Page 45 of Boss Daddy

She doesn’t respond right away, just watches me, her expression softening. “But you’re trying to now.”

“Maybe,” I say, pouring the coffee into two clean mugs and sliding one toward her. “But it’s not easy. Hell, I’m not even sure if moving on is an option.”

Erin takes the mug, her fingers brushing mine briefly, and something in her gaze shifts. “I didn’t mean to pry,” she says. “I just needed to know.”

“And now that you do, where does that leave us?”

She holds my gaze and takes my hand. “I’m still here, aren’t I?”

I hold onto her hand longer than I probably should, but I don’t care. There’s a calmness in her presence I don’t understand, and maybe I don’t need to. For the first time in a long time, it doesn’t feel like I’m standing on the edge of something ready to collapse.

She breaks the silence. “So. Diane and Robert. What’s the deal there?”

Her question brings a smile to my face. I set my mug down, crossing my arms over my chest as I lean back against the counter. “They’re Kara’s parents, as I’m sure you’ve figured out. After the accident, they were all I had, and I was all they had. We got through the worst of it together.”

She raises an eyebrow. “And now?”

“Now,” I continue, “we meet up every so often. A cup of coffee, a conversation. Lunch, now and then. They ask how I’m doing. We talk about Kara sometimes, sometimes we don’t. It’s not complicated.”

Her lips twitch, but it’s not quite a smile. “That’s decent of you.”

I let out a dry laugh, shaking my head. “It wasn’t about being decent. We needed each other. I’m not the kind of man to keep people in my life if I don’t want them there. They stayed family because we survived a tragedy together.”

Her eyes flash and I know there’s more coming. “They sure seemed to know a lot about me.”

He shrugs. “I may have mentioned my stellar new bartender once or twice.”

“And they’re not upset to find another woman in their son-in-law’s home? They don’t think I’m trying to make you forget Kara?”

“You’re not trying to do that,” I say.

She purses her lips. “You’re right. And I’d never ask you to forget her. But they don’t know that.”

I straighten, my gaze locking onto hers. “You think too much. They’ve been telling me for years to find someone. Saying Kara wouldn’t want me to be alone. That she’d want me to move on. I think seeing you here made them happy.”

She blinks, caught off guard. “Happy?” she echoes. “You’re telling me they were happy to see you with a new woman?”

“You’re damn right. You should hear them,” I say with a chuckle. “They’re always trying to set me up with one friend’s daughter or another. They know I’ll never forget Kara. But they don’t want me dwelling on it, either, just like she wouldn’t have.”

Silence fills the air, and there’s no doubt in my mind Erin doesn’t know quite what to say. Finally, she steps closer, her hands finding mine again, her grip firm. “Thank you,” she says. “For telling me. For trusting me with this.”

I look at her, my heart warming as I gaze at her face, her steady gaze, the raw honesty there. She deserves more than words. I let go of her hands to cup her face, tilting her chin up. There’s no hesitation as I claim her mouth with mine. She melts into me, her hands sliding up to grip my shirt, holding on like I’m the only thing keeping her steady.

When I finally pull back, her lips are swollen, her breathing uneven, but she doesn’t look away. I press my forehead to hers, my voice low. “You’re not going anywhere. Not now. Not ever.”

Erin’s lips are soft, pliant, and I lose myself in her taste, in the way her body molds against me like she was made to fit. My hands grip her waist, pulling her closer, needing to feel every inch of her.

“I need you,” she whispers.

I don’t say a word, just lift her into my arms, her legs wrapping around my waist. Her hands find my shoulders, holding on as I carry her to the bedroom. It’s not a slow walk—I’m a man on a mission, and that mission is her. By the time I lower her onto the bed, I’m barely holding on to what’s left of my control.

She looks up at me, her eyes dark and full of lust, her hair a wild mess against the pillows. “You’re staring again,” she teases.

“Can you blame me?” I claim her mouth again, my kiss hard, demanding.

My hands unbutton her shirt just enough to push it up and over her head, exposing smooth, bare skin. Her bra follows, and I take a moment to look at her, to let my eyes roam over every curve, every inch. She shivers under my gaze.

I lower my head, my lips finding the curve of her neck, the dip of her collarbone, before finally closing around her nipple. She arches into me.

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