Chapter Seven

Stay at this end of the pool, Gage. I mean it. If I see you inch even your baby toe past the elephant slide, we’re packing up.”

“But there’s nobody here to play with,” he complained.

“You’ve got me.” Bailey whipped off her bathing suit cover-up and tossed it on a lounge chair. “C’mere and get your sunscreen on.”

After thoroughly coating his skin—including the tips of his ears—she grabbed the plastic ball and the doughnut-shaped floaty. “You’re up first, sport. Try to get the ball in the hole before the jets come on.”

It was fun having the Split Rock pool to themselves. They made up crazy games, went down the slide backward. She even let him hang like a monkey on the end of the diving board as she swam around him pretending to be a shark.

After an hour she forced him to take a break from the sun and they lounged under a big beach umbrella.

She’d known their private pool time wouldn’t last, but she was surprised to see Streeter and Olivia Hale passing through the gate.

She didn’t think green-eyed Daddio could swim with that stick up his ass.

Not nice, Sergeant.

But true, nonetheless.

Things were still tense between them. The first day at camp had gone well for her . . . until the last hour. In the five minutes Bailey had taken to use the bathroom, she’d come back to see that Olivia had upended a gallon-sized bottle of glue for the mask-making craft, showing Rhett, Gage and Cody how to make molds—by slapping glue-soaked strips of newspaper on their faces and heads. Although it’d been hard enough to scrub off, it could’ve been worse.

Streeter hadn’t gotten upset about that. He’d blown a gasket when he’d seen the kids’ archery supplies. Immediately demanding answers about her teaching qualifications, safety measures, safety precautions, until she’d suggested he discuss it with Renner and Janie since it’d been their idea.

And she hadn’t seen him since.

Bailey assumed they’d been out of town, because Olivia hadn’t knocked on her door all weekend, asking whether she could have her drums back, a habit she’d gotten into every morning.

Gage started bouncing on the lounger as soon as he noticed Olivia. “Can I play with her? Please?”

“Finish your snack.”

“But . . .”

Bailey leaned in. “Gage, honey, let Olivia have time with her dad first. If we’re still here after that then you can ask if she wants to play.”

“But she’s waving at me!”

“Not the same thing as waving you over to her, bud. So wave back.”

He grumbled and slurped his juice box really loud.

Bailey adjusted her lounge chair and tilted the umbrella to put them completely in the shade. Too much sun caused her extra problems. She glanced up in time to see Streeter taking off his T-shirt. When he faced her, lucky thing she wore sunglasses because her eyes nearly bugged out of her head.

Green-eyed Daddio was supposed to have a “dad” body—slumped posture, flabby arms, a soft middle, hairy in all the wrong places, pasty white skin and sporting ugly Bermuda shorts—not broad shoulders, a firm chest, muscled biceps, a flat abdomen and the perfect amount of dark hair arrowing down his torso and disappearing into sexy board shorts.

Holy shit.

She groaned.

“What’s wrong, Aunt B?”

“My throat’s dry. Hand me a juice box, would you?”

To keep Gage engaged during their pool break, she let him play games on her phone. She turned her head, hoping she looked as if she were napping, when in reality, she couldn’t keep her eyes off Streeter’s banging body.

When he turned around and she got a gander at his muscled back and tight ass, she groaned again.

Gage handed her another juice box without saying a word.

But Bailey noticed while she had her focus on Streeter that his focus was one hundred percent on Olivia. He was teaching her to swim in the deep water, trying to allay her fears while building her enthusiasm. He had an abundance of patience with her, even when she became frustrated. He understood when she’d had enough and they retreated to the shallow end to frolic. When Streeter laughed, Bailey couldn’t help but smile because he truly looked relaxed and happy.

A few minutes later, Olivia bounded over. “Can Gage play with me, Sergeant B?”

“It’s okay with your dad?”

“Uh-huh.”

“All right.” Gage jumped up and she snagged him by the arm. “But first you need another coat of sunscreen.”

He knew better than to argue.

When Bailey stood, she noticed that Streeter had moved the red rope with the plastic disks closer to the slide. “Good plan.” She plopped down next to him on the cement. “I never would’ve thought of that.”

“I have to be very literal with Olivia on rules or she’ll find a way around them.”

“You don’t have to tell me that.”

Silence passed as they watched the kids playing.

She stared ahead but she felt Streeter’s eyes on her. “What?”

“I’m surprised you’re down here. I thought you’d lounge in your deck chair.”

“Gage is in the water, I’m in the water. I’d never take a chance with my nephew’s safety,” she said tersely.

Streeter held up his hands. “Sorry, that came out wrong. It’s just . . . I can’t trust Olivia’s aunt on land with her, say nothin’ of the water.”

Bailey brushed a bug off her leg. “I know my limits. I’d never take all three boys swimming at one time in a place with no lifeguard. I don’t know that even my sister has tried that.” She took a chance on continuing the conversation. “Olivia’s aunt . . . meaning your sister?”

He shook his head. “Her mother’s sister.”

Interesting that he didn’t say his wife’s sister.

After that, Streeter didn’t utter a peep and Bailey wondered if he was this closed off around everyone or just with her.

Then he said, “I have two brothers, no sisters.”

“Older? Younger?”

“One of each.”

She grinned. “Ah. The middle child. Are you the peacemaker in your family?”

“Nope. I’m the clichéd forgotten one.” He sat up. “Olivia. No running.”

“That goes for you too, Gage,” she warned.

Silence stretched between them again and it drove Bailey crazy. How was she supposed to get to know hot-bodied Daddio if he wouldn’t talk to her?

Maybe that’s the point, dumb-ass.

So naturally, she pushed the point. “I’m the youngest and Gage is the youngest so that’s why I seem to have a special bond with him.”

“But he’s not the youngest anymore.”

“That’s why it’s hard for him. He’s been the baby his whole life, and now he’s not. Things might’ve been different if they’d had another boy, but a baby girl . . . he’s getting lost in the shuffle. And as the forgotten youngest, I know how that feels.”

A minute or so passed before he spoke.

“I imagine my younger brother would agree with you. My older brother and I were thick as thieves and mostly ignored him growin’ up. It’s only been the past few years he and I have gotten close.”

“What changed?”

Streeter’s entire demeanor turned so rigid she could’ve used his body as a surfboard. But she didn’t apologize. Like it or not, they were in each other’s lives as neighbors, and as parent and teacher. Maybe if they got past his barrier they could actually be friendly.

When Streeter shifted as if he intended to stand up, Bailey set her hand on his leg. “Stay and talk to me.”

“Why does it matter to you?”

“Because I don’t know anything about you or your family, and I wasn’t trying to chase you off by asking anything personal.”

He snorted derisively. “You really expect me to believe that the damn gossipmongers haven’t gleefully shared the tale of poor Olivia and Streeter Hale?”

Bailey removed her hand from his muscular thigh and shoved her sunglasses on top of her head. “If by ‘gossipmongers’ you mean my sister and brother-in-law . . . no, they haven’t told me anything about your family because I haven’t asked them. I hope you have more faith in your employers than to believe they’d gossip about an employee’s personal life to another employee if I’d asked them—not that I’d do that. So I’m asking you, Streeter, to tell me what changed in your life that allowed you to get close to your younger brother. That’s it.”

His eyes searched her face so intently she wondered if he’d counted her freckles. But whatever he saw took the starch out of his spine. “Sorry. Habit.”

She didn’t look away when she said, “Apology accepted.”

He offered his hand. “Truce?”

When Bailey shook his hand she noticed it engulfed hers completely. “Truce.”

Olivia shrieked.

They both turned to see Gage aiming a water tube at her. Bailey tensed, waiting for Streeter to tell Gage to knock it off. But he just said, “Olivia. Stop screaming.”

“But it’s cold!”

“You want to get out?”

“No!”

“Then stop screaming.” He sighed. “Never knew that little girls screamed so much.”

Bailey laughed. “I never knew that little boys hit each other so much.”

Streeter smiled at her.

Oh, damn, damn, damn. Not fair. The corners of his eyes crinkled when he smiled like that.

He turned away to watch his daughter, giving Bailey time to lower her shades and splash some cold water on herself.

A few minutes passed and Streeter tensed up again, but he didn’t clam up. “My life changed when Olivia’s mother died. Olivia was six months old and I went from bein’ a full-time rancher to a full-time parent. At the time I was ranching with my dad and older brother. They made it so miserable that I quit after they accused me of not pullin’ my weight.”

“That’s awful.”

He shrugged. “Come to find out they’re awful guys. My job skills were limited to ranching and I was lucky enough to land this job. The irony is, I started out job-sharing with my little brother.”

“Why is that ironic?”

“Because me’n our older brother and dad cut him out of our family ranching business. I realized what we’d done to him was all kinds of wrong when I was standin’ on the wrong side of the fence, so to speak. Anyway, he’s a better man than me. He had no issue with us workin’ together, knowing I had to put Olivia first. Then when his position in Casper went to full-time, Renner kept me on. Now my brother is my closest friend and I don’t know how I would’ve made it through the last four years if not for him and his wife.”

Bailey forced herself to be satisfied that he’d opened up and bit back the million other questions she had. “I’m glad for you. The irony in my situation is that I had to join the army and move away from my sister to get closer to her.”

“Your older sister too?”

“Liberty is twelve years older than me. She moved out when I was six. But since we were both in the army, we now have that common thread. I’m happy after she retired she settled in Denver so she and Harper get to see each other more often.”

She felt him studying her before he refocused on Olivia. “What about you? Are you done with army life?”

“Yes . . . and no.”

“That cleared things up.” Streeter splashed her. “Try again.”

Bailey laughed and splashed him back. “I’m on sabbatical for the summer.”

“Ain’t that unusual for you to be on sabbatical for so long?”

Most people didn’t pick up on that. “Technically, I had a bunch of leave saved up and I took it. Without sounding pathetic . . . I had nowhere else to go. Traveling alone on vacation sucks. After talking to Harper, I got the feeling she could use extra help with her kids and the store. So my intentions of hanging around and burning a couple of weeks of vacation has turned into me being here the entire summer. And running a day camp.”

“Do you feel we railroaded you into takin’ on the kids’ camp?”

“Maybe a little. But it was also a good excuse.”

“An excuse for what?”

Bailey wasn’t used to talking about family matters. But she’d demanded honesty from him so he deserved the truth from her. “To help Harper any way I can.”

“I don’t follow.”

“My sister is overwhelmed with being a mother to four kids, a rancher’s wife and a business owner. She jokes about it, but she’s not been herself. Bran knows her better than anyone and I’m not sure he knows how to help her either.” She briefly pressed her lips tighter, biting back her confession that she understood how sadness could spiral you deeper into that vortex of darkness and hopelessness. “Depression is one of those things that no one talks about, especially when someone appears to have it all. So I’ll be here to bolster her, to help her wherever, whenever and however she needs me until she’s ready to tackle the decisions weighing on her.”

Streeter abruptly stood. “Olivia, it’s time to go.”

Bailey did a double take. What the hell? He was leaving right in the middle of a conversation? That was ruder than his usual habit of walking away without saying good-bye when he tired of talking to her.

He’d stepped up his . . . and we’re done game.

Screw that.

No, screw him.

“You’re starting to burn, Sergeant.”

Sergeant. They were back to that now.

“Oh, I think you’ve burned me plenty of times now, Mr. Hale.”

Ignoring his proffered hand, she rolled to her feet and walked over to Gage. “Hey, bud, you ready for another game of shark attack?”

His blue eyes lit up. “Can Olivia play too?”

“Nope. It’s just us. So climb on, monkey boy.” Bailey picked him up and spun him around piggyback style, and they waded into the deeper water.

When she turned around at the diving board, she saw that Olivia and her grumpy father were gone.

She should be thinking good riddance, whatever, I tried. But she just felt sad. She’d put herself out there, like her therapist had suggested, and she’d failed . . . which just circled back to why she didn’t “put herself out there” to begin with. She was dealing with enough personal failures; she didn’t need his continual rejection on top of it.