Total pages in book: 94
Estimated words: 91595 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 458(@200wpm)___ 366(@250wpm)___ 305(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 91595 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 458(@200wpm)___ 366(@250wpm)___ 305(@300wpm)
Skyye snorts at that as I roll back to my side to gaze at her. She’s so, so stunning, and it kills me that she isn’t a baby anymore. Skyye is her daddy made over, with the shape of his eyes but the color of Missy’s and mine. Her hair is dark this month, her natural color that matches Dean’s dark brown. It curls along her temples like his does. She changes her hair more than she changes her underwear, but her parents don’t care. I love that. Let the girl be expressive. Just like Dean, she has the cherubic cheeks that made him look like a baby when we were younger.
Now, though… Jesus, he is all man.
I wasn’t expecting him to look so fucking sexy.
I’m pretty sure Dean Moore came out of his momma and was named the most gorgeous baby in all of Tennessee. But the man I saw last night?
Those tight cargo pants?
His even tighter bright-red firefighting shirt?
The boots?
The crinkles along his eyes?
The stache?
I mean, hot damn, I couldn’t get a warning?
It’s totally unfair how good-looking he is. It should be illegal, honestly. Especially with his being the fire chief. He’s more than likely out there setting fire to all the women’s undies in Thistlebrook.
I know mine were seared the moment I met his gaze.
I’m instantly embarrassed by the heat that gathers in my core while lying in bed with his child. I close my eyes and moan loudly. “Just kill me dead.”
Skyye snorts. “No way. You’re my favorite aunt.”
I peek at her through hooded eyes. “You probably say the same to Sadie.”
She beams. “Never.”
“Liar,” I accuse as she giggles softly. She sits up and hands me two pills with a bottle of water. Once I take it, she hands me a latte from Noelle’s Nibbles. My eyes widen with excitement before I take a sip of the magical caffeine that only Noelle can make. When we were younger, she’d have me over to try all her little creations. Her dad was amazing, always bought her the best coffee and made her different syrups himself. I was jealous of how much her daddy loved her and went out of his way for her since mine didn’t do that. Reminds me, I need to go see her. But first, I need more of this coffee. “God bless you.”
“Dad brought it over for you,” she tells me with a little smirk. “He also brought you some ibuprofen, since we only have Tylenol, and a bear claw.”
I swallow the sip I just took, and my heart starts to race. Tylenol has never sat right in my belly, and Dean knows that. There isn’t a moment I have when Dean wasn’t taking care of us. It’s wild to me because he’s younger than his sister; he should be spoiled rotten, but that’s not Dean. He has always looked out for us and cared for us.
Case in point, the coffee I’m sucking down, wishing it were an IV instead.
“Your dad is a good egg.”
“The best,” she agrees, lying back down as I lean on my elbow, still nursing my coffee. “I texted the boys for you. They know you were out late.”
I pat her cheek. “You’re a good egg too, my sweet Skyye.”
She beams as she leans into my hand. “Did you have fun last night?”
I swallow hard as the reminder of the amount of Fireball I inhaled comes back at full force. I grimace. “I did. Drank entirely too much.”
Skyye’s eyes dance with mischief. “Mom is currently facedown in her bed, also begging for death.”
“What? How disgraceful. She’s giving SI a bad name.”
We snicker together as I take another sip of my coffee. “That’s what Dad said.”
I’m taken back to the moment I wrapped my body around his. I really shouldn’t be flinging myself off bars like that, but I was so excited to see him. When those blue eyes met mine, I realized how greatly I’d missed him. His quick smiles, his steadiness. When my body wrapped around his, I got that sense of home.
Safety.
I ignore the voice telling me I also enjoyed the feel of my body wrapped around his a little too much.
Nothing good can come from that voice.
I’m newly divorced, and Dean is my best friend’s brother and my sister’s baby daddy.
Not that he sees me as anything more.
I blow out a breath as I shake my head. “Has anyone spoken to Sadie?”
Skyye grins. “She took the kids to day camp and went to work, unlike you two bums. Her words, not mine.”
Sounds like Sadie. Before I can laugh or even agree, Skyye’s phone sounds. She brings it up, then snorts. She shows me her text, and I’m grinning just as wide.
Dad
What did one wall say to the other wall? “I’ll meet you at the corner.”
Dad
Love you, miss you, mean it.