Page 62 of Playboy

Lips pursed and pushed to one side, Oliver peers up at each of us again. Then he shrugs. “Aunt Hannah calls you Daniel, so I will too.”

It’s on the tip of my tongue. I so want to tell my nephew to call him Baby Hall.

Daniel quirks a brow like he can read my mind, but his lips tip up. “Yeah, your aunt is pretty smart, so that works for me.”

We settle in the living room and take turns sliding Jenga blocks off the tower. When the whole thing topples on Daniel, Oliver giggles so hard he falls over too, and with him, he takes the last bit of tension between the adults.

At bedtime, Oliver doesn’t need a reminder to give hugs, and when he doesn’t hesitate to offer Daniel one too, Noah smiles at me.

“I’m going to take this one to bed, so I’ll say good night now.” He nods at Daniel and then he and his little guy disappear.

“I didn’t know he had a kid,” Daniel admits.

“Really?”

He shrugs. “I tried really hard not to pay attention to him when he got here.”

My chest aches for him. I can imagine it was hard. Noah was traded late in the season, and then Gavin moved Daniel from the first line to second. “You guys seemed to get along tonight, though.” I can’t hide the hope in my tone. Noah is the closest thing I have to family, and for some reason, I want the two of them to like one another.

With a smile, he rubs his hands down his thighs. “Yeah, now that I know he isn’t trying to date you, we’re all good.”

My stomach lurches. “Ew.”

He laughs. “My sentiments exactly.”

Silence descends as his laughter dies. Then we’re just looking at one another. Will he leave now? That’s what he should do. We dealt with the alleged emergency, and he stayed for the game. But, ridiculously, I don’t want him to go.

He angles closer and sweeps my hair behind my ear. Then his warm palm falls to my neck, his thumb brushing the skin there, sending shivers down my spine with every move.

“What are you thinking?” I whisper as he holds himself still.

His lips hook into a half smile. “That I really want to kiss you, but I don’t know what the rules are anymore.”

Instantly, my instincts kick in, and I can’t help but taunt him. “Since when do you care about rules?”

He licks his lips and inches closer. “Since I started caring about the outcome.”

My stomach swoops, my words barely audible. “And what outcome are you hoping for?”

He hovers even closer, and just when I think he’s going to kiss me, he rests his head on my shoulder and pulls me in for a hug. My heart squeezes at the unexpected and ridiculously sweet gesture. I have to suck in a breath to keep my emotions in check before I hug him back.

“Can I take you out tomorrow?” he asks.

“Out?”

“Yes. I’d love to spend more time with you, but it’s late, and you need your rest.”

A hint of sorrow threads through my veins. I don’t want to rest. I want Daniel to kiss me and then carry me to my room and make me forget every single obligation, every responsibility. If just for a little while.

I don’t tell him that. He hugged me. He didn’t kiss me. I don’t know what that means, but I do know that I want to spend more time with him too, so I nod. “Okay. We can do something tomorrow.”

His face lights up in a mixture of delight and surprise, like he thought I’d say no. He pulls me in for another hug, this time hauling me onto his lap. When he stands, a jolt of excitement hits me. It quickly fizzles out, though, when he sets me on my feet. With a kiss on my cheek, he heads for the door.

“Night, dream girl.” He steps out into the hall and gives me a small wave.

“Good night, Daniel.”

TWENTY-TWO

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