Page 28 of No Love Lost

Every part of Addison lit up at his words. She was so in love with him again. Still, and if something went wrong, her heart would crack for good.

CHAPTER 9

Don't Be A Poor Loser

Heath wanted to follow Addy into the house and straight into her bedroom. He wanted to lock the door and shut out the world for a year or two.

Instead, he hugged Addy close and kissed her hair. “I’d like to do that again.” A million times over.

Her laugh warmed him. “Me too.”

He squeezed her and then kissed her lightly, and took her hand to exit the utility room. Her small hand still felt perfect in his.

At the door to the house, he squeezed her hand and released it, guessing she’d rather keep that bit private for now. She patted his chest and reached up to kiss him quickly, then opened the door and headed inside.

Nina had three mugs on the counter with infusers in them. She didn’t look up as she poured. “I hope you like apple cinnamon. It’s decaf, so you’ll be able to sleep.”

With his body craving Addy, he had his doubts about that. “Sounds good to me.”

The house was downright chilly, but he watched Addy check the heat pumps. “They’re on now. It won’t take long to warm up. But we’ve plenty of blankets to snuggle with.” Her cheeks flushed as she said that, her eyes dancing and locked on his.

Nina grabbed her own mug, and he took the other two. It seemed completely natural to set the mugs together on the table and sit on the couch. Addy didn’t hesitate to sit beside him. Instead of taking the chair, Nina sat on Addy’s other side and tossed a blanket over all of their legs.

He lifted his arm to the back of the couch, and Addy settled into his side. Hoping to distract his body from having her right there, he looked around the room again. “Wait. You don’t have a TV?”

His girls laughed when he looked at them. Addy shrugged. “I had other priorities and never thought it was worth the expense.”

Nina waved her cell phone. “I can watch what I like on here.”

“And what do you like to watch?” It wasn’t a polite question. He really wanted to know.

“I don’t actually watch shows that much. I enjoy checking out videos about people working with animals and artisans showing how they make their crafts. There are a few comedies that are okay, but I find most of them boring. I do like classic cartoons, though. Mostly, I’d rather read fiction than watch it.”

He reached over to tug on her hair. And that brought Addy closer to him. Bonus. “Like mother, like daughter.”

“Have you read any of Mom’s books?”

He shook his head, embarrassed. “I didn’t know she was an author until today. Or yesterday. It’s all kind of a blur of what I learned when.” Because he’d been on information and emotional overload.

Beneath the blanket, Addy squeezed his thigh and left her hand there. Torture. Wonderful, but torture. And he didn’t want to move a muscle in case she removed it.

Nina looked at him as if he was an alien. “Wow. Okay. Hang on.”

She bounced off the couch and jogged from the room, making him chuckle. “Does she have a slow speed?”

“Not from the moment she learned to crawl.” Addy laughed and then sighed. “I’m sorry. I’m not trying to make you sad.” And she patted his thigh again.

He shrugged. “I’m always going to be sad about missing out on her birth and childhood. But I want to hear it all. When she crawled and walked. When she called you Mom for the first time. How she reacted when she ate green beans in her high chair. I want to know everything.”

Nina came in with a stack of books. “I love green beans. Do you?”

He nodded with a smile, hoping she wanted to know about him as much as he wanted to know about her. Then, the stack of books in her hand registered. He sat up straighter. “You wrote all of those?”

Addy’s face flushed. “You didn’t have to bring them all out, Zaagi.”

Heath remembered that word. Zaagi meant love or treasure in Ojibwe. She’d used that word for him once upon a time. He wanted to hear it from her lips while he thrust deep into her.

And he blinked hard and pulled that thought from his head and back to his daughter. No getting erections when Nina was two feet away.

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