Christmas with the Single Dad (The Single Dads of Seattle Book 5) Page 13

  Daphne gasped and crossed herself.

  Zak squeezed her knee again.

  “I’m sorry,” Tia whispered. She turned to face Aiden, her face a mix of sadness and conviction. “As much as you bug me sometimes, don’t you dare do that.”

  Hot tears stung the corners of Aurora’s eyes, her emotions forcing her to once again turn away, focusing on the fridge magnets across the room.

  She could see out of the corner of her eye Aiden’s reaction though. His eyes went wide, his mouth open like a guppy. But after a moment, he closed his mouth and nodded once. “I won’t.”

  Sherman cleared his throat. “Well, we’re so happy you could join us for Christmas this year, Aurora. And I hope that kind people invite your parents over for turkey dinner so that they’re not all alone.”

  Aurora hoped so too.

  “We’ll have to make a point of getting them out this way next year, though,” Sherman went on. “Could even road trip out here with us. We’ve got a motorhome. Could make it a real old coot party.” He moved his board game piece up to a Licorice Space, where he was now forced to lose a turn. “Have a big family shindig once we all get here. Lord knows, Zak’s got the space.” He slapped his grandson on the shoulder, taking hold and giving Zak a loving shake. “Couldn’t be prouder of you, son. You’ve built yourself quite the empire.”

  Zak’s cheeks burned a sexy red. “Trying to, Papa. Not there quite yet. Need to expand into more states before I can consider it an empire. Right now, it’s just a city domination. We need to take Club Z statewide, then national, then international.” He took a bite of his pizza, his grin wide and boyish.

  Aurora was happy for the change of topic. She hadn’t been prepared to share so much about her family, and yet, now that she had, her heart felt just a touch lighter. She moved her gaze from the fridge back to the board game. A hand beneath the table linked with hers. She was sitting next to Tia.

  The little girl gave her a small smile and squeezed her hand. “I’m happy you’re here with us,” she said softly. “I am really sorry about your brother and your dad.”

  Aurora’s lip wobbled, and fresh tears welled up in her eyes. She squeezed Tia’s hand back. Could these children get any more amazing?

  Was it too late to write her wish list to Santa Claus? Because at the very top of that list would be being a part of these kids’ lives. They were truly wonderful little human beings.

  “Thank you,” Aurora managed to say. “Just like yours, Brecken was a really terrific big brother.”

  Tia smiled at her. Their hands remained linked beneath the table, and even more of the pain that had been sitting like an elephant on Aurora’s chest for so long finally began to slip away.

  “I’m pleased to see that the snow finally ebbed,” Daphne said. “And that the plows came through. The children and I had quite a nice time outside building a snowman this afternoon, but there comes a point where enough is enough.” Her green eyes went a touch buggy. “I mean it was nearly up to poor Tia’s navel. Girl could hardly move.”

  “Yeah, but it was fun, Granny,” Tia said, smiling. “I could flop right back into the snow and almost disappear.”

  They continued to laugh and play, eat and drink, when the doorbell interrupted Zak’s victory dance over his epic Candy Land win.

  He stood up from the table and checked his phone. “Why do I think that seven o’clock is late?” he asked, making a face of disbelief. “I was about to ask who was here at this hour. I’m turning into an old coot.” He made his way to the door.

  “Plenty of room at the old coot table, son,” Sherman called behind him. “Lots of fresh prune juice too.”

  Aurora snorted a laugh. She really liked everyone in Zak’s family, but Sherman was a real character through and through.

  The rest of them around the table went quiet as they heard Zak open the front door. Eyes of curiosity darted from person to person.

  Who was at the door?

  Was it Zak’s ex and that Craig guy?

  Voices Aurora didn’t recognize besides Zak’s drifted into the kitchen. She heard the front door close, and Zak appeared moments later, a gaggle of men, women and children in his wake.

  Aurora counted two men, both tall and handsome, one another redhead like Zak, the other tall with dark hair and dark green eyes.

  The women looked like they could be sisters with the same dark hair and blue eyes as well. One woman had a baby on her hip, while the other had a little boy of about five by the hand.

  The longer she studied all of them, the more she realized she recognized them. Particularly the taller man with red hair. It was Dina’s brother, Aaron.

  All four of these people had been at Dina’s service.

  Heat pooled in her belly and began to bubble up, unease taking over.

  Would they recognize her? Would they start to ask questions about her, about how she knew Dina? Would they blow her cover? Tell Zak that she wasn’t the powerful fourth-year associate with the fancy corner office he thought she was?

  Tia and Aiden both leapt off their seats, distracting her.

  “Gabe!” Tia cheered, approaching the little boy. “Can I have a Christmas hug, buddy?”

  The little boy nodded, his smile wide and infectious before he released the woman’s hand and threw his arms around Tia. Even though she wasn’t much bigger than him, she picked him up anyway, causing them both to start laughing.

  “Mark, Aaron, Tori and Iz popped by for a quick visit,” Zak said, his face more relaxed than Aurora had seen in a while.

  Daphne’s eyes went wide. “Is that a baby? Can I hold her? I haven’t had a baby in my arms since Tia.” She stood and rushed the woman carrying the baby. “May I?”

  The woman laughed, passing off said baby. “Of course. Sophie isn’t stranger-shy yet. She just woke up, so she should be in a good mood.”

  Sophie.

  Why did that baby’s name sound so familiar?

  Wait, did Dina’s brother get custody of her baby when she died? That must have been it. Sophie was Dina’s daughter, and now Aaron had gone from uncle to father literally at the speed of a bullet.

  Tia, Aiden and Gabe had already disappeared into the living room, the sound of the train starting up drifting around the corner, while Aurora and Sherman still sat at the table, staring at the newcomers.

  Still beaming, Zak proceeded with the introductions.

  “Papa, Aurora, these are my friends Mark and Aaron. Mark is dating Tori.” He gestured to the slightly taller of the two women who had come in holding Gabe’s hand. “And Aaron is with Isobel. Tori and Isobel are also sisters.”

  She knew it. They looked far too much alike to not be related somehow.

  She held her breath, waiting for them to recognize her.

  But there was no pique to any of their eyes as they smiled and said hello to her. Maybe a small pause on Aaron’s end, but nothing that said they would all blow her cover any time soon.

  “Just doing the rounds now that the streets are plowed and the clouds have taken a break. Had to pop into the hospital quick to play Santa in the children’s ward, decided to make a family affair of it. Now we’ve just been stopping in to say hi to a few of our nearest and dearest,” the man who’d been introduced as Mark said. “Thought Zak was all by himself, but it looks like you guys are having quite the rager. Pizza and Candy Land.” He shook his head. “Take it easy, man.”

  Zak snickered. “Let’s go sit in the living room. I’ll grab some drinks.”

  Aaron, who seemed to be a quiet beast with piercing blue eyes and a dangerous aura hanging around him, hadn’t taken his gaze off Daphne with Sophie. A protective father if ever there was one. Isobel rested her hand on his chest and said something quietly to him. He made a face of protest, but then his eyes softened slightly and he turned and left.

  Aurora finally stood when she saw the two sisters approach her, both of them wearing matching, knowing grins.

  “We had no idea Zak was seeing anybody,�
�� Isobel said. “How long have you two been together?”

  Was forty-eight hours the correct response?

  Aurora wandered around the island, grabbed two more wineglasses down from the cupboard and twisted off the cap of the wine bottle. She paused, waiting for the women to nod. They both did with enthusiasm.

  “It’s quite new then?” Tori said, a teasing smile causing the corners of her eyes to crinkle. “Been there.”

  “Me too,” Isobel said with a snort. She and Tori both accepted their wineglasses. “To shtupping the boss,” she said, clinking her glass with her sister.

  “Hear, hear,” Tori said with a chuckle.

  “They were your bosses?” Aurora asked, nearly choking on her wine.

  Both women nodded.

  “I was Gabe’s therapist when Mark and I started sleeping together. Iz was Aaron’s nanny. Do you work for Zak?”

  Aurora shook her head. “No. I, uh … I go to one of his gyms. We met there.”

  “Saw him in a tank top with all those tattoos and rippling muscles and you forgot your own name, right?” Isobel asked. “Been there.”

  Aurora’s eyes went wide. Been there, as in she’d been there with Zak?

  She must have read Aurora’s mind. “I mean the man is fine, and when you see those muscles, your ovaries explode. But Zak and I have never been anything more than friends. Have you seen the sexy redhead I showed up with? I got my own Highland warrior to ride.” She tossed her head back and laughed. “Though the look in your eyes said you were ready to take me to the mat and fight for him. Girl, you got it bad.”

  Aurora hid her face in her wineglass.

  No shit.

  Aurora had it the absolute worst.

  “I’m still here, you know?”

  Tori and Isobel spun around, and Aurora’s head jerked to the left. Daphne was sitting next to the window in a high-back chair, quietly playing with a smiling Sophie. The woman was a phantom. How had they not noticed her?

  “Shit,” Tori murmured.

  “Whoops,” Isobel said.

  Aurora’s face was on fire.

  “Sorry,” Tori said with a giggle to her voice. “You do have one very hunky grandson though. You can’t argue with that.”

  Daphne stood up, adjusting Sophie on her shoulder. “I won’t argue with that.” She grabbed her wineglass off the table, set it on the counter and lifted her eyebrow at Aurora. “Fill me up, please, dear.”

  Tori and Isobel both snorted.

  Aurora did as she was told, draining the bottle into the glass.

  “I believe there is another bottle of the same to the left of the pantry,” Daphne said, adjusting Sophie in her arms once again before she picked up her wineglass. “Have fun, ladies.” Then she took the baby and her wine to the living room, where male voices dominated the air, punctuated once in a while by the woo-woo of the electric train.

  Once they knew Daphne was around the corner, Tori, Isobel and Aurora all began to laugh.

  “Whoops!” Isobel said, taking a sip of her wine. “Good thing I didn’t say anything too embarrassing, like how Aaron has the sexual appetite of a submariner finally on the surface after a year at sea. Even the Energizer Bunny takes a break once in a while. But not my SEAL. He just keeps going and going and going and going … ”

  Tori’s lips twitched. “I’m sure Zak’s grandmother has heard it all.” She leaned on the kitchen counter, grabbed a piece of pizza off the pan and took a bite. “What’s your story, Aurora? How long have you and Zak been working out together?”

  Isobel’s eyebrows bobbed as she grabbed her own slice of pizza and leaned on the counter next to her sister. “Yeah, woman. Dish. And don’t leave out any details.”

  12

  Zak hadn’t been expecting company for Christmas Eve, let alone a houseful.

  But he loved it.

  First Aurora, then his kids, then his grandparents, and now finally his not-so-single-anymore single dad friends.

  He grabbed Mark and Aaron’s empty beer bottles off the coffee table and headed into the kitchen, resting his hand affectionately on Aurora’s knee as he passed her where she sat on the couch chatting animatedly with Tori and Isobel.

  He couldn’t have asked for two nicer women to show up at his front door and befriend Aurora. Mark and Aaron had lucked out by landing the Jones sisters. Any man would be lucky to have either woman in his life, house or bed.

  Zak pulled open the fridge to check to see if he needed to restock it from the beer fridge in the garage. There were four left. He grabbed them all, then shut the refrigerator door.

  “She’s cute,” Mark said, entering the kitchen and grabbing a slice of pizza off the counter. Aaron was right behind him. “Where’d you meet her?”

  “Gym,” Zak said, passing his buddy another cold one. “Went against my own rules.”

  Aaron’s dark red eyebrows drew down into a tight V as he accepted his beer from Zak. “Didn’t we all?” He used his teeth to pop the cap; meanwhile, Mark used the bottle opener on the counter like a civilized human.

  Aaron was a bit of an odd duck.

  “I mean, Mark screwed his kid’s therapist. I started banging my nanny. And now you’re giving it to a client.” Aaron took a swig of his beer.

  “Member,” Zak corrected. “And it wasn’t like I pursued her. Her car died the other night during the start of the snowstorm. She lives across town in Greenwood, and I wasn’t about to get myself caught in that shit if I didn’t have to. Offered her the spare room and then … ” He shrugged and lifted his hands up in a I don’t know gesture.

  “She seems good with the kids,” Mark added. “Early to introduce her to them though.” He snorted as he tipped his beer to his lips. “I’m one to talk though, I guess. Seems like none of us are really doing this whole reentering the dating world in an orthodox way.”

  “That’s because the dating scene is fucked up now,” Aaron added. “I much prefer how I did it. Didn’t have to put on airs. Iz has seen me at my fucking worst and the woman still loves me—God only knows why.”

  Both Mark and Zak bobbed their heads in agreement.

  Aaron was a retired Navy SEAL who now ran his own construction company. His sister had died a month after her daughter Sophie was born, leaving Aaron to raise his niece all alone. Until he found Isobel, that is. Nanny of the millennium. The woman had saved his ass—and his soul, then finally his heart. And now they were raising Sophie together. It’d taken Aaron a while to dig himself out of his well of grief though. And understandably so. If Zak lost Adam the way Aaron lost Dina, Zak would be a fucking wreck too.

  “She looks familiar,” Aaron said, scratching the back of his neck. “I can’t put my finger on how, but she does.”

  Zak lifted a shoulder. “She’s a lawyer. Maybe Dina knew her?”

  Aaron’s jaw grew tight, but he nodded. “Maybe. She might have been at the service. The place was packed to the rafters with lawyers that day.”

  “It was packed to the rafters with people who loved Dina and love you and Sophie,” Mark corrected.

  Aaron made a noise in his throat, took a sip of his beer and turned his face away from the other two men. “Anyway.” He cleared his throat again, still not bothering to look at them. “Should probably get going soon. Would prefer Soph not to fall asleep in the truck, otherwise she’ll be up for a few hours and, well … ” He drew his eyes back up to the other men, color staining his cheeks from the earlier mention of his sister.

  “Santa wants to come down the chimney?” Mark asked with a wicked laugh, draining his beer and setting the empty bottle on the counter.

  Aaron nodded. “You know it.”

  Zak rolled his eyes and shook his head. “Glad I’m past the baby stage. Kids are fucking cock-blockers at any age as long as they’re under your roof, but it does get better as they get older.”

  “Fucking hope so,” Aaron mumbled, finishing his own beer and setting it down next to Mark’s.

  “And here your brother is h
eaded right back down that rabbit hole,” Mark said. “Poor Adam,” he mocked.

  Zak guzzled his own beer. “Yeah, he and Vi are still a bit shell-shocked, but I think they’re finally coming around to the idea of a baby.”

  Aaron scratched the back of his neck. “Not a lot of sleep … or sex, but I will say it’s a fun time too.”

  Zak’s head reared back from Aaron’s words. The man was not known for having a softer side. At least not when around the other single dads. He had a hard shell and had been tough to get to know.

  The man rolled his eyes, dismissing Zak’s reaction. “You know what I mean. Babies can be fun. Until they start crying or shit on you.”

  There he was.

  “Tori wants to start talking about babies,” Mark said, reluctance not only in his tone but also painted clear across his face. “I’m not ready to jump down that rabbit hole yet. I’m happy just doing what rabbits do best—but outside the hole.” His brows dropped and his mouth pursed, his face taking on a confused expression. “You know what I mean. In the hole … her hole, but not down the rabbit—”

  “Yeah, yeah, we get it,” Aaron said. “I’m going to go get Iz, let her know we should hit the road.” Then the tight-lipped SEAL lumbered his big frame off toward the living room.

  “Are you going to keep seeing her?” Mark asked, bringing their conversation full circle and back to Aurora. “I mean if the weather is your main problem right now, the roads are clear. We could take her home tonight.”

  Zak could tell that his friend was testing him. The glint in Mark’s eyes and the way the corner of his mouth ticked said he was making the offer of getting rid of Aurora to see how far gone Zak really was.

  Oh, he was so fucking far gone.

  Zak shook his head, making sure to keep his voice neutral. “Naw, man, she can stay. Would disappoint the kids to send her home now. Besides, Tia made her a Christmas present this afternoon. Kid was pretty upset when she realized Aurora was going to wake up tomorrow morning and not have anything to open.”

  “Did you get her anything?” Mark asked.

  Zak’s lips twisted. He had a gift in mind, though Aurora would be “opening” it tonight once they were in his room and the door was closed—and locked. He took another sip of his beer.