Page 101 of The More the Merrier

“May I come over later, Kendall?”

“You’ll be exhausted by then.” I hoped my brat stayed quiet. “We can catch up some other time,” I repeated. But there would be no ‘other’ time. Dalton wouldn’t stick around to tame my sass, or find out what was bothering me. “See you.”

I attempted to step around him, but he blocked me. It was subtle, no one would notice if they were watching, but I couldn’t continue up the hallway unless I pushed through him. My brat wasn’t that bold, at least not while we were working.

“You understand as well as I do that shifts don’t always end when they’re supposed to,” Dalton explained patiently. “Sometimes our days off get interrupted.”

“Yup, I sure do.” I sidestepped him and he didn’t move to stop me. “Don’t worry about it.”

Hurrying off, I glanced over my shoulder to see him watching me, his jaw clenching and relaxing as he stood there. I slammed into the nurses’ station, but somehow stayed upright. I never lost concentration, especially not at work. I wasn’t clumsy but my heart was practically beating out of my chest. He made me feel a dizzying mix of safety and arousal last night. It threw me sideways.

Dalton saw the scene play out, crossing the distance to meet my side. I barely refrained from flipping him off. He drove me crazy. I had been reliving our kiss in my head over and over on repeat like a movie. Intending to leave, I couldn’t help but notice how good he looked in his tight uniform pants. Tight in all the right places. He had no business getting me this turned on without even touching me.

“Can I help with whatever has gotten you so twisted up that you’re walking into things, darling?”

“It’s you,” I sassed as I popped a hand on the hip that wasn’t smarting. “So, no.” I didn’t care about how he responded to the information. “I have been having an extremely rough year. A lot of things are bubbling to the surface. The holiday season isn’t doing me any favors.”

“I’ll let you get back to work, but we will be getting to the bottom of all this.” He guided my hand off my hip and tapped it with his pointer finger. Dalton leveled me with a look that promised in no uncertain terms that he was serious but I was desperate for his attention.

“We’ll see,” I answered in a haughty tone.

Dalton leaned close to me until his lips brushed the shell of my ear. “I’d like to tell you to meet me in the utility closet next to the cafeteria so I can get to the bottom of things now, but we don’t have the time. Drop the attitude.”

“Whatever.” He pinched the soft juncture of where my thigh and butt met hard enough to make me rise up on my tiptoes before I forced my heels down. It took me a moment to gather my composure.

“I told you how I feel about that word, Kendall.”

Glancing to either side of us, I confirmed the hallway was empty. “Keep your hands to yourself,” I whispered defiantly. “We aren’t in a relationship, so don’t act like we are.”

“Tell me you want nothing to do with me in any sort of romantic way, now or ever, and I’ll stop.”

It felt like he pulled a rug out from under me. He was maddening. No, I argued in my brain, I was irritating myself. My brat wanted to play, poke, and tease until I received the spanking I so wantonly desired. “Please don’t stop.”

“Then do as I said. Remember to be nice to my little prancer today.”

“Yes, Sir.” I suddenly stepped back and threw a hand over my mouth.Shit!Heat flamed my face and though I didn’t think I could be any more embarrassed, I was.

“Good girl.” Dalton took my hand in his and squeezed it, completely nonplussed, as if I hadn’t thrown a title at him in the middle of the hospital. His eyes sparkled in amusement, and he slowly let go of my hand as I stared into his gorgeous blue orbs. “Text me when you get home.”

“I will.”

“I’ll talk to you later.”

“La-la-later,” I stammered, flustered from our interaction. His praise turned my insides into melty goo. Blushing, I watched as he pivoted on his heel, striding toward the ambulance entrance.

For the first time in a long while, I had a tiny glimmer of hope. Somehow Dalton was on my side. He’d help me get through my issues and I’d come out the other side better than ever.

Chapter 3

Kendall

Dalton and I had texted on and off since our surprise sleepover, but we hadn’t gotten into the cause of my issues. He’d wanted to hang out but our schedules collided rather than lining up.

Saturday brought us together at the fair but I could barely focus on the holiday activities. My gaze darted constantly between the hunkiest Santa Claus I’d ever laid my eyes on, Grant, and the handsomest elf in all the land, Dalton. If only I didn’t know how strong and muscled both men were beneath their costumes. It was growing harder to ignore Dalton’s forearms as he handed out candy canes and goodie bags. Grant had always been friendly to me, but after watching him have seemingly unlimited patience and being generous with his time, it made me wonder about those Daddy vibes again. I wanted to sit on his lap and tell him I’d wound up on the naughty list this year. Then he could use those bulging muscles to pin me to the bed while Dalton destroyed me in the sexiest way possible.

“You’re sucking on that candy cane like it’s the best thing you’ve ever put in your mouth.” Dalton was walking by to grab more treats to hand out, but he paused to whisper in my ear. “I’m getting jealous.”

I was so flustered that I dropped the hook of it then poked the candy into the side of my cheek instead of into my mouth. I usually chalked up his playful innuendos or sexual banter to his personality, but not this time. Something about the way he observed my motions with interest, plus the sudden throw down that I’d challenged, told me it was all or nothing.

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