She dropped her hand over his for the second time that day and squeezed. “I’d really like to share it with you and Casey.”
He surprised her by shifting his hand under hers until their fingers entwined. He kept his eyes on the road but said softly, “We’d like that too, sweetheart.”
No matter how hard she tried to tell herself not to be swept away in all things Jake, her heart still thudded heavily in her chest when he made no move to pull away. He continued to surprise her—in mostly good ways. It was obvious to anyone with eyes that he was drop-dead handsome and oh so sexy. She’d even suspected he was a good guy after he came to her rescue in the parking garage that day. Most men would have been terrified to deal with a crying woman, but he’d actually been very sweet and thoughtful. Some lady was going to be very lucky when he decided to settle down for real.
Their marriage had been on borrowed time from the moment they said, “I do.” If she was already attached after one day, how would she possibly deal with the aftermath of losing something she never really had?
* * *
Jacob stood watching his daughter and Lydia as they lay on their stomachs to pet the stingrays in the aquarium bay. To say these two had become fast friends was an understatement. Casey had practically hung on Lydia’s every word as they moved through each exhibit. Lydia told Casey fun facts about each fish in a way that she could understand, and he’d been about as captivated as his daughter by the time they were nearing the last areas. Whether she knew it or not, Lydia seemed born to be a mother. She was nurturing in a way that Chris had never been. She might love their daughter, but she’d never be the soccer mom who brought cupcakes to the matches or invited the other kids over for a slumber party. The only way Chris would entertain another child was if it was socially advantageous to do so. She had no qualms about using Casey as a stepping-stone to make connections with well-to-do parents.
Casey shrieked in pure delight when her hand touched one of the rays as it passed by. “Lydie, did you see? I feels its whole back!”
Lydia threw her arm around his daughter and squeezed her. “I did! That was awesome. How long are your arms, little miss? I stretched as far as I could and I still missed it!”
Jacob’s chest felt unusually tight as Casey beamed up at Lydia before turning to look at him. “It’s okay, Lydie. Daddy’ll let us wait til you gets one. Right, Daddy?”
“Of course I will, baba,” he choked out, feeling strangely moved by seeing the woman who was technically his wife interact with his child. How he wished for Casey’s sake that she could have a woman this nurturing in her life all the time. Chris might love her, but she was as different as night and day from Lydia.
They ended up staying at the stingray exhibit for another thirty minutes until Casey was ready to move on to the gift shop at the end of the tour. Then Casey jumped up from her position at the bay and skipped past him to look at the stuffed animals a few feet away. He walked forward and extended a hand to help a smiling Lydia to her feet. Water had splashed the white shirt Lydia was wearing, and it was wet. He was certain that she had no idea he could vividly see her blue bra and the creamy swells of her breasts. His cock was rapidly stirring to attention at the erotic sight.
“Jake . . . Jake!” He blinked as Lydia’s voice finally penetrated the sexual fog he’d fallen into. Shit, she still hadn’t noticed her shirt, but all of the men in the area had. Hell, no. They could get their thrills somewhere else. “Are you coming?” she asked as she turned to follow Casey into the store. Oh yeah, sweetheart, I’d love to be coming—inside you, he thought before shaking his head.
“Lydia . . . how about we wait here while you go to the restroom and—freshen up?”
She wrinkled her nose but didn’t budge. At this point, one of the nearby men had edged closer and was ogling her tits. Jacob was about two seconds from punching him in the nose, which wouldn’t be a great idea with his daughter close by. He glared at the bastard before stepping closer and putting his hand on Lydia’s arm. He leaned down until his lips were at her ear and said, “Look at your top, baby. If you don’t want me kicking the guy’s ass to your left, then please go try to dry it out.”
She appeared puzzled for a moment before she warily inspected her clothing. He heard a loud gasp at the same time as her arms quickly came up to cover her breasts. “I . . . I’m going to—be right back,” she said shrilly as she hurried away. The nearby man gave him a sheepish look, but thankfully turned in the opposite direction and took off.
“Where Lydie going?” Casey asked, looking forlorn.
He mussed her hair then tweaked her button nose. “She had to go to the restroom, but she’ll be right back. How about we go on inside the shop and let you start looking.” He knew from painful experience that taking Casey shopping could be a long and drawn-out affair where she would change her mind no less than ten times until she settled on something. He figured he was doing Lydia a favor by letting her get started.
While his daughter darted from one thing to another, he kept watching for Lydia. When he saw her walk into the shop, he raised a hand and drew her attention over to them. His eyes went straight to her chest when she walked up and he could see by the blush on her cheeks that she’d noticed. The area that had been so transparent a short time ago now appeared to be completely dry. “I had to turn it around backward,” she confessed as she reached his side. “I tried to use the hand dryer, but it wasn’t working very well.”
“Er—you look great. No one will know the difference,” he assured her then realized he was still gawking at her breasts. “Sorry ’bout that,” he murmured, feeling strangely bashful in his admiration for her.
“Ah, no problem.” She giggled before Casey ran up and threw herself into Lydia’s arms.
“Lydie! You back!” Puckering her small mouth, she said, “Should I get the turtle or the stingray?” Before Lydia could answer, Casey danced around excitedly. “Me knows! I’ll get the pink ray and you gets the blue one!” Then she turned those eyes on him, and he was well aware he’d agree to whatever she wanted. A rainbow pony? Done! “Daddy, can you buy Lydie a stuffed animal too? I don’t know if her got any money or not. But if we buy it for her, then she be our friend forever, right?”