Chapter 5 Breakfast
Anushka's P.O.V.
When we get to a small restaurant near the hotel, we're shown to a booth. Dakota insists that she needs to have one whole side of the booth to color in the coloring book they gave her when we walked in, so Jordan and I have to sit together.
"Is this your first time on the island?" Jordan asks us. Dakota suddenly becomes very interested in her coloring while sneaking glances at us as though we can't see her.
"Yes. This is the first big vacation we've been on," I reply while sipping my water. Jordan leans back and puts his arm on the back of the booth behind me. He's not touching me, but it still feels intimate.
"I've never been here either, so we can discover the island together," Jordan says as the waitress comes over to take our order. It's closer to lunchtime than breakfast, but we all want pancakes and sausage. Dakota orders chocolate chip, while Jordan and I order blueberry.
"Blueberry pancakes are Mommy's favorite," Dakota says as she drinks her milk. Jordan smiles as he turns to look at me. His fingers lightly touch the back of my neck, and I shiver. I know it was accidental, but I haven't been touched by a man in a long time.
"Mine too. So today's your birthday. How old are you?" He asks.
"Twenty-five. Why?" Do I have to be a certain age to babysit him?
"I'm just wondering how I went that many years without having my ‘ray of light’ in my life." Oh, shit, he did it again. How does he keep catching me off guard with those cheesy lines?
"How old are you?" I look him over as though I'm sizing him up.
"Thirty. Why is that too old for you?" He asks with a smirk as his fingers touch my neck again. I'm pretty sure this time it's intentional.
"Too old for me to babysit? No, not at all," Dakota giggles from across the table.
"Does thirty mean you're an old man?" I burst out laughing while Jordan looked at her, appalled.
"Old? Do I look old to you?" He asks her. She sets her crayon on the table and studies his face.
"You have a couple of wrinkles," she replies as the waitress brings our food.
"I don't know what to say. I thought thirty was young, but apparently, I'd better get ready to go into a nursing home. Maybe I should ask someone to buy me a walker for my next birthday," Jordan says while I laugh. Dakota nods as she takes a bite of her pancakes.
"Yes, but if you have to wear diapers, me, and Mommy won't babysit you anymore. We don't change diapers." Jordan's fork drops onto his plate. "Uh oh, Mommy, he needs help eating."
"I never thought I would be beaten up by a four-year-old," he says in disbelief.
"Don't let her get to you. She's been practicing on me. Sometimes I wonder what they teach her at school." Dakota's eyes light up at the mention of school, and I close mine. I already know where this is going.
"We had Daddy Day at school, but I don't have a daddy." She looks down at her food, giving him the best pout I've seen in a while. Anyone else would think she was ready to cry, but I know my daughter. She's trying to see what Jordan will do. He reaches over the table and pats her hand.
"I'm sorry you don't have a daddy," he says. Dakota sniffs as though she's crying. I try not to laugh when I literally see Jordan melting.
"Can you pretend to be my daddy, just for today, so I know what it's like?" She looks up at Jordan, and he looks at me.
"What can I say? She knows how to get what she wants." I tell him as I eat my sausage. Dakota giggles and begins eating, too, while Jordan looks back and forth between us.
"I think you should be on TV with your acting skills. I was ready to tell your mom I would adopt you just so you could have a daddy." Something in his voice makes me stop eating to look at him. He sounds sad.
"Are you okay?" Jordan smiles and nods.
"I'm fine." I don't buy it.
"In all fairness, she has been telling me for a while that I need to find her a daddy. She woke up this morning, asking me if I was ready to start looking. So yes, some of what she said was an act, but the whole wanting a daddy thing wasn't." It obviously moved him that Dakota wanted to call him daddy, and that makes my heart flutter. Jordan smiles as we finish our food.
"If you want to call me daddy for the day, you can, but only if your mommy holds my hand. If I'm your daddy, then she's my wife, right?" Oh, he's smooth. I prepare to argue, but the little sneaky ninja speaks up first.
"Yep, that's right. Mommy, you have to hold Daddy's hand today." I look at Dakota and then narrow my eyes at Jordan.
"How did I get roped into this?" We stand up, and I grab the bill before Jordan can. After paying for our food, we go outside.
"Today we're going to be a family, and you're the Mommy," Dakota says. She takes my hand and puts it into Jordan’s. He looks a little too pleased with himself as he links his fingers with mine.
"That's right, Mommy. Do you have a problem holding my hand?" Yes, I have a problem with it. I don't like the way it makes me feel. I was supposed to be on vacation with Dakota. These two weeks are supposed to be a chance for us to relax and have fun. Meeting a man on our first day on the island, and him making me feel all kinds of things I haven't let myself feel in a long time, wasn't part of the plan. I should let go of his hand to avoid leading him on. However, as we start walking and he lifts Dakota to put her on his shoulders, I can't help but smile as she squeals.
"No, I don't have a problem holding your hand, but only for today." Jordan pulls me closer to him.
"How long are you two here for?" He asks.
"Two weeks." Jordan smiles.
"Good, me too. Dakota, what do you say we spend two weeks together so we can all see what it feels like to be part of a family?" Dakota looks down at me from his shoulders, and I groan. I know that Cheshire cat-looking smile on her face. She's going to spend these two weeks convincing me that Jordan should be her daddy.
"Can we, Mommy, please?" The little traitor is using her pout on me now. I know all her tricks, but I'm still going to do exactly what she wants. I don't like the double-teaming they are doing here.
"Fine." They both start laughing, and I laugh with them. This is a huge mistake. All that's going to happen is that we're all going to have broken hearts when this vacation comes to an end.
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Corbin's P.O.V.
I watch Jordan with Anushka and her daughter. What are the chances they would be at the same hotel and she would find him on the beach? I pull out my phone to make the call I'm dreading.
"Hello?"
"Sir, we have a problem," I say to the man on the other line.
"What's the problem?"
"The woman wasn't able to get enough poison on Jordan to make him as sick as we wanted." I start small before I tell him the rest.
"Well, you need to figure out something else then," he says angrily.
"That's not all. Anushka and her daughter are here. They're staying at the same hotel as Jordan, and they may be a couple now." I wait for the rage I know is coming. Instead, I hear laughter.
"That's perfect. New plan. Kill them all. I want all three of their bodies left on that island to rot."