Page 48 of The Keeper

I frowned, my instincts screaming it was more than just a glitchy system. “I checked all the locks before I crashed on the couch. Everything was secure.”

Piper chewed her lip, clearly unsettled. “Are you sure? Maybe I forgot…”

“I’m sure,” I said firmly.

Her eyes darted nervously to the front door. “So someone tried to break in?”

I didn’t want to scare her, but I didn’t want to downplay the situation. “It’s possible it was the wind, but I’ll reach out to some of our sub-contractors tomorrow about upgrading your system.”

She nodded, wrapping her arms around herself. I pulled her close, running my hands over her back.

“It’s okay, baby. I’ve got you,” I murmured. “No one’s getting past me.”

“My hero,” she said, a hint of playfulness returning to her voice. Her hands slid down my chest to the waistband of my jeans. “I think you deserve a reward.”

I groaned as she palmed me through the denim. My body was already responding to her touch, but my mind was still racing. “Wait?—”

She cut me off with an insistent kiss, backing me toward the bedroom. “Talk later—need you now.”

When she untied her robe, letting it fall open to reveal her nakedbody, my resolve crumbled. My lips collided with hers as I carried her to the bed, my earlier concerns fading to background noise.

“You’re going to kill me, woman,” I growled against her lips.

She rocked against me with an impatient whine. “Please…”

I notched myself at her entrance, gritting my teeth as I guided the head of my cock into her tight pussy.

Piper rolled her hips, urging me deeper when a piercing wail erupted from the baby monitor.

We froze, staring at each other with wide eyes before I reluctantly withdrew from the warmth of her body.

“No!” She threw her arm over her face with a muffled curse as Avery’s cries increased in volume.

I dropped a quick kiss to her sternum before tucking myself back into my jeans with a low chuckle. “I’ve got her.”

SIXTEEN

GHOST

Ivy & Piper’s Guide to Life Rule Number Twenty-Five:

Never date or sleep with someone from work.

Idrummed my fingers against the steering wheel, waiting for Piper’s shift to end, which should have occurred—I glanced at the clock on the dashboard—eighteen minutes ago.

“A-ma!” Avery shrieked from the back seat, her little face screwed up in irritation.

“Hang on, princess,” I said, twisting around to face her. “Mama will be out soon.”

She bucked against the safety straps on her car seat, her cheeks turning an alarming shade of red. I sighed, knowing exactly what that look meant. I’d learned it well over the last week.

Baby girl needed a distraction and fast.

I unbuckled my seatbelt. “Tell you what? How about we go inside and get you a little snack while we wait for Mama? How’s that sound?”

“A-ma!” she agreed, bouncing excitedly as I busted her out of her car seat prison. Getting her to hold still long enough for me to get her jacket zipped up took a little moreconvincing.

The jingle of the bell over the door to the bakery might as well have been a fucking air raid siren with all the attention it drew. Customers tensed, and conversations halted mid-sentence.

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