Chapter 7: End of Summer

Today was the end of summer celebration and surprisingly the weather was actually warm enough for Amelia and I to wear summer clothes. I had on a sky-blue dress that reached my knees and brown strappy sandals. I was originally going to go with Samantha and Jason, but Shaw insisted on going together. I wasn't complaining, we had been seeing each other almost every day since our beach date a couple weeks ago. He would stop by after Amelia went to bed or he'd come over and cook for us. It was like he suddenly integrated into our lives with seamless transition. If he went too long without coming by Amelia would even, ask about him. It was then I knew we needed to establish what exactly it is we are doing. I didn't want my daughter being disappointed.

"Are you finished with your lunch?" I asked Amelia. Shaw would be arriving any minute and I was eager to get to the celebration.

"Almost mama."

"Okay good. We're going to have so much fun today!"

"Yeah, we are." She nodded her head.

Knock Knock.

"Hey come in Shaw." I called loud enough for him to hear through the door.

"Hey, you girls ready to go?"

"Almost." replied Amelia.

"Almost." I repeated laughing at the toddler.

He looked so good today with his long hair pulled into a man bun and his white t shirt hugging his toned body. It damn near made my mouth water at the sight. He looked at me like he knew exactly what I was thinking. I was leaned against the kitchen counter, and he walked up to me boxing me in with his frame. I peeked over at Amelia to see if she was looking, but she was oblivious.

He bent down and whispered in my ear

"I know what you're thinking. Save that for tonight." He lifted my chin and pecked my lips quickly before moving away. My cheeks were hot, and I felt like I might start to sweat any second. He had never done anything like that before, but I wanted him to do it again. He was the perfect size to pick me up and-

"Okay mom I'm all done."

Snapping back to reality I looked at Ame and grabbed a paper towel to clean her face. She wore denim capri pants with a sky blue short sleeved shirt to match. I'm not sure if I dress her in the same colors as me intentionally but she's my mini.

As we walked out the door my phone began to ring, but I decided to ignore it and leave it home today. I could call my mom back another time, no reason to ruin a perfectly good day by talking to her. We rode in my Jeep to the open park in town where there were all sorts of games and small rides set up for the day.

"How cute is this!" I say as I find a parking spot.

Shaw shook his head at my reaction. As we walked toward the entrance, he grabbed my hand intertwining our fingers. I looked up at him and smiled. Once we were in, I spotted Sam and Jason with their boys at a large picnic table. We made our way to them, and we all greeted each other. The kids were eager to play, and they all took off to the merry go round. The best part about this small town is everyone knew everyone, and I didn't have to worry over Amelia here in the open.

Sam's reddish-brown hair was pulled into a high ponytail, and she had her usual smile on her lips.

"You two sure look cute together Kat." She teased wiggling her brows.

The men were engaged in their own conversation about a potential bear in the area.

"I think so too." I responded to Sam.

"I would have never thought Shaw would find someone that caught his eye. God knows Jovanni has been trying for years." She chuckled.

"Jo from the diner?"

"Yeah, she was sure he would pick her eventually. Guess she can kiss those dreams goodbye." She shrugged her shoulders.

I looked at Shaw and he looked right back at me as if he didn't miss a word of our conversation.

Later that evening a large canopy with a dance floor had been pitched and there was a DJ playing music. The kids had settled down and were sitting under the canopy at their own little table. When a slow song came on Shaw pulled me to the dance floor and began swaying with me in his arms. I glanced over at Amelia and saw her watching us before she turned away smiling.

"I wanted to talk to you about something."

He hummed in response "I was wondering when you would say what was on your mind."

He looked down at me with a serious look in his eyes. The scar on his face was old and smooth as I ran my finger along it. I got on my tip toes and kissed his cheek where the scar ended. He gripped my waist tightly.

"You're distracting me Kat." He loosened his grip on my waist.

"I'm sorry." I laughed and shook my head.

"I just wanted to define what this is between us. What are your intentions?"

He stopped swaying and looked me in the eyes before saying

"My intentions?" He repeated back.

"Yes. Do you want to be with me or are you looking for something casual I guess?"

"Of course, I want to be with you, and only you. I thought I made that clear these last couple weeks."

"Well yes, we see each other every day, but I didn't want to assume anything especially since you only kissed me for the first time today."

A look of realization passed over his features.

"I didn't want you to think I was only after sex. I wanted to get to know you and I wanted you to be comfortable."

"I appreciate the sentiment. Will you stay with me tonight?" I fluttered my long black lashes at him, and I actually heard a growl rumble from his chest.

He leaned down and kissed me for the second time today, gripping my small waist in his big hands. We pulled away and continued to sway to the music. When we were done we made our way back to our table and I couldn't help but notice Jo glaring at me from across the way.

'Opps guess I won't be eating at the diner anymore she might fuck with my food' I laughed to myself.