Hawk’s heart had never been so full, he thought, as he held his daughter to his shoulder and gently patted her back the way Maddie had shown him. Her soft giggle tickled his insides and he smiled. When Sarah sighed and snuggled into his neck, peace and contentment swept through him and he sighed too.

No wonder Maria didn’t want to let Maddie have time with her. He understood now why evicting her, her baby and her boobs from the suite, and moving her to the bunkhouse, became necessary to get his time too.

Sarah Elaine Hawkins, named after both their mothers, was the sweetest, most cuddly baby in the world. Irresistible when she turned on her charm.

A chip off the old block.

Forget the fucking test—call and tell them you don’t want to know. Just tell Maddie to tell them she had the baby in El Paso when you stopped for fuel. Tell her to put your name on the birth certificate.

But it was too late for that. He’d set those wheels in motion, and there was no stopping that runaway bus now. Maddie’s disability payments and Sarah’s future now depended on those results, because of him.

When Maddie applied for her disability benefits three weeks ago, she told the military that Sarah’s father was to be determined by DNA test results, which were pending. Now, before they determined her eligibility, they wanted those results—and a U.S. birth certificate, which was proving to be a problem.

Hawk never imagined obtaining a birth certificate for a child would be so difficult. But Sarah was born outside of the country, under unusual circumstances, with no witnesses. He was starting to think it might take an act of Congress to get this done. At a hefty price, he’d hired a specialized lawyer to help speed up the process, but even he warned it could take a while.

The sweet bundle of sugar and spice in his arms was worth every penny, and minute of time he’d spent getting it done, though. With good luck, he was hoping to have all of this behind them in three months or so. In a perfect world, it could happen, and his little world seemed pretty damned perfect at the moment.

It might even get brighter today, if they got news at Maddie’s doctor’s appointment that a third surgery wouldn’t be necessary. She was excited and nervous about “the big reveal” as she called it, and hoping she’d only need one more too.

Tonight, he’d made arrangements for them to celebrate either way.

Operation Woo Maddie was commencing with lesson three, and would be complete before her next surgery in three weeks. Before she went under the knife again, Maddie Carter would be in love with him once more.

Hawk decided he was not giving her a chance to date anyone else, or another man an opportunity to be a father to this baby, because regardless of how those test results came back, he was Sarah’s father. He dared anyone to try to refute that. Love and protectiveness surged through him, making his heart feel like it might explode.

He nudged the baby carrier closer with his foot, then eased Sarah down into it. She fussed, but he found her binky and teased her lips. After she sucked it into her mouth, Hawk stroked her cheek with his thumb and a monsoon of love rushed through him.

Maddie laughed as she walked into the room wrapped in a towel, drying her hair. “Would you quit flirting with your daughter? I’m getting a little jealous.”

Hawk looked up just as she moved the towel away and he gasped. “You took off the bandages and you’re not wearing your chinstrap! The doctor said you shouldn’t do that or you’ll sag,” he growled, but his heart raced. Even though faint scars remained on her forehead and some on her cheeks, for the most part, she looked just like she used to.

That doctor was a miracle worker, and Hawk planned to tell him so.

“I was tired of the baths, so I took them off to shower,” she said with a shrug and a broad, but self-conscious smile. “He was taking them off today, anyway. Don’t worry, I went easy on the face, so I won’t get yelled at too much.” Her smile was now only a little lopsided on the left side, and he imagined his was too.

“You look incredible, baby. Now, I’m the one who will have to watch out for the flirting.”

She brought her hand up to her face to smooth her fingers over each cheek, then ran them over her eyelids and forehead. “It’s pretty amazing isn’t it?”

“Amazing. Incredible. Beautiful. Wow!” Hawk agreed. “Definitely worth a celebration, because I know you have to feel better.” That is what was important.

Hawk would’ve taken her just like she was, and told her so before she agreed to go through this, but he knew it bothered her badly.

“Celebration?” she asked, her eyebrows lifting.

“Yes, ma’am, you need to put your party shoes on, because I’m taking you out tonight,” Hawk said grinning. “And then we’re coming home for lesson three.”

She looked surprised as her face flushed and she smiled. “I’m down with the party as long as there’s no dancing. I’m not that confident on my peg leg yet, even with therapy twice a week. And there won’t be any high heels worn.”

“Maybe dancing should be included in the program, so you can practice?” he said, and she laughed, but shook her head.

Her eyelids drooped and she licked her lips as her eyes fell to his mouth. “I’ll forego the dancing to get to lesson three faster. It took you long enough to get there. You sure are a slow and methodical teacher, Rhett Hawkins.”

“Oh, honey—you have no idea how slow I can go, or how methodical I plan to be,” he replied, as heat surged through him.

She was flirting with him now and that was a good sign. His cock swelled behind his fly and he adjusted himself. Hawk’s eyes dropped to her breasts, which stretched the white tank she wore deliciously and his mouth watered.

“Who’s keeping Sarah?” she asked, her face falling, and Hawk knew exactly what she was thinking.

“Not Maria,” he replied, and the tension left her face. “Taylor is keeping her, but warned me she may not give her back this time.”

“Did you get an update from Dante today? When is the helo going to be ready so he can take her home?” she asked. “She really needs to go, Hawk. I can’t stand to see her face. It brings back so many bad—”

“He said it could be a few more weeks,” Hawk replied cutting her off. “I’m sorry, baby, I want her gone as badly as you, but the damage to the helo is more extensive than they thought. They are waiting for a new hydraulic system to be manufactured and installed.”

“Wow—a whole new system? Holy crap, what will that cost? Dave is going to lose his mind. Gray said so when he saw the estimate for the body work.”

Hawk stood and walked over to pull her into his arms. She looked up at him, and he saw the anxiety in her eyes. “That is not something you need to be worrying about, sweet thang, and Logan will be fine. Let me deal with him.”

The tension in her body eased and she melted into him as her arms slid around his waist. She hugged him and laid her head on his chest. “I seriously don’t know how I’ll thank any of you. Or how I’ll repay you. Every night I thank God that you found me and that these people helped. Otherwise—” she said, and swallowed hard.

“Otherwise, you might not know there were people in this world who would help you without expecting a damned thing in return. It’s what we do here, Maddie. We help people who are in trouble, whether they can pay us back or not. It’s one of the many reasons I’m proud to be part of this team.”

She pushed away from him to look up into his eyes. “How in the world does Logan afford all the toys and equipment you have, if he doesn’t charge people?”

“We have many, many private jobs from people with a lot of money and several huge government retainer contracts. We’re the best in the security field, so we command the big bucks for our services. Deep Six only does the pro bono jobs for family, those we love and special cases that need us, but can’t afford us.”

“Is that what category I fall into?” she asked, her face flushing. “Pro bono, because I’m a special, down and out, downtrodden charity case?” she asked, sounding embarrassed.

“No, you and Sarah are family, and you’re loved,” he replied gruffly.

Maddie stared into his eyes for a second then blew out a breath. She squeezed her arms around him and he felt her tears wet his shirt. “Thank you for loving us, Rhett Hawkins. I don’t know why you do, but I’m glad.”

Thank you for loving us. But still no declaration of love.

Hawk had six weeks to change that, or he had a feeling when the bandages came off after the second surgery, Maddie would want to start planning a life for herself and the baby, which would not include him. And he knew wherever she chose for them to live, he would follow.

He’d give up his everything for a woman he loved, but who didn’t love him, because of a child he loved more than his life.