Huddle Up (7 page)

Angel’s eyes widened, and he heard Gabriela giggle. Pleased by both reactions, he backed away turning his attention to his daughter. “What’s the matter, sweetie?”

“Lucy pooped on the floor.” Her hand flew to her mouth in an attempt to hold back a giggle.

Was she laughing because she said the word poop? He smiled, not even caring about the mess on the carpet. His daughter already had him wrapped around her pinkie finger. Hopefully she’d never figure that out.

“Where’s the litter box?” Angel asked.

Billy looked to the ceiling. He thought he’d covered everything. Rooms decorated, check. Groceries purchased, check. Safety locks on the balcony door, check.

“You did buy a litter box, didn’t you?” prodded Angel.

“It wasn’t on the list.”

“Neither was the rags-to-riches princess room or this,” she said tightly. Angel waved her hand around her bedroom.

“I wanted you both to feel welcomed here. Wanted.” Ah, hell, why were tears welling up in Angel’s eyes? “What did I do wrong now?”

Angel collapsed onto the bed. “Nothing. I’m sorry. You’ve been like a knight in shining armor, and I’ve been the wicked witch of the Mid West.”

Gabriela ran over to her mother and patted her head. “You’re not a witch, Mommy.”

Billy agreed. Angel might be an enchantress but she was no witch. And him a knight in shining armor? Billy rubbed his neck, uncomfortable with the comparison. As his daughter he wanted Gabriela to have the best, nothing heroic about that. He was hoping to impress Angel, not alienate her. He looked around the room and pictured Gabriela’s room in his head. “I guess I did go overboard,” he conceded.

“No, it’s not you, it’s me,” said Angel.

“Where have I heard that before?” he muttered, but by the intake of her breath he guessed she heard it just the same. He was a fool to believe anything had changed. “I’ll run out to the store.”

“Billy⁠—”

Before she could finish he was out the door. He didn’t want to hear it.

*

By the time he returned, it was time to get Gabriela ready for bed and Angel efficiently went over their daughter’s bedtime routine with him.

Once they had Gabriela snuggled into bed, Angel read from The Princess and the Pea while he leaned against the bedpost and watched. The soft glow of the fairy lights draping down the canopy created a magical scene. Mesmerized by the way the words flowed from Angel’s lips, Billy only half listened to the tale as his body reacted from fantasies of its own.

“Kiss Ellie goodnight.” Gabriela waved the pink elephant in the air.

Startled by the intrusion and a bit ashamed by his thoughts, he waited until Angel kissed the stuff animal and then Gabriela. He wanted to ask about the elephant, but then Gabriela, waved it in his direction.

“Daddy’s turn.”

How ridiculous did a hulking football player look kissing a pink elephant? He didn’t give it a second thought and complied. His daughter’s smile melted his heart. As she hugged the stuffed animal, he kissed her on the cheek, regretting all the goodnight kisses he’d missed.

Angel nodded towards the door. Once they were in the hallway, she touched his arm. “I’m sorry about earlier.”

Billy looked down at the hand on his bicep. He flexed the muscle.

“Oh,” she gasped.

“What are you exactly sorry about?” He stepped closer, brushing his fingers along her cheek. “Being interrupted?”

“Yes, I mean, no.” Angel backed away.

But he persisted, backing her up against the closed door of her room. His fingers threaded through her long black hair. “Do you remember the first time we kissed?”

“No, I mean, yes.”

Billy captured her breathless whisper in a gentle kiss. Her lips tasted like heaven and sugar. Angel’s hands rested unsure upon his chest as if ready to ward him off, and then they slid around his body as she melted into him. His body hardened. His blood raged for more, but still he kept the kiss soft, unwilling to ruin the sweetness of the moment.

He had a choice. Play the short game for instant gratification or the long game for the win. The long game took patience and that was a game strategy Billy had never excelled at, but to win Angel, he’d learn some new moves. He pulled away. Looking into her eyes he read the emotion there and knew he made the right call.
Trust.

“Goodnight, Angel.”

Walking into his bedroom he realized it was only nine. Unless he wanted to run into Angel and test his new found patience, he was in a prison of his own making. At least he had cable.

*

Billy spent a restless night tossing and turning. If he wasn’t worrying about Gabriela’s first night sleeping alone then he was thinking about Angel under the covers just one door away. The alarm sounded and he groaned. Time to get ready for another brutal day of practice. Damn, he’d be a worthless sack of shit on the field. He made his way to the kitchen passing by both rooms as quietly as a 6’5”, 250 pound man could possibly be expected to be.

Opening the fridge, he took out all the makings for a fruit smoothie. After throwing them haphazardly into the blender, he pulsed it on low, hoping he wouldn’t wake either of the ladies of the house. Needing a blast of energy, he gulped directly from the blender’s pitcher. Before finishing it, he decided to start the oatmeal. His body needed fuel for the day ahead.

“Hi.”

If the voice hadn’t been so small, Billy might have been startled since he hadn’t heard the little ninja’s footsteps. He turned around and his daughter stood right behind him. She looked up at him with wide eyes, her hair an unruly mass of curls. “Good morning, Gabriela.”

She frowned at him, her face so serious he thought she might cry. What had he done wrong? The urge to wake Angel had him eying the hallway. He stared down bigger men every day on the field, yet he was afraid to be alone with a five-year-old.

“Are you mad at me?”

Billy blinked. “No.” He hadn’t yelled or even scowled at her. “Why do you think that?”

“Mommy only calls me Gabriela when I’m in trouble.”

Amused, he asked, “Are you in trouble often?”

“Oh, no.” she shook her head vehemently, her ebony curls bouncing in all directions.

Billy laughed. Damn, she had to be the most adorable child that ever lived. She continued to stare up at him.
Now what?
He eyed the hallway again.
Man up, Billy or rather Dad up.
“Are you hungry?”

Gabriela nodded. “Can I have ice cream?”

Billy grinned. “I know I’m pretty new at this dad stuff, but even I know ice cream is not for breakfast.”

She pointed to his glass. “Then what’s that?”

He guessed his smoothie did look like a milkshake. Observant child. He better remember that in the future. “It’s a fruit smoothie. Do you want to try it?”

“Yes, please.”

Sorting through his glassware, he selected a mug she’d be able to hold with ease. He transferred a small amount of the liquid and handed her the mug. She took a tentative sip.

“Yum. It taste like a milkshake!”

Overly proud of himself for such a minor achievement, Billy smiled. “Do you want me to make you one?”

“Yes, please.”

His daughter watched his every move as he put all the ingredients in the blender, which made him nervous, which was ridiculous. He substituted yogurt for his normal scoop of protein powder and flipped the switch. Her hands flew up to her ears as the ingredients mixed together. Once it was done he filled the mug to the rim. “Here you go, Gabby.”

Billy didn’t know if the wide smile he received from her was for the smoothie or from the use of her nickname. It didn’t matter why, only that he made her happy and damn if he wouldn’t do anything in his power to see that smile again and again.

“Thank you.” She went to take a sip, but then asked, “Do you have a straw?”

He didn’t and he wished he could run out to the store and buy some. “No, I don’t, sorry.”

“That’s okay.”

Billy breathed a sigh of relief. He made his oatmeal while Gabby happily sipped her breakfast. He hoped he’d done the right thing. Angel hadn’t gone over Gabby’s meal schedule, so he had no idea what she normally ate for breakfast. Well, one time couldn’t hurt and a fruit smoothie was healthier than those sugar-laced cereals.

Billy noted the time on the oven clock. “Should we wake Mommy up with breakfast in bed?”

Gabby nodded with excitement.

Using a baking pan as a makeshift bed tray, Billy placed a cup of tea and a buttered muffin on it and let Gabby lead the way. He couldn’t say who was more surprised, Angel who gushed over the simple fare or him as he salivated over her nipples which puckered underneath the thin, white tank top. What else lay beneath the covers? He instantly regretted his decision last night to be patient. He’d give a whole new meaning to breakfast in bed by feasting on her. “I have to leave for practice but I already made Gabby breakfast.”

“I had a milk shake,” said Gabby. She climbed onto the bed to sit next to her mother.

Angel’s annoyed gaze landed on her prey. The mama bear stare was fiercer than any defense he’d played against, he held up his hands in mock surrender before she launched into another tirade. “A fruit smoothie,” he explained. “I swear.”

“G
abrielaaaa…” Angel stretched out her daughter’s name in a shocked tone that prompted an explanation of Gabby’s white lie.

Gabby shrugged. “It tastes like one.”

Billy laughed. Angel breathed a sigh of relief he wasn’t mad that she had jumped to conclusions. Hadn’t she learned anything from her little outburst last night? The poor man probably didn’t know what hit him. Here he was trying to do the right thing and she jumped all over him—and not in the jump-your-bones good kind of way that kept her up most of the night wondering what would’ve have happened if the gentle kiss led to more.

“Lanie will be here around ten to show you Gabby’s new school. Then to the bank to set up an account for you and a college fund for Gabby.”

Would their daughter like her new school? Would she make new friends? Worried for Gabby she only managed to mutter, “Okay, thanks.”

Guilt etched his features. “Look I’m sorry. I’d take you myself, but I have practice.”

“I understand. Really.”

Billy nodded before bending down to kiss Gabby goodbye on the cheek.

“Now kiss mommy.” Gabby giggled.

Where did that come from?
Angel turned her head. “Daddy isn’t⁠—”

Instead of catching a cheek, which Billy must’ve been aiming for, his lips grazed hers. Stunned, she didn’t finish whatever it was she was about to say. Billy leaned back but still remained only a breath away, his blue eyes searching hers. What did he see? Shock? Panic? Desire? All those feelings whirled inside her.

“Yay!” Gabby clapped.

She needed to have another talk with Gabby to remind her that Mommy and Daddy were just friends. But with her lips still tingling from Billy’s soft kiss, Angel couldn’t form a coherent sentence. It was just as well since she didn’t trust herself to speak. He backed away with a smile that promised a more thorough exploration of her lips.

Hell, Angel needed another talk with herself before she started believing Billy really was a knight in shining armor or her very own Prince Charming. Yeah, a real prince all right, one who took his date to a strip joint. But it was becoming increasingly difficult to reconcile the man in the videos with the teenage boy she remembered and the man she was coming to know now.