Page 26 of The SEALs' Single Mom Baby Surprise

Come at me, Sloane. Show me what you’ve got.

“I thought Rhett was my knight in shining armor.” Her voice is soft instead of cutting, like she means to disarm me, but it only tightens the tense coil in my gut.

“He is, but he’s not as good-looking as I am.”

Sloane rolls her eyes at me. “Just because you are traditionally good-looking with your blond hair, blue eyes, and muscles, doesn’t make you the more attractive among the two of you.”

Sitting up, I lean forward again, lowering my voice like I do when I’m ready to take a woman to bed. “But you do think I’m attractive.”

Standing in a huff, she grabs her clipboard in preparation to stomp away from me into the warehouse. “Wrong takeaway, but I shouldn’t expect any less.”

I’m behind her the moment she makes her move, and I can practically hear her growl of frustration.

I wink at her co-worker, Kingswell, who was conveniently absent yesterday. His name was on a lot of the incoming and outgoing shipments we’ve checked so far. A lot of them were highlighted for mistakes.

Preliminary research shows him as a decent worker, doesn’t miss a lot of work, won’t win any awards either, but he is a good son, taking off to help his mother like he did yesterday. Mrs. Edith Kingswell just got a good prognosis. The radiation for her breast cancer seems to be working.

Sloane disappears into the stacks, but she’s not hard to find. She does actively ignore me as I approach, her mouth pressed into a firm line.

“Want to give me a few of those pages?” I ask, but she waves me off.

Smiling, I hover, peering over her shoulder again. I truly can’t get enough of her soft, sweet scent, but I do resist sinking my nose into her hair for a better sniff.

Her elbow shifts back to hit me again, but I catch her before she makes contact, holding onto her arm. “You know what they say it means when girls and boys are mean to each other, don’t you?”

Sloane’s look is deadly. I eat it up, wishing I could simply lean down and catch her bottom lip between my teeth.

Her nostrils flare. If she hadn’t just admitted that she found me attractive, I might consider it anger, but I’d bet my car she’s frustrated with the fact that I’m charming my way under her skin.

When I grin, she closes her eyes and takes a deep breath.

I’m laughing under my breath as I back away. “Relegated to eye candy. I’m not sure how I’ll survive the day.”

I can’t complain, considering most of my duties have nothing to do with beautiful women. I gladly stand back and admire Sloane as she works. Determined. Focused.

Far too good at pretending that I don’t exist unless I force her to acknowledge me.

I don’t. Often.

When the first of her two deliveries arrives, I help her open boxes without asking this time. It tripled the time yesterday, and being in the middle of it all allows me to keep a better eye on her safety.

Kingswell complains about opening every single container. “This seems like a bit of an overreaction to a few mistyped serial numbers.”

“Consider it part of the audit.” Her reply is smooth and not quite a lie. I grin at how she blames us, though.

“We found more than a few typos. We’re opening them all.” I confirm her lie, adding, “Sloppy.”

Kingswell huffs, and Sloane glares at me for my unwelcome help. She doesn’t need me to lend her my authority, but this protective urge is growing. And I don’t like how much insolence Kingston is projecting.

They’re co-workers, but she shows him up.

I don’t need to make much of an educated guess on that one. The records prove my point. Sloane hasn’t made a single mistake.

I mean it, not a single one. Maybe a missing comma in her emails or notes, but never on the inventory. I’ve watched her check and check and check and check herself.

“Come on, we’re going to need more people to keep this up. I’ve got a life, you know.” Kingswell passive-aggressively flings the top of a small crate off and peers inside. His clipboard pinches his side, and the way he scribbles on the inventory sheet screams of an immature attitude.

That’s not something noted anywhere in his personnel files, and the way Sloane is side-eying him makes me think he doesn’t usually act this way. Does he simply want to slip by with mediocre work or does he know something?

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