More Than a Playboy

More Than a Playboy Read Free

Book: More Than a Playboy Read Free
Author: Monique DeVere
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quiet and secure, with a tall fence around the tigers then a second fence several feet out around it, ensuring the utmost safety—clearly designed with adventurous boys in mind, but the distance between the outer fence and   one white tiger they could see, made viewing a challenge for the children.
    “I can see, if I climb on the fence,” was Damien’s great idea.
    Sandy had to grab his thin shoulder to stop him from putting his plan into action. “You will not climb the fence, young man. I will lift each of you so you can see.” With that, Sandy heaved seven-year-old Damien in the air.
    Unprepared for the weight of even a skinny child like him, within seconds her arms ached.
    She lowered him to the ground.
    “But I hardly saw anything,” he protested, pouting.
    “Let me give everyone a turn, and then I’ll lift you again.” As placation went, it failed.
    Damien’s face turned red, and he shouted. “I hate you.”
    Sandy’s mouth fell open. She’d never had to deal with a child’s tantrum before, and she felt out of her depth. “Damien, please. I promise to give you another go. Just let the others have a turn to see the tiger.”
    “But I didn’t get much of a turn. You put me down too quick.” He shook off the hand Sandy had placed on his shoulder as she tried to reason with him. “I don’t need you. I’ll climb the fence.”
    “Damien, no.” Sandy held him by his shoulders again, wondering if the child’s name had anything to do with his demeanour. “That’s dangerous.”
    “Get off me.” He shoved her and took off back up the gravel path.
    “Damien, stop!” Yelling after him had no effect. “Stop.” Realising the boy was too angry to listen; she spun around to the three other children and pointed a finger at the ground for emphasis. “Don’t move! Adam, hold Mark and Lydia’s hands, and don’t let them move. I’ll be right back.”
    For a seven-year-old, Damien was fast. When he rounded a corner, Sandy feared she’d lose him and upped her speed. She wasn’t a runner and broke out in sweat with the thought of any type of sport. It stood to reason that even a scrawny little boy would outrun her.
    By the time she got to the corner, her lungs were burning.
    An image of how she’d feel as a mother if someone had misplaced her precious child flashed across her mind. The thought gave her a burst of adrenalin.
    She rounded the corner and all but cried with relief. Cameron had intercepted Damien and now hunkered down in front of the boy, a sympathetic expression on his face. Sandy suspected that whatever Cameron was saying restrained the boy more effectively than his gentle hand on Damien’s shoulder.
    This was not the Cameron she was used to. The man who made her laugh, who surprised her with little gifts and playful, outrageous comments; who flirted and drew blushes from her with his compliments. The Cameron who didn’t know how to be serious for more than three seconds per day.
    She could almost to resist that Cameron.
    This Cameron, on the other hand, had depths she never even suspected he possessed. The way he treated the children, gave each one his full attention—as though they were precious—tugged at a part of her she didn’t want to name. Despite her best effort to hold it in place, her shield slipped a fraction.
    “Thanks, Cam.” Puffed out, Sandy stopped beside Cameron and the five boys, spots dancing before her eyes. “Come on, Damien.”
    She took his hand and turned back toward the path leading to the tigers. She didn’t have time to pause, having left the rest of her charges unsupervised. She expected him to follow, but his stubborn stance yanked her back.
    “Damien? You have to come with me.”
    His mouth thinned, and his nostrils flared. “I don’t want to be in your group. I want to see the tigers.”
    “That’s where we are.” She tugged a little. “Come on.”
    He still wouldn’t move.
    Heat that had nothing to do with her mad dash to catch him scorched

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