SIENNA

I silently ate my one slice of pizza while listening to Micah tell Dewayne everything Dewayne could possibly want to know and then some. I enjoyed savoring the pizza. It was delicious, and I was being careful to take small bites. There was no way I could eat two slices in front of Dewayne. I didn’t normally care how much I ate in front of men. But knowing that Dewayne would be thinking how much I didn’t need a second slice would make it hard to eat.

Besides, Dewayne had eaten five slices, and Micah was on his second slice. They were doing a fine job of putting the pizzas away themselves. Watching Micah enjoy the cheesy pizza was worth sitting through this with Dewayne.

When Dewayne had asked if he could bring dinner and visit Micah tonight, I had wanted to make up an excuse. I wanted to relax after work, and being near Dewayne was not relaxing. But I knew how much Micah would love this, so I had said okay. And now here I sat, taking the world’s smallest bites of a slice of pizza while my stomach growled from missing lunch today. When Dewayne left, I was going to eat a piece of leftover pizza. Maybe two.

“Isn’t that right, Momma?” Micah said, and I snapped back to attention and blinked, focusing on my son.

“Uh, is what right?” I asked, feeling like an idiot.

“Don’t you have a date tomorrow night?”

What? Why was he talking about that? I had asked him if he cared, and then I’d talked to Tabby, who had been thrilled that I was going on a date with Vice Principal Dodge. However, this wasn’t Dewayne’s business.

I simply nodded and shoved a larger bite of pizza in my mouth.

“He’s a principal,” Micah added with pride. He had taken the idea of me dating much better than I’d anticipated.

“Principal?” Dewayne asked, his eyes now completely focused on me. I swallowed the pizza and took a drink of water. Then I nodded and forced a smile.

“Where?” Dewayne asked, not looking happy about this at all. “I thought you said you didn’t date. You had Micah and that was enough.”

Whoa . . . wait a minute. Anger simmered in my blood, and I sat up straighter and leaned forward, glaring at Dewayne with a warning I hoped he understood. “Cam Dodge. He’s the vice principal at the high school, and if I get asked out by a nice man who doesn’t think I’m average, that’s my decision. I did ask Micah how he felt first, and then I spoke with Tabby before agreeing to this date. Your mother was thrilled.”

Dewayne clenched his jaw and didn’t flinch. “Where did you meet Cam Dodge?”

I was done. This was over. I stood up and threw my napkin on the table. “None of your business,” I informed him, and began clearing off the table.

“She met him in the bread aisle at the grocery store. He was really nice to her,” Micah offered since I wasn’t talking. That kid didn’t know when to keep information to himself.

“The bread aisle?” Dewayne asked, as if he was horrified by the idea.

I took several deep breaths before turning around to face him again after setting dirty dishes in the sink. He was welcome into Micah’s life, but he was not welcome into mine. I didn’t need his approval.

Just looking at him made me crack just a little. I hated that he affected me like this. I placed my hands on my hips. “Yes, Dewayne, the bread aisle. We discussed white bread and its healthy alternatives. He was nice to me. It felt good. Six years, Dewayne. Six very long years. I think I’m due a dinner date.”

Dewayne flinched this time. I smiled at him, although it didn’t reach my eyes. I was angry. I wanted him to leave. But he was here for Micah. It was time I gave them some alone time.

“I’m going to soak in the bath while you two play. Come get me when Dewayne leaves,” I told Micah. Then I forced my gaze back to Dewayne. “Thanks for dinner. It was delicious.”

I turned and walked toward the hallway.

“You barely ate any of it,” Dewayne called out to me.

“Don’t want to gain any weight and dip below that average line I’m walking,” I replied, then slammed my bedroom door behind me.

Squeezing my eyes closed, I took several calming breaths, then began to strip. I was ready for a long soak in the tub with the new bath salts Hillary had given me to try out. She wanted her employees to sample products she carried at the salon so we could recommend them. I loved that idea because I would never let myself splurge on things like bath salts.

Micah’s laughter in the living room reminded me why Dewayne was here, and I let my anger and frustration with him go. He had come to see Micah. He was protecting Micah. As insulting as it was for him to question my choices, I was glad he wanted to be a part of Micah’s life. I needed to learn to take the bad with the good.

From now on when Dewayne came to visit Micah, I would just take really long baths. I could eat more in here too. It was a win-win situation. The good thing about Dewayne being a jerk was that at least I wasn’t going all silly around him. His beautiful body and face didn’t get to me anymore.

Well, almost.

* * *

“Momma, I’m taking Dewayne outside to show him Daddy’s star. Okay?” Micah called through the door a long time later.

I had gone outside with him last night to help him find the biggest star we could see. He believed it was Dustin. So I let him believe it.

DEWAYNE

When Sienna had called out good-bye to me last night through her closed bedroom door, I knew I’d really screwed up. For starters, I was going to have to explain the ‘average’ comment to her, because it was bothering her. She kept bringing it up.

Then I needed to remember that she had done a damn fine job of raising Micah on her own. Trusting her was important. I did trust her. It was this Cam Dodge I didn’t trust. I was going to fix that, too. I would talk to him. See what I thought about him. If he was a good guy, then I’d encourage this dating thing with Sienna. If he wasn’t, I’d make sure he stayed the hell away from her.

Last night when Micah took me outside to see the star he believed was Dustin, I should have had a moment with him. It should have been the only thing on my mind. But it wasn’t. I’d been planning this visit to Cam Dodge. Fucker messed up my night. I had to make sure he was worth it. Sienna deserved the best.

Pulling my truck into the visitor parking at the high school, I decided this was the best idea. The man couldn’t ignore me if I showed up at his job. I’d ask for a meeting with him and then we’d talk. Sienna wouldn’t know about it, and I could hopefully step back and let her date.

Maybe she’d smile at me again. And f**king eat something around me.

I stepped into the school office, and Mrs. Quinn looked up at me. She broke into a smile as she stood up. The short little secretary was older than my momma, and her white hair was always curled up tight, her bangs pinned back with a bow like she was seven instead of seventy. Couldn’t help but love the woman.

“Well, if it ain’t Dewayne Falco come to pay us a visit. I’ve heard that you cause less trouble these days now that your buddies have all been tamed by their women.”

Leave it to Mrs. Quinn to know about everyone’s lives. She may be stuck sitting behind that desk and dealing with teenagers all day five days a week, but she when we graduated, she didn’t forget us. People like her were who we needed in education.

“I came to see that pretty smile of yours,” I told her, then winked just to watch her blush and bat her eyelashes.

“Still a charmer, I see,” she replied, beaming at me. I was sure she didn’t get flirted with often, given that she was as wide as she was tall. Still, she deserved some attention.

“Yes, ma’am. I always think a pretty woman needs to be told just that.”

She waved me off and giggled, which was hilarious coming from someone her age. When she retired, it would be a sad day for Sea Breeze High.

“I know you didn’t just come here to flirt with me. Now, what can we do for you, Mr. Falco?” she asked, still smiling.

I nodded at the door I knew belonged to the vice principal. Back when I was in school, the vice principal had been Old Man Warldo. He was grumpy and mean as hell. It was good news for kids in Sea Breeze when the man retired two years ago.

“I need to see Mr. Dodge,” I told her, trying to be as respectful as possible. If I could get through Mrs. Quinn, then I was home free.

She looked unsure, then picked up her phone and pressed a button.

“Mr. Dodge, are you available to meet with Mr. Dewayne Falco, sir?”

The man wasn’t going to know who the hell I was. “Tell him it’s concerning Sienna Roy,” I told her. That would pique his interest.

Mrs. Quinn’s eyes went big, and I knew she recognized that name too. My brother’s death had been a tragedy this whole school had suffered. And Sienna’s leaving had shocked everyone.

“Uh, it’s concerning Miss Sienna Roy,” she added, studying me while she said it. “Yes, sir. I’ll send him right in.”

He was curious. Good.

She hung up and raised her eyebrows. “Is Sienna Roy back home?”

I nodded. “Yeah, she is.”

Mrs. Quinn let out what looked like a sigh of relief. “Well, glory be. It’s about time. That sweet girl was shipped off, and I knew it wasn’t right. Worried me sick. Glad she’s been able to come home. Reckon her father’s passing made that possible.”

How this woman knew so much, I didn’t know. But she did. She seemed to know a lot. I just nodded.

She waved her hand toward Cam Dodge’s door. “Go on in. Mr. Dodge said he would see you.”

I thanked her and headed for the door before he could change his mind.

Cam Dodge stood up from behind his desk when I opened the door. He was young. I was expecting someone older, and that had bothered me. But he was young, and f**k it all if that didn’t bother me more.

His button-down shirt and pressed slacks were part of the uniform, but he looked like he was comfortable in that fancy shit. He was smiling, but his smile was very unsure. The name Sienna Roy had been the reason he’d agreed to see me. So now he wanted to know why.

Well, he’d have to wait. I had some things I wanted to know first.

“How old are you?” I asked, not sitting down but standing on the other side of the desk, crossing my arms over my chest and meeting his curious gaze. I liked that I had to look down at him. He was a good two or three inches shorter than me.

“Excuse me?” he said, his forehead wrinkling.

“I asked how old you were,” I repeated. If he wanted more information from me, he’d need to answer that first.

“Twenty-eight,” he replied, still watching me with an unsure expression.

“You normally pick women up at the grocery store?” I asked.

His eyebrows shot up in surprise. “No,” he replied. “Who are you, exactly?” he asked, clearly being careful.

“Mrs. Quinn told you who I was. You ever been married?”

His eyes went wide with surprise, then he narrowed them in agitation. “I don’t see how that is your business, seeing as I don’t know who you are. I was told your name, but all I know is you are someone connected to the woman I have a date with tonight. I’d like more information from you if you intend to grill me.”

He spoke like a principal. I watched him fiddle with his tie and stick his hands in his pockets while he stood tall. The dude was a nerd. He wasn’t anywhere near Sienna’s league. What was she doing with this guy?

“Sienna’s son is my nephew. Since she met you in the bread aisle of a grocery store, I’d like to know more about you before you take her out tonight. I’m also going to make sure you understand that her safety is really f**king important. You hurt her, and you won’t live long enough to regret it.”

The man flinched. At least he believed me. He took in my tattooed arms and the piercing in my lip before meeting my gaze again. He cleared his throat. “You’re her son’s uncle . . . but you aren’t her brother? Does that mean you’re the boy’s father’s brother?” he asked.