Hard to Resist - By Kara Lennox Page 0,35
about the puppy later.”
“Is she allergic to dogs?” Ethan asked.
“Not that I know of.”
“I should have asked you that before. I’m sorry. This time you were right.”
“And I wasn’t the other times?” But she offered him a faint smile. Then she turned her attention back to her daughter. “Are you okay, now, Sammy?” Kat asked, smoothing a stray curl off the child’s face.
Samantha nodded. “I ran too much, I think.”
“That’s okay, sweetie, it’s not your fault. Do you think you left your inhaler at school?”
She nodded.
“Let’s go inside and cool off.”
“Can I show the puppy to Jasmine?” She and Jasmine had played together one afternoon already, and they seemed to get along very well.
“Maybe you can show Jasmine tomorrow.” Kat helped Sam to her feet and took her hand. “And you,” she said to Ethan. “We’ll talk later.”
* * *
KAT’S HEART was in her throat. She’d heard a little of what Ethan had said to Sam. He had known exactly what to do, what to say to calm her down, and now Kat felt like a heel. Ethan had only wanted to make her daughter smile, and she’d practically spit in his face.
On top of that, she’d lost her temper, upset Samantha and set a terrible example.
But she wasn’t going to beat herself up over this. She was going to learn from it and move forward.
She ran a lukewarm bath for her daughter and fixed them some dinner. Sam played quietly with Bashira, then willingly got into bed and listened with sleepy eyes as Kat read from Winnie the Pooh.
“Mommy?” Samantha said suddenly. “Can I name the puppy Winnie?”
“You’ll have to ask Mr. Basque.”
“He said I could name her anything I wanted.”
“Well, then, I think Winnie is a fine name.”
“Do you like Mr. Basque?”
“Yes, I like him very much.”
“I think I’m starting to like him, too. He’s not scary like before.”
“I’m glad, Sammy. ’Cause I think he’s a really good man. He has a big heart.” Kat gave her daughter a kiss and smoothed her hair off her face. She was so precious. Kat was once again overwhelmed by how lucky she was—how lucky they both were—to be alive.
Samantha closed her eyes, and Kat turned out the light and tiptoed out. She looked out the window and saw that Ethan was on his deck.
Waiting for her.
She brushed her hair, slipped on a pair of flip-flops and went downstairs and across the yard.
This time he was on the porch swing, and he patted the spot next to him. The puppy was at Ethan’s feet, gnawing on his shoelaces.
“Well, let me have a look at her,” Kat said, picking up the puppy before taking her spot on the swing. She held the spotted dog and looked her in the eye. “You are going to be a lot of trouble, Winnie.”
“Winnie?”
“That’s what Sam wants to name her.”
Ethan shrugged. “It’s a good enough name.”
The puppy tried to lick her nose, and Kat set her back down. Winnie then found a rawhide chew and settled in to sharpen her teeth.
“I’m not very good at this relationship stuff,” Kat said. “When I was married, Chuck and I had our assigned roles. He made decisions, and I followed them. At some point, I realized that wasn’t right. I wanted to be on an equal footing with him. And he didn’t like that, so we parted.”
Ethan pushed the swing gently. “I’m certainly no expert, either. As I’ve clearly demonstrated.”
Kat laughed. “It’s hard. All the negotiating, the compromising. For a while, now, I’ve thought that being independent and standing strong were the most important things any woman could do. But if that means always getting your own way… Well, now I’m not so sure.”
“No one gets it right on the first try,” he said.
They lapsed into silence. The porch swing squeaked rhythmically and Kat decided it was one of the nicer moments of her life—simply because it felt so ordinary.
“Samantha has decided she likes you,” she said.
“So bribing her worked?”
“Showing her you really care is what worked. Talking to her like she was a real person. Being gentle. That’s what won her over. Not a puppy.”
“I like her, too,” Ethan said softly. “She’s a great kid.” He slid across the porch swing and put his arm around Kat’s shoulders, drawing her close.
Kat was the one who felt a little bit crazy. At least, all sorts of wild thoughts were assailing her as she breathed in the masculine scents that clung to him. The good, clean smell of soap and