. “But this is just the parking ramp.”
“OK, Superkid. I have a job for you.” Wyatt unfastened his seat belt and twisted around to face Brady.
“What?”
“Your job is to remember that we’re parked in the east ramp, on Georgia level P2. Can you do that?”
“Yep. East ramp, Georgia level P2.” Brady repeated, his voice laced with pride.
Kayla’s heart turned over. Unlike her husband, Wyatt was great at making her little boy feel good about himself. He’d be a great dad, and for some lucky woman, a great husband. Her chest tightened at the thought.
He’d made the switch, and they were friends. You couldn’t undo a rejection like the one she’d handed him, and she wasn’t even sure she wanted to. Did she? There you go, second-guessing yourself again. Would she never get things right when it came to timing and relationships?
Chapter Ten
Oh, he was up to something all right. Wyatt held Brady’s hand as the three of them walked through the parking ramp toward the doors leading into Mallmerica, as Brady had called it. He planned to friend the hell out of Kayla, to not date her as often as possible until she finally succumbed and fell madly in love with him.
He got that she’d been hurt, and he understood her reluctance to date again. But if Grandma Maggie was right, and it was fear holding her back, he intended to help her get over that hill. He’d be waiting with open arms on the other side. He figured he already had a head start. Not that he’d had a lot of personal experience, but he’d read stuff. Kayla’s eyes often darkened when she looked at him—a sure sign of attraction. She went slightly breathless around him sometimes too, and he wasn’t the only one whose cheeks rosied when they were together. Though he’d put a stop to his accidentally-on-purpose touches and brushes, he’d certainly noticed how flustered those touches had made her. He might have pushed that a bit, but who could blame him? He’d loved the way she reacted. His mission—and he had chosen to accept it—was to wear down her resistance. Grinning, he winked at her.
“What?” Her eyes widened.
“I’m excited. Did you know that a chaperone can accompany a child on the kiddie rides for free? Big Rigs is my favorite. What do you say, Brady? Want to ride a truck on rails with me?”
Wyatt opened the door and ushered them through. The east entrance into the mall was crowded, colorful and noisy, and Nickelodeon Universe provided a backdrop of constant motion and flashing lights. “I guess we aren’t the only ones who decided to get out of the heat at the mall today.” He pointed to the amusement park. “We need to go down one floor to enter Nickelodeon. He guided them to the elevator, past the floor-to-ceiling advertisements for Sea Life Minnesota Aquarium. “There’s another attraction we can check out sometime.”
“That would be fun,” Kayla agreed.
Brady stared at the amusement park from where they stood. “Is that Nickelodeon?” he asked, sidling close to his mom’s side.
Wyatt pushed the elevator button. “It is.”
“Wow. There are actual trees growing inside,” Kayla said, studying the park, which took up the entire center of the mall.
“Yep.” The elevator door opened. Wyatt herded the two inside and hit the button for the first floor. “I figured we’d just do the kiddie rides today. Is that all right?”
“Sure, unless we find something the three of us want to go on together.”
He pulled the ticket he’d purchased online from his pocket. “I already got an all-day pass for Brady. If there’s something the three of us want to ride together, we can get tickets from one of the kiosks.”
“You already bought Brady’s pass? How much was it? I’ll pay you back.” She brought her purse around to the front of her.
“Less than you’d expect, since he’s only five. You can buy dinner at the food court, and we’ll call it even.”
“All right.” Her chin came up. “I will.”
They got off the elevator, and Brady’s eyes widened. His gaze darted all over the place, from the escalator leading down to the Sea Life Minnesota Aquarium, to the lights, crowds and the moving rides inside Nickelodeon. The cacophony of children shrieking, coupled with the mechanical sound of the moving rides, was loud and a bit overwhelming. Brady had gone quiet, and he looked so tiny amid the teeming throng filling the mall.
Wyatt scooped him up and held him in his arms. “A little too much, huh?” Brady snuggled against Wyatt’s chest and laid his head on his shoulder. “Your mom and I are right here, Superkid. I promise you don’t have to do anything you don’t want to. Let’s go check out the Big Rigs.”
Brady nodded against Wyatt’s shoulder, and 220 volts of protectiveness and love sent a jolt through him. Is this what it felt like to be a dad? He wanted the world for Brady just then. Kayla moved closer and ran her hand up and down Brady’s back. Her gaze met his, a half smile on her pretty face, and her expression filled with tenderness. For a second, only a second, Wyatt imagined they were a unit, a family. His family.
He had to turn away, or the force of his emotions might shoot from his eyes like Elec Tric’s lightning bolts. Swallowing against the sudden tightness in his throat, he set Brady down and took his hand. “Ready?”
“I am,” Kayla said, taking Brady’s other hand. “How about you, kiddo?”
“You can ride the Big Rigs with me?” Brady asked, staring anxiously up at Wyatt.
“I can indeed.”
“OK.” The kid squared his narrow shoulders. “Let’s do this thing.”
Wyatt laughed. “Where’d you hear that?”
Brady shrugged, his grin wide. “I dunno.”
The three of them wended their way through the crowd into the amusement park, veering toward the junior area. Curious stares came his way, as they always did when he was in public. His hoodie didn’t hide his burn scars, but they did give him a bit of insulation.
“That must be annoying,” Kayla said, glaring at a passerby who had stared his way.
“What’s that?”
“I get why you wear the hooded sweatshirts. People are so rude,” she huffed.
“I’m used to it.” He couldn’t help but smile at the affronted-on-his-behalf tone she’d used. They passed the Guppy Bubbler, the Hayride, Swiper’s Sweeper and the Crazy Cars, Brady’s excitement mounting with each ride that came into view. Finally, Wyatt led them along the wooden walkway to the Big Rigs, a small train of brightly colored cars made to look like semitrucks. “Here we are.” He placed his hands on Brady’s shoulders and guided him into the line. “You can watch other kids ride while we wait.”
Kayla took out her phone. “I’m going to take pictures.”
Brady’s attention riveted on the ride, he kept a fi
rm hold on Wyatt’s hand. Finally it was their turn, and they were lucky enough to be first, which meant they got the big red truck in front. Wyatt helped Brady get situated first, and then he squeezed himself into the tight space beside him, his knees pressing against the front. “All set?”
Brady nodded, too keyed up to answer verbally. Wyatt gave Kayla a thumbs-up, and she took a picture. The ride started, and Brady gripped the safety bar. After a few seconds, he relaxed, and a wide smile lit his face. Wyatt hugged the boy’s shoulders. “Are you having fun?”
“Yeah!” Other kids were holding their hands in the air, and soon Brady did the same.
Another wave of protectiveness hit Wyatt. He wanted Brady to always feel safe and hoped like hell he would grow up to be confident, thoughtful and strong enough to stand up for himself and others should the need arise. Every boy deserved a man’s guidance through the perils of adolescence. Wyatt’s eyes stung. He’d had his dad during his formative years, and then he’d had his uncles and Grandpa Joe. They were the best, and he wanted to pay it forward with Brady.
He glanced at Kayla, and she sent him a little wave, her face radiating happiness. His poor heart slammed against his sternum, stealing his ability to breathe. She had no idea how she affected him. Nudging Brady, he directed his attention to his mom. Brady beamed and waved at his mom. Kayla took another picture, and shortly after that their ride came to an end. They got off and joined the milling crowd of parents and children on the main path through the labyrinth of bright colors and movement.
“What can I ride next? Can we do the cars?” Brady pointed to the junior-sized bumper cars. “Mommy, will you go on them with me?”
“Sure, if Wyatt’s feelings aren’t hurt that you don’t want him to ride with you again,” she teased.
“Oh.” Brady stopped, his face falling. “You can go with me on the ride after the cars. OK?” He peered up at Wyatt, concern suffusing his features.
He feared the lump in his throat would become a permanent fixture. Wyatt squeezed Brady’s hand. “I’m all in favor of taking turns.”
It hadn’t taken Brady long to get over his initial nervousness, and then Wyatt and Kayla could hardly keep up with him. They spent the next couple of hours bouncing from ride to ride, going on Brady’s favorites again and again.
“Can I go on that one by myself?” Brady pointed to the Flyboat, a row of seats that took the riders up to the top and dropped them repeatedly, to be caught and bounced by a cushion of air.
“Sure, and let’s make that the last ride for today. I don’t know about you, Superkid, but I’m starving,” Wyatt said.
“I’m hungry too. Aren’t you, Brady?” Kayla asked.
“I guess.” He tugged them both toward the line for the Flyboat.
When it was Brady’s turn to be loaded into a seat, he cast an anxious look over his shoulder. “You won’t go anywhere?”
“Nope. We’ll be right here.” Wyatt held out his fist. Brady bumped it and went off with the teenager working the station.
“He’s having a blast. Thank you for suggesting this.” Kayla leaned against the log railing in front of the ride. “I need to do more stuff like this with him.”
“I’m having fun too. Brady is such a great kid.”
“He is, isn’t he?” Kayla sighed. “I’ve been lucky.”
“Luck doesn’t have anything to do with it, Kayla. You’re a great mom, and he’s a lucky little boy to have you.”
“Thank you,” she murmured, averting her gaze.
His heart turned over. “I’ve been thinking a lot about what you said.”
“When?” Her brow creased.
“The night we went to The Bulldog.”
“Oh?”
“I know you think you missed out on a whole lot of who knows what, but you didn’t. Not really. After high school most of us were struggling, broke, going to school and trying to get our shit together. Not a lot of fun, if you ask me. You did basically the same thing, only you happened to have a child at the time.” He shook his head. “There is no going back, you know, and why would you want to?” He studied her, gauging her reaction. “Early adulthood, being on your own . . . it’s exciting, but it’s also tough.”
Kayla kept her eyes on her son. “I know you can’t go back, but a person can decide to take a time out to regroup after a disaster. You don’t know what it was like for me. While my friends were in college, partying and going to Cancún for spring breaks, I was changing diapers and working a boring factory job.”
“That’s what you think you missed out on, partying and spring breaks somewhere tropical? Because I gotta tell you, the majority of us didn’t party much or go to Cancún on our spring breaks. Personally, I worked during my time off from school, and it never occurred to me that I was missing anything.” Except maybe dating, but that had everything to do with his shyness, and nothing to do with school or work. “I’ll bet if you talked to some of your friends who drank their way through breaks, they’d tell you they have a few regrets. I’ll bet a lot of them wish they hadn’t wasted the time.”
She straightened away from the railing. “It’s not about parties and spring breaks,” she said, her expression tight. “It’s about vitae interuptio. You don’t know what—”
“I lost my parents when I was a little kid, Kayla. You’re not about to tell me I don’t know what it’s like to have my life interrupted.” His brow rose. “Are you?”
“I forgot.” She bit her lip. “I’m sorry.”
“No need to apologize.” He jutted his chin toward Brady. “Being here with your son . . . this is fun, the kind of fun that counts. I know you feel like you didn’t get the chance to grow up before becoming a wife and mother, but you know what I think?” He leaned closer. “Raising Brady the way you are, to be the great kid that he is? Now that’s grown-up in the very best sense of the word. Life moves on. We grow up and grow older no matter what.”
“So, are you trying to convince me I don’t need a few years to figure myself out?” Her lips compressed into a tight line again. “Because—”
“No. I’m not trying to convince you of anything.” He needed to beat a hasty retreat, or she’d do the withdrawal thing again. “I’m suggesting you give yourself some well-deserved credit. As your friend, I’m trying to point out that you may have romanticized those missing years a bit.” His face heated. “Do you think that’s possible?”
She turned back to watch Brady. He and the other children threw up their hands and shrieked as the ride dropped, bounced and rose again and again. “Any idea when your brother will be back to finish my apartment?”
“Soon. I’ll ask him on Monday and let you know.” He clamped down on the urge to say more. He’d made his point, and he had no doubt she’d mull it over.
With Brady’s last ride over, the three of them headed to the food court and decided on burgers and fries. By the time they were finished, Brady had already nodded off over his food a couple of times. Kayla gathered up the trash and shoved it into a bin near their table.
“Time to go home, buddy.” Wyatt lifted Brady off the bench and set him on his feet.
“I don’t want to go home. I want to go to the Lego store.” Brady’s face puckered. “We never got to go there.”
“Well, we have a reason to come back another day then, don’t we?” Kayla tried to take his hand, but Brady jerked away and put them both behind his back.
Then he burst into tears. “I want to go to Legos nowww, not another day,” he wailed.
“I’m sorry, kiddo. Not gonna happen. You’re practically asleep on your feet as it is,” Kayla told him in a soothing voice. “We’ll come back.”
“Promise?” he asked, wiping his eyes.
“I promise.”
“Want a ride back to the car?” Wyatt asked.
Brady nodded, his tears still flowing over having to walk anywhere at all for any reason, especially if it meant leaving the mall. Wyatt lifted the exhausted boy into his arms, and by the time
they reached the doors leading to the parking ramp, Brady had fallen asleep against his shoulder. Wyatt glanced at Kayla as she opened the door for him. “That was the first time I’ve seen Brady kick up a fuss over anything. I was under the impression he was the perfect kid.”
“Oh, believe me, it’s not the first time he’s thrown a fit.” She snorted. “Be glad you weren’t around during the terrible twos, because that year almost did me in.”
He couldn’t be glad about not being there for her and Brady and wished he had been. He would’ve seen to it that she didn’t give up her goals just because they were parents. He certainly wouldn’t have left her to handle everything all on her own, which forced her to work at a boring, dead-end job. His jaw tightened, thinking about what a jerk her husband had been. Kayla deserved so much better, and he admired the way she’d handled things and moved forward with her life.
“This was fun,” he said. “I’m looking forward to fishing next Sunday. Do you want to go out for breakfast first?”
She studied him for a few seconds, her expression inscrutable. “Sure. I’ll bring stuff to study while you two play with hooks and worms. Where do you want to go for breakfast?”
“Louisiana Cafe is my favorite place. Have you been there?”
“No.” One side of her mouth quirked up. “McDonald’s is our usual breakfast spot. It’ll be nice to try somewhere different.”
“Great. I’ll round up a fishing pole for Brady this week and pick up bait and a license Saturday afternoon.” Satisfied, he grinned. They’d had a great day, and he’d made progress.
“These aren’t dates,” Kayla blurted. “We aren’t dating.”
“Course not.” His smile grew. She wouldn’t have blurted that if he weren’t getting to her. Yes, indeed. He was making inroads into her defenses and hopefully into her heart. “Just friends hanging out.”
Kayla hadn’t been able to take her eyes off Wyatt’s bare arms and flexing muscles all morning, as he taught her son how to fish. The man fascinated her, and more than anything, she longed to run her hands over the smooth contours of those muscles. She tried for the umpteenth time to focus on studying for her upcoming national exam, but her gaze kept straying from her notes to settle once again upon hot-hoodie-guy. She gave up the fight, stretched out her legs on the blanket she’d laid under a large oak and set aside her notebook.
Whatever You Need (The Haneys Book 2) Page 15
