Page 34 of Baby Daddy
“Mom, this is my temp, Dee, and her daughter, Tyson.”
I held out my hand and she shook it firmly with her slender one. “So lovely to meet you, my dear.”
Before I could say a word, my daughter blurted out, “You are SO pretty!”
I felt myself blushing, but Drake’s mother was totally flattered. “What a delightful child!”
“Thank you, Mrs. Hanson.”
She smiled warmly. “Please call me Alexis.”
She kept her eyes on Tyson, studying her. A wistful smile formed on her face before she looked up and focused on Drake.
“She reminds me of your sister.”
Drake had a sister?
Drake cleared his throat, clearly uncomfortable at the mention of his sibling. “Yeah, a little bit. The same blue eyes.”
Drake had blue eyes too, similar in color to Kyle’s, but Tyson’s had a rim of gold around the pupils that was rare.
My eyes darted between Drake and Tyson as his mother stepped off the ice. In her ice skates, she towered over me.
“So what brings you here, darling?” she asked, directing her question at Drake. “Don’t tell me you stopped by just to see your dear old mother.”
I liked her. She was warm and funny. Much more personable than the society doyenne Drake made her out to be.
“Drake’s gonna teach us how to ice skate,” beamed Tyson before either of us could respond.
“Wonderful! He’s an excellent skater though I still think he should have chosen figure skating over ice hockey. Such a vulgar sport.”
Drake scrunched up his face. God, he was cute! “Mom, let’s not go there again. Real men don’t figure skate.”
“Whatever, darling!” she breathed out as she sat down on a bleacher, unlaced her skates, and then tugged them off. Reaching for a close-by hand towel, she cleaned off the blades and covered them with protective rubber guards. After slipping the skates into a large monogrammed bag that seemed custom made for them, she stepped into her shoes. A pair of metallic gold ballet flats. She stood up.
“My love, have fun! If you have time, do stop by to have lunch or say goodbye. I’ll be working on the seating arrangement for the gala we’re hosting for Gunther. I can’t believe it’s only a week away. I hope you’ve put it in your calendar.”
Drake rolled his eyes. “Yes, Mom, I have.”
“Too-de-loo” She blew her son a kiss, and clutching her skate bag, she waltzed off.
“Okay, who’s ready to go ice skating?” Drake asked.
“ME!” shouted out my little eager beaver, jumping up and down.
“I think I’m going to sit this out for a while.” I’d never skated before, and though I could dance, I was never as coordinated or as athletic as my sister. Or my daughter for that matter. The thought of falling on my ass and making a fool of myself was enough for me to pass.
“C’mon, Mommy, it’ll be fun!”
“Maybe later.”
Drake shot me a cocky look. “Have it your way. There’s a hot chocolate machine on the other side near the restroom.” And then he swept Tyson into his arms. “C’mon, Mighty Girl, let’s get your skates on.” He shot me another cocky look. “And we’re going to get your mommy into skates, too, just in case she changes her mind.”
I gave him the evil eye. No way.
Way.Fifteen minutes later, we were all laced up in our skates thanks to Drake’s help. The skates felt weird on my feet and I had trouble balancing on them. I wobbled like a toddler taking her first steps. Tyson, on the other hand, was prancing around in them on the rubber matting as if she was born wearing them.
Drake took her hand and led her onto the ice. My heart leapt to my throat as she lost her balance on the slippery surface. Thank goodness, Drake reacted in time to break the fall and keep her on her feet. My little girl was gleefully laughing while I was seriously freaking.