Page 78 of The Nanny Tenure (Single Dads Club)

Though, I’d waited this long to finally have her. I could wait another ten minutes.

Or, rather, fifteen. As soon as Finn was well and truly unconscious, his breathing deep and even, I untangled myself from him and crept to the hall.

When I opened my bedroom door, my breath caught at the sight of her lying on my bed. She was still clothed, but even the mere idea of getting her completely naked had my stomach in my throat and my heart nearly beating out of my chest.

I closed the door behind me, and she sat up against my headboard. Both of us staring at each other.

There was so much to say, yet my mind was completely blank now that it came time to lay it all out there.

Kennedy was the one to speak first. “You don’t have any vases in this house.”

Surprised at the random observation, I huffed a laugh. “Never had the need for them.”

“Well, you do now since you bought me the biggest bouquet I’ve ever seen.”

I crossed the floor to the foot of the bed. “Could’ve been bigger. The woman put a bunch of flowers together for me since I didn’t find any satisfactory.”

“You’re the only person I know who’d grumble about flowers not being up to yoursatisfaction,” she said with a teasing smile and uncrossed her legs.

“I wanted to add more, but she said it would look bad. Something about the flowers not matching.”

“Any bigger, and I wouldn’t know what to do with it.”

I rocked back on my heels as she crawled toward me. “I think you’d figure it out eventually.”

She kneeled in front of me, breathing out a coy, “To your satisfaction?”

I tugged on the end of her braid, hard enough for her to inhale sharply through parted lips, and she might as well have screamed “more” for how my skin prickled and my cock twitched. I wrapped her hair around my hand, gently angling her head back. She stared up at me. So pretty. So perfect.

“Everything you do satisfies me,” I said and bent to kiss her, barely a taste, a graze of my mouth on hers. When I pulled away, she reached for me, curling her fingers into my shirt, but I shook my head. “We have to talk first.”

“Do we?”

I swept my thumb along her lower lip, like I had in the parking lot after her show. “I told you before, you aren’t hiding from me anymore.”

“I’m not used to talking…to guys,” she said quietly, like she was embarrassed.

I released her hair and slanted my chin, silently directing her to make room for me on the bed. “That’s because you were with boys before.” I settled on the mattress, and we both stretched out on our sides, facing each other. “You’re with me now, and I’m a man. I’m not afraid of what you have to say to me.”

“Wow. Just…came right out and said it.”

“That I’m not afraid?” I slid my hand across the mattress to her waist, dipping my index finger under the elastic of her pants. “I’m afraid of a lot of things. Of getting hurt. Of hurting you. Of losing the best thing that’s ever happened to me, but no, I’m not afraid of finally hearing the truth from you.”

“Oh god,” she wailed, throwing herself to her back. “That’s not what I meant, but oh my god, how am I supposed to respond to that?”

I couldn’t help but laugh. “What did you mean, then?”

She dragged her hand over her face like she was being tortured. “I meant you came right out and said we’re together now.”

I let out a long, irritated breath. “I don’t randomly hook up with people, Kennedy. I wasn’t that person before Finn, and I’m especially not that person now. So I need to know now if that’s what you want.”

She turned back to me. “See? That’s exactly what I mean. You’re so buttoned-up, and you told me yourself you don’t let out emotions, but here you are, letting it all out with me.”

“Because that’s what mature adults do, but you’re used to little asshole boys.”

She smiled, tracing a button on my shirt. “Real men have feelings, huh?”

“Real men want to make their partners happy. You don’t do that without communication.”

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