Page 2 of Reckless Encore

She had a mile of visible cleavage. A mile that Mason’s horny little teen would drool over and Mitch’s son would discreetly ogle.

Blake wasn’t blind. He noticed every asshole who laid eyes on his daughter.

The only kid he didn’t worry too much about was Tyler—Ryan’s son. He’d been Sophie’s best friend since Blake had given up trying to keep them apart at the age of five. He was a good kid. A good kid Blake would happily neuter if he ever laid hands on Soph.

She stopped on the second step and glared. “Please, please,pleasetell me we’re going to have the inappropriate clothing conversation again. That’s always so much fun.”

“You look—”

Gabi grabbed his wrist and squeezed.

She’d have to squeeze a lot harder to stop the upcoming stroke already making his eye twitch.

Sophie didn’t wait for him to finish. She huffed, descended the remaining stairs, and pushed past him to join Maya outside.

“Why did we move here?” He voiced his question to God. “Why? Oh, why?”

Gabi groaned. “Fifteen years later and you’re still asking the same question? Come on, Blake. We were never going to stay in New York and send the girls to a convent.”

“It wasn’t a convent. It was an all-girls school with a healthy amount of heavy-handed dictatorship.”

His gorgeous wife crossed her arms over her chest, her lips pressed.

“It was a good school…” he added.

Her nostrils flared.

Shit. He needed to backtrack.

“Okay. So, it wasn’t a school you approved of. But I think parenting would’ve been a lot easier if the girls had stricter teachers. We need an ally to discourage all this boy talk, and the parties, and the other hellish things we’re currently contending with.”

“Blake.” Gabi cupped his cheeks. “You need to think rationally, before one of our girls murders us in our sleep.”

“See?” He stepped back and pointed an accusatory finger at her. “I’m not the only one who thinks those hormones are a murderous death trap. I told you we should’ve reconsidered boarding school.”

She chuckled. “Stop being dramatic. You know boarding school has never been a preference for either of us. We both love having the girls here. They’re just harder on you this week because you’ve been harder on them. You’ve barely been home, and when you are, all you do is nag. ‘What did you wear to school today? Are you dating someone? Is that the reason your grades are falling?’” She lowered her voice, mimicking him and doing a horrible job with her lingering Aussie accent. “‘You know dating isn’t allowed in this house until you’re eighteen.’”

“They’re allowed to date.” His chest squeezed at the lie.

“Yes, if the male in question is preapproved by you, which will never happen.” She chuckled again and leaned in to smack a kiss against his lips. “Come on. We’re going to be late. I’ll send a message to Leah and ask her to discreetly interrogate Tyler on the drive to the lake. I’m sure he’ll know if something else is going on with Soph.”

“Yeah. Okay.” He followed his wife to the door. “But at this stage, I think we’re both well aware something as small as the change in humidity is enough to make her lose her shit.”

Not being around all the time didn’t mean he wasn’t trying to be a good father to his daughters. From the moment he’d learned of Gabi’s second and third pregnancies, he’d lost his mind with worry. They had already suffered through one miscarriage, and in his helpless state, all he could do was fixate on the things within his control. He’d spent nights awake thinking about child traffickers, molesters, rapists, and pedophiles.

He’d done everything in his power to protect the girls from the predatory men of the world, from the low-key purchase of mace, self-defense classes, and panic alarms, right down to in-built phone trackers, home video surveillance, and sometimes a security detail.

It took thirteen years to realize criminals were the least of his worries. What he needed to look out for were horny teenage boys.

In the four years since waking to that traumatic realization, he’d been living on a tightrope suspended above a heart attack. His girls were beautiful and smart, and when they weren’t fucking insane, they were kind, too.

“Sweetie.” Gabi shot a condescending look over her shoulder. “Until our girls start causing havoc like Ethan, you have nothing to complain about.”

She had a point.

Mason’s son was the biggest threat to his girls. The lead singer’s little deviant had slipped straight into his father’s shoes on every level—music, confidence, and womanizing ways. He always fought to be the center of attention. His arrogance was record-breaking. And the cocky fuck had the talent to back it up.

Blake had to keep the brat under a microscope. And he would continue to do so until Sophie could look after herself. Which probably meant another fifteen years, give or take.

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