Hardwood - K.M. Neuhold Page 0,47

as she’s out of the room, I set the wine glasses on the coffee table and sit down next to Watson, giving him a sheepish smile.

“I’m so sorry. Val got called into work the overnight shift,” I explain, biting my bottom lip. “I couldn’t tell her no.”

“Of course not,” he agrees. “I should probably go.” The disappointment is clear on his face, and it makes me feel a tiny bit better that I’m not the only one bummed that this date didn’t end as planned.

“Unless you want to stay and watch Frozen,” I offer hopefully, tacking on a chuckle to pass it off as a joke in case he says no.

“You don’t mind? I don’t want to make things awkward with your daughter.”

“She already knows you’re here,” I point out with a shrug. “I told her we’re friends, and she’s eight, so I don’t think she really cares much beyond that explanation.”

“If you’re sure…”

“I’m sure.”

I queue up the movie and hand Watson his glass of wine before leaning back on the couch and getting comfortable, trying not to resent the foot of space between us or my daughter who’s inadvertently cock blocking me.

Livi returns to the living room wearing her Elsa pajama set, settling onto the couch between us without hesitation.

I start the movie and stretch my arm out over the back of the couch. Watson does the same, and our fingers brush, the two of us sharing a secret little smile over Livi’s oblivious head.

It only takes a few minutes before Watson is just as engrossed in the movie as my daughter is, both of them singing along and excitedly discussing the plot together as if they’ve never seen it before.

“I want a moose for a pet,” Livi says.

“You can’t have a moose,” I say firmly. I may be a pushover when it comes to dinner, but I draw the line at a pet moose.

“I have a pet hedgehog,” Watson tells her, and her eyes light up.

“You do? That’s so cool.”

As much as I love seeing the two of them get along, it also adds a whole new weight to my chest. What if Livi gets attached to him and things don’t work out? This is our first date after all. What the hell was I thinking even letting them spend time together this early on? It’ll be bad enough if I have to deal with the heartbreak if things go south, I can’t put my daughter in that same position.

“It’s getting late,” I blurt. “Mr. Black probably needs to get home.”

“But the movie isn’t over,” Livi argues.

“It’s after nine,” I point out firmly. “And you’ve seen this movie a thousand times. You can finish it in the morning.”

She pouts, but I remain firm, and eventually she huffs and hops off the couch, stomping all the way down the hall to her room. I stand up and Watson follows suit, looking worried.

“I’ll be right there to tuck you in,” I call after her.

“Did I do something wrong?” Watson asks.

“No, no, not at all,” I assure him. “I just…um, you know, it’s late, and she needed to get to bed,” I explain lamely, already feeling silly for overreacting a bit at the panic that had gripped me.

“Oh, sure, of course,” he says, clearly not buying it, but polite enough not to call me out.

I walk him to the front door and shamelessly check out his ass when he bends over to put his shoes back on.

“Thanks for dinner,” he says when he stands back up. “I had a nice time tonight.”

“Me too. And I’m sorry again for the unexpected interruption. The night didn’t exactly end how I planned.”

Watson inches closer, his lips tilting up in a wicked smile. “And how did you plan for it to end?” he asks, his voice low so there’s no chance Livi will overhear.

“I was picturing the two of us with a lot less clothes,” I whisper back in a low rumble, and he bites his lip, rolling his eyes back dramatically, just like he did when he was eating dinner.

“Maybe you can show me what you had in mind next time,” he suggests. “If you want there to be a next time, that is?”

I reach for him, putting my hands on his waist and groaning at the feeling of his body against my hands, even in such a minimal capacity. “Hell yes, I want a next time.”

“Thank god,” he mutters with a smile.

“I’ll text you tomorrow.”

“I’ll be looking forward to it,” he says before