not. “No? You got it. Let’s go home.”
That’s when it happened. The little girl let out the biggest wail he’d ever heard. Jaxon could only stare. He didn’t spend any time around kids. None. Nada. He was a bachelor to the extreme. This was the craziest shit he’d ever seen.
She grabbed Faith and hoisted her up on her hip as if she weighed nothing and looked up at him. All Jaxon saw staring back at him in those blue-gray depths was utter exhaustion.
“I’m so sorry,” she said. “She’s tired. We’re going to take a pass on the pizza, but thank you so much for the offer.”
Without another word, she took her son’s hand and tugged him along behind her. He could hear Faith’s muted howls even with them outside the restaurant.
A range of emotions hit him all at once. Embarrassment from being a public spectacle. Shock at the sudden turn of events. And sadness and awe.
For Madison.
In the few short hours he’d hung out with her today, he’d got a huge taste of what her everyday life was like. She always worried. Counted every penny. She was always on. Never got a break. She always had to be strong. Never had anyone to lean on.
And that seemed so fucking unfair for one person to have to handle. Was there anything he could do to lighten her load?
***
Trying to stave off the headache that was threatening, Madison rubbed her temple with two fingers as she closed the kids’ bedroom door and stepped back into the living room. Faith had pitched a fit the entire way home. Which was out of character for her daughter. Not that she was a perfect angel, but resorting back to two-year-old theatrics was something new. Even Noah had piped in with a, “Sissy, chill out,” after about ten minutes of it.
She’d given Jaxon the excuse that Faith was tired. That was a toddler’s excuse. It was barely six in the afternoon. Yeah, Faith got cranky and whiny but that usually happened around seven or eight at night. Something else was going on entirely.
Dropping down onto the couch, she propped her feet onto the scarred wood coffee table and scrubbed her face with her palms. She had both kids chilling out in their room, watching a DVD. She needed a moment of peace before she started dinner, because she was nigh close to having a meltdown of her own. A person could only take so much and she was at her threshold for the week.
Hot prickles stabbed at the back of her eyes.
She squeezed them shut. She needed a break. When was the last time she’d gone on a vacation? Hell, gone to a movie? Out to dinner? Dressed up in something other than exotic dancer clothes?
Too fucking long.
“Sissy stop!”
“Give it to me, Noah!”
Staring at the popcorn ceiling, she took a shaky breath as a tear slid from the corner of one eye into her hairline. She wiped the streak away. Get it together, girl.
She pushed to her feet and walked back into the bedroom to see her two children wrestling over a pillow. Really?
“You two want to go to bed?” she asked, and even to her own ears she heard the defeat in her voice. Not really the front she needed to play in front of the kids, but she didn’t have any more fight in her today.
“No!” they said in unison.
“Then stop. Please.”
They dropped the pillow.
She closed the door, then dragged her ass into the kitchen. As the day had progressed, she had started to look forward to the pizza. Had started to look forward to not cooking for a change. She scowled at the stove. Oh well. At least her so-called famous chicken casserole was one of the quick ones.
As she pulled out a casserole dish, a knock sounded on her door. Frowning, she stared at it not sure if she’d actually heard it or not. Racheal was out of town. Another knock followed. She hurried over and peeked through the peep hole.
Jaxon. What was he doing here? After experiencing Faith’s hysterics, she expected him to give her and the kids a wide berth until he got to go back to his place. Not many confirmed bachelors
That’s when it happened. The little girl let out the biggest wail he’d ever heard. Jaxon could only stare. He didn’t spend any time around kids. None. Nada. He was a bachelor to the extreme. This was the craziest shit he’d ever seen.
She grabbed Faith and hoisted her up on her hip as if she weighed nothing and looked up at him. All Jaxon saw staring back at him in those blue-gray depths was utter exhaustion.
“I’m so sorry,” she said. “She’s tired. We’re going to take a pass on the pizza, but thank you so much for the offer.”
Without another word, she took her son’s hand and tugged him along behind her. He could hear Faith’s muted howls even with them outside the restaurant.
A range of emotions hit him all at once. Embarrassment from being a public spectacle. Shock at the sudden turn of events. And sadness and awe.
For Madison.
In the few short hours he’d hung out with her today, he’d got a huge taste of what her everyday life was like. She always worried. Counted every penny. She was always on. Never got a break. She always had to be strong. Never had anyone to lean on.
And that seemed so fucking unfair for one person to have to handle. Was there anything he could do to lighten her load?
***
Trying to stave off the headache that was threatening, Madison rubbed her temple with two fingers as she closed the kids’ bedroom door and stepped back into the living room. Faith had pitched a fit the entire way home. Which was out of character for her daughter. Not that she was a perfect angel, but resorting back to two-year-old theatrics was something new. Even Noah had piped in with a, “Sissy, chill out,” after about ten minutes of it.
She’d given Jaxon the excuse that Faith was tired. That was a toddler’s excuse. It was barely six in the afternoon. Yeah, Faith got cranky and whiny but that usually happened around seven or eight at night. Something else was going on entirely.
Dropping down onto the couch, she propped her feet onto the scarred wood coffee table and scrubbed her face with her palms. She had both kids chilling out in their room, watching a DVD. She needed a moment of peace before she started dinner, because she was nigh close to having a meltdown of her own. A person could only take so much and she was at her threshold for the week.
Hot prickles stabbed at the back of her eyes.
She squeezed them shut. She needed a break. When was the last time she’d gone on a vacation? Hell, gone to a movie? Out to dinner? Dressed up in something other than exotic dancer clothes?
Too fucking long.
“Sissy stop!”
“Give it to me, Noah!”
Staring at the popcorn ceiling, she took a shaky breath as a tear slid from the corner of one eye into her hairline. She wiped the streak away. Get it together, girl.
She pushed to her feet and walked back into the bedroom to see her two children wrestling over a pillow. Really?
“You two want to go to bed?” she asked, and even to her own ears she heard the defeat in her voice. Not really the front she needed to play in front of the kids, but she didn’t have any more fight in her today.
“No!” they said in unison.
“Then stop. Please.”
They dropped the pillow.
She closed the door, then dragged her ass into the kitchen. As the day had progressed, she had started to look forward to the pizza. Had started to look forward to not cooking for a change. She scowled at the stove. Oh well. At least her so-called famous chicken casserole was one of the quick ones.
As she pulled out a casserole dish, a knock sounded on her door. Frowning, she stared at it not sure if she’d actually heard it or not. Racheal was out of town. Another knock followed. She hurried over and peeked through the peep hole.
Jaxon. What was he doing here? After experiencing Faith’s hysterics, she expected him to give her and the kids a wide berth until he got to go back to his place. Not many confirmed bachelors
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