Shoved (Moonlit Lake Matchmaker #4)

Chapter 11

STORM

The night suddenly felt a lot colder after Serena and her daughter left. I had been hoping to see her here tonight, but I had no idea she had a kid. Not that I had anything against kids. I just didn’t need the complication. Dating a single mom would definitely be complicated. All the more reason to stay away from her.

“What a wonderful evening. Wouldn’t you agree, Storm?” Mom asked, nudging my side. Subtlety was never her strong suit.

“Absolutely.” I tugged on Lulu’s leash to get her attention. “I think it’s time I head home. Lots to do tomorrow.”

Mom grabbed my jacket to stop me. “Not so fast. Tell me what’s going on with you and Serena.”

“There’s nothing to tell. We’ve bumped into each other around town a few times. That’s all.” Images of our recent falls flooded my mind, and I had to use my best poker face to keep my mom from asking more questions or making even more out of it.

“You were adorable holding that little girl on your shoulders. You’d make a great dad, you know.”

“Pfft.” I flicked that idea away like an annoying fly. “Get that out of your mind right now. I have absolutely no interest in getting married or having kids. Serena’s a very attractive woman, but it’s best for everyone if I stay clear of her. And her daughter. Even if I wanted to ask her out, and I‘m not saying I do, I wouldn’t mess with a single mom. I have a firm boundary there.”

Mom’s shoulders sagged with disappointment. It wasn’t the first time I’d told her that, but I’m sure she was hoping I’d change my mind for Serena and Sadie.

“But you looked so fatherly holding her up like that. It almost made me tear up.” Her voice cracked and she held her hand to her chest.

“I was being neighborly, like you always taught me. Sadie couldn’t see, so I helped her. Simple as that.”

“But—”

“Let it go, Mom. You got three kids matched up in the last year. Isn’t that enough?”

“I just want you to be happy.” She wrapped her arms around me in a tight hug.

“I am happy. I opened my own practice here. Got a dog. I’m happy I moved back here so I get to see you more often. Don’t make me regret that.”

She stepped back and playfully smacked my arm. “I really am glad you’re home. Don’t forget dinner on Sunday.”

“I’ll be there. Don’t worry.”

A snowball hit my back. I whipped around to discover my assailant. And another snowball hit my shoulder. “Hey.”

Jasper laughed. “You were looking a little too serious, big bro. Just trying to lighten you up a little.”

“I’ll show you lightened up.” I reached for a snowball to return fire.

He dodged my throw and shifted his attention to Lulu. “So I see you brought your new girlfriend.” He reached down to pet Lulu. “I have to say, she’s the nicest female I’ve ever seen you with.”

“Eh, bite me.” I fired back, not giving Jasper the satisfaction of getting a rise out of me. He thrived on pushing buttons. Always has.

“So how’s it going with Lulu?” Jasper asked. “Have you two bonded?”

“Once I gave up trying to contain her, and let her follow me wherever I go, we get along great.”

“Where does she sleep?”

I mumbled into my hand, hoping he would move onto something else.

“What was that, Storm?” Jasper cupped his hand to his ear and pressed for an answer.

“I tried getting her to sleep in a crate with a blanket over it, but she reached her paw through the bars, pulled the blanket off, then opened the latch to let herself out.”

Jasper chuckled. “Wow. She’s got some skills. If I ever need some help breaking and entering, I know who to call. So then, where does she sleep?” He bumped his shoulder against AJ’s. “Bet you ten bucks she’s sleeping in his bed.”

AJ shook her head. “No bet. That’s obvious. How could anyone resist that face? The dog’s, I mean.”

“I tried everything I could think of to get her to sleep in her own bed. Even bought her a fluffy fur dog bed with a memory foam cushion for her to sleep on. It lasted about five seconds and then she’d be right back on my bed. It just wasn’t worth the fight.” I threw up my hands and admitted defeat. “She stays at the bottom of the bed, so it’s not a big deal.”

Jasper scoffed. “Not a big deal? This from the guy who color-codes his closet and freaks out if anything is not where it’s supposed to be.”

“Hey, you’re the guy whose favorite pastime was to mix up my closet every day.”

Jasper laughed and turned to AJ. “It’s true. Every day, I would move something, usually just one thing, to see how long it would take him to feel the tremor in the force and go fix it. He always noticed it right away.”

“That reminds me, I still owe you for all those pranks. Better be on your guard.” Lulu tugged on my pants and pulled me toward the car. “Alright, Lulu says it’s time to go.” I said my goodbyes to my family. “See you Sunday, if not before.”

We were just about to the car when my phone rang. It was my twin sister, Skye.

“Hey, Skylark. What’s up?” Ever since we were kids, I rarely called her by her given name, but rather Skylark or Lark. It was my special name for her.

“I see you got yourself a new little family, and you didn’t even tell me, Stormy?”

“What are you talking about?”

Skye signed into the phone. “You didn’t see the pics in the family group chat? Mom posted the cutest pics of you with a little girl on your shoulders and a beautiful woman at your side.”

“It’s not what it looks like. The little girl couldn’t see the tree, so I lifted her up. That’s it.”

“If you say so. The three of you do look really good together.” Her voice lilted with playfulness.

“You, of all people, know that just thinking about marriage and family gives me hives.”

“Yeah, yeah. I know. It’s okay to change your mind if the situation calls for it, though. The dating pool in town doesn’t provide many choices.”

“I’m not changing my mind, and I don’t need choices. And I definitely don’t want to date a single mom.”

“Why not? You like kids. The furry, bleating kind, anyway.”

“Exactly.” I did like the baby goats. Those were the kind of kids I could handle. No complications there.

“Then again, you might not need to find your own dates. Not with the bachelor auction coming up,” Her voice took on a sing-song quality. Happy in my misery, was she?

“Don’t remind me. I can’t believe AJ roped me into that. I was definitely under duress and didn’t know what I was agreeing to.” I opened the car door and let Lulu in, before climbing behind the wheel. “Anyway. What’s new with you? How’s your boycott of the resort going?”

“Uuggg! Not well. It seems all we’re doing is slowing it down a bit. I need to find a way to stall it indefinitely. No way I’m going to let this monster resort destroy the pristine nature of Moonlit Lake.”

“Let me know if there’s anything I can do to help. And keep your efforts on this side of the law, please. I don’t want to have to represent you in court.”

“No destruction of property, or anything like that. But if some permits happen to get lost, or exchanged for say a permit for a petting zoo, or a nudist colony…well, things like that happen.”

I shook my head. She was one of the most principled people I knew, but would do almost anything to protect her cause, the environment. “Only when you’re around, Lark.”

“Alright, I gotta go. Talk to you in a couple of days, or maybe I’ll see you at dinner on Sunday.”

“Yeah. Later.”

I hung up the phone just as I was turning into the driveway of my rental house. It was out in the country, about five miles out, on the opposite side of town as my family’s farm. Close enough to see them whenever I wanted, but far enough that they weren’t popping in all the time. I liked my space and my privacy. This cabin out in the middle of nowhere was perfect.

“Okay, Lu. We’re home.” She gave me a tiny lick on my cheek. I ruffled her ears. Before opening the door, I looked out at the dark, empty cabin in front of us. An unfamiliar pang hit my chest, and suddenly my quiet refuge didn’t feel so inviting. “Let’s go inside, Lu.”