Mandy came out of the bathroom and found him in the kitchen. "You want a drink?" he asked her.
Her eyebrows went up. "You okay?"
"I was just putting him to bed. And it was scary. This whole kid thing. We like each other well enough. But what the hell do I know about being a father? The only thing my dad ever cared about was how I did on the ice."
Mandy put her hands on his arm, while he emptied his glass. "Slow down, babe. Kip, seriously, we are barely even back together. You barely know Colton. We barely know each other." He set down his glass and looked at her.
"You're right. I just, my imagination got away with me when I tucked him in there. I just, I really like the kid. And he likes me. I've spent more time with him than I have my sisters' kids."
"Sorry, we are overwhelming you. We can go home early if you want."
His body tensed at the suggestion. "No," he exploded. He softened his next words. "No. Please, it's overwhelming yes. But, being apart from you is worse. I hate that we are so far apart. It's harder to be with you. Like the way I want to be."
"You'll have the summer off. You can come stay with us then. Or us with you, or whatever. I have the whole summer off as well."
"What's that like for you? Does it make money harder?"
"I tutor some. Look after a kid or two. It's great. Mostly Colton and I hang out."
He wrapped his arms around her, reveling in the rightness of having her in his arms again. He tilted her face up and kissed her. "I love having you here. Scary as it is, it's so great. I hope you aren't put off by me doing all that boy stuff with Colton."
Mandy grinned at him. "I love that you get along so well. I love watching my two favourite people just have fun together like you do. I'm amazed that you like that kind of stuff. I don't get it at all. But, I have my own enjoyment watching you."
He nodded. "I'm sorry I freaked out. Do you wanna go back in and watch the rest of the movie?"
"Honestly, I didn't really watch the first part of it. I was thinking back to that first year we dated. How sweet you were, taking your time with me. Working your way up to making love."