Page 68 of The Heartbreaker
I built it for two.
Me
Is that so?
Ridge
Are you looking for an invite?
Me
Don’t send one … I won’t be able to say no.
Car line would be the bane of my existence.
The teachers were on a rotation, so every couple of weeks throughout the school year, I would ensure the kids got into the right vehicle. It was the most exhausting part of my day. Everyone was a little more on edge at this hour—the parents rushing through the line; the kids hungry and tired, unafraid to get into any car even if it was the wrong one.
Fortunately, I only had a handful of students left. Daisy ended up being the last one, her tiny fingers tugging on my pant leg, her arm pointing at the black Range Rover that was a few cars back in line.
“That’s my daddy.”
Of course, I knew Ridge was approaching before Daisy even said a word. Not because of the SUV, but because of the way my body reacted when I sensed his stare on me.
A man whose eyes could make me wet.
Whose breath could make me break out in goose bumps.
Whose fingers I could feel even though they hadn’t touched me in days.
Daisy’s fingers clasped mine, startling me out of my thoughts, and she walked me to the edge of the sidewalk where Ridge was pulling up. The passenger window rolled down, and he looked at us through the open space from the driver’s seat.
I instantly got a whiff of his cologne, my heart pounding as the scent swished inside me. But that wasn’t the only thing thatmade me throb. He was dressed in a charcoal-colored suit with a silver tie, the knot loosened at his throat, and the first button of his starched white shirt was undone, showing a hint of his chest. An outfit that was straight-up scorching. And then there was his hair, a tad messy, like my fingers had run through it and tugged the strands, a look that was far sexier than freshly gelled hair.
My God, he was handsome.
A heat was moving across my cheeks. I couldn’t stop it. I couldn’t even attempt to calm it. I was suddenly sweating even though it wasn’t hot outside.
There was just something so vulnerable about standing here with his daughter. It didn’t feel like I was swinging naked around a pole; this felt like I was walking across a stage to get a diploma.
A side of me I was most proud of, and he was seeing it—really seeing it. Unlike when he’d come to my classroom on the first day of school and I was too shocked to appreciate he was there.
But here, with his daughter’s hand clasped in mine, it was completely different.
“Daisy, are you going to properly introduce me to your teacher?” he asked.
His voice had just the right amount of grittiness to it, his smile charming and seductive, his eyes slowly dipping down my body before they met mine again, holding my stare steady.
“Miss Lark, this is Daddy. Daddy, this is Miss Lark.” She giggled.
I squeezed her fingers. “Thank you for the wonderful introduction, Daisy.”
He chuckled. “Miss Lark, I don’t think you want to call me Daddy …” He winked. “My real name is Ridge Cole.”
If my skin was flushed before, it was burning red now. “Addison Lark.” My voice wasn’t much more than a whisper. “It’s nice to meet you.”
“And you,” he said. He glanced at his daughter. “Daze, climb in. We’ve got work to do, kiddo. We need to get your homework done before we meet Uncle ’Ett and Aunt Rowan and Uncle Cooper and Rayner for dinner.”
“Yay!” She released my hand and rushed toward the backseat, pulling at the handle to open the door, which I helped her with. “I wanna feed Rayner like Auntie Row let me do last time. The little noises she makes when she swallows is so cute, Daddy!”
