“Who knew we were all pizza lovers? This must be fate!” I declared dramatically as I tore through my huge slice of cheesy goodness making Kaylee splutter, her pizza falling out of her mouth and down her front.
“You're silly, Jesse,” she told me as Willow attempted to clean her up. Even I knew that was just a pointless exercise. I was determined to get more laughter out of her before we left the pizza restaurant. So cleaning her up now would be pointless.
“You wanna see silly? How about this?” Putting another slice of pizza into my mouth, I let it hang out like a huge tongue. Once again Kaylee laughed making yet more of a mess just as I'd predicted.
“I give up!” Will moaned as she threw down the napkin she had been using to try and clean her daughter up. A quick glance in her direction had me relaxing a little. Although she'd complained, I could also see the sparkle in her eyes telling me that she found the whole thing as funny as her daughter.
“I’ll replace her outfit seeing as it's my fault she's in that state.” I pointed to the orange stains down her once pink tee.
She shook her head. “Honestly, there's no need. A ruined tee is a small price to pay to see that look on her face.”
We both looked at each other and I couldn't help but feel a pull between us, something that I was eager to explore further. But I knew I had to wait until she was in a position to let a man back into her life. I'd only been told the basics by her nan of what's going on with her and her husband but even that was enough to tell me Willow needed to heal. It would take a long time before this beautiful woman was ready to date again.
Snapping my gaze away from hers before I said something utterly stupid and embarrassing, I turned my attention to Nate who was now taking his turn to try to make his sister laugh. This boy was so full of love for his sister that it made even my heart melt. If he carried on the way he is, he'd grow up to be a fine young man, someone his mom would be proud of. Just a day spent with him had me bowled over with his kind ways. For someone so young he had an old head on his shoulders.
The meal came to an end and I loved every minute of it. I was sad that the day was coming to its conclusion but deep down I hoped this would be the first of many days we’d spend together.
“Thanks for a great day,” I called out as I left them, leaving them to go to into their house and me heading back to my house, alone.
“Bye, Jesse,” the kids replied in their loudest voices while Willow just smiled and waved.
Sitting down on the couch with a beer I thought back to the beginning of the day.
I honestly thought I'd won the lottery when somehow I managed to get the chance to spend the day with Willow. The time spent with her and her children had blown me away. Who knew kids that age could be so inquisitive and damn intelligent!
As soon as Kaylee had grabbed onto my hand and looked up at me with those baby blue eyes, I was a goner. Anything she would ever ask for I knew I would bust my ass to provide. Nate had been a hard one to crack but I got there in the end. I could tell with just one look at him that he was struggling with what's going on between his parents. So I made it my mission to bond with him, showing him that he could talk to me if he needed to, that he didn't have to lock away his feelings.
Yeah, the time I spent with those three today made me all the more determined to make that beautiful lady all mine. I wanted her and those kids, something in me just clicked today and I wanted them, to provide for them, to love them.
They always say when you meet the one you just know. Well I damn well know I've met the one. Sounds possessive but whatever it is inside me makes me want to be with them. I just have to bide my time until she's ready to date again and I'll be there but for now I am happy to just be her friend.
The coming months are no doubt going to be stressful and I’m more than willing to be the shoulder she cries on. Her husband really didn't know what he’d thrown away. What a complete douchebag. His loss is ultimately going to be my gain and I couldn't be happier of that fact.