Johnson Family 1: Unforgettable by Delaney Diamond Page B

informed him.
    They worked in silence for a few minutes, and it felt cozy. Almost like they were a real…family. The thought snuck up on him and he shook off the sentimentality. This was nice and all, but it wasn’t what he wanted. This type of tame existence was for other men who didn’t crave excitement the way he did. He had a great life in Atlanta, and he liked traveling and meeting different people—especially women. He could still do all that even as he learned to nail down this father-thing. At least he hoped so.
    He and Katie made the salad dressing based on Ivy’s instructions. Then he poured it on the salad and gave Katie the important task of tossing it. While Ivy placed the food and pico de gallo in serving dishes, he and Katie set the table. Every time he caught his daughter looking at him, he’d wink at her and she’d laugh.
    Finally, they sat down to dinner. The nachos were laden down with meat and beans, melted cheese, and over the top they each scattered healthy doses of pico de gallo. He listened to Katie talk about her friends and classes at school. She’d never shared this much information with him, and she sounded excited about her Language Arts class. Pride filled him. He couldn’t help but be happy that in some small way she might have taken after him, even though he hadn’t been a presence in her life.
    “These are great,” Lucas said around a bite, during a lull in the conversation.
    “Don’t talk with your mouth full,” Katie chastised him.
    “Hey, I’m the adult,” he teased back, and tweaked her nose.
    He sensed Ivy’s eyes on him and met her gaze across the table. She smiled and took a drink of beer.
    “What do you think of the brew?” she asked.
    “I like it,” he answered. She didn’t look at him again. He wanted her to, but he pushed away the unwanted ache for some kind of connection and continued eating.
    After dinner, Ivy watched Lucas and Katie work on a crossword puzzle, something else they had in common. Katie sat close to her father on the sofa while Ivy used her tablet to prepare the monthly goals for the area managers in the restaurant group.
    Every so often her daughter attempted to include her in the activity.
    “Mommy, what’s a four-letter word for masculine?”
    “Mommy, what’s a three-letter word for adversary?”
    “Mommy, what’s a three-letter word for luau garland?”
    “Lei,” Ivy answered, proud she’d actually known the answer to that one.
    As the night wore on, she finished up her project and was about to go clean up the kitchen when Lucas whispered, “She’s out.”
    Katie had nodded off and was leaning against his arm. Seeing the two of them together in that way made such a sweet image, she wanted to take a picture.
    “She sure is.” That was one thing about her daughter, she fell asleep easily and would soon be deep in slumber. “Come on, munchkin.”
    Ivy brought her to her feet and she grumbled as she trudged back to the bedroom, leaning on her mother, eyes half-closed. Ivy settled her into bed before heading back out to the living room and found Lucas clearing the table.
    “I can do that,” she said.
    “The least I can do is load the dishwasher since you fed me,” he replied with a good-natured smile. His attitude had gone through a complete one-eighty. He certainly was no longer angry at her, but she didn’t know what to make of it.
    “If you insist,” she said to cover the jitters that overcame her. “But the dishwasher’s broken and I haven’t taken the time to get a repairman in here to look at it yet.”
    “Then I’ll help you wash,” Lucas offered.
    They stacked dishes on top of one another and took them into the kitchen.
    It felt strange to have a man in her home. Particularly one she was attracted to. It would be difficult to explain her relationship with Winston. They’d been more like friends than husband and wife.
    Over dinner she’d caught herself watching Lucas, drinking him in. His playfulness with