Page 80 of Defending her Heart

I only get a few bounces in before Nash opens the door and greets me with a shy smile. “Kendall.”

“Were you expecting someone else?” I tease.

He shakes his head and steps back, making room for me to slip by him and come inside. He closes the door behind me and I turn to him.

“Hey.” Damn, he looks good. His jeans hug his thick thighs perfectly, and there’s something sexy about seeing him in his socks and no shoes. The dark Henley stretches across his chest and biceps, as all his shirts do, and the icing on the cake is the dish towel draped over his shoulder.

“Can I take your coat?”

I slide off my gloves and shove them in the pockets before slipping out of my coat and handing it to him.

“Miss Kendall!” Paisley calls from the other side of the living room and comes charging into my legs. She hugs me with all her might. “I missed you.”

I chuckle and hug her back. “It’s only been a few hours since you left school.”

“I know, but you haven’t come over to my house all week. I had so much fun at my party.”

“I did too.”

“Pais, why don’t you pick up your artwork off the kitchen table? Dinner will be ready soon.”

When she scurries off, I turn to Nash. “Was Paisley supposed to be here tonight?”

“I didn’t want to be selfish.”

“Taking time for yourself isn’t being selfish. Paisley knows you love her.”

Nash steps into my space and pushes my hair over my shoulder. “I didn’t want to be selfish withyou. She wants to spend time with you as much as I do.”

Oh, gulp. I’m not used to sweet words. Not even Ja–

Nope. I bite back any thoughts of him. He’s been monopolizing my thoughts too much lately, and deserves zero seconds of my thoughts and zero inches of headspace.

Since sexy banter is more my style, I run my palm down the dish towel and whisper, “I’m sure what Paisley wants to do with me is quite different than what you want to do.” I pat the towel and spin on my heel to join Paisley in the kitchen.

Mostly to put some space between my pounding heart and Nash’s sexiness. I can’t think straight with him looking so at home, so much like a dad, so fucking hot.

We make it through Nash’s delicious chicken parm with little flirting, other than the occasional eye-fucking, I suppose. I figured he’d drop sexual innuendos every chance he could get. I even set him up a few times.

“Do you prefer chicken breast or thighs?” I asked him.

He tapped his chin as if in deep thought and said, “Thighs.” I know he loves my breasts, and my thighs as well, but he totallygets off when his face is buried in my cleavage. I mean, when he’s between my legs as well, but he comments on my breasts a lot during sex.

I asked him if he needed ahandin the kitchen when Paisley left to use the bathroom, and he politely declined my help and told me to have a seat at the counter. We’ve been done with dinner for an hour, and the three of us are sitting on the floor around the coffee table in the living room playing Chutes and Ladders.

“Oh, man.” Paisley sticks out her bottom lip in a pout when she lands on the top of a slide.

“Looks like Daddy’s gonna win this one,” Nash says with a teasing grin. He tweaks Paisley’s nose between his fingers and spins.

“DoesDaddyalways win?” I whisper softly so Paisley can’t hear me.

“Not always,” he says with a lift of his shoulder. Again, blowing off my flirting.

He flicks the spinner and moves his guy across the squares, the end in reach. When he lands three spaces from the winning square on the top of a chute, Paisley giggles.

“You’re on my square now. Maybe Miss Kendall will slide down too.”

“I know your tactic, little one.” Nash crosses his arms, pretending to be upset. “You’re working your magic making us all fall to the beginning so you can stay up later.”

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