He slanted his gaze at me. “I’m surprised you didn’t mention your brother. Doesn’t he have a new baby?”
I put my hand on my hip. “Why would you say that?”
He shook his head. “I know that despite how much your brother annoys you that you’re close to him.”
“The two of you annoy the hell out of me. Why would I put you two together?”
He jerked slightly, his brow furrowing. “Good point.”
We continued to shop in silence. I tried to think of an excuse to get out of lunch. I could apologize to him another time. Better yet, I could send it in a letter.
“Hey, how about this?”
I turned to see Noel holding up a teddy bear nearly half his size.
“I don’t know how Mo will wear that.”
He grinned and holy hell was it sexy. Shut up, hormones. “But it would look good in his room, wouldn’t it? Every kid needs a teddy bear, right?”
“Yes, but right now, he’s too young to enjoy it, don’t you think?”
“I guess you’re right. But I did find this.” He held up a shirt that said, “Handsome like my dad.”
I snorted. “You wish.”
He grinned again. “Aw come on. You know I’m good looking.”
Sexy as fuck was more like it. “You’re not bad on the eyes, but Mo, he outdoes you.”
“I suppose I can’t argue with that. He takes after his mom more than me.”
My curiosity was piqued. “What is she like?”
The loose and free grin faltered. “It doesn’t matter.” He started to put the shirt back, but then changed his mind, adding to the pile draped over the handle of the stroller.
I continued to shop, grabbing a package of socks, pajamas with trains on them remembering how Bran loved trains as a kid, and a small windbreaker with a sun on it for when he and Noel walked on the beach.
“Harper.”
I turned to find Noel right next to me. “Yeah?”
“I know I’m fucking this up and I’m sorry.”
I sighed. “We both keep fucking up.” After all, I’d spent weeks accusing him of spying on me.
“So, we’ll go to lunch and talk.”
I nodded.
“Do you think we need to stop saying fuck?” He smiled as he nodded toward Mo, now asleep in his stroller.
I laughed. “Maybe if you start trying now, it will be out of your system by the time he’s old enough to say words.”
“How much time is that?” he asked, deadpan. Then he laughed. “Whatever it is, it’s probably too soon.”
For lunch, I suggested the food court only so he didn’t think I was such a snob, but he rejected that idea. So, then I offered up Kate’s place. At night it was a hopping club, but during the day it did lunch for the beach crowd.
When we arrived at Kate's restaurant, her eyes widened when she saw me enter with Noel and baby Mo, back in his stroller. She greeted us and led us to a table outside.