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What a sight.
Was anything sexier than a rough, tattooed, muscled hunk of a man holding his child and gazing at her with adoration?
Be still my heart.
My ovaries wanted in on that action.
He caught me staring, a brief flash of a smile ghosting across his lips. “I think she’s out,” he observed.
Little snores echoed in the silence of the room.
“You’re right.”
“I’m gonna lay her down.”
Nodding, I agreed. Overdue for her nap, she probably waited for her father’s visit before she finally dozed off.
Daniel placed her in the crib, covering her with a blanket before he turned around, heading for the door that led to his room, not the main hall.
“You know,” he began, opening his door, “I think you’re hiding something.”
What?
Sputtering, I didn’t know how to answer.
“Your smile.” His expression appeared thoughtful, not accusing. “You don’t do that much, do you?” he asked, catching me off guard.
“What do you mean?” I asked, staring at his face in surprise.
“I’ve seen you smile more in the last week than the entire time you’ve been at the Crossroads, and it’s always around Zara.”
“She’s a sweetheart,” I replied defensively. “Who wouldn’t smile around her?”
“Yeah, but it’s the other part I don’t get.”
Confused, I didn’t understand what he meant. “Huh?”
“Why don’t you ever smile around adults, Skyla? Who stole it from you?”
My jaw dropped, my mouth popping open before I snapped my lips shut. “I don’t know what you mean,” I lied.
Shit. Shit. Shit.
“Yeah, you do.” He gently pushed me into his room, closing the door so we didn’t disturb Zara with our discussion. Neither of us wanted to wake her and cut her nap short. Cranky babies weren’t fun. “Tell me.”
“Daniel.”
He pressed me backward until my back bumped into the wall. “You can’t run from this. I want to know.”
“Why?” I asked in a desperate whisper, hating that he had breached the barriers I erected so easily.
“Because you can’t hide from the entire world, Skyla.”
“That’s a little hypocritical. Don’t you think?”
Daniel protected himself since Cindi’s death. He didn’t let anyone in. The only exception was his daughter.
“Maybe, but I don’t hide my shit. It’s all fucking out in the open. I might hate it but it doesn’t keep me shackled.”
