Page 131 of Skate the Line

She takes one step backward and tosses the snowballs back and forth in her red hands.

“You better run, Sunshine,” I warn her.

Her pretty lips split, and I’m blinded by the smile.

A snowball smacks me right in the face.

I’m frozen with shock.

“Oh, you’re in for it.” I dart forward and throw every last snowball at her backside as she runs toward the door.

She shouts Ellie’s name in between her girly laughter.

Ellie stands by the door with her hand covering her wide smile. It’s obvious she’s laughing at us, and I’m not sure I’ve ever seen her so child-like.

I dive forward, wrap my arms around Sunny’s waist, and fling her around in my arms. Her laughter fills the air, and we fall to the cold powder.

She’s on top of me, and suddenly, our laughing comes to a halt. It doesn’t take me very long to imagine every inch of her underneath our thick layers. Our body heat mingles, and I’ve long forgotten that we’re lying beneath a snow-fallen sky.

That hot tongue of hers slips out and wets her plump bottom lip. I stare at it, fighting the urge to kiss her senseless. My blood fills with need, and when I flex my hips, her playful eyes turn dark.

Last night opened up the gates of hell.

What the hell am I doing? And why can’t I stop?

The door opens, and Ellie stands there.

Sunny and I freeze, but Ellie, as innocent as she is, has no idea that I’m completely twisted with need from her nanny lying on top of me.

“Dad, you’re supposed to go easy on us!” Ellie scolds me, and it forces a chuckle out of me.

Sunny tries to climb off me, but my hands tighten against her waist.

Fuck, let go of her.I’m unhinged. I’ve lost my fucking mind.

She stops wiggling and glances at me out of the corner of her eye.

I wait until Ellie turns away, continuously stripping her snow gear and dropping it to the kitchen floor.

My abs flex as I inch forward.

Sunny and I are flush against one another, and the arousal is enough to send me to an early grave.

With my lips brushing against the cold strands of her hair, I whisper, “I win, Sunshine.”

Except, as soon as she climbs off me and swings that smile elsewhere, I feel like I’ve lost.

Forty-One

SUNNY

Rhodes and I are even.

He takes me out for my birthday, encourages me to act my age, and then later helps me get over the little blip of anxiety I have when it comes to men, and I loosen him up with an impromptu snowball fight with his daughter, which is a memory she’ll probably have for the rest of her life.

So there.

We’re even.

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