Leslie suddenly realized that Levi’s hand was still on her elbow, though she was perfectly steady now. A pleasant warmth filled her chest and stomach, and she looked up into his amused eyes.
“I’m afraid the only adult women’s clothes we have around here are my grandmother’s. So just remember that before you go swimming.”
***
They were careful to pick up all trash and picnic items and pack them away in the backpack and cooler. The sun was low in the sky as they were putting away saddles and getting the horses settled into the stalls. Both Ava and Amberlyn had been subdued by the time they reached the barn, lulled into near sleep by the pace of the horses and the low, gentle voices of their parents. But once their feet were on the ground, the young spirits had reentered their bodies and they were running around, wide awake.
Levi suddenly felt a sharp disappointment realizing the day had come to an end, when Amberlyn and Ava ran up to them, speaking at once, out of breath.
“Can we watch Finding Dory?” Amberlyn was pulling at her dad’s jeans.
“Yeah, Mama, Dory. I haven’t seen that movie. And Amberlyn has it!”
Leslie kneeled before her wide-eyed daughter, the child’s hat bobbing up and down on the back of her neck, held securely with the string. The curls had gotten wet from the sweat and sleepiness and Leslie pushed some of them off her forehead.
“Oh, honey, I don’t know. We should—”
Levi’s face lit up. “We’d love for you to stay for dinner,” he announced, suddenly hopeful. Amberlyn nodded eagerly. “I actually have some hot dogs and hamburger patties in the fridge. We could grill out if you want.”
Leslie started to speak and Ava pulled at her mother’s arm. “Pleeeeeeeeaaaaaase.”
Leslie looked from her daughter back to Levi and sighed. “I feel a little outnumbered here. That’s very kind of you to offer dinner. I think we will stay for dinner and the movie. I’ve been wanting to see Finding Dory, too.”
He smiled, feeling happier than he had in a long time. They finished putting away the tack and headed up to the house, Amberlyn and Ava leading and holding hands. He felt a sudden urge and looked at her, meeting her eyes. He started to reach for her hand when Ava tripped on the steps to the porch and let out a cry. Tears were welling up in her eyes as Leslie sat next to her and pulled her into her lap asking where she was hurt. The girl pointed to her knee and Leslie examined for a moment. The jeans did not appear to be scraped so Levi doubted there was any serious injury. Still, when Leslie touched the knee, Ava yelled, “Ow, Mama, owwwwww.”
Leslie stood and put Ava on her feet, sighing. “Okay if I take her into the bathroom and look at her knee?”
He nodded. “Of course. You remember where it was?”
“Yes, thank you.” She held her daughter’s hand and led her into the house.
Amberlyn looked up into her father’s face. “Is she okay?”
“I’m sure she’s fine. Her mother is going to check on it.”
They followed into the house and Amberlyn sat impatiently on the floor in the hallway near the bathroom. Levi wanted to laugh at the waiting room scene but smiled instead, not wanting to make her feel bad because of her serious worry. It was cute, actually.
He headed to the kitchen to start getting the food together. He’d just pulled everything out and set on the kitchen island when Leslie walked into the room.
“Ava okay?” he asked quickly.
She smiled and sighed. “Yes. I think it just scared her. She’s pretty intense about her feelings sometimes.”
He nodded. “Certainly a regular event here too.”
“They’re playing with Legos now. Can I help here?”
He pointed to a knife block. “Would you mind slicing these tomatoes? Knife is there and there’s a plate in that cabinet above. I’m going outside to light the grill.”
By the time he had returned, she had the platter of lettuce, tomatoes, and pickles arranged and ready to go.
“The grill needs a few minutes to get hot. Then I’ll take the meat out. When they’re almost done, we can bring the rest of our meal outside and put on the picnic table.”
The sun had started to set, splashing a blend of blues, pinks, and purples along the horizon. The girls were already in the living room floor as they had finished eating first, eager to watch the movie. The adults spent another fifteen minutes finishing their dinner and enjoying light, easy conversation before they cleaned up and joined the girls.
They sat on the couch, a modest distance between them, but not so far away that it felt like a ‘no crossing’ line. Even so, they sat stiffly, speaking pleasantries for what seemed like the first half of the movie. Finally, Leslie kicked off her tennis shoes and pulled her feet up under her, and Levi relaxed.
Worried about his feet smelling, he chose to leave his shoes on, but leaned back, his eyes more focused on her than the movie. Of course, he’d seen the movie a hundred times already, but even if this had been the first time seeing it and watching his daughter’s glee, he’d have still found it hard to pull his eyes away from the woman seated before him.
She turned away from the movie and met his eyes. She started to speak but closed her mouth and glanced over at the girls. He followed her gaze and leaned forward to study them. Their little eyes were closed and mouths open, breathing deeply. Levi and Leslie looked back at one another and smiled.
“They’re always so cute and precious when they’re asleep.”
“Yeah,” he returned. “Makes you forget all about the trouble they can cause.”
She laughed. “So true.” She put her hand on his arm which was on the back of the couch. “Levi, thank you so much for today. This meant so much to Ava.”
As a parent, he recognized how much it also meant to her as the mother. Levi had found that nothing was more important to most parents than their children, so to express how much something meant to one’s child meant that it was doubly meaningful for the parent. His arm heated under her touch, and he was aware of how much he wanted to pull her to him and kiss her.
“It meant a lot to Amberlyn too,” he said. “I can’t tell you how wonderful it’s been to see her so happy this week. She is crazy about Ava . . . and you.”
“We’re pretty crazy about her.”
Her hand was still on his arm, and he pulled himself closer to her. She didn’t move away, so he put his other hand on top of hers and entwined his fingers, watching for any sign of hesitation. Instead, she allowed his fingers to explore hers, meeting them with her own exploration.
“Levi—”
“Leslie—” They spoke at once and then grinned at each other.
When she didn’t continue, he jumped in. “Leslie, I’ve really enjoyed getting to know you again, and I’d love to get to know you better. Since the first day I saw you last week, I can’t stop thinking about you, and I’ve been wanting to ask you out. I want you to know I don’t take that lightly. I haven’t really dated since Amberlyn was born. She comes first in my life, always, and I don’t want to bring around a string of women she only sees once.”
Leslie nodded. “Ava is my first too. And I haven’t dated anyone since Gary and I divorced.” Her face seemed to have a ‘but’ attached and Levi braced. “Look, I know that you know I had such a crush on you all through high school—”
“That doesn’t have anything to do with right now,” he interrupted.
She sighed. “Here’s the thing. You weren’t exactly kind to me in high school and I was crazy about you.” He started to interrupt again and she put her hand up. “I’m not trying to come down on you for that. We’re grownups and that was high school, and high school kids can be . . . insensitive. But then I met Gary, and he wasn’t unkind . . . at first. I think high school experiences added to my shyness around guys and fear of being rejected, and when Gary came on so strong, I fell for it. And that got me in a world of pain, but it also got me my daughter and I wouldn’t trade her for anything. I guess what I’m saying is
that I’m a bit of afraid of getting rejected again, and now I’m not just making decisions that affect my life. It’s Ava’s little life too, and that’s far more important than my own feelings. And this could affect your girl’s life too.” She nodded at Amberlyn’s sleeping form.
Dreading the destination of the conversation, he moved closer and took both of her hands. His eyes were intense as they met hers. “You don’t think I’m worried about the same things? You think I’ve had a lot of luck with women? Look at us, Leslie, I’m a single father, and her mother has never even met Amberlyn and I hope she never does. I’ve made more than my share of mistakes, but Amberlyn changed everything about me. Gave me purpose, a reason to move past all my anger and stubbornness. There’s not a single decision I make that I don’t consider how it’s gonna affect her first.”
She relaxed her arms and allowed him to hold her hands.
“This is the first time I’ve felt anywhere close to being interested in bringing someone into my home. I’m not asking you to jump into a relationship right now. We can just explore our friendship while letting the girls get to know each other better. We won’t let the girls know anything until we’re sure this could lead to something more. And keep in our minds that whatever happens we should stay friends for their sake.”
She nodded slowly. “I think that’s a doable plan. Their friendship first.”
“And Leslie”—he sighed deeply—“I know I was an ass in high school. I was angry and afraid and so goddamn insecure. My only solace is that most people, hopefully, grow up a lot after that. And I’m a brand-new cowboy. I’m most sorry about how I treated you because, honestly, I had a crush on you too.”
Her eyebrows lifted and he chuckled. “Don’t be so surprised. You’ve always been beautiful, and kind, and smart. You were out of my league. And for the record, I hated it when you went out with Carl. I made him stop seeing you because I couldn’t stand it. I wasn’t smart enough to realize that was why, but I know it now.”
“I—didn’t know,” she stammered.
“There were so many times, I’d see you in the stands during football practice and had trouble keeping my mind on the game. Especially that time you wore that yellow dress with the flowers on the bottom.”
“Really?” A grin spread across her face.
He raised an eyebrow and nodded. “Oh yeah, it was those spaghetti straps and I could just make out the tops of your breasts. I got sent home early that afternoon from practice because I couldn’t stay focused.”
Leslie laughed.
“Will you let me take you out, just you, next weekend? I’ve been waiting about fifteen years to ask you.”
He saw a tear shine in the corner of one of her eyes. “Well, I guess I can’t say no to that.”
Amberlyn whined in her sleep and rolled to her other side. Ava hadn’t moved.
“I should really get her home.”
“Let me put Amberlyn in her bed and then carry Ava out to your car for you.”
She nodded as he stood and gingerly picked up his child. Once Amberlyn was in his arms, he kissed her forehead and carried her effortlessly up the stairs. He put her on top of her comforter, planning to get the sleeping child into her pajamas after seeing off Leslie and Ava.
When he returned to the living room, he found Leslie on the floor next to her daughter, gently rubbing the hair matted to the child’s face by sweat. She looked up as he entered and smiled.
He gulped and pushed away thoughts of taking her up to his room. Patience, he thought.
“I can do this, you know.”
“Oh, I’m sure you’ve done this a bajillion times. I’m not doing this because I question your ability. Just wanted to have a few extra moments to say goodbye. And this way I can show off how charming I can be.”
She laughed and stood, moving back so he could bend down and lift Ava. She was considerably lighter than Amberlyn, underlining just how much his daughter had grown in the past year. It made him sad to realize how quickly she was growing up.
Leslie grabbed her purse and he followed her to her Explorer, her precious cargo in tow. Levi gently placed the still-sleeping Ava in her car seat and fastened all the belts and then backed out for Leslie to close the door.
She turned to him, and he couldn’t help himself; he stepped closer. When she didn’t back away, he put his hand to her cheek, rubbing her lips gently with his thumb. She opened them slightly, causing him to take a deep breath. She turned her face to kiss the palm of his hand and he brought his other hand to her jaw on the opposite side. He leaned in inch by inch, giving her time to pull away if she wished. When she didn’t, he lightly brushed his lips across hers, moving his fingers to the back of her head and into her hair, pulling her into him. She stood on her toes and met his kiss, deepening it and parting her lips so that he could slip in his tongue.
He was still holding her head, pulling her deeper into the kiss when she reached her hands around his waist, pulling herself even closer. He could feel her hips against his and he dropped his arms to encircle her body, causing her breasts to touch his chest. He inhaled sharply and lightly nipped at her bottom lip. He felt more than heard her moan against his mouth. Blood rushed to his groin and she opened her eyes in surprise as he hardened against her hip. He pulled away gently and slowly and stepped back, dropping his arms away from her. She knitted her brows, questioning, and he smiled at her, eliciting a grin from her.
“I hope we can explore that a little more later, but I’ve got a sleeping beauty in the house, and yours needs to get to bed. And honestly, I don’t want to rush this. It’s important to me.”
She nodded and drew back her hands, then reached into her pocket and pulled out the car key. “Me too,” she said simply, then surprised him by standing on her toes again and kissing him gently on the mouth before getting into her vehicle.
He watched her drive away and allowed himself to cool off before heading back into the house.
***
Levi didn’t really have strong feelings for Carey Madewell. In fact, he was pretty sure he didn’t like her at all. She was kind of a bitch, but she was the head cheerleader and had the figure that could cause a guy to get an erection in an instant, especially a seventeen-year-old guy. And she didn’t have to be a nice person to enjoy touching. It was better that way. He could stay mad and still get his fill of girls.
They were under a blanket in the bed of his truck, their clothes tossed aside. He was kissing her breasts while she wriggled and moaned his name. Annoyed, he moved his head to her face and began kissing her mouth, cutting off her words and allowing him to listen to the water falling over the dam nearby.
Unbidden and unexpected, a vision of kissing Leslie Perkins flashed in his head. He closed his eyes and allowed it to envelop him, and his thrusts quickened until he groaned and rolled off Carey. Keeping his eyes closed, allowing the vision to continue, he pulled her close and held her until she chastised him for lying on her uniform, and he pushed her away and returned to reality.
Chapter 5
Leslie spent Sunday considering what had transpired between her and Levi the night before imagining what could be building between them, though she kept reminding herself to not get her hopes up. Ava talked about the outing all day, asking when she could go back to Amberlyn’s and if she could get a pony. Leslie told her they’d need to wait for another invitation and that they could consider a pony in a couple of years but they both had to do a lot of research into how to take care of one and decide together if it was something they could do.
Undeterred, Ava worked on a string of suggested names for her pony and drew pictures of the animal she was determined to have. While the child planned for the addition to their family, Leslie prepared her home for another week of daycare, filled out paperwork to apply for the license she needed to open a full daycare center, and conducted some online research for funding opportunities.
Before dinner, she called Becca to ask a few questions. Her friend answered the ones
she could and made notes of the ones she needed to investigate the next morning. Then, she dropped her professional tone and asked eagerly, “So, how did the big date go?”
Leslie knew Becca had been dying to hear about the day spent with Levi and Amberlyn. “It wasn’t a date, Bec.”
“Details, details.” Leslie imagined Becca waving her hand in the air to dismiss her answer. “Okay, how did the not-a-date date go?”
Leslie chuckled. “The playdate for the girls was really wonderful. We rode horses, had a picnic, then had dinner and watched a movie.”
“Wow, that sounds like it lasted all day and night.”
“Not all night. When we got back from riding, the girls begged to watch a movie so Levi invited us to stay for burgers on the grill and Finding Dory.”
When she didn’t continue or elaborate, Becca asked impatiently, “And?”
“And . . . well, he did ask me on a date and . . . we kissed.”
“Wow, Leslie. What did you say? You said yes, right? And how was the kiss?”
“I said yes, and it was amazing. I think I would have gone to bed with him right then if he’d asked.”
“That good, huh?”
“That good.”
Leslie told her a little more about what a wonderful, comfortable day they all had, Levi’s confession to having had a crush on her in high school, and their decision to explore their feelings on a low-key level, making sure that if it didn’t work out it wouldn’t impact their daughters’ friendship. Then they got back to business and Becca promised to drop by the next day to look over Leslie’s license application and get it submitted for her.
Leslie had just gotten Ava down for the night and was crawling into her bed to read when her phone rang. Her stomach fluttered when she looked at the display on the phone.
“Hello?” she answered with some trepidation.
“Hey, I hope I’m not calling too late,” said Levi. “I was trying to wait until when I figured you’d put Ava to bed.”
Brand New Cowboy Page 4
