His iced coffee came, and it tasted cold and refreshing. “How come? I always imagined models traveling to exotic places. I’m surprised you never branched out into swimwear.”
Shea’s smile dimmed. “I had obligations. I couldn’t leave the ranch.”
“I’m sure they’d understand. I know you’re sort of the boss there, but they all seemed so nice. I can’t believe they wouldn’t let you have time off.”
“That wasn’t it.” Shea’s despondent voice matched the sorrowful glint in his blue eyes, but he didn’t elaborate, and then the food came.
Jake became engrossed in helping Stacey with her s’mores, and only when she began eating did Jake start on his own dessert.
Shea took several bites. “Well, this is delicious, but I’ll bet you a dollar and a doughnut that if you ever tasted my Aunt Patty’s pecan pie, you’d never wanna eat anythin’ else.”
Jake ate some of his brownie. “Stacey, honey. Shea has donkeys and lots of horses. Plus chickens and bunnies.”
“We got some goats now and little pigs too. We figured since the zoo in the next town closed down, we might as well expand our inventory of animals, so the kids would have someplace to go. When we don’t have you corporate types comin’ by, which is usually all summer, we have kids getting riding lessons and playin’ with the animals. Swimmin’ and fishin’ too.” Shea’s eyes twinkled. “Bet you don’t wanna hear about that none.”
“Very funny.” Jake took a bite of his brownie. “Daddy even heard owls, honey. They live in the trees on the ranch.”
Stacey picked at her s’mores, but Jake could see her interest in listening to Shea talk about the ranch. He decided it might be a good time to feel out how she’d react to taking a trip there. He sipped his iced coffee, and with Shea’s eyes on him, watched her fork in her s’mores. Jake could see her wandering the flowering paths of the ranch, petting the donkeys and horses.
“Would you like to see it sometime, honey? Maybe you, Daddy, and Terry could take a plane ride to Texas?”
And then Jake saw it—not fear, but a spark of interest in her face. Kiss whined and nudged her hand. She blinked at Jake as she smoothed her hand over her dog’s head.
“Yes, of course we’d definitely take Kiss. Would you want to go? We’ll talk to Dr. Aggarwal, but I think it would be fun, right? A week in the country, where you get to play with all the animals?”
She gave a nod, and Jake couldn’t be sure, but he might’ve seen a tiny smile tease her mouth.
“What do you think, Shea? You think you could handle us all for a week?”
Jake swooped in to snag a bite of Shea’s dessert, but Shea captured his fork with his own. Glittering blue eyes met his. “If that’s a challenge, consider it accepted. You just tell me when, and I’ll make sure to have everythin’ you need.”
You.
Jake sipped his iced coffee, then slipped the sticky-sweet marshmallow dessert into his mouth as he held Shea’s gaze.
Right now, you’re all I need.
Chapter Eleven
After his shoot earlier, Shea had hoped to look at some apartments in the city, but when Jake invited him to meet his daughter, he didn’t hesitate to jump on the opportunity. New York would always be there. The chance to be with Jake, he couldn’t be so sure.
He had no idea what to expect when he met Jake and his daughter, but the moment she looked into his eyes, the little girl captured a piece of his heart. That sweet Stacey Sunshine was hiding from life, and it tore Shea apart to see how deep inside her head she lived.
And then there was Jake. His devotion to his daughter, how he anticipated her needs, trying to be the best father in the world, broke Shea, yet now he understood the reckless abandon and wildness with which Jake let go at the ranch those few days. Like bread crumbs, Jake had left little pieces of himself with Shea in their times together: raised by a single mother, his broken marriage, and overshadowing it all, the incredible, protective love for his child.
He was surprised when after he returned to his hotel room, he got a FaceTime call from Jake. He hit the Accept button, and Jake’s handsome yet slightly tense face appeared.
“Did I forget somethin’?” Shea asked, mystified as to why Jake would be calling.