Page 20 of Skin Deep

“My girls…” he started in a cautious tone.

I snorted and ran a hand through my hair. “They’ll be okay unless one of them has a mushroom allergy. My family wants you to bring your family down for stroganoff.”

He frowned and didn’t release his grip on the knife.

“We don’t hurt children. No one’s going to lay a hand on you or either of them,” I promised. “And if they do, they’ll lose it.”

He finally relaxed his grip on the plastic knife, his face morphing back into its familiar signature grin. “Oh, look at you, getting all possessive of your man.”

“I’m not,” I snarled. “This isn’t about that. There are rules, and some people in my family apparently can’t keep a fucking secret. Look, if you want to go after the ripper? Fine. Do whatever. I can’t stop you. But if you want to work with us, Annie and Yuri get the final say. I told you it’s not me you have to convince. It’s them.”

He looked me up and down quickly. “Are you expecting this to be difficult?”

I sighed and looked past him to where the girls had jumped into the ball pit and were swimming around in plastic balls covered in all kinds of germs. I winced, resisting the strange urge to go in there, scoop them up, and spray them down with soapy water. From a healthy distance.

The minute Tatty set eyes on those two, she’d be sold on whatever Paxton wanted, and Annie adored kids, especially babies. Considering all her sons seemed to prefer men or no company at all, she’d be ecstatic and probably immediately declare them her grandbabies.

Fuck me, I thought and frowned.I might as well draw up the fucking prenup before I walk him into that pool of sharks. I’m never going to hear the end of this. Once they get their teeth in Pax and his kids, they’re not going to let him go.

“Your daughters are more likely to get spoiled rotten than to be in any danger,” I muttered. “It’s you I’m worried about.”

“I’m touched,” he said with a wink. “But I’m sure you’ll protect me.”

I flushed hot for some stupid reason and looked away, trying to focus on not getting hard again with the way he was looking at me. I cleared my throat. “Anyway, we should go. They live all the way down toward Liar’s Corner. And that’s a drive, but I’ll make sure Annie wraps up her business early so you can get the girls home to bed.”

He chuckled. “You are too much.”

I frowned because I hadn’t even done anything. I was trying to be considerate and polite. While he was still laughing at me, I stood stiffly. “Follow or don’t, but don’t fucking tailgate me.”

“When I ride your ass, I’ll be pulling your hair too,” he promised with another wink.

I dumped my untouched salad in the trash and stomped toward the exit, my face so hot he could’ve cooked an egg on my forehead. The man was infuriating to talk to. All I wanted was for this to be over.

And maybe for him to make good on that promise to ride my ass.

Iletoutaslow breath and looked up at the huge two-story house. War’s folks lived out in the middle of nowhere. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d been that far out of Columbus' city limits. I’d certainly never been all the way out to Liar’s Corner, which was a sleepy little town of about seven hundred people.

We’d pulled into a paved parking lot next to a funeral home about five minutes ago, and I was still trying to convince myself to go in. My old beat up pick-up truck looked out of place next to their newer cars. I was probably going to feel even more like an outsider once I went inside.

Yet if it bought me the chance to watch the ripper die a slow and painful death, I’d do anything once.

War got out of his sleek BMW and waited by the trunk.

“Daddy, I gotta pee,” Lettie said, bouncing in her seat.

I sighed. Why did kids have such tiny bladders? “All right, Punkin. Let’s go in.” I unbuckled my seat belt. “Now, you be polite in there. You know how to talk to important people. Treat ‘em with respect and don’t say anything rude about the food.”

She nodded, pigtails bouncing.

We got out of the truck, Lettie’s hand in mine and Charlie in my arms. Something in War’s face softened slightly when he saw us all together, but whatever it was, it was gone by the time we reached him. He pushed off the end of his car where he was waiting and started for the house without a word to us.

I followed him, admiring the way his shirt highlighted the sleek muscles of his shoulders and tapered at the waist. For such a skinny boy, he had a nice round butt, one that was made for squeezing and burying my face in. He’d look amazing in a jock strap or a nice lacy red thong. Or nothing at all. Hell, it’d be hard for him not to look like a complete meal in anything he put on. War could’ve been on the cover of a magazine. He sure had that arrogant pout down.

He jogged up the stairs and pulled open the screen door to knock, throwing a nervous glance over his shoulder at me.

One of the younger brothers from the night before answered the door, his eyes flaring wide when he saw me and the girls. Xander? Xavier? War had told me their names, but I couldn’t keep them straight.

“Where is he?” War growled.

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