Ty watched Jodi walk away, and his fucking heart did a somersault. Just flipped over right there inside his chest. He felt nauseous and hot, cold and stiff, all at the same time. Like he had the fucking flu.

“Well,” Nina said. “That seemed to go pretty well, don’t you think?”

Ty nodded, not sure he could actually talk anymore right now. His nerves felt like they’d been through a blender, and the flipping-heart thing was a distraction. His gaze shot once more to Jodi’s retreating taillights. God, she was still so beautiful. He’d never known a more beautiful woman. Face like an angel, that white-blonde hair like a cloud around her perfect Nordic features. But the body of an Amazon. All long lean legs and voluptuous breasts. Narrow hips, and a perfectly round, firm ass, even after giving birth to his daughter.

“Ty? You okay?” Nina asked.

He shot her a look before taking a deep breath and recentering his thoughts. “Yeah. A little shell-shocked, but I’ll be fine.”

She smiled at him sympathetically as they walked to his truck. “I’d be worried if you weren’t a little shell-shocked. But I think you did the right thing, if that’s any help.”

“Thanks, it is, although I doubt Cade will agree.” He watched her put her seat belt on, then started the engine.

“Let me handle your brother. You just take care of Katie. That’s the only job you have in all this. She’s the only person you need to make happy.”

He smiled at her. She was generous, his brother’s wife. They’d all won the lottery when she chose Cade’s grumpy ass. She was going to be a fantastic mother.

He only hoped Jodi would be as well.

* * *

Ty strode into the coffee shop and up to the counter.

“Hey, Ty,” Marlene cooed as he leaned one elbow on the counter and winked at her. They did this, every Tuesday and Friday morning when he stopped in after dropping Katie at school. It was a harmless flirt fest. Marlene had a boyfriend who was on the pro surf circuit and was gone a lot. This was her way of keeping life interesting while staying loyal. And for Ty, it was a much-needed reprieve from days filled with Katie and the ranch. Ty worked hard and didn’t get much time for anything else. In the five years since Katie was born, he’d never had another relationship. There were a couple of women he had a friends-with-benefits arrangement with, but they were staff at the cattle auction companies in Sacramento, so liaisons with them were sporadic.

“Looking sizzlin’ today, Marlene,” he growled playfully. “You wear that for me?”

She ran her hands down the tight tie-dyed tank dress she wore, lingering just a touch too long on her chest. Ty grinned.

“This old thing?” She fluttered her lashes shamelessly. “I just closed my eyes and pulled something out of the closet.”

He reached out and ran a finger along the strap on one of her tanned shoulders. “Mm, well, it fits you extremely well.”

She batted at his hand playfully, then grabbed his finger in her fist and pretended to bite it, snapping her white teeth together for effect.

“Yeah, you are good enough to take a bite out of.” He chuckled.

Marlene’s gaze darted over his shoulder, and she smiled, dropping his finger. “Oh! I’m sorry, I was so distracted by this cad, I didn’t realize you were there. What can I get for you?”

Ty straightened and turned to find a wide-eyed Jodi standing watching him with what looked a lot like horror.

“Um, just a refill on the coconut milk latte.” She swallowed uncomfortably, and for some inexplicable reason, Ty felt as though he was to blame for her discomfort.

Jodi ignored him. “I’m on the deck.” She gestured toward the doors and then turned on her heel and nearly ran outside.

“Okay, then,” Marlene murmured, looking at Ty from under her lashes. “You want your usual?”

“Yeah, that’d be great.” He paused, glancing around the room, where several empty tables sat waiting. “I’ll be—”

“On the deck. I know.” Marlene smiled at him indulgently, and he didn’t even bother trying to figure out what had just happened. All he knew was he needed to go to the deck, so he did.

When he got outside, he found a few more customers scattered around at the outdoor tables. Sitting at the table closest to the railing, typing furiously on an iPad, was Jodi, her hair in a knot on top of her head, secured with a pencil.

She was wearing a tank top with insets of lace and a swingy cotton skirt. Wisps of hair blew around her face, and her expression was determined at best, grim if he was being honest.

He wove around the other tables until he was standing over her. “Hey,” he said, resisting the urge to tuck a strand of hair back into her messy knot.

She glanced up and gave him a tight smile. “Hi.” Her gaze fell back to the screen.

Well, damn. “Do you mind if I sit for a minute?” he asked.

She glanced around at the many tables sitting empty nearby and raised an eyebrow, but acquiesced with a nod.

“So, I’m not sure what just happened, but I got a distinctly awkward vibe in there.” He gestured toward the café.

She sighed and leaned back in her chair. It put her breasts in a very prominent position, and Ty had to remind himself not to perve on the mother of his child, even though perving on the woman was the reason he had a child in the first place. Fuck, this stuff was complicated.

“I’m sorry,” she said. “It was on me. I, uh, hadn’t really thought about the fact that you have a whole life, and not just one with Katie. I should have asked if you had a girlfriend. It’s perfectly logical you would, and I should have realized—”

“I don’t,” he said, his brain struggling to catch up. Was Jodi jealous? After all these years. The thought sent a little burst of cocky pride to his chest, and he stifled a grin.

“Oh. Well, in any case, I sort of conveniently keep overlooking the fact that you could, or you have—in the past—whatever. Katie has other women in her life, and some of them know her better than I do. Sorry, it hit me a little hard, but I’ll get over it.”

Oh. She wasn’t jealous over him, but over Katie. Yeah. That made sense. He rubbed at his chest, the pang of disappointment clear and unwelcome.

“Lynn, T.J., and Nina,” he said then, although why he felt the need to, he didn’t know. “They’re the only women she has in her life—the only ones she’s ever had. So it’s not a revolving door or anything.”

Her eyes grew wide. “Oh, no, I didn’t mean—”

“I know,” he answered, his chest still aching a touch. “I just wanted you to realize she has a family, not all sorts of…other people. I don’t have time—we don’t have time…” His voice faded as he struggled with what he was trying to convey.

“You’ve been careful with her, and responsible,” Jodi said softly. “Just like I knew you would be.”

“Yeah. That, I guess.” He chuckled, shaking his head.

Then the awkward silence descended as they both stared out at the beach and the ocean beyond, the waves crashing into the shore over and over again, the gulls screeching and diving after bits of food on the sand.

“And what about you?” he finally asked, because he couldn’t stand not to know. “Is there someone moving here with you? Anyone I need to know about who might have contact with Katie through you?”

“No,” she was quick to say, and his heart breathed a sigh of fucking relief. Only because he didn’t want strange men around his daughter. That was all.

“I’m single and planning to stay that way,” she said.

He raised an eyebrow and looked at her. “Forever? Even I haven’t made a declaration that permanent.”

She smiled and rolled her eyes. “Just because you haven’t introduced Katie to them doesn’t mean you’ve been without company. I know you.”

He laughed. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“It means you’re…you.” She waved a hand at him as though that explained it all. “You’re too…you know, to have been without friends all this time.”

He leaned forward, liking where this conversation was going. “Too ‘you know’?” he asked, his voice low and a touch rough.

She flushed, and he resisted touching her cheek to see if it felt hotter because of the pink color.

“Ty,” she said, leveling him with a no-nonsense look. “You’re a sexy twenty-something man. There’s no way you’ve gone five years without sex.”

He chuckled. If she only knew. It was a lot less frequent than she might guess.

“Sexy, huh?”

She rolled her eyes. “Katie wouldn’t be here if I hadn’t thought that at some point.”

He wanted to ask if she still did, if when she’d seen him the first time in all those years, her heart had skipped a beat the way his had. He wanted to know if she lay in bed at night sometimes and remembered the feel of his hands on her skin the way he remembered the feel of hers on him.

But he was traversing dangerous territory right now. While he was starting to believe that she really didn’t want anything beyond a chance to know Katie, he still couldn’t let his guard down. The fact was, Jodi could decide to try for custody at any point. She could pretend to only want to know Katie and then, once she’d gotten his daughter attached, she could go to court and take her from him. His guts twisted at the very thought of his baby being taken out of his home, living somewhere else, being cared for by anyone other than his own flesh and blood.

He leaned back stiffly, preparing to stand. “Well,” he said, “I’m glad we got a few more things out in the open. If things with you and Katie do develop, I’ll expect you to tell me if you’re seeing someone. I want to know about people she might come in contact with. We’re not in the habit of exposing her to just anyone. She’s only five, and extremely trusting because she’s never had a reason not to be.”

He saw the look of shock that crossed Jodi’s face and felt a pang of remorse, but it had to be said. He couldn’t forget that Katie was his job here, not falling back into lust with her mother.

“Of course,” Jodi answered quietly. “I would never put her in any situation that wasn’t safe and wasn’t approved by you.”

Ty nodded once, briskly. “I’ll let you get back to what you were doing.” Then he stood and walked inside the coffee shop, a bitter taste in his mouth, but resolve in his heart.