Page 6 of Trouble

Without missing a beat, Declan holds his arms out and lifts the boy into the air. Then he pulls him against his chest for a hearty hug. “You found me, Finn.”

I don’t know much about kids, but if I had to guess, this one is about seven or eight, with wild brown hair and a big, blue puffy jacket.

“Holy shit, he smiles,” Fitz says, his eyes going wide as he watches Declan and the little boy.

With a grimace at his friend, Declan gently sets the kid on his feet.

Finn taps his left foot and peers over his shoulder at the family walking up behind him. Beckett Langfield is part of the pack. I’ve met him several times, since he’s Ford’s best friend, but even if I hadn’t, I would have recognized him. He’s routinely seen in magazines and on television, since his family owns pretty much all of Boston sports. Beside him is his wife, Liv, and a parade of children.

The oldest of the four girls is almost as tall as her mother. Another is smaller than Finn. Maybe five? And in the double stroller Beckett is pushing are two babies. Twins, if memory serves.

“Bossman, Fitz owes me a thousand dollars.”

“Watch your language in front of the kids,” he says to the hockey coach, scowling. Then he lowers his focus to the kid. “Swear jar is onlyfor the family, Huck. You can’t go collecting money from every person you meet.”

Finn—Huck? I’m thoroughly confused about what the kid’s name is—twists his lips in thought and then sighs. “Fine. But if he does it again, I’m telling Uncle Gav to take it out of his salary.”

“What is happening here?” I mutter, leaning into Lake.

Her smile is warm. “Uncle Gav is Gavin Langfield, the head coach of the Bolts and Fitz’s boss.”

Fitz grins at me. “Guilty.” Then he kneels in front of the kid. “Sorry, Finn. I’ll watch my words.”

“The twins say that only people who are intellectually lacking use bad words.”

I glance over at the babies in the stroller. “Those twins said that?”

Liv giggles. “No. He’s referring to my friend’s twins. They’re ten.”

“Bossman calls them the Shining Twins because they’re wicked smart,” Finn tells me, his chin tipped up with pride.

“Something like that,” Beckett mutters, holding out his hand to Declan. “Thanks for helping us out. I gave Mel’s stuff to one of your guys. They said they’d put it up in your office.”

With the reminder of my situation, my giddy mood evaporates. I just want to focus on the hot firefighters and the hot coach who keeps eyeing me like he’s going to have lots of fun making me forget tonight.

And you know what? I think I’ll let him. I can worry tomorrow.

CHAPTER 4

Cade

“Needanything from your luggage before the event starts? I’m happy to bring you up to Dec’s office to grab it.” I can’t help but drink in the beautiful woman in front of me. She’s far too pretty to be wearing the frown that tugs at her lips every time Declan speaks. The man is about as subtle as an elephant walking through a mouse’s birthday party, stomping around and making a mess of things.

I love the guy, but sometimes I’d like to smack him around a bit and force him to lighten up.

She shakes her head and hits me with a genuine smile. “I’m good. Thanks. Though I would love a tour of the fire station at some point.” She eyes my best friend, her gaze sweeping across the wide planes of his chest before she fixes her focus on me again.

“I can make that happen. Dec will probably have to stay here late, so when the event is over, you and I can swing back in and pick up your stuff. I’ll show you around then.”

Declan merely shakes his head at me. He thinks I’m hitting on his new roommate, and he’s not wrong. She’s fucking stunning, with long dark hair flowing past her shoulders like the soft waves of the bay at the end of the street and green eyes full of a playfulness I’m eager to bring out. But more than that, I’m drawn to the nervousness that buzzesbeneath the surface. The way she bites her lip when she thinks we’re not looking makes me want to lean in and sink my teeth into it too. Ease her worries. I could give her a few orgasms, help her relax so she can focus on the beauty of this town rather than what’s clearly worrying her.

Declan mentioned a stalker, but is that a serious issue? I just assumed all pop stars had stalkers. It’s par for the course, isn’t it? Though the way she’s acting is veryun-par for the course.

“You gonna take her down the pole too, Fitz?” Daniel Hall asks with a smack on my shoulder.

“Smart-ass,” I mutter to our star right winger, though there’s no hiding my smile.

Beckett glares at me, but fortunately, his kid has already run into the station and is chattering with some of the guys on shift in the bay.

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