Beyond Repair (5 page)

She nodded. “I can’t say crap either.”

I could tell that Chris was trying to hold back from laughing by the way he bit his lip. He finally said, “My sister suc—stinks at these games, too.”

I realized I told him a lot about Zoey and me, but I didn’t really know much about his family. “Do you have any other siblings?”

Chris ripped the tickets off the game. “Nope,” he said, looking at the kids. “You guys hungry?”

After having room temperature pizza that tasted like cardboard, I looked at the clock. “We should probably get going, but do you want to get something with your tickets?”

They answered by sprinting to the prize display. Chris nudged me as Ryder looked at a tray of rhinestone bracelets. “Help me be a good wingman here. What’s her favorite color?”

“Purple.” I smiled, knowing Mia would be thrilled.

He nodded and walked to the kids. He said something to Mia, who ran over to me as he started talking to Ryder. “Mom, what’s your favorite color?”

“Blue, sweetie.”

“Okay!”

I followed her as she ran back to the counter. “It’s blue!”

“Mia, over here.” I directed her attention to some toy cars at the end of the counter. “Let’s get one of these for Ryder.”

She picked out a car and five minutes later, we’d spent all of the tickets and were heading out the door of Pizza Castle.

Mia handed the car to Ryder proudly. “Here.”

“Thanks!” He starting moving the car in front of him and made driving noises.

“Ryder,” Chris prompted. “Don’t you have something for Mia?”

“Oh, yeah!” He reached into his pocket and pulled out the purple bracelet. “Here.”

Mia jumped up and down, her mouth hanging open. “That’s so pretty!” She put the bracelet on and beamed at Ryder.

Chris looked at me and smiled. “I think their first date went really well, don’t you?”

“Yeah, it did. She even got jewelry at the end. How many girls can say that?” We reached my car and buckled in the kids.

“Are we close to your big house?” Ryder asked.

Chris slipped into the passenger seat and looked back at his nephew. “Yeah, we’re pretty close.”

This was news to me. “You have a house?”

“Yeah. Well, I flip them. I got into it a couple of years ago. When work’s slow, it’s something to do. The one Ryder mentioned sold right before I moved next door to you. The closing is next week.”

Ryder’s excited voice filled the car. “Can we go see it?”

“Nah, Brooke and Mia probably don’t care about that, buddy.”

“Please?” he asked.

“Yeah, please?” asked Mia, though I suspected she had no idea what she was asking for.

Before I realized what I was saying, I jumped in. “If you don’t care, I’d like to see it.”

He shrugged. “Yeah, sure. If you want. It’s only about five minutes from here.”

Not much later, with Chris’s direction, I pulled in front of a cute little yellow house with a perfectly manicured yard. He turned to me, his cheeks pink. “This is it.”

The kids jumped out of the car and ran in the front yard. I watched Ryder take Mia’s hand and pull her to look at the flowers planted along the front of the house. “You did this?”

“Out here, I just did the siding and some landscaping. And fixed the steps. And the walkway. Oh, and the roof.”

“That’s all?” I asked.

He laughed. “Didn’t seem like much when I was doing it, but yeah, I guess it was a lot. Come on, I’ll show you inside. That’s where I did the most work.”

He started walking toward the door, and I hesitated for a moment. The last time I followed someone, things did not end well for me.
Empty halls. Feeling like I’m in a maze. Following Pierce.

I dug my hand sanitizer out of my purse before the memory spiraled out of control. The last thing I wanted was to have a panic attack in front of the kids. Or Chris, who I’d spent a lot of time with over the last two days and had never given me any reason to think he was capable of doing anything horrible.

Calmness washed over me as I rubbed my hands together. He was Kyle’s friend, with his nephew, offering to show me a house that I had asked to see. This was actually a good thing for me to do. I needed to get over being so paranoid.

I followed Chris inside, motioning for Mia and Ryder to follow. The second the door shut, echoing in the empty, open area, I sucked my breath in. It was gorgeous. Bulky crown molding surrounded the room. Built-in shelves with beautiful carvings lined one of the walls. In the distance, I could make out a kitchen that looked like it belonged in a magazine. I knew not a damn thing about construction, but I knew this was good.

“Wow.”

Chris looked down at me, biting his lower lip. “Yeah? You like it?”

I thought about all the money I had, sitting in investments, growing. Mia and I were not extravagant and lived off my graphic designer salary. But at that moment, I wanted to dip into the savings and buy a place as gorgeous as this. It was just inspiring, and I felt creative being in it. “It’s beautiful.” I walked over to the shelves and ran my hand along the woodwork.

“Can Mia and I go on the porch?” Ryder asked.

“Sure,” Chris replied. He turned to me. “It’s screened in and locked, just off the kitchen.”

I nodded, still fascinated with the details. This place made my condo look like a dump. “Where did you even get this molding? I’ve never seen anything like it.”

He rubbed the top of his head. “I made it.”

“You did?”

“Yeah, I just routed it out …” He paused. “You’re really interested in this stuff?”

I nodded, and he led me around the first floor, keeping the kids in our view. Chris pointed out the different things that he made and changed. We ended in the kitchen. “I was lucky; I found some really nice cherry that I used to build the cabinets.”

“You made those, too?”

“Yeah, I like doing it and people like custom work.”

“God, who wouldn’t want these?” I took in the cabinets that went all the way up to the ceiling, the built-in wine rack, and all the other features that I didn’t know the names of. “Why didn’t you make a place like this for yourself? I can’t imagine that you’re happy with the builder-grade condo you’re in now when you’re capable of”—I waved my arm around—“this.”

Chris shifted his weight from one foot to another. “Houses are too big. They’re for families, you know? Not one person.”

Yeah, I knew what he meant. Zoey tried to talk me into moving closer to her. She kept reminding me that I had the money to get a house in her upscale neighborhood. But it just seemed like too much space for Mia and me. The condo was almost too big for us. I didn’t want the two of us rattling around in something even bigger, a constant reminder that a father was missing from Mia’s life. I played it off to Zoey that I didn’t want to do the yard work.

I didn’t want to have a talk like that with Chris though, so I changed the subject. “Are you going to change your place at all?” We had talked a little about it the other day, but he had just mentioned fixing things. Now that I knew what he was capable of, it seemed like nothing.

“I’m busy with jobs for now, but there are usually a few slow spells throughout the year. If I get bored, then I’ll do a few things.” He stuffed his hands into his pockets, and I intentionally diverted my eyes from his corded arms. I didn’t need the distraction. “Let me show you the porch. Ryder loves it.”

* * *

The previous night Chris asked if we could meet up outside again in the morning. Before I could find an excuse to say no, I accepted. I tried to pretend that it was because the kids had fun together, but there was absolutely no denying that spending time with Chris again was a huge part of it. For some reason, a comfort had formed between us over the past two days, and I enjoyed talking to him as much as I liked looking at him. Not something I was used to, but I liked it.

The kids decided to play with chalk on the driveway, which really meant they sat in lawn chairs and dictated what Chris and I should draw. Ryder requested I draw a green elephant, and Chris worked on a peacock.

I looked up as Chris’s phone rang, and he pulled it out of his pocket. “It’s Kyle,” he said, tapping the screen. “Hello?”

I kept drawing as I heard clips of his conversation. “Sure … yeah, of course … I’ll stop by with it later … yeah … I’m with her now.”

My head shot up as I realized he was talking about me, and Chris grinned. But after a moment, it faded. “Fine … yes … I’m not …” He stood up and walked down the driveway, head down as he paced back and forth.

All the buildup in my head of how great everything was going came crashing down. God knew what Kyle was saying right now. He was really good at keeping his mouth shut about me and never slipped to my parents. But maybe he was going to tell Chris because they were friends? Would he really do that to me? Maybe I should call Zoey and tell her to stop him.

Before I could pull out my phone, Mia jumped out of her chair and asked me for the purple chalk. As she started drawing some wobbly stick figures, Chris shoved his phone in his pocket, still looking down as he headed over to us. He sat in the same spot as before, but instead of drawing, he focused on passing a piece of chalk from on hand to another.

I frowned, uncertain if I should say something or just let it go. But Mia decided to make conversation.

“Did Uncle Kyle call because he wants me to go swimming at his new house?”

Chris gave Mia the even smile that I knew was fake. “I bet he does. But he was asking me if he could borrow a ladder.”

“Oh,” she said, completely losing interest. “Hey, can you make the peacock swimming in a pool?”

He looked down at his drawing. “I can try.”

I hesitated, wanting to ask if everything was okay, but finally started to color in the elephant.

After a minute of silence, I snuck a glance at him. Everything seemed so natural a few minutes ago, and now he kept shooting worried glances my way.

Mia had used my hand sanitizer earlier and hadn’t given it back to me. I stared at it on the pavement, just next to her chair. It would be totally obvious if I got up to get it, and I didn’t need him thinking I was a nutcase on top of what Kyle had told him. I rubbed my hands together instead. “Okay, what did Kyle say to you?”

Chris stopped drawing. “Nothing really. I told him we’ve been hanging out, and he kind of acted weird about it.” His eyes darted toward mine, and all I could see was confusion before he looked down at his drawing again.

I kept my voice calm, even though my stomach was turning. “Weird like …?”

“Oh, he just gave me a lecture about how I haven’t … well, it’s no big deal. He’s just really protective of you.” His arm tensed as he scribbled with the blue chalk.

So Kyle was pulling the big brother act. It was sweet and annoying at the same time. “Yeah, he is.”

Chris kept coloring. “But I was just thinking about how he told me before I moved here that you usually keep to yourself, and just now he asked me a bunch of questions about what we’ve been doing.” He put the chalk down and looked up at me, his eyes questioning. “So, have I been bothering you? We can leave if you want.”

He looked so frigging adorable with those clear blue eyes staring at me as he bit his lip. I couldn’t believe he was so concerned that he might be bothering me. There was no way I wanted him to leave.

My eyes widened as I finally accepted the feelings I’d been having all weekend. I didn’t want him to leave because I liked him.

I was so fucked. The first time I felt something in years, and it was for a guy who didn’t date.

“You’re not bothering me at all.” I was relieved my voice sounded normal, and Chris’s face relaxed. I wondered how much more I should say. “Mia and I have been having a good time with you guys.”

“Okay, good. Ryder and I have, too. I just thought since the kids were getting along, we might as well make the most of it.”

I finished coloring in the rest of the elephant and nodded, reminding myself that was why he wanted to spend time together. It wasn’t really for me; it was for his nephew. After not being with anyone in five years, it was only natural that I’d develop a little crush. It didn’t help that he was gorgeous, nice, and good with kids. Combined with feeling safe around him because he was friends with Kyle, of course I’d develop feelings. I had to get over them; nothing was going to come out of it. “Definitely. They’re getting along great. Ryder, what should I draw next?”

“A dragon!”

I leaned over to get a new piece of chalk but froze as Chris put his hand on mine and squeezed. Heat traveled through my fingertips and up my arm, making my heart beat faster, the rhythm echoing in my ears. I stared at our hands as he said, “Good. I was worried that I was being the annoying neighbor when I haven’t even been here a week yet.”

“You’re not.” I liked the feeling of his hand on mine way too much but didn’t have the heart to move. Using so much hand sanitizer left my hands chapped, but his were rougher, and for some reason, I found that incredibly attractive. And his hand was so much bigger than mine. It could have been threatening, but God, it didn’t feel that way
at all
.

I looked up to gather my thoughts, but it was a big mistake. His eyes bored into mine, covering my brain with the most wonderful fog ever. I couldn’t break our stare even if I wanted to. I just got lost in the beautiful light blue, getting a little bit darker because his pupils were getting bigger …

“Why aren’t you guys drawing? Can I have a Popsicle?”

I blinked, not sure if I should be pissed or happy that the moment had ended, and tilted my head toward Mia. “Sure. Why don’t you run in and grab the box?” I turned back to Chris. “Do you mind?” My gaze traveled back down to our hands.

“Sorry.” Chris yanked his hand off mine and I made a fist to resist the urge to snatch his back. “I didn’t mean to make you feel uncomfortable—”

“What? No! Not that.” I laughed. “I meant, do you mind if Ryder has a Popsicle?”

Red crept up to Chris’s face as he rubbed his forehead, leaving a trail of blue chalk across it. “Man. Yeah, of course.” He gave me a small smile, his face still red.

I turned my attention to Mia as she walked back toward us, carefully holding the box of Popsicles as if it were a priceless artifact. She placed it on the ground between her and Ryder, and they started searching for their preferred flavors.