Just a Kiss: The Bradfords, Book 5 (13 page)

“Yeah. Because I get into trouble.”

Kevin’s mouth curled at the same time Eve’s did. Was she thinking about all the fun trouble he used to get her into?

She had been the quintessential good girl. Even with his influence, which he could honestly say had been significant, she’d resisted drinking—other than that first taste of schnapps—smoking, swearing and sex. Yes, he’d talked her into skinny dipping that one time, but she hadn’t taken her bra or underwear off. Yes, he’d talked her into reading those erotic stories he’d found online, but she hadn’t gone further than the first page of the first one. Yes, he’d talked her into swiping the garden gnome from their principal’s house, but she’d felt horrible, cried and snuck it back into his yard before morning and no one but Kevin was ever the wiser.

“You going to keep me out of trouble?” she whispered.

“Absolutely not,” he replied quietly. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her up against him. “And of course,” he said, raising his voice again, “there’s good old hugging.”

“Hugging’s really good,” she agreed, melting into him and wrapping her arms around his waist.

He loved how easily she came into his arms, how she was totally fine with the display of affection. In fact, in the next moment she pressed in and rubbed just right and Kevin had to quickly make the choice between what he wanted—to back her up against the counter—and what he should do—let her go.

He did, but he looked down at her. “I might like your type of trouble,” he said for her ears only.

She grinned and he felt like grabbing her and giving the boys a real-life, up-close-and-personal lesson in kissing a girl.

Instead, he let her step around him—somehow—and finished clearing the dishes with her. As he did, Dooley kept talking to the boys. Whether he sensed that Kevin had nothing to say or he really did relate to them well, Kevin was grateful. He felt himself relax a little. Dooley and Eve were here for him. Tanner and Matthew were here for Drew. That was what friends were for—to make life a little easier.

Kevin grabbed some glasses and followed Eve to the sink.

No question having Eve here made him feel better. But was she his friend? She had been at one time. She’d been his best friend. They’d told each other secrets and plans and dreams they hadn’t told anyone else. She was the only person from Grover he’d ever told that he didn’t want to play professional football. It seemed the path everyone had put him on, especially his father, but Kevin hadn’t really wanted it. No one else would have understood that, but he’d been able to tell Eve.

He hadn’t been friends with any of the other girls he’d ever dated. Or slept with. Most of them had been flings, fun, nothing serious. Some had been fans, or women looking to hook up with a football player for the parties and glory. None had been friends.

Being friends with women wasn’t completely foreign to him, though. Jessica, Sara, Danika and more recently Morgan were all a part of his inner circle. He enjoyed them, trusted them.

But he didn’t tell them secrets.

“Can I tell you a secret?” he asked, moving in behind Eve and dropping his voice.

The boys were daring each other to finish off the brownies and Dooley was telling them about the more infamous Mac and Sam eating contests, so Kevin could talk low to Eve without being overheard.

She was rinsing a bowl and started to turn only to find herself caged in between the countertop and Kevin’s body. She looked over her shoulder. “I love secrets.”

She smelled so good he wanted to lick her. “I’m not proud of it, but with Drew not talking, this is a little easier. He’s not asking hard questions or saying things like ‘our father is a major asshole and I want nothing to do with him or you’.”

Eve chuckled and he pressed closer, almost without thought.

“I’m not sure that’s exactly how he’d put it.” She sounded a little breathless.

Kevin wanted to pull her more firmly against him but resisted, reaching around her to put the glasses in the sink and using it as an excuse to press his chest against her back. “Well, even though I agree with the sentiment about my dad and this situation, I’m not disappointed that we haven’t jumped right into that discussion.”

He took his time pulling his arm back from the sink and she suddenly turned putting her front right against his front.

“You don’t have to feel bad about that,” she said, gripping his chin in her hand, making him look at her.

At the moment, he had no idea what they were talking about. He was completely distracted by her.

“You got dumped into this situation as much as Drew did,” she continued. “You don’t have to have all the right answers or perform miracles here, Kevin.”

Miracles. Yeah, that’d be nice. Even a little one.

He studied her face and breathed deep. Looking at her he felt calmer, he felt like maybe he wasn’t going to completely screw this up. “Tell me it’s going to be okay.”

She tipped her head to the side a little puzzled, but said, “It’s going to be okay.”

Maybe he already had all the miracle he needed right here. She seemed like an answer to his prayers about Drew for sure.

He breathed again. “Now what?”

“We make out? At least that’s what I’m feeling inclined to do right now.”

He sucked in a quick breath. She had never been this bold before. It took some getting used to, though he certainly liked it.

“Whatever you say.”

She glanced at the clock, then behind him at the kids, seemed to do some mental calculations and then said, “Living room couch, two hours from now.”

“Two hours?” That seemed like a year.

“We have to get Tanner and Matthew home, get homework done, bath, bedtime—”

“Tanner, Matthew,” Kevin said, turning away and looking at the boys. He clapped his hands together. “Time to go.”

He heard Eve stifle a giggle behind him.

Chapter Five

When Eve heard the front door open and shut, her heart sped up. Kevin was back from dropping the boys off.

“Okay, last one,” she told Drew pointing to the blank spots on his science worksheet. “Name the two types of vertebrates that are warm-blooded.”

“Birds and mammals,” Drew told her.

“You got it.” She watched him write the answers in.

She knew it was bugging Kevin that Drew wasn’t talking to him, or even around him, but she was grateful that his teacher had explained that since he was being raised by a single mom with two female roommates, he’d likely be more comfortable around Eve than Kevin. Otherwise she might have fallen off her chair when he spoke to her.

“Anything else we need to work on?”

“Nah. I need to read another chapter in my book for reading but I always do that in bed before I turn off the light.”

Wow, complete sentences and everything.

Drew stored the completed worksheet and his pencil in his backpack and zipped it up as Kevin came into the room.

“Hey.”

“Hi.” She gave him a bright smile to make up for the fact that Drew didn’t even look in his direction. “We’ve got homework done. Heading upstairs for a bath. Right, Drew?”

She assumed he needed to bathe at some point. Unless he did it in the morning.

Drew nodded.

“Kevin will have to show you where the towels and stuff are,” she said, informing them both. If the kid needed help washing his hair or something that was all on Kevin too.

Drew didn’t say anything and still didn’t look at Kevin, but he headed for the steps.

Kevin sighed as he watched him go. He’d shown Drew and his friends around the house earlier, including which room was Drew’s. Tanner and Matthew had instructed Kevin and Dooley where to put all his stuff and then the adults had left the kids to really settle in. After about an hour, Dooley had gotten them interested in the X-box and they’d played until dinner.

“He talked to you,” Kevin said.

“Yeah.”

“I guess that’s good. Is he okay?”

She stretched to her feet. “We talked about fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals. Nothing deep or personal.” He’d only been gone about fifteen minutes. Grover wasn’t big enough for it to take any longer than that to drop two kids off at their houses.

“Bath time now, huh?”

She smiled. “Heck if I know. Seemed like it made sense. Teeth brushing and stuff like that goes well before bedtime.”

It was a little after eight. That seemed like a good bedtime too. But what did she know?

“I’ll head up and see if he can find everything he needs.” Kevin seemed hesitant.

“Okay.”

“You’re not going to leave?”

“We have a date,” she said. Drew was on his way to bed and Dooley had headed downtown—she figured to give her and Kevin some alone time.

She wasn’t going anywhere and Kevin needed to figure that out. When she said they were going to be on that couch together at eight-thirty, then he could count on her being on that middle cushion at eight-twenty seven. If she said she’d be there for Drew after school, she’d be there after school for Drew. And when she said she wanted another chance to be Kevin’s wife, that meant she was going to perform every wifely duty she knew of, including several that most husbands
wished
their wives would perform.

He looked at the couch, then back to her. “I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

He took the stairs two at a time and Eve let her grin loose.

Okay, she was going to seduce him. So how to go about this? She couldn’t slip a note into his locker, she couldn’t wait for him in the parking lot after school or show up week after week at church to prove that she was willing to try whatever was important to him.

Well, actually, she was going to do that.

Damn.

She headed for the kitchen.

Wine. That was a good answer to nearly any question.

She searched the kitchen and pantry but couldn’t find anything other than vodka and beer. Okay, so much for that. They didn’t
need
alcohol.

Instead she made cocoa.

They could sit on the couch together, drink hot chocolate and talk.

Just talk.

No matter how much she wanted to make out.

The way he’d kissed her earlier made her think that he might not protest that idea, but she was determined to show him that there was more to what she was feeling than that.

Even if she had to drink her weight in non-alcoholic beverages to prove it.

Fortunately, however, in searching for the marshmallows, she found some peppermint schnapps. She added it to the cocoa before she could think better of it.

As she picked up the mugs, she realized her palms were sweating.

Ridiculous. This was Kevin. He was as excited as she was. They were just going to talk anyway. Find out who the other person was. Date.

But when she stepped into the living room and saw him sitting on the couch, his arm stretched out across the back, waiting for her, she nearly dropped everything. Lord, he looked good.

“Done already?” she asked, setting the cups on the coffee table.

“I’m not sure he scrubbed everywhere he was supposed to,” Kevin said. “But at least the water ran on him, right? He won’t be filthy anyway. Then he hightailed it into his bedroom and shut the door.” He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “Should I check on him or do you think he’s okay?”

“He’s fine, I’m sure,” she said. “He told me he had some reading to do.”

Kevin gave a heavy sigh. “I don’t know what I’m doing.”

“Well…” she shrugged. “Yeah. How would you know?”

He frowned. “That doesn’t help me, Eve.”

She tried not to laugh. He was so cute. “Come on. It’s gonna take some time. Don’t beat yourself up.” She took a seat beside him on the couch and tucked her feet up under her, facing him.

“He hasn’t said a word since I picked him up. He doesn’t want to be here.”

Kevin looked miserable and she couldn’t help but rub a hand up and down his back.

“Of course he doesn’t. This isn’t his home. He doesn’t know you. His mom isn’t here. Of course he doesn’t want to be here. But that isn’t your fault. It’s nothing you’ve done wrong. And it doesn’t mean it’s going to last.”

“Maybe. It’s sinking in how hard this might be.”

“And you know what?” she went on. “It doesn’t matter if he
never
wants to be here. This is where he needs to be. This is what’s best for him.
You’re
what’s best for him.”

Kevin turned, captured her hand and pulled her closer. She, of course, went willingly. “I think it’s you,” he said, looking into her eyes.

“What’s me?” She felt breathless, which wasn’t unusual around him, but he hadn’t really done anything yet.

“You’re what I can do for him. I can’t do anything but buy him groceries and give him you.” He stroked his thumb across the back of her knuckles.

“You’re giving him
me
? How’s that work?” And why did it make her majorly nervous?

“I’m not what’s best for him. I mean, I can keep him safe, make sure he does his homework, all of that, but he needs
you
.”