Grinder (Seattle Sharks Book 1) Read Free Page B

woke up, but she’s up early. Did the girl say anything in front of her I need to feel guilty over?”
    I sighed and shook my head. “No. Just to me. I’m used to it though.”
    He tilted his head.
    “Not important.”
    He set his toast down and wiped his hands on a napkin. “If they’re saying hurtful things to you I’ll stop bringing them to the house.”
    Warmth fluttered in my chest. He’d do that for me? “That’s ridiculous. This is your house. Honestly, it’s not a big deal.”
    “Anything that makes you uncomfortable is. I thought you were cool with it, but if you’re not, I’ll find other means.”
    “Why would you care that much?”
    He pushed back from the island and came over to me, stopping an inch or so away. “You take care of my daughter when I can’t,” he lowered his voice, I assumed so Lettie wouldn’t hear. “You’re as important to her as I am, and I can’t have anything drive you away…she’d be crushed.”
    I swallowed the rock that had lodged itself in my throat. While I had no plans to leave Lettie soon, I knew I couldn’t be her nanny forever. All I’d ever wanted--besides maybe a gallery of my own--was a family someday, and while I loved this job, and Lettie, I would never make my own children feel like a second choice. Lucky for me, I had no man vying to put a ring on my finger, so the problem wasn’t a real threat yet.
    “I’m not going anywhere,” I said. “I’m just surprised you’ve kept up your old-school antics after having her. I mean, she’s your daughter. What if some boy treated her the way you treat women?” The question left my mouth before I had the chance to filter it through my brain. I clenched my eyes shut, knowing I crossed the employee/employer line, but damn, we’d been friends long before he’d hired me.
    He was the guy I’d spent every summer with, relaxing at his parent’s cottage, sneaking the horses out of their stalls for midnight rides. Sure, we’d lost touch when I went to Cornell and he went to UDub, but it didn’t dull the fact that I knew him, and that he deserved more than the string of meaningless sex he’d fallen into.
    When I opened my eyes again he was a statue before me, locked in faraway thoughts. I hated that I’d put them there, hated that I’d just made him question if he was raising his daughter properly. He was a damn good man and an even better father. He’d demanded to keep Lettie when her mother had decided to run off with another NHL player after she was born. That same season Gage had been benched when he’d broken his collar bone and torn his rotator cuff, but it hadn’t stopped him from soothing night terrors or diaper changes. Besides, it wasn’t like Helen had been much help when she’d actually been around.
    “I’m sorry,” I said. “I didn’t mean it like that. You were right. The bunny ruffled me is all.”
    Gage stood so close I could feel the heat coming off his skin. I battled the urge to reach out and touch it, just to see if the muscles underneath it felt as hard as they looked. If he’d just wear a damn shirt once in awhile I wouldn’t be so flustered. That or maybe if I ever had a conquest of my own, but caring for a three-year-old full time didn’t give me a ton of opportunities to hunt one down.
    “It’s fine,” he finally said and stepped backward. “I’ll try and do better.”
    “That’s not what I meant. Gage, you’re—”
    “Daddy, daddy!” Lettie squealed running up to him and wrapping her arms around his leg. “Look!” She held her fully colored paper out to him, pride and accomplishment beaming in her eyes. He took the paper from her and grinned.
    “It’s beautiful.” He walked to the stainless-steel fridge and instantly secured the paper with a magnet next to an array of her other drawings. “I think we’re going to need a bigger fridge soon.”
    She bounced up and down on her toes before he scooped her up and held her on his hip.
    Damn. My ovaries were