David

“Dad!” Luke yelled, pointing two cars over from us in the school parking lot. “There’s Tyler! I need to talk to him real quick.” Before I could respond, he’d taken off in the direction of his best friend. As I followed at a more sedate pace behind him, my eyes were drawn to the unfamiliar car and the driver exiting. It wasn’t his mom or dad like usual. It was…

Holy shit.

It was a woman wrapped in a bulky coat to keep her protected from the harsh Connecticut winter. But she had long, dark hair, the color of chocolate, flowing down her back in waves. She bumped fists with Luke, then turned to glance in my direction and I stopped in my tracks.

Her face was heart shaped, with high cheekbones, dusted with pink from the cold. Large brown eyes sparkled with laughter as she smiled with the most sensuous mouth I’d ever seen. She waved merrily at me and I started moving again.

“Hey, Mr. Clark,” Tyler greeted me. We also bumped fists, then he waved in the woman’s direction with a proud smile. “This is my much older sister, Harley.”

Harley’s lips turned down and she reached out to gently whack Tyler on the back of the head. “Watch it, kid. Or I’ll start referring to you as Ty-Ty, again.” Tyler looked horrified and I couldn’t help chuckling. I also wondered just how much older she was….

“This is my dad, David,” Luke chimed in.

I held out my hand and she placed her glove-covered palm over mine. Despite the layers of leather, I felt a shocking spark as they touched. I felt it down to my bones and it warmed me all over. Her eyes widened with confusion and she slowly pulled her hand back. I was reluctant to let it go, but didn’t want to seem creepy and scare her off.

“It’s nice to meet you, Harley.” My voice had lowered involuntarily and was practically a purr. I wanted to shake my head to clear away the fog I was suddenly immersed in. But then her cheeks turned even more pink and she grinned, charming me even more.

“Oh! I forgot my homework packet in my classroom,” Tyler exclaimed. “I’ll be right back.”

“I’ll help you find it,” Luke added quickly and they both raced off toward the school’s front doors.

Suddenly, I was alone with Harley and felt oddly tongue-tied. “Um…Tyler’s parents out of town?” I asked lamely.

Harley rolled her eyes and laughed. “Nope. Apparently, they just aren’t cool enough to pick him up. Since I work a couple blocks down and get off shortly before school is over, I figured I might as well cement my status as the ‘cool’ older sister.”

I laughed and nodded in understanding. “Yeah, I dread the day when Luke decides I’m just his boring, old dad.”

Smirking, Harley’s beautiful eyes ran over me from head to toe, leaving a burning trail in their wake. “You’re awfully young to ever be his boring, old dad.”

I shrugged. “We had Luke young, but I’m still creeping up on thirty, which is apparently ‘sooooooo old,’” I said, imitating my son on the last two words.

Holly chuckled, but some of the sparkle in her eyes dimmed. She glanced toward the school and shuffled her feet before looking back at me. “Here come the boys. It was nice to meet you.”

Her tone was dismissive and I was suddenly confused. Was I the only one who’d felt the connection between us?

“Your wife is probably anxious for you both to get home.”

Oh fuck. She thought I was still married. “My ex-wife lives an hour away with her fiancé, so I doubt she’ll notice.”

“Oh, um. I’m sorry.” She certainly didn’t look it. I suppressed a smile at her attempt to hide her delight.

“Dad, can Tyler come over tomorrow after school?” Luke asked as he stopped beside me.

“Sure,” I responded, ruffling his blond hair and laughing when he ducked away with a glare.

“You’ll drop me off there, right Harley?” Tyler pleaded with practiced puppy-dog eyes.

Her eyes briefly darted to me before she looked back down at her brother. “Sure, kid.”

A grin spread across my face. “See you tomorrow.”

The red of her wind-blown cheeks deepened again and she nodded. “Tomorrow.” Then she quickly got back into her car. “Come on, kid,” she called. “Hot chocolate is calling our names!” Tyler did a fist pump, then high-fived Luke before rushing into the car.

Luke and I started toward our own vehicle, but I couldn’t help looking back one last time to catch a glimpse of the beautiful woman I couldn’t wait to see again.

* * *

“No way, Luke,” I growled, trying to ignore his pleading expression as we decorated our Christmas tree. “Last year was enough for one lifetime.” Playing Santa at the mall for a school charity event had been a nightmare. The hot, itchy suit, crying kids, angry parents…I shuddered.

“But Dad, they can’t get the real Santa and you’re the best fake Santa ever.”

I rolled my eyes playfully. “Nice try, sport. Telling me that I closely resemble a fat man isn’t going to get the job done.” I patted my flat stomach, self-consciously feeling for any sign that I was letting myself go.

“Not because of that, Dad,” he said with a dramatic eye roll. “Tyler even said you were the best one. And, his sister takes him to see Santa every year.” He threw his arms around me and looked up with hopeful eyes. “Pleeeeeeease?”

Son of a bitch. I was such a sucker for my son. It had nothing to do with the thought of Harley on my lap… “Fine,” I relented, not bothering to hide my irritation. “I’ll call them tomorrow and accept. But this is the last year, Luke. I mean it.”

“You’re the best, Dad!” He went back to decorating with a huge smile, and as much as I was dreading it, I loved seeing such joy on my son’s face. I briefly wondered what Harley’s would look like when she visited Santa…me. Would she smile with that kissable mouth and light up? I licked my dry lips at the thought and then shook the thoughts off and went back to our activity.

Despite my attempt to put her out of my mind, I dreamt about her that night. I imagined what was underneath all those winter layers and what would happen once I got her out of them. I woke in a sweat and ended up having to take a cold shower before I could get back to sleep.

The next day, I buzzed with anxious energy the whole time I was at work. As the owner of a successful toy company, I was able to keep my schedule flexible so I could always be there for my son. However, this was our busiest time of year and I was swamped with meetings. But, I barely paid attention to any of them, counting down the minutes until I would pick up Luke.