No Ordinary Bloke (42 page)
“What am I fucking worried about?” He spewed. “I’ll tell you what I’m worried about. I could give a fuck if his father were the Archbishop of Canterbury himself. That Nolan is an eighteen year old bloke. I know what he thinks about all day long, and it’s not the Father, Son, and the Holy Ghost. It’s birds, birds, birds.”
“I’m sure you’re right.” I laughed. “Just like Bev thinks about boys. It’s okay.”
“Okay? How can it be okay? He’s taking my baby girl out on a date in car. That’s not like hopping on the Tube and catching a movie.” He gave me a severe side-eye. “Things happen in cars. You know that.”
“
Things
are going to happen in a car or not.
Things
happen everywhere.”
“I’m not ready for them to happen to her.”
“I’m guessing that some
things
already have happened.”
I must’ve conjured up quite a mental image because David flinched and snapped, “Don’t say that.”
“What happened to my husband who always said he wanted to raise independent, confident daughters with a good head on their shoulders?”
“I do. I just don’t like her growing up too soon.”
I sighed. “Sweetheart, I’m sorry, but whether you’re ready or not Bev is ready to have a life. Maggie isn’t. That’s why we said she could only go to the dance with her girlfriends, but Bev is ready to date. It’s only normal at her age, and I think we’ve equipped her enough to make the right decisions. She can be a young woman and still be your little girl.”
He silently scowled at me, so I poked his side, trying to coax a smile out of him. “I’ve got some news that might cheer you up.”
“What’s that?” he grumbled.
“Nick is spending the night over at Laura’s. We’re going to have the house to ourselves for most of the night.”
His expression slowly changed as his personality shifted from one trait to another. He wasn’t an over-protective dad anymore. He was back to being the irresistible man I’d never stop falling in love with. A sly smile formed on his lips. “Alone?”
“Yes. Nick’s already gone. As soon as Bev leaves and you get back from dropping Maggie and her friends off, we’re alone until the Prestons bring Maggie back at ten. Bev is back at eleven.”
“All alone with not a neighbor for a mile?”
“That’s right.”
“How about we nab a bottle of wine and a blanket and we head to the north meadow?”
“It’s going to a beautiful night. Do you want to look at the stars?”
He stroked my bare arm. “Not really.”
“Oh, yeah?” I tilted my head. “What do you want to do there?”
A devilish glint appeared in his eyes, and he whispered in my ear, “I want to give you a proper fucking under the moonlight.”
Imagining what that might entail, I squirmed in his lap. I smiled and whispered, “I think I’d like a proper fucking.”
“I know I would.” He chuckled and checked his watch. “How much longer until that dance?”
If you'd like to see David in his younger years, check out
Mary Whitney's Heart Series
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Read other books by Mary Whitney
I may be an Anglophile, but no matter how many British books I’ve read or movies and TV shows I’ve seen, I couldn’t have written this story without a bit of help. Lovely Brits, Catherine Waring, Carrie Elks, and Vanessa Ranby, reviewed my work, making sure David sounds like a bloke rather than just another American guy. I can’t thank them enough for giving David the authenticity he deserves.
David also benefited from a wonderful crew of pre-readers. They guided me through my writing, and their opinions were invaluable. Dana Lam, Rosette Alcantara Doyle, Tiffany Choez, Elizabeth de Vos, Julia Gannaway, Michelle Kannan, and Heidi McLaughlin — you have all my thanks.
Most everything in the story that’s grammatically correct comes from the wonderful copyediting by Anne Forlines. Thank you so much. As usual, you saved me, and all remaining errors are mine alone.
Finally, I’d like to thank all my author friends and kind readers. You keep my spirits up with your humor, wit, and love. I truly couldn’t write without you.
Mary Whitney blames Laura Ingalls Wilder and Margaret Mitchell for her obsession with romance novels. At an early age, Mary fell in love with the Little House series and its dreamy hero, Almanzo Wilder, who only wanted Laura to be Laura. Like many women, Mary later graduated to the ultimate, tall and dark bad boy, Rhett Butler, who loved Scarlett despite her flaws.
Mary has lived around the U.S., and after a first career in the non-profit world and politics, she's settled in Northern California with her husband and daughters. She spends her days writing characters she hopes somehow capture the romance of Rhett and Scarlett and Almanzo and Laura. She's a firm believer in what Rhett says to Scarlett: "You should be kissed, and often, and by someone who knows how.”
To learn more about this author and her writing visit
www.WordyMary.com
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Copyright Mary Whitney 2014
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This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either a product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual people living or dead, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
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