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“Nice to meet you,” Antonio says.
My lips part in astonishment. He’s gorgeous—seriously gorgeous—and he and Libby make the perfect couple. Lord help them if they ever have a daughter, because they are going to have to invest in some serious manpower to keep the boys away from her.
“Where is Madeline?” I ask Lucas, looking around for her.
“She’s in the back, helping with the pizza dough for a party tomorrow,” Libby answers. “I’ll send her out to you guys. Lucas already placed an order for a pepperoni pizza, but just let me know if you want something else.”
“Pepperoni is perfect,” I assure her.
“I got you a Diet Coke at the table,” Lucas tells me before he takes my hand and leads me to a booth in the back of the restaurant.
“This place is really cute,” I tell him as I take a seat in the booth. He sits across from me.
“Yeah, Libby did a good job when she took over the place. She’s quietly building a name for herself, and the place hasn’t even been open six months.”
“She mentioned a pizza party?”
“She has a back room that people can rent out, and kids can make their own pizzas.”
“That’s really cool.”
“It is. Maddi is anxious for her party, too. Libby’s hosting it here in a few weeks. She already sent out the invites,” he says, and then his eyes roam over me, making me shift in my seat. “You look beautiful.”
“Thanks.”
“Even in jeans,” he says as his voice drops to a deep growl that I feel all over. “You’re the sexiest woman I have ever seen.”
“Lucas.”
“Your ass is amazing in jeans.”
“Seriously?” I know my cheeks are red.
“Babe, you can’t expect me not to notice.”
“Okay. Well, can you notice but not say anything?”
“I can try.” He gives me a devilish smile—one that says he actually won’t try, not even a little.
“You’re here.”
I look over my shoulder and watch Madeline skip-hop toward our table from across the room. She’s in sneakers, jeans, and a T-shirt that is the same blue as her eyes. Her long hair is pulled up in a ponytail, and she has a large smile on her face.
“Hey, sweetheart.” I slide to the edge of the booth, wanting to hug her but not sure it’s the right thing to do. “It’s so good to see you feeling better.” I reach out and take hold of her hand.
“It’s good to be feeling better.” She grins at me. “Did Daddy tell you that I got to make our pizza?”
“He didn’t.” I look at Lucas and see that his eyes are soft as he looks at his daughter.
“I did.” She smiles, then adds, “I also made it with extra cheese.”
“Now I know it’s going to be the best pizza I have ever had in my life. I love cheese.”
“Me too.” She grins, then plops down right next to me—me instead of her dad, making my heart turn over in my chest.
“I . . . Well, I brought you something,” I say, unsure all of a sudden. I wonder if I’m stepping over some kind of unwritten boundary.
“You did?” she asks while Lucas asks the same thing from across the table.
I ignore him and keep my eyes on Madeline.
“Yeah.” I open my purse and pull out three round balls: one yellow, one baby blue, and one pale pink. “I read that these were the ‘in’ thing.”
“Oh my god,” she breathes, looking at the balls I set in front of her. “L.O.L. Surprise Dolls.” Her eyes come to me and, before I can prepare myself, she throws her small body against mine. “Thank you.”
I hug her back and silently vow then and there to buy her a million of them—even a few of the giant ones that cost fifty dollars apiece.
“You’re welcome, sweetheart,” I say. I meet Lucas’s thoughtful gaze from across the table and give him a small smile.
“This is so cool,” Madeline says, taking one of the balls from her dad, who stopped them from rolling off the table when she hugged me.
“You’ll have to explain to me exactly what they are. I hadn’t ever heard of them until today,” I tell her.
She grins at me. “I’ll show you.” She breaks the seal on the pink one, exposing compartments with tiny bags shoved inside before popping the ball open. Pulling out a small plastic doll with big eyes, she dresses it with the stuff in the bags. Watching her smile and laugh, I can’t help but to do the same. “Cool, right?” She holds up the now-dressed doll for me to see.
“Very cool. So do you ever get doubles?” I ask, looking at the other two balls she has yet to open.
“Sometimes, but me and my friends trade if we do.”
“When I was a kid we had Pogs, these paper disks that came in a package. We’d trade with friends if we had the same ones, too.”
