Gentlemen Prefer Curves: A Perfect Fit Novel (32 page)

Just as Ellis stepped her foot out the door, a little dark-haired creature rushed in. Ruby flung her little body toward Belinda. She was surprised to see the child but she caught her in her arms as she stumbled backward.

“Belinda,” she groaned dramatically. “It’s been
forever
.”

“Ruby,” she groaned back as she hugged the little girl close. “You’re such a drama queen. But I missed you, too.”

She had missed the little girl and it was quite annoying. Bad enough that she couldn’t get Carter off her mind—but she had a thing for his kid, too.

“You should call me on the phone sometimes,” Ruby said earnestly. “That’s what friends do, you know.”

“I guess they do.” Belinda looked over at Ellis, who was watching them. She gave her a knowing smile and waved at Belinda before she walked out. “I didn’t know you were coming to visit today.”

“We are going to buy fruit with your mommy today and Daddy said that you wasn’t coming. And I told him I wanted to see you and he said he wanted to see you, too, so we are going to buy fruit and then take you out to lunch.”

“You’re taking me out to lunch?”

“Yeah, I wanted to go to frozen yogurt again but Daddy said no because that’s not real food and since I ate a Pop-Tart for breakfast he says I gotta eat a vegetable at lunch. But I only like corn. So then he said we were going to eat Mexican food because they’ve got salsa and guacamole there and those got vegetables in them. I like salsa,” she said thoughtfully. “But not when it’s spicy. It burns my mouth.”

“I love you, Ruby.” She kissed Ruby’s cheek. “You’re so freaking cute.”

And before Belinda could fully process what she had just said, Ruby replied, “I love you, too.” Just like she had been saying it forever, just like it was the most natural thing in the world.

Damn.

She sure as hell couldn’t take that
I love you
back. She couldn’t. She loved the kid.

Carter was there when she looked up.

Double damn.

She was in trouble now.

“Ruby, go to the bathroom and wash your hands before we go,” Carter told her. “Use lots of soap.”

“Okay.” She slid herself out of Belinda’s hold. “Grandma says a lady should always freshen up before she eats.”

Ruby left them, and as soon as she was out of sight Carter came at her. She shut her eyes waiting for him to say something, to bring up commitment, to gloat, to say anything about what had just taken place, but he didn’t say a word. He just hugged her close and kissed her forehead. “I hope you don’t mind that we dropped by. She wanted to see you.”

“You think she really loves me?” she asked quietly, almost hating herself for doing so. “Or do you think she said it because I said it first.” She shook her head. “I always forget the first rule of relationships is to never say
I love you
first.”

“You’re ridiculous,” he said with a sigh, right before he kissed her. “Of course she loves you. She’s five. She’s too innocent and honest to say she loves you if she doesn’t.”

“You think so?” She searched his face. “I don’t know why she loves me.”

“Because you’re lovable.” He cupped her face in his hands and kissed her again. She shut her eyes. She had probably been kissed by him thousands of times but her knees still went weak.

Damn.

“What are you doing?” they heard a little voice say.

Belinda froze.

Shit. Busted!

She looked down at Ruby, who was staring up at them curiously, and stammered as she searched for the right thing to stay.

“I’m kissing Belinda,” Carter said simply.

“Why?” She blinked at her father.

“Because she’s pretty and I like her.”

“Oh. Okay.” She shrugged like it was no big deal. “Can we go now?”

“Yes.” Belinda took her hand. “We can go.”

Carter ginned at her, a triumphant I-told-you-so kind of grin. He might be right: The revelation that they were more than just friends may not have been earth-shattering to Ruby. But it felt like that to her. She felt like they had just gone down a road that they couldn’t turn back on.

CHAPTER 19

So sick of love songs …

Carter had never been to a farmers’ market. There were dozens of little stands stretched out across the green, selling fruit, organic meat, pastries, and myriad other food-related items. There was even a grilled cheese truck that sold gourmet grilled cheese to the huge line of hungry shoppers. It was a lot to take in. It was yet another reason to love Durant, but he was too preoccupied to pay attention to all that was there. He was too busy looking at Belinda, who sat on a nearby bench with Ruby on her lap. They were just talking. About everything. About nothing. Ruby loved Belinda. Ruby was happiest when she was with her.

Carter realized that he had made a mistake with her. He had gone too slow. He had given her the chance to think too much. Because she was keeping him away from her. She had told him to see other women. He hadn’t planned to. He hadn’t been with anyone else since they’d said their vows but when Molly walked in, when she asked him out right in front of Belinda, he couldn’t say no.

He should have. He had wanted to. He didn’t like Molly like that. He wasn’t attracted to her. He didn’t want to lead her on, and by saying yes he was. He hated himself for that. He’d gone to bed every night since then hating himself for what he’d done. He needed to cancel this date before he ended up hurting her.

“Pudge! Is that you?” Carmina waved her arms and smiled beautifully at them as she left her car. “Oh, Pudge, I’m so glad you came.”

Belinda came to stand by him. A slight frown crossed her face.

“What’s the matter?”

“Nothing.”

“Yes, something. Tell me what’s wrong.”

She sighed. “She’s yelling ‘Pudge’ in front of all these people? I wished she would just call me Belinda sometimes.”

He wrapped his arm around her waist. “You know she doesn’t mean anything by it.”

“I know, but she never thinks, either. She never thinks about how that nickname bugs me.”

“You’re not pudgy.”

“Compared with her I am.” She rolled her eyes. “Ignore me. I’m hormonal.”

He kissed her cheek. “I know. You’re always hormonal around me. I’m going to start taking it personally.”

“You should.” She glanced down at Ruby, who was paying attention to everything that they said. “And stop kissing me. You’re not my boyfriend.”

She pulled away from him and took Ruby’s hand as she walked away to greet her mother, which reminded him that they weren’t a couple. “Hello,
Mamá
.”

“Hello, Carter. How are you?” She looked at her daughter and squeezed her face. “My pudgy Pudge. I’m so glad you came today. I wasn’t expecting you to come. You need to eat more fruit and vegetables so I am glad you did. Well, maybe you shouldn’t eat too much fruit because fruit turns to sugar and you know sugar gives you a little bit of a round belly.” She rubbed Belinda’s tummy. “But that’s okay. Fruit is good for you. So many vitamins. I saw on the television that people put greens in their smoothies. Like kale and spinach. It looks yucky to me, but all those yucky things are so good for you, no? Plus with all the other fruit in there you don’t even taste the green stuff. I think we should try to get some greens for you today. It would give you so much more energy and then you would want to exercise more. And the exercise will help you slim down for your big day.”

“She doesn’t need to slim down,” Carter said.

“What big day?” Belinda asked at the same moment.

“Carmina.” Bill Gordon walked up behind his wife. He was the last person Carter expected to be there that day. “Stop bugging the girl. She’s fine how she is.”

“Of course.” She kissed Belinda’s cheeks again. “I just want her to look her best. Oh, hello, you gorgeous girl!” Carmina bent to scoop Ruby up. “I nearly didn’t see you there. How are you, sweet pea?”

“I’m fine, thank you. Are we going to buy fruit?”

“Yes.” Bill took Ruby from his wife. “We are going to buy fruit and bread and cakes and whatever else we want.” Bill gave his wife a long hard look. “We are here to have fun. Not to worry about anything else.” He took Ruby and walked away, and in that moment Carter’s respect for Bill Gordon went up a little more.

Twenty minutes later they were a quarter of the way through the market. Carmina chattered her way through the stands, saying so many words that at times he found it hard to keep up with her, but in a way he found her charming.

Belinda didn’t. She hadn’t said much since her parents had arrived. Belinda was the most confident person he knew, but he wondered if her mother’s comments bothered her more than she let on.

He walked up beside her, catching her fingers in his hand. “Are you okay?” he asked her quietly. She locked eyes with him nodding briefly, pulling her hand from his. And once again he was reminded that she didn’t want Ruby to think they were a couple. That she didn’t want to get back together with him yet. It was a punch in the gut. Every time she put distance between them it was like a hard punch that took his breath away.

They stopped at a little stall that sold handmade soaps. Carmina pulled her husband to the manlier selection. He heard her said something about sweaty feet and locker rooms but he couldn’t pay attention to her because he was too busy looking at Belinda with his little girl.

They were hand in hand again, as they had been most of the day. It wasn’t as if Ruby needed her hand held inside the market—her hand just seemed to merge with Belinda’s every time she was near her. If he didn’t know any better, he would say that they were mother and daughter.

Belinda picked up a pink bar of soap, sniffed it, and then held it down for Ruby. “Smell this one, Ruby. I’m thinking about buying it. Do you like it?”

She nodded and took the pink brick from her hand. “I like it. But it doesn’t smell like you.”

“No?” Belinda raised a brow. “What do I smell like?”

“I don’t know. Something else. Like something good. I like that smell better because every time I smell it I think of you.”

“My sweet girl.” Belinda bent down and pressed a kiss to Ruby’s head. Watching her do that—watching her be so natural and comfortable in her affection to his child—made a little knot form in his stomach. How could she say she loved Ruby, how could she get so close to her and not want to be permanently in her life? Ruby was already attached, couple or not; if Belinda were ever to walk out on her, she would be heartbroken.

“Lancaster,” Bill called. “Take a walk with me. I want to look at some bait.”

“We can all go, Dad,” Belinda said, giving him a cautious look. “I can’t wait to see what kind of gross things you want me to put on my hook.”

Bill’s face softened for a moment as he looked at his daughter. “I didn’t invite you, Junior. There’s a reason for that.”

“You want to surprise me with bait? You don’t have to. You know I’ll just crawl out of my skin if I don’t know what you have for our next fishing trip.”

“You’ll survive, Bell. Your father and I are going to pick out some good bait.”

Bill nodded once and walked away. Carter followed him, almost not wanting to, but knowing the conversation they were about to have was long overdue.

To his surprise they did head to a stand that sold all kinds of fishing gear. Bill hadn’t said a word yet, he just walked over to the fishing poles and picked up a small pink one. He studied the tiny rod, which almost looked ridiculous in his large hands.

“Do you think this is a good starting rod for a five-year-old?” he asked him.

“I don’t know, sir. You know more about fishing than I do.”

“You’re right. I also know more about my daughter and I know the last time she was involved with you she came home with a crushed heart.”

There it was, out on the table, just like that. He could try to defend himself. He could tell him about Bethany and about Ruby’s accident and why it took him so long to come back, but he didn’t.

“I know. I was wrong and I’m sorry about that.”

Bill looked up at him. He pinned him with intense eyes that were nearly the same as his daughter’s. “I should kill you. I should snap your neck and bury you in my backyard. I would do it. I would do it because you asked her to marry you without meeting us, without a phone call. You had a wedding without inviting us. We’ve got one damn kid. One kid who means everything to us and you didn’t even have the common decency to have a simple conversation with me.”

“I’m sorry.”

“You’re damn right you are! You’ve got a girl. How the hell would you feel if you didn’t meet her husband? If you didn’t give her away?”

“Like shit, sir. Worse than that. I would feel like somebody stabbed me in the chest.”

“I could have forgiven you for that if you had at least made her happy. But you broke her heart. You didn’t come after her. She came back here broken and miserable. She didn’t get out of bed for two days. She cried for you, and just for that I should kill you.”

“But you won’t.”

“No. I saw you at the park with your kid the other day. I saw the way you are with her. I saw that you were
with
her. I wasn’t there a lot when Belinda was little. I wasn’t around until she was twelve, when I looked at her and realized that I didn’t know my own kid, when I realized that she wasn’t happy. I know about you. I know you used to work all the time. I know you stopped because you were missing out on your kid’s life. I respect you for that, because you figured out how much of an asshole you were long before I did.”

“Ruby’s my life,” he said softly, not knowing what else to say.

“Belinda is mine. I know sometimes my wife and I interfere more in her life than we should, but I feel so damn guilty for missing out on so much of her childhood and we’re trying to make up for it. Now you’ve got to make up for missing out on her life, too. She doesn’t deserve to be let down by the people she loves anymore.”

“I know. I love her. I want her back in my life for good.”

“I see the way you look at her when she’s not looking. You’ve got the look of a man with his balls in a vise grip.”