Total pages in book: 94
Estimated words: 94903 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 475(@200wpm)___ 380(@250wpm)___ 316(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 94903 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 475(@200wpm)___ 380(@250wpm)___ 316(@300wpm)
It takes a few seconds, but a smile slips across her face.
Before we can say anything, a car pulling into the driveway catches our attention.
Any progress we’ve made disappears.
Kennedy rolls her eyes and sighs. “The babysitter is here.”
A door slams in the distance.
“Look,” I say, turning to her. “You get to decide how the next month goes. Megan and I both want you to be happy and have fun. But if you want to be a twerp about this, then it can suck. It’s up to you.”
“Oh, you and Megan, huh? It’s already the two of you against me?”
Fuck. “Kennedy …”
Megan knocks on the mudroom door.
“She uses the mudroom already?” Kennedy asks. “Only our family uses that. We have a front door for visitors.”
Wow. I make my way across the room. “It’s a door. Let’s not overthink it.”
She hums.
I stop before leaving the room and face my daughter. She’s watching me with a hesitancy that relieves me a little.
“Hey,” I say.
“What?”
I grin. “It will never be me and anyone against you. We’re always on the same side, all right? So even if you’re mad at me, this is still a Dad and Kennedy Show.”
She sags against the corner of the table. “All right.”
“Now, be nice.”
Her arms cross over her stomach, and that’s good enough for me. At least her fangs are gone.
My heart pounds harder with every step through the mudroom. The knob slips under my hand as I pull the door open. A tightness forms across my chest as my gaze lands on Megan.
Motherfucker.
She’s piled her hair on top of her head in a messy knot. It probably took her all of three minutes to arrange it. I don’t see a speck of makeup on her face. A navy shirt with a collar across her clavicle—nice and high, covering her cleavage—and a pair of denim shorts that would be acceptable in any social situation adorn her body. Nothing suggests she gave a single thought to her appearance this morning.
And it’s somehow the hottest thing I think I’ve ever seen.
“Eleven thirty,” she says, smiling. “On the dot.”
I glance over her shoulder. Gavin sticks his middle finger out the window as he speeds down the road. “Where did your car go?”
“I needed to return the rental, so Gavin followed me to the rental office this morning. Then he dropped me off here.”
She lifts a brow, a coy grin dancing across her lips. Instead of pressing, which I want to do, I take her bags. Then I step to the side to make room for her to walk in.
“That’s it?” she asks, a trail of jasmine floating behind her. I only know the scent because Kate broke down women’s perfumes one Christmas. She was sure she could control men’s reactions to her based on her chosen scent. Jasmine, I recall, increases libido.
Kate was right about that one. Damn.
I shut the door behind Megan, making an extra effort not to touch her.
“You seem extra grumpy today,” she says, amused.
“Let’s just say that Kennedy is …” I search for the right explanation while setting her bags on the floor. “She’s not thrilled with this situation.”
“Oh.”
“She’ll be fine.” I think. “Just, you know, be warned, I guess.”
Her smile wobbles for the briefest moment. “Gavin said I was extra charming this morning, so I think I’ll be all right.”
“He did, did he?”
“He did.” She smiles, sensing my irritation. “He also said I looked very pretty and smelled nice. Oh, and he’s happy to be my Peachwood Falls best friend.”
I lift a brow.
“I mean, what if you give me a night off?” she asks. “Who am I going to hang out with?”
The words ring with an innocence put on for my benefit. Even if I couldn’t hear through the bullshit, I’d see it in her eyes.
Little minx.
I lean forward. Her confidence falters, her breath hitching as I inch closer.
“Guess what?” I ask.
She hums.
I lick my lips as I gaze down at her.
I want to say that I’ll break Gavin’s kneecaps if he thinks about fucking around with her. It would be too easy to tell her that I can occupy her if she wants to hang out with anyone while she’s here. But both of those responses are a one-eighty from reality. From what’s possible.
In the other room, my child is most likely plotting ways to test every inch of Megan’s nerves. Megan will need to spend her time not getting swindled by a teenager.
Ugh.
“Gavin wouldn’t know charm if it bit him in the ass,” I say instead.
“Is that because he grew up around you?”
I stare at her.
She leans closer, splitting the distance between us in half. Her tongue swipes across her bottom lip. It sends a bolt of energy straight to my cock.
“Why do I think that’s not what you were going to say?” she asks.
“Because it wasn’t.”