Page 49 of Defensive Zone

“Of course,” Max said, breaking through Gabi’s thoughts. “Ava, I got them. You look exhausted. Go to bed.”

“No, I’m fine,” Ava said, yawning as Elise fussed against her chest.

“Want me to take her?” Gabi asked, reaching for the baby.

“No. She’s hungry. I’ll nurse her, and then if I manage to get her to go down and I’m still awake, we can watch something,” Ava said.

“Don’t think you have to entertain me, Av. Go to bed. Snuggle that little princess and let us know if you need anything,” Gabi said.

“Okay. You two be good for Uncle Max and Auntie Gabi. Two stories max, Max,” Ava said.

“Aww, really?” Max and the kids chorused.

Ava shook her head with a laugh and then kissed and hugged the kids good night.

“Oh shoot, I left a load of laundry in the washer,” Ava said.

“Don’t worry. I’ll go take care of it. Max should be able to handle these two,” Gabi said.

“We got this,” Max said, waving his hand at them.

“Good night,” Gabi said to the kids and then to Ava before she headed down to the laundry room. She needed a breather from Max anyway.

She took her sweet time transferring the laundry from the washer to the dryer, not because she couldn’t rush through it and escape to her room before Max finished up with the kids, but because she kept getting distracted.

His hand brushing against her thigh at dinner had almost had her jumping in her seat. She’d thought about what his hands could do to her body, and now she was thinking about it again.

His focus and determination on the ice probably translated off the ice. She’d only gotten a taste with his kisses.

Shit.

She should not be thinking about his taste or his kisses or his hands trailing up her legs.

Then the sound of water kicked in.

Dammit.

She’d restarted the washer.

She wrenched open the lid to stop the water and almost banged her head on the corner in frustration. Why was this happening to her? He was annoying and irritating and grating and frustrating and how many words could she come up with that meant the same damn thing?

Yet she couldn’t deny her attraction to him. Add in how sweet he was with the kids and it was truly unfair. How was she supposed to resist that? She’d always compared him to her father—flighty, constantly joking, absent—but she was starting to see the differences. Max wouldn’t walk away. Not from his family.

She took in a deep breath, steadied her nerves, and made sure that the dryer—and not the washer—was running. She needed to climb under her covers and go to sleep. Maybe her logical brain would show up in the morning.

“There you are.”

She yelped, her hand flying to her chest as if she could stop her heart from racing out of it. “Jesus, Max. Could really use that bell right now.”

He grinned. “I said your name at least twice. What were you thinking about?” He smirked.

“Laundry, obviously,” she said, waving her hand over the machines.

“Yeah, you normally get flushed around laundry?” he goaded.

“The dryer is hot,” she said, stupidly sounding breathy.

Damn him right to hell.

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