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And all he could think about was that he needed her to dance for him again. All the fucking time.
“Daddy, your turn.”
He tried to copy, but dammit he didn’t have the grace.
“Your heels are too far apart,” Cassie murmured. She adjusted him again, and he let her, feeling the warmth of her hands on him.
Wanting them everywhere.
And then – thank God, the timer on his phone started to blast.
“Saved by the bell,” Cassie said.
“My kind of salvation.” He winked. “Gotta go finish up dinner. You two can keep dancing.
“Will you watch us?” Delilah asked.
“Sure will.” He walked over and switched the timer off, then grabbed some plates and silverware, putting them on the kitchen counter. He and Delilah usually ate here, at the breakfast bar, and he wasn’t planning on doing anything fancy tonight.
Sure, his mom could make a table look like a masterpiece when she set it, but he made it look a mess.
Delilah was trying to twirl, calling for Cassie to watch her. She was clapping her hands, giving Delilah encouragement and for a minute all he could do was be mesmerized by his girls.
No, not his girls. Only one of them was his. His heart tightened.
“Oh no!” Delilah called out, tottering on one foot before she collapsed to the floor. Cassie pretended to collapse next to her, then started tickling her. The two of them were in a fit of giggles and he had to take a moment.
Delilah would never remember moments like these with her mom. She’d never get to show off her dance skills or be tickled or loved by Jade.
And yeah, he and Jade had their differences, but she’d also given him the best gift in the world. The one thing he woke up for every morning.
Their daughter.
“Dinner’s ready,” he said, pushing the plates toward the stools where they usually sit and ate.
Delilah sat up. “I’m so dizzy,” she said.
“Come here.” Cassie reached for her, pulling her up to standing. “I used to get dizzy, too. But you can practice not to. Just by keeping your eye on one spot when you spin.”
“You can?” Delilah tipped her head to the side. “But isn’t getting dizzy part of the fun?”
“Not when you’re on stage,” Pres said. “Now come on, eat your dinner before it gets cold.”
Chapter
Eighteen
Presley had been quiet all evening. Ever since Delilah had made him dance. Cassie wasn’t sure if it was because he was annoyed that she’d made a spectacle of him, or if she’d done something wrong.
Softly closing Delilah’s door – because she’d promised to read a bedtime story to her – Cassie tiptoed down the stairs, shaking her head at herself for thinking that way.
Old habits died hard. Especially when you were used to taking the blame as a child. Every time something went wrong in her mom’s life, it was Cassie’s fault.
If Presley Hartson was in a bad mood, that wasn’t her doing. She’d come over, played with Delilah, helped him clean up. Sure, she may have inadvertently done something, but she wasn’t going to take the blame for it.
She sighed. Maybe she should just grab her bag and go.
When she walked back into the kitchen he was standing by the open back door, a beer in his hand as he looked out into his yard. The sun had set and the trees were casting shadows over the grass. Delilah’s swing set was a dark castle shaped silhouette.
