Slade (BBW Bear Shifter Moonshiner Romance) (120 Proof Honey Book 5) (12 page)

“You do it all right there on your property?”

“Yup.”

“You’ll have to give me the tour sometime. I’d love to see all that.”

“Sure. It’s kind of my passion in life.”

She smiled. “That makes sense. I think the sweetness has rubbed off on you.”

There was a bit of a pause. Then he said simply, “Thanks.”

Hopefully in person, this would go much better.

Harmony found herself more nervous than normal for their date. Partly because he seemed so nervous. Was it just going to be completely awkward the whole time?
 

The babysitter knocked on the door and Harmony let her in.

“Thanks for coming, Rachel. This is a first date, so who knows how long it’ll be.”

Rachel grinned at her. “I hope you’re out all night and he’s the man of your dreams.”

Harmony sighed. “Let’s hope. I don’t know, though. He seems a bit unsure of himself.”

Rachel scrunched up her face. “That’s never good.”

Logan came running into the room then. “Rachel!” He jumped at her, and she stumbled back, but caught him in her arms.

“Hey Squirt, you ready for a super fun night?”

“I got the Xbox all set up!”

“Awesome.”

Harmony gave Rachel a quick hug, then squeezed Logan and kissed the top of his head. “Don’t wear Rachel out, Logan.”

“I won’t!” he called from the hall as he ran to the living room.

Harmony closed the door behind her and smiled. She’d met Rachel, a fellow nanny, at the park a few years ago. They were both there with their charges, trying to get some peace. They’d bonded over nanny-life discussions and had been friends ever since. They tried to get together with their kids every week. The kids loved it and it gave them adult time to talk. And Rachel was so awesome and loved kids so much that she babysat anytime Harmony needed her. Harmony would take her out for lunch next week to pay her back.

Harmony pulled up to the restaurant and went inside, keeping her eyes peeled for Beck. She found him just inside the restaurant, sitting in the lobby, his feet bouncing. He looked up and got to his feet when he saw her.

They were seated and sat across from each other. He fidgeted, twisting his fingers together and apart.

“I’m not going to bite, you know,” she said.

He let out a sigh. “I’m sorry. This is actually my first date in years. I’m not really sure what to do.”

“Well, first, relax. We’re here to have fun. Second, be yourself. It’s that easy.” She smiled at him and he smiled back.

“Thank you for understanding. I feel like a total idiot.”

“Well, I’m sorry to say that I have plenty of experience dating. First dates, at least. I don’t seem to get much farther for some reason.”
 

Well, not for some reason. For one reason. She tried to wait as long as possible before telling her date that she had a six-year-old son, but somehow, it managed to come up in conversation, usually by accident, and then she never heard from them again. As if being a single mother at twenty-four wasn’t hard enough, it also made her a social pariah in the dating world.
 

At this rate, she’d probably have to wait a few years for the men she dated to have kids of their own. Someone told her once that when you got to your thirties and were dating, having a kid was much more acceptable. Only six years to go.

“I can’t imagine why that would be,” Beck said.

She shrugged. “Maybe after this date, we can talk and tell each other everything we did wrong.”

“Or everything we did right.”

“Whoa,” she said. “Let’s not get too optimistic.”

They laughed, which helped relieve some of the tension. She couldn’t stop looking at him. He was just so good looking. His broad shoulders and muscular arms. Even the facial scruff he wore, which she usually didn’t like, looked so good on him. Once he relaxed a bit, he was funny, too. She found herself laughing a lot.

“Having a kid that’s allergic to bees is the worst,” she said. “I had a charge one time that was so bad, she needed an Epipen. I was so terrified of using it that I never wanted to let her outside. I did a lot of puzzles that summer. And the worst part was, a bee got in the house and stung her, and I ended up having to use it anyway.”

He shook his head. “Yeah, when bees get scared, they sting. They’re fascinating creatures, really. I’ve been stung so many times, I don’t even feel it anymore. But the allergy thing is scary. My brother, Knox, is dating someone who’s allergic. Except, no one knew until she got stung. That was a fun day. She started swelling up and he had to rush her to the hospital. Now she has an Epipen.”

“Hmm,” she said. “That must be tricky. Dating a beekeeper when you’re allergic to bees.”

“That’s not even the best part. She’s also our live-in housekeeper. Try living with beehives when you’re allergic. I don’t know how she does it.”

“That’s crazy. Though, I’d love to see the hives in action. That’s why we came into the bee building at the fair. I like to look at the displays of bees and see them making the honey and everything.”

“It’s a lot simpler and more complicated than it looks.”

“I’m sure,” she said. “What made you get into bees in the first place?”

“My business partners and I needed a business idea. Honey seemed like a good way to go, so it made sense that we’d get our own hives. Someone had to learn about the bees and take care of them, so my brother and I volunteered to be the ones. I didn’t want to get into sales like Dax, and I’m not great at office stuff, so it fit. I get to do the dangerous, physical job and they get to sit inside all day. It works well for everyone.”

“Is that why you’re so built?”

He pulled his mouth into half a smile. “We all work out, too. We do a lot of running and lifting.”

She looked over his muscles appreciatively and felt the vibration of her phone in her pocket. She didn’t want to answer it, or even look, but anytime she was away from Logan, she felt obligated. Sure enough, when she glanced at the screen, it was Rachel calling.
 

“Sorry, I have to take this,” she said.

“Harmony, I’m so sorry to interrupt your date. Logan just threw up and it seems that he’s running a fever. It came out of nowhere. He was fine when I got here, then all the sudden he said his stomach hurt and he threw up. He’s okay now, but I wanted to let you know.”

“Okay. I’ll be right there.”

She hung up and put her phone back, then looked at Beck with a long sigh. “I’m really sorry. I have to go.” She chose her words very carefully. She didn’t want to lie, but she didn’t want to give anything away just yet. “One of the kids I care for is sick. I have to run.” There. That was true enough, right?

“Oh, okay.” He looked around for the waitress. “I’ll take care of the check and everything. Go ahead if you have to go.”

“I’m so sorry. I had a really great time, though.”

“Me too. I was hoping we could maybe do this again?” He raised an eyebrow and gave her a hopeful smile.

“Definitely. I’d love to. And hopefully, next time there’ll be no child emergency.”

“Must be tough being a nanny. I don’t know how you do it.”

She put on her coat and reached for her purse. “Well, they’re just kids. You get to know them, and you grow to love them.”

“I guess. I think I’m nowhere near ready for that.” He chuckled. “I give you all the credit in the world for taking care of kids that aren’t even yours.”

“It’s a paycheck.” She winked and slid out of the booth. “Thank you again, Beck. It’s been really great.”

“I’ll call you?”

“Please do.”

She hurried out of the restaurant and got into her car. He would definitely call, she thought. They’d had a great time and everything, but she didn’t have high hopes.

He’d said he wasn’t ready for kids. He had seemed horrified watching her with the boys at the fair. What would he do when he found out about Logan? Probably the same thing all the other guys did. Stop calling.

Maybe what she really needed to do was find a guy with a kid of his own. That way, there would be no issue. Or she could just go around with a big sticker on her forehead that proclaimed, “Single Mom,” so that no one would be surprised. They could choose to ignore her from the beginning and never even ask her out and get her hopes up.
 

Harmony looked down at her phone the next day and saw that Beck was calling. That was fast.

“Did the kid recover?” he asked.

She looked over at Logan, who was balled up on the couch. “Getting there,” she said. “Though I did have to clean up puke twice today. I hope your day was better.”

“Actually, I’m not sure about that.”

“Really? What happened?”

“It’s a whole big mess. We’ve had some trouble with this other group in the area. A bunch of ladies trying to ruin our business.”

“Uh oh.” She chuckled. “Can’t handle the competition?”

“I wish that’s all it was. But it seems they’re the ones who can’t handle the competition. It started out with them just messing with our displays in Mason’s, but now it’s progressed to much worse. We had to talk with the police today to make statements. They set fire to our processing plant and attacked and killed one of our hives.”

“Oh, my goodness. That’s crazy.”

“Yeah. It’s been rough,” he said. “Luckily, we caught the fire in time and nothing was seriously damaged. They’re going to arrest them and schedule a trial. I guess we gave them enough evidence and everything. So, it looks like we get to go to court next.”

“Not fun. But, if it gets them to leave you alone, it’s worth it, right?”

“So long as they don’t do anything in the meantime to retaliate for us pressing charges.”

“I think maybe your day was worse. At least I got to sit around and watch movies in between cleaning up the puke.”

“Oh, yuck.” He made a disgusted sound. “I don’t know how you do it.”

“I guess I’m used to it. I’ve been taking care of kids for about six years now.”

“I guess by the time you have your own, you’ll be all set.”

Oh no. How should she answer that? She hesitated too long. She said, “Yeah, I guess so.” But then she felt bad for lying.

“What are your plans for today?” he asked.

“Nothing much. I’m just hanging out at home. Got some laundry to do. You know, fun stuff.”

“You’re home now?” he asked.

“Yup. What are you up to?”

“Just driving home. I’ll be making a stop soon.”

“Oh, okay, well I’ll let you go then. Maybe we can talk later?”

“That sounds great,” he said. “Talk to you soon.”
 

She helped Logan get up and go to the bathroom, then settle back onto the couch. “Do you want any soup or crackers or anything?”

He shook his head and pulled his stuffed bear closer to his chest. He always got quiet when he was sick. He’d usually just watch TV and hold his favorite stuffed animal. The trashcan was close to his head so that he could grab it in a hurry if he needed it. She hoped he was done throwing up, though.

She put a load of laundry in the washer and sat back down, picking up her book. Logan wanted to watch his favorite movie for the hundredth time and she needed something else to do besides hear the same dialogue over and over.

She’d just turned the page when there was a knock at her door. She wasn’t expecting anyone, but maybe Rachel was coming to check on them.
 

Harmony opened the door to find Beck standing on her porch, a pizza in his hands.

“I thought maybe I’d surprise you with some dinner,” he said, grinning at her.

Her eyes went wide and her stomach turned. Maybe she’d be needing the trashcan next. This was not how this was supposed to happen. She wanted to wait longer before telling him. Get to know him better. But now he was here and there was no way to hide the truth any longer.

“Hi Beck.” She glanced behind her into the house. Logan must still be on the couch. “I, umm… didn’t expect you.”

“That’s what makes it a surprise. Is it a bad time?”

“No, it’s not that. I… Well, just come on in.”

She stepped aside and let him in, then she led him to the kitchen.

“Do you always watch kids’ movies when you’re home in the evenings?” he asked, nodding toward the living room where the loud, cheerful singing was coming from.

“Well, here’s the thing, Beck.” She twisted her fingers together and glanced toward the living room. “My son is in the other room watching TV. He’s the one that’s sick.”

Beck’s face went slack and still. He stared at her for a long moment. “Your son?”

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner, but you seemed freaked out by kids and I’ve had some really bad experiences with guys not calling again after they found out, and I really liked you, so I guess I was hoping that when you got to know me better, you’d be okay with it or something.” She covered her face with her hands. “I don’t know. I’m sorry. I should have told you.”