Reckless (Blue Collar Boyfriends Book 1) by Jessi Gage Read Free Book Online Page A

lingerie than a shirt, and wrapped Haley in a long hug. “Missed you.” Her eyes darted to the two overflowing bags of school clothes on the floor. “This looks like a lot, Derek. Are you sure you can afford all this?”
    How many times did he have to tell her he was doing okay? He never missed a child support check, and he pitched in with expenses like clothes and school supplies all the time. He was sick of her treating him like he was one step away from collecting food stamps. She might make more than him, but he lived a hell of a lot more modestly than she did.
    “Mm-hmm.” Probably best to keep his mouth shut. She couldn’t pick apart mumbled responses, could she?
    She shot him a warning with her eyes. “I’m not judging you,” the look said, but it was a lie. Deidre ran on judging him. It was her fuel. She didn’t know how else to be. She’d lose animation if she ever stopped pointing out the thousand-and-one ways he was an inferior parent.
    “Dad also let me pick out curtains and throw pillows and rugs and a ton of stuff to make his house way better.”
    The tension sailed over Haley’s head. Thank God.
    He and Deidre would never be more than passably cordial to each other, but he’d be damned if he’d let Haley grow up refereeing fights between them. He didn’t want her to fear his moods. Kids deserved to run carefree, not walk on eggshells.
    Deidre’s perfectly-lined eyes bugged out. “I hope you didn’t bully him into buying too much.” She raised her voice at the end to compensate for the distance as Haley ran back to her booty in the kitchen. “You didn’t let her talk you into spending too much, did you?”
    He pulled at his hair, something he only seemed to do around his ex. “Jesus, we went to Target, not some frou-frou shop where a lamp shade costs five hundred dollars.”
    Deidre held up her hands. “Fine, fine. Sorry. It’s your money.” She looked around the living room as though seeing it for the first time. It stretched the whole front of the house and had built-in bookcases along one wall. He had a few books scattered here and there, including a collection of Hardy Boys books he’d read as a kid, but for the most part, the shelves were bare. A black leather couch and recliner set with glass end tables faced the forty-two-inch plasma TV hanging above a fireplace he’d never used. He’d hung blinds for privacy on the huge front window, but he hadn’t bothered with curtains. The only color in the room was the green of field turf or the brilliant HD pop of numbered uniforms when he had a game on TV.
    “Hmm. I guess the place could use some personality,” Deidre said. “It still looks like it did when you moved in. If you were selling, I’d have a list of recommendations a mile long.”
    If he were selling, she’d be the last realtor he’d choose. Okay, that wasn’t true. She was good at her job. But the idea of spending a single minute longer with her than absolutely necessary was only slightly more attractive than the idea of shooting himself in the foot with a nail gun.
    From the kitchen, Haley called out, “Hey, what if Mom stays and we have a curtain hanging party?”
    He and Deidre spoke at the same time. “Your mom does n’t want to stay.” “I could do that. Sounds like fun.”
    Haley appeared in the doorway, a smile as big as the California sun on her face.
    Everyone looked at each other.
    Deidre smirked. “You really want to hang curtains by yourself?”
    Kind of. He was running on fumes after a full-steam, non-stop day with Haley, and he desperately wanted a good night’s sleep after two nights of weird nightmares. “No, it’s just getting late. I thought you’d want to get Haley home.”
    “It’s only eight. And it’s still summer vacation for another week and a half. She doesn’t have to go to bed ’til ten. What do you say, babe, want to help your dad out for an hour or so?”
    “Yay!” Haley disappeared into the kitchen. “I want to do the