Page 25 of Detention with Daddies

They don’t seem like Nick’s tastes.

When he backs into the room to let me have a proper look, I can’t keep the questions at bay anymore. “Where is Ruby’s mom?”

Nick’s jaw works as he looks around the space as if for the first time. My bluntness stalls him for a moment, and I swear he almost looks shy. “Somewhere up north. We’ve been divorced almost a year.”

I nod as I approach, stepping close and dragging a hand up his chest. “That sucks.”

He shrugs at me, covering my hand with his own, right over his heart. It’s beating hard against my palm. “It did. But it doesn’t anymore.”

Nick brushes hair from my face, tracing the curve of my round cheeks.

This time when he leans in to kiss me, I meet him halfway, and it’s somehow more. As soft as our kiss starts, it grows and grows until the teasing shifts into serious need. His arms come around me, pressing our bodies together in a delicious way.

I allow myself the freedom to sink my hand into his hair. It’s so much softer than I imagined, silky between my fingers. And the noise he makes when my grip tightens sends heat throbbing between my legs.

Finally, his palms slide up my back, around my waist, squeezing me with a practiced ease. The confidence I’ve come to expect from him.

Still, he’s not groping me like a teenager, keeping his promise not to make this all about sex.

When he cradles the back of my head in his large hand, I let him tip me back so that his mouth can cascade kisses down my neck. My shaky breath sends a shudder through him.

“You’re so goddamn beautiful, Liv.”

It steals a breathy laugh from me. I’ve seen the kinds of women that throw themselves at him. But as hard as it is to believe him when he says that to me, that’s my baggage. Not his. He’s been showing me this since we met that first day.

So maybe I can believe that he likes the way I look. The shape of my body. Themore to loveI’ve always told myself I am.

His free hand grips my hip, pressing me into him so that I can feel how aroused he is. By me.

I lift my head to look at him, meet those dark blue eyes—blown wide, honest, and raw.

“You’re sweet. Kind. Intelligent. A good dad, which by the way, is so much hotter than I thought.”

Nick laughs, tracing my bottom lip with his thumb.

“I mean you’re hot anyway, but the other things…those are so much more important.” I want him to know that I see him, not just his good looks. Because it seems like that’s all the other women around him see.

What did his ex see? How much of him didn’t she appreciate?

I brush my fingers over his sharp cheekbones and jaw, thumb resting on his chin as we look at each other.

“So, what’s the plan? Should I change into what I brought and crawl into bed, or did you have something else in mind?”

“Mmm.” The noise is nearly a growl, and his hand squeezes my hip again. “And what did you bring with you?”

I tip forward and nip his bottom lip. “You’ll just have to wait and see.”

He lays another kiss on me that has my knees wobbling. Maybe changing into my pajamas might not be the safest option.

When he releases me, the look he gives me threatens to overheat me. I back away slowly, peering over my shoulder to the two doors.

“The one on the left.”

I nod, grab my bag, and slip into the bathroom to change into my sleep shorts and loose tank top. So much of my skin is showing, and it has me a bit self-conscious. Although I already know he’s going to like it, I can’t help but blush when I step out.

The overhead light is off, and the bedside table has a lamp on. The mood of the room is darker, cozier, more sensual.

He’s changed too. Loose gray sweats. No shirt.

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