Page 14 of Baby Contract

Errol beams. “Thank you.”

I wait for him to tell her that I made sure her steak was perfect, but the bastard backs away without another word. I lift another piece of meat to Addison’s mouth.

“I can feed myself.”

“You’re holding the baby.”

“I’ve cared for two kids before. I can handle a baby and a fork at the same time.”

“Sounds dangerous.”

“You’re not going to give me a fork?”

“Nope.” I can wait here all day.

She finally accedes, and after a while, she’s full. I take the baby then. “What are you doing?” she protests.

“Violet and I are going to go read moreMaster and Commander. Then I’m going to take her for a walk so she can get used to her name. Meanwhile, you’re going to sleep.”

“Taking care of Violet is my job.”

“You’re dead on your feet, which means you’re not going to operate at top condition, which means you’re a danger to Violet. Don’t make me fire you.”

Chapter Eight

ADDISON

Ijerk awake, my room is cloaked in darkness. It takes me a second to remember where I am. I've been hopping from one hotel to another recently, staying at whichever I could get the best deal.

I should have known by the bed alone that I wasn't at one of them. I have never slept in a bed so comfortable before. No wonder I crashed the second I lay down. I flip on the lamp beside my bed, grabbing my phone.

“Holy crap.” When I see the time, I quickly get out of bed and grab my robe. I check the baby monitor, but there is no baby in the crib. A sense of panic sets in. I rush out of my room across the hallway. Still nothing. The room is empty.

I peek inside Carr’s room. That too is void of anyone. When I enter the kitchen, I let out a giant breath of relief.

“You have her.” Carr is feeding her a fresh bottle.

“Of course, I have her.”

"Sorry.” I run my fingers through my hair. I’m sure I’m a hot mess right now, but hopefully I don’t smell again. “I just panicked. I didn’t mean to sleep for so long.” The clock over the oven shows it's a little past midnight. I can’t remember a time that I overslept. Especially not while on a job.

“You needed it.”

“How has she been?” I walk over to them. My hand goes to Carr’s shoulder. I jerk it back, not intending to touch him. I’m not sure what came over me. I’ll blame it on how handsome he is. The baby only adds to that somehow. I’ve never had that problem before with a man holding a baby.

“Violet has been an angel.” I really love that name he picked. It fits her. When he asked about my own mother and how she picked my name, I’d kind of froze before moving quickly past it, thankful he hadn’t noticed or pushed for more. I never take pleasure in discussing my mother.

“Would you tell me if she’d been a terror?” I lift a brow.

“Probably not, but neither would you.” Carr has become less weird and more intriguing over the past few days.

It helped when he told me he wasn’t the baby's father. That made so much more sense. With the way he worries over Violet, he had me thinking he didn’t even take the time to name his own daughter. Not to mention I was questioning his choice of women if they just dropped babies at his front door.

“They can wrap us around their little fingers so easily, can’t they?” I have to say it’s rather endearing to watch how he cares for the baby. Also pretty darn sexy.

“I had no idea a female could have such power over me,” he says, staring into my eyes. I have to look away because, for a moment, it feels as though he's talking about me.

“I can take over if you want to go to bed. I’m kind of awake now.” I have a feeling I’ll be up for the next few hours.

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