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“Anyway. I’m gonna head back downstairs. Thanks for hanging with her this morning.”
“My pleasure.”
JP kissed his daughter’s cheek once, twice, then a third time for good measure. She giggled and grabbed his nose with that surprisingly strong grip. After a few tickles and more laughs, he slapped Jag on the shoulder then started out of the room.
“JP?”
“Yeah?”
He turned in the doorway.
“Don’t let those questions of yours take root in your mind. You’ll never understand that man because you are nothing, nothing like him. Don’t give him any space in your head. He’s not worth it and doesn’t deserve it.”
“Thank you,” he said, and meant it for so much more than just a few hours of babysitting.
Jag nodded then turned his attention to Kayla. After watching them interact for a few seconds, JP jogged back down the stairs to his room.
Now that he had time, he spared a moment to admire the woman sleeping in his bed. She really was beautiful in a way that came from deep inside her. Sure, her blond hair, piercing blue eyes, and delicious lips got his dick hard, but his dick wasn’t exactly picky. This desire he’d developed for Hannah wasn’t only about getting off. He wanted that and wanted to do every dirty thing imaginable with her, but he also wanted to laugh with her. He loved having her there for his family’s movie night. He enjoyed eating ice cream with her. Hell, he had more fun hanging around and talking with her than he did with anyone else. And when she loved on his daughter? Shit, that did all kinds of strange things to his insides. Was this what it had felt like for Keith when he first met Mickie?
There were so many reasons they shouldn’t explore anything between them. First and foremost was the fact that he’d kicked her out of their lives only a few days ago. Then there was the family connection. She was Kayla’s aunt, for fuck’s sake. The sister of a woman he’d slept with. And she’d lied to him. It sounded like her family would never accept him in their lives. He was also a thirty-two-year-old man with no real job or education, trying to survive as a single father living with his siblings.
Christ, what a catch.
Best case scenario, they’d date a little and fuck a lot while letting the attraction run its course. Worst case, they’d let messy emotions get involved and be left with deep battle wounds. Either way, it wouldn’t last. The odds were stacked too high against them.
Yet despite all the reasons he shouldn’t, JP crawled back under the covers, ready to apologize his ass off so he could get back in her good graces and hopefully have the chance to touch her again.
“JP?” she asked, in a voice thick with sleep as he wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her close. Her round ass fit perfectly against him, making him hard in an instant.
“Mmm.” He couldn’t help himself; he nuzzled his nose into the crook of her neck and inhaled the clean, fresh scent of her hair. “You smell so fucking good.”
She stiffened in his arms, making him sigh. They had to talk this out.
“I know,” he said even though she hadn’t spoken. Closing his eyes, he pressed his forehead to the center of her back and counted to ten. Didn’t do shit to kill his erection.
He lifted his head, kissed the back of her neck then released his hold on her.
She flipped his way then gazed up at him with confusion in her eyes.
Time to pay the piper.
Hannah didn’t pull out of his arms.
That had to mean something, didn’t it?
“JP, what’s going on? I understand why you called me last night, but I don’t understand why I’m still here. You made your feelings about me very clear the other day.”
“Why didn’t you leave Vermont?”
She blinked. “What?”
“When I called you last night, I thought I’d just be asking for advice. I thought you’d gone back to Colorado. But you didn’t leave Vermont. Why?”
Her cheeks pinked, and she averted her gaze to something over his shoulder. Whatever it was, it must have been fascinating because she stared at it as though it’d save her from this conversation.
“I don’t know.”
“Hannah,” he said though it sounded more like a plea.
Whatever she heard in his voice, she sighed and met his gaze. “I couldn’t. I thought maybe…well, I hoped…” She shrugged, and her mouth turned down. “I just couldn’t leave. No matter how many times I tried.”
“Because you didn’t want to leave Kayla?” He held his breath as he searched her gaze.
Her blue eyes held a world of turmoil. “Why are you asking me this? I don’t blame you for hating me. I lied. I came here, met you under false pretenses. If you feel guilty for getting angry, you don’t have to.”
