Head over Heels: A Single Dad Romance(7)

Chapter 5





I awoke with the kind of dull headache you can only get from way too many martinis. I pulled the blankets over my head and tried to wade through my spotty memories of the night before. Mimi and I had way too much to drink, then there was a wild car ride and some oh-so-fantastic kissing. Somewhere around the time I remembered kissing Michael Saunders, I realized the blankets I was hiding under weren't mine.

Shit.

I could tell I wasn't naked, but I certainly wasn't wearing the blue pin-striped suit with my favorite flippy skirt that I put on the day before. I was also very much alone under the blankets. Which was ominous.

I knew I had to come out from under there at some point, so I cautiously pulled down the blanket and immediately shielded my eyes from the swaths of ultra bright sunlight that filled the room. Was there some sort of cosmic reason why the sun was at its brightest during a hangover?

"Who are you?"

Double shit.

I opened my eyes and blinked through enough of my fuzzy vision to see a young girl no older than four or five standing beside the bed staring at me. Her large brown eyes looked familiar, but otherwise, I had never seen her before. Her perky mouth was screwed to the side as she looked at me questioningly, and I couldn't help wonder how she breathed out of her tiny upturned nose. For a second, I wondered if I was still dreaming, but then I saw she was wearing my pink polka dot push up bra on top of her wispy blonde hair like an obscene pussy hat.

Triple shit.

"Well, who are you?" I did my best to bide my time while trying to figure out exactly where I was. I sat up slowly, hoping not to anger the hangover gods and had a look around. First off, I was thrilled to see I wasn't in the little girl's bed. The California king sized bed dwarfed anything I had ever slept in before, and the muted gray and blue around the room didn't give off any My Little Pony vibes.

"I asked you first," the little girl looked at me expectantly and then went on, "ya know, Daddy says it's rude to not answer when somebody asks you a question."

"That's right, Elizabeth," Michael's voice boomed out from the doorway. Damn, he looked good - even in an old t-shirt and pajama bottoms - he looked damn good. I just wished I could remember what happened the night before.

"Daddy!" Elizabeth jumped up and down at the sight of Michael carrying a breakfast tray, "are we having breakfast in bed?" Without waiting for an answer, she launched herself onto the bed and scrambled into the middle. Crossing her legs, she folded her hands primly in her lap and waited to be served.

Daddy. Those were my worst fears realized.

I looked back at Michael and we both began to mouth the words, "I'm sorry," to each other at the same time. This was getting more surreal by the minute.

He walked into the room and sat the tray down on the bed - and I tried not to gag at the bowl of oatmeal. "Maybe we should let Devon enjoy her breakfast in peace," he offered and gently pulled my bra off her head and tossed it onto the chair with the rest of my clothing. Did it get more embarrassing?

Elizabeth was having none of that, "Oh, she won't mind," she looked up at her father and fluttered her lashes at him, "we're having a conversation, it would be rude to just leave now." Her hands were spread out like she was explaining the ways of the world to him and I had to bite back a laugh.

"I think she's right," I declared in the same tone, "besides, there is no way I can eat all of this food." Honestly, that was more than true. Not only was there water, but coffee and coconut water dispersed around plates of eggs, toast, waffles, and that gross bowl of oatmeal. Besides, I needed a moment to gather my wits, and she seemed like a great diversion.

"Yay!" She yelled in such a high-pitched scream that my eyes almost rolled back into my head. Michael tried to shush her, but she had already moved on to inspecting the tray of food.

"I want waffles," she gushed and her whole body fidgeted in anticipation.

"Well, Devon is our guest," Michael scolded softly, "we should ask her what she would like first."

That stopped her in her tracks as she looked at me, obviously hoping I would choose something else.

"I think I'll stick with coffee," I reached for the mug, but he handed me a shot glass instead. "Hair of the dog?" I saw him duck his head down to cut up one waffle into bite sized pieces.

"Even better," he murmured as he handed his daughter the plate.

They were super cute together, but I was still trying to process that he had a daughter. I never even knew he was a parent. I watched the two of them and wondered how it all came about - and then almost gagged on the contents of the shot glass. "Ugh! What was that?"

Elizabeth laughed at my funny face and Michael handed me a bottle of coconut water to douse the taste. "Pickle juice," he laughed, "an old family recipe."

"Yikes," I smacked my lips at the after taste and took another swig of water, "you need to find another recipe."

When I drained the last of the bottle, a cup of coffee was waiting for me in his outstretched hands and I swear I could have kissed him… again. Not that it was the right time to discuss the matter, but I couldn't help wonder how I had ended up in the situation - and who might have witnessed it.

"So, Michael," I hesitated, "last night-"