Page 135 of Delinquent Daddy (Banks/Kincaid Family 2)

Ellie immediately stopped laughing. The smile dropped from her face as she tried to picture Boston kissing some faceless woman behind this very desk.

"But since Kincaid doesn't have a significant other to beat the woman off, he had to let her down himself," Cameron unknowingly reassured her. "And ever the diplomat, he turned her down so gently she didn't quit...but rather moved on to take a try at me."

"Hmm," Ellie answered. She couldn't help the leap of jealousy she felt at some secretary she'd never even met. Not that she could blame the unknown woman, but she thought Olivia had a good idea with the scratching-the-eyes-out thing.

"So, anyway, Boston really needs a good assistant now.

And I know you probably love the job you have, but I'm willing to double your salary if you want to come here. I mean, you're making, what, thirty, forty thousand a year where you are, right? I can easily—"

"Wait a second," Ellie said when it finally struck her what Cameron was saying. " What?!"

"Yeah, I know we'd have to sell Bos on the idea. But if you moved to town to work here, then Cassie would be moving to town as well. And he'd just love that. And—"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Ellie cut in. "Slow down. There's no way I could..."

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Delinquent Daddy

by Linda Kage

It would be emotional suicide to work for Boston. Seeing him every day and not being able to have him? No. Uh-uh.

That wasn't going to happen.

But before she could finish the sentiment, she glanced up and caught Boston leaning against the doorway with his arms crossed over his chest, giving her a curious, single-arched-brow look. The words dropped from her mouth and her face immediately went scarlet. There was no way he could know what Cameron was trying to convince her to do. But she blushed anyway.

Holding out the phone to him, she said, "It's Cameron."

He paused a moment before snagging the phone from her hand. "What?" he asked impatiently. His eyes shifted toward Ellie as he answered the next question, "I have no idea what she's doing here. People keep calling, and I haven't gotten to talk to her yet."

Whatever comment Cameron made caused him to roll his eyes. "No, I'm not going to tell you," he said then and hung up. As soon as the receiver settled into its cradle, the silence in the room filled Ellie with instant trepidation.

Boston shifted his gaze her way. She wasn't sure what to say.

Boston puffed his cheeks with air and blew out a long breath. "So..." he said. "What brings you by?"

"Actually, you're busy." Ellie turned toward the door, ready to flee. "I should've just waited until later and called—"

"Whoa," Boston said, taking her elbow and tugging her back. "You didn't come all the way from Lawrence just because you were in the neighborhood. And if you did just 311

Delinquent Daddy

by Linda Kage

happen to be in town, I doubt you'd stop by merely to answer my phone for a couple of minutes. What's going on? I know it must be about Cassidy. Unless...you changed your mind about us?"

She

lifted her face. When his piercing blue eyes drilled into hers, she was forced to look away. "No, I...it's not about Cassie either. I mean, not directly. Because of her maybe, but not—"

She realized she was rambling and took a brief moment to let out a long breath. Then she looked up and decided to get straight to the point. Just spill it out Band-Aid fast. "I've decided I'll take child support from you after all," she blurted out.

For a moment, he merely stared at her. She could tell it was the last thing he expected her to say.

Then his face cleared. "Ah...okay. I mean..." He glanced away, and she wondered if that was a wince she saw. "Okay,"

he repeated, his voice a little softer.

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