“Consider it done. Just tell us where it is and where you want it to go.”
“It’s over there and I think that would be a good spot,” she said, turning to point to an area of her yard.
“I think so, too. That should be fun. I haven’t played volleyball in years.”
“Should I be worried about that, Dad? I don’t think we have anything for sore, aching muscles at home,” Marcus said, grinning.
Chance’s mouth curved into a smile as he glanced over at his son. “I might be a lot older than you, Marcus Pharis Steele, but I think I can still manage to hit a ball or two over a net.”
That’s not all he’s capable of doing, Kylie thought, shifting her gaze from Chance to Marcus. No matter what disagreements they might have had since Tiffany had appeared on the scene, it was rather obvious that Chance and his son had a close relationship.
“You’re going to have to prove that big-time, Dad.”
“Hey, kid, you’re on,” Chance countered and then turned his attention to Kylie. “What do you think?”
“I think that this I got to see,” she told him, laughing.
“You’ll more than see it. I want your participation as well. The young against what this pup considers as ‘the old’. I think we need to show our children just what we’re made of. How about it, Kylie?”
She grinned. “I’m game if you are.”
“Mr. Steele?”
Chance cast a quick glance over his shoulder, blinked and did a double take. He turned around and blinked again, shaking his head in disbelief. He looked into the face of what had to be a younger version of Kylie. Her daughter looked so much like her it was uncanny. He watched as her mouth curved into the same type of smile Kylie wore.
He automatically smiled back. “Yes, and you must be Tiffany,” he said, taking the hand she offered. “Marcus has told me a lot about you.”
“And it was all good, right?”
Chance chuckled, remembering what Kylie had said about her daughter’s high confidence level. “Yes, it was all good.”
She glanced around. “And where is Marcus?”
“I sent him to the store to pick up some more sodas.”
“Oh. Mom told me to tell you that she’ll be back outside in a minute. She’s finishing up the potato salad and thought I should come out and keep you company.”
He smiled. “That would be nice since I’d like to get to know you. So what are your plans for the future?” he asked as he leaned against the stone post holding up the covered patio. Kylie had assigned him the task of cooking the hamburgers and hot dogs, something he had convinced her he was pretty good at.
Tiffany laughed. “You don’t have to worry about me and Marcus rushing off doing anything stupid when we become of age, like getting married or something.”
Chance grimaced. God, he hoped not. “That’s good to hear. What about the two of you making plans to cut school again?”
She grinned. “Okay, I admit that wasn’t a smart idea, but like I told Mom, our last two periods of the day are boring.”
Chance folded his arms across his chest and regarded her directly. “And I’m sure your mom told you that it doesn’t matter how boring the classes are, you and Marcus belong in school.”
Tiffany’s expressive eyes filled with remorse. “Yes, sir, and Marcus and I talked about it. We didn’t intend to get you and my mom upset with us, but Mom thinks I’m too young to start dating and you—”
When it seemed that she had encountered some difficulty in finishing what she was about to say, Chance lifted an eyebrow. “I’m what?”
She leaned in closer and squinted her eyes against the smoke coming from the grill. “Don’t take this personally, Mr. Steele, and Marcus says you’re a nice dad and everything, but at times you can be too overbearing where his education is concerned.”
Chance couldn’t help but laugh. He was being told that he was overbearing by a fifteen-year-old girl! She might have inherited her high confidence level from her father but her directness had definitely come from her mother. “Marcus thinks I’m overbearing, does he?”
“Yes, and you don’t have to be, you know. Marcus is one of the smartest guys I know. In fact, the way we became such good friends is because the teacher had him help me on a class assignment that I was having problems with. He wants to go to the best college one day, just like you want him to. You’re just going to have to trust him to do the right thing. And he will because he wants those things for himself as well as for you.”
Chance’s smile widened. Tiffany’s expressive eyes had gone from being filled with remorse to being filled with sincerity and he liked that. He also liked what she was saying, and had to admit that his curiosity was piqued about something. “And where will all this leave you, Tiffany?”