AllFreeNovel
Share Us
When I enter the bedroom, Cade has just finished drying Bella’s hair, and she’s sat at her dressing table, lining up her hairbrushes and hair accessories whilst chatting to her Ironman figurine, who’s propped up at her elbow.
Cade looks at me, eyes raking up and down my body with barely concealed desire, and I fight the thrill that fills my stomach. I’d forgotten how he made me feel—or I’d allowed time to diminish the memory—but Christ, it feels amazing to know this man clearly wants me.
Especially after the revelation he made last night.
My cheeks heat at the memory, and I move across the room rather than hold his gaze.
He holds Bella’s hairdryer up in question, but I shake my head and pull my wet hair up into a messy bun even though it’s far too short to stay atop my head.
“Thank you for the clean clothes.”
He waves me away and finishes tidying up Bella’s hair dryer, depositing it in a drawer on her dresser before turning towards me again.
“What you did in the bathroom—for Bella…thank you.”
I shoot him an almost shy smile. “Of course. She’s a really special kid, Cade. You should be so proud.”
Pain flashes across his features, and I can’t help creasing my forehead in confusion, wondering why my words have caused hurt. He sees the question in my eyes, glancing down at a busy Bella, still chattering to her Ironman.
His whispered words barely carry across the space. “I’ve had nothing to do with how special she is, Bambi. She’s a truly wonderful human being, and entirely on her own merit.”
Looking up at me, he then moves to close the space between us. His action spurs my feet to move so that we meet halfway. “While I was Stateside doing Misdirection PR earlier this year, I left Bug here with her three nannies, a houseful of staff and Layla….”
His voice breaks, and then he trails off as his eyes drift to the floor. I reach between us, catching both of his hands and cupping them in mine.
He continues when I squeeze his ice-cold fingers comfortingly. “Layla had been clean for months. She was happy—or as close to happy as I’d seen since….”
I rub my thumbs back and forth across the back of his hands soothingly, my silence allowing him to continue with a husky tone.
“Everything was good until Serena, one of the nannies, contacted me, saying that Layla had fired the entire staff—herself included—and there appeared to be a free-for-all taking place on the property. I was frantic. The trip home was the longest time of my damn life.”
He inhales raggedly before finally meeting my eyes with tear-filled ones of his own. The pain in those deep blue depths makes my heart hurt.
“No less than forty people, male and female, wereherein our home. Not an item of clothing was to be found, as bodies were being railed left and right.”
We both swallow, and his nostrils flare. “Shewas running the show—high as a kite, of course—claiming to have ensured that Bug was locked in here and hadn’t seen anything.”
Oh. My. God.
I am not a violent person, not by a long shot, but hearing Caden’s story—knowing Layla had placed Bella in harm's way—it makes me want to physicallyhurther.
We stand in silence for the longest time, the sounds of Bella playing with her superheroes quietly soothing the two of us.
I reach one hand up between us, palming his stubbled cheek and tracing his tear tracks with my thumb. “She’s special because she has such an amazing father—and don’t you ever doubt that, even for a moment.”
He watches me openly, questions clearly playing across his handsome face, and there’s a part of me that thinks,‘This is it. Time’s up,’but he holds his tongue. Instead, he reaches up to grip my wrist, gently turning my hand over to press a lingering kiss to my knuckles while holding my eyes with his.
“Movie time!” Bella breaks the spell when she bounds over to the bed and jumps on, patting on either side of her for Caden and me to sit.
I shoot questioning eyes at Caden, ensuring that he wants me to stay. After the trauma of the day, I’m sure he’d like some time with his girl, as much as it would pain me to leave.
“Movie time is right.” He narrows his eyes at me and mouths the words“sit down,”making me press my lips together in an effort to stifle my grin. Even so, I do as he said and take a seat to Bella’s left, propping pillows and plush toys at our backs while Caden preps the movie.
With everything ready, he presses play and sits on Bella’s right as the opening scene ofTrolls: World Tourplays on the screen.
“Do you like Poppy and Branch, Summer?”
Bella’s small face is upturned, her eyes hopeful, and I nod enthusiastically. “Oh, IlovePoppy and Branch. But you know…the sparkly one who farts glitter is the best!”
