Chapter 29
Shea
After I had the talk with Chloe and tucked her into bed, I went downstairs and found Brynn still waiting at the table.
“That's that,” I said, dusting off my hands.
“How'd it go?”
“Good, I think.” I held up my car keys and jangled them. “Want to take a quick ride with me to the store? Chloe said she's out of tampons. And apparently, every time I buy tampons, I come back with the kind she hates.”
Brynn's eyes filled with doubt. “I could've sworn I just bought her a box the other day.”
“Maybe you bought the wrong kind, too?”
“No, I actually know what she likes.” A look of concern spread across her face. “But do you really think it's okay to leave her home alone this late at night?”
“Yeah, that's what I was worried about, too. But she got all huffy and reminded me that we had just gotten done talking about how she's more mature now, and that her friends' parents will leave them home alone for days at a time, etc., etc. Oh, and if she doesn't have tampons before school tomorrow, she'll freak out all day and it'll all be my fault.”
Brynn gave a laugh. “Sounds like her, alright. Sure, let's go.”
We climbed into the Bentley, buckled up, and backed out of the driveway.
“So tell me how the talk went,” Brynn said.
“It went fine. She felt—hm—I guess the word is vindicated.”
She patted my shoulder. “Oh, look at you. Hockey player with a vocab. Hot.”
“Ha ha. Anyway. She got all excited at first, saying 'I knew it,' and 'I told Brynn, but she wouldn't believe it,' blah blah. I made it seem like you truly had no idea all along.”
“Thanks,” she said. “But how'd it go when you told her that you were firing me?”
“I'd say she was shocked and confused at first. But once I explained it to her, she seemed to understand. She ended up saying that it wasn't fair to expect you to be a nanny and a love interest at the same time. She even used the phrase, 'conflict of interest.'”
Brynn's eyes lit up, and she teasingly backhanded my pec. “Well, well! Ya hear that, Shea?”
“Ha,” I grumbled, growing warm under the collar. “Yeah, she's a little faster on the uptake than her old man.”
She smiled at me and gave my shoulder a squeeze. “I'm just teasing you.”
“I know. I deserve it.”
“How'd she react to being told you wanted her in therapy?”
“She wasn't wild about that, no. But after it was all said and done, she reluctantly agreed to give it a try. She said it might help with the problems she's been having with her mom.”
“Very good. Very, very good.” She patted my thigh. “Sounds like you did good.”
We pulled up to a stop sign on Boylston. The car's turn signal went tik-tok-tik-tok as I searched for a seam in the traffic. When a Bentley-sized pocket emerged, I stomped on the accelerator, and the car quietly growled as we charged up to speed without ever breaking a sweat.
Brynn stretched, running her hands over the taut leather of her seat, and gave a tiny but satisfied moan. “Have I ever told you how much I love this car?”
I chuckled. “No, actually, you haven't.”
“Well, I do.” Her hands glided over the pristine dash. “I feel so ridiculously fancy in this thing. Is it wrong to say a car feels sexy? It sounds wrong, but that's how it makes me feel.”
“That's not wrong at all.” I glanced at her, admiring her form. “But if you ask me, you make it look sexy.”
She choked back a groan. “Oh, stop it, cheese ball.”
“I'm serious—you do. And I always knew you'd like it, which was why I tried to give you a ride home in it after our interview.”
She let loose with laughter. “I knew it. I knew it.”
“You did?”
“Yes!”
I grinned. “What'd you think?”
“That you had some serious Dad-level game.”
“Dad-level game?” I repeated. “What's that? Is that good or bad?”
She stifled an amused laugh. “It's not quite either.”
“I don't get it …”
“Your attempts at flirting are sort of hopelessly lost, but also very cute and sort of endearing.”
I grumbled. “Great.”
Now I was really growing hot under the collar. I shifted in my seat, thinking to myself, I never should've admitted that. She thinks I'm a klutz, good to know.
She rubbed my shoulder. “Don't clam up on me now. Really, I think you're sweet.”
“A sweet guy with hopeless Dad-game,” I muttered.
“Yeah, but you stepped your Dad-game up big time when it mattered,” she said with a sudden flirtatious note in her voice.
“Hm?” I glanced at her. Her eyes were small slits, sparkling and wild.
“In the cab, after the gala? Remember?”
I smiled. “Of course I remember.”
“The way you put your big hands all over me? The way you just went for it and kissed me?” The cab grew silent, the air between us tense and charged. “God, just thinking about it makes me … well … you know.”
Brynn crossed her legs and gave the quietest moan under her breath. Her sounds were irresistible to me—all I could think about was being between her legs. My cock began to thicken and inch down my thigh.
But we'd reached our destination, and I pulled into the parking lot.
“Aaaand, here we are.” I killed the engine. “Target.”
Brynn burst out laughing. “And that, Shea, is the ultimate in Dad-game.”
I leaned over the center console and stole her full lips for a deep, but brief, kiss. I wanted to leave her wanting.
“I am pretty hopeless, aren't I?” I joked as I pulled away.
But she pulled me back in. “Don't go yet. Just one more kiss.”