Page 4 of Static

"Yeah, Bud?" I asked, looking down into my son's face. He wasn't a baby anymore. There was wisdom and strength there, despite the fact that he was only nine years old.

"I still want to hang out with Static today. He promised to show me the Rocky movies."

Sean was completely head over heels for Static. I couldn't blame him. If I would allow it, I probably would be, too. Who could resist him? With his charming smile and his smooth personality, there wasn't much Static couldn't talk a person into. It was why he was such a good lawyer. "I'll check with him," I promised.

"Now?"

Sighing, I got off the bed. We'd watched more than a few episodes of the cartoon they both loved and it was past time to get up and going with the rest of my day. Spending an hour or two with my kids was always my preferred way to relax though, so it hadn't been a hardship to watch their show. "Yeah. Now." I'd promised him on the way home I'd talk to Static. It wasn't Sean's fault I'd wigged out and rushed straight up here. Twisting my fingers together as I walked down the hall, I paused at Static's door. I stared at the wood grain, trying to bolster my confidence.

"Why isn't she knocking?"

"Dunno, she seems confused."

"Do you think she knows how to knock?"

I turned my head and found Butcher and Toxic standing there smiling while Toxic impersonated my daughter's favorite snowman. "You've watched that movie too many times." The fact that these two men had seen it at all was shocking. At least until you saw them with all the kids. When Tori's and Susie's kids had been the only children around they had given them a wide berth. Now the men had taken on the role of uncles with a scary affinity that made me wonder what they were teaching the young ones while we weren't around.

The smile dropped off Butcher's face as he studied me. "What's wrong, Peaches?"

This man. He was gruff. And could be terrifyingly dangerous. But never to us. He'd been calling me Peaches ever since I'd come to live here with the kids. When I asked why one time, he just shrugged and said I was sweet. It made me smile.

"Nothing," I said, putting more confidence in my tone than I felt.

"That why you're standing in front of the prospect's door without knocking?" Toxic asked. "Because nothing's wrong?"

"Oh." I opened my mouth, trying to figure out what to say. "Sean wants a play date," I said with a weak smile.

Toxic made a noise that was more a sound in his chest than anything and reached past me, pounding his fist on the door. He grinned at me when I jumped at the unexpected movement and sound, but I saw the recognition in his eyes. The smile was to put me at ease after scaring me.

I bit back the sigh. It was a weakness I now had and I was tired of it. I just couldn't seem to get it to go away. The door opened and I pasted a fake smile on my face as I fought not to blush. Static had that effect on me.

He rubbed a towel over his damp hair, his beautiful blue eyes bouncing between the three of us. His gaze finally settled on me. "Hey."

"Hi," I said, nerves rattling around inside me.

"She wants a date," Toxic supplied, completely unhelpfully.

I gasped and turned my head to glare at him. When I looked back at Static a slow, sensual smile was spreading over his face. "Anytime, Sugar."

"For Sean," I clarified, heat making my cheeks warm. The way he called me sugar made me want to melt.

"Promised him I'd show him Rocky," he said, letting me off the hook.

It was bad enough that I wanted to toss myself into Static's arms every time the man looked at me, but to be feeling this way with Butcher and Toxic looking on was just downright awkward. "I really appreciate you spending time with him," I repeated, just as I did every single time he took a few minutes to bond with my child.

A flash of something I couldn't decipher entered his eyes before it bolted away. "I told you, Gwen. I love hanging out with him. Grace, too. Send her along if you want a night alone."

"She'd love that." I hesitated. "Thank you."

He leaned against the doorway, folding his arms over his chest. The cotton t-shirt stretched over his muscles, making them more noticeable. He wasn't as big as Hellfire by any means—so few were—but he was incredibly fit. He had a swimmer's build, and there'd been more than one night I'd imagined what it would be like to run my tongue over those smooth tan muscles. That was just a fantasy, though. I had kids to think about. And no matter what kind of itch this guy created within me, I had to focus on myself, and them, right now. There wasn't room for anything else.

"You okay?"

"Fine," I said, snapping back to attention. "I kind of wish everyone would stop asking me that."

"You ran off so fast, I-"

"I didn't run," I argued, cutting him off. It was a lie. I'd absolutely run away. Or stumbled. I wasn't really sure. Clearing my throat, I smiled at him. "Thanks again. I'll send the kids over in about two hours?"

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