Page 79 of Baby, Be Mine

I wrinkled my nose. “Handy for you, bean is in the way right now.” God, his eyes were such a deep blue. I swung around and headed through the kitchen doors before I did something stupid.

You know, like kissing my boss. And ruining everything.

SIXTEEN

What the hellwas I doing getting that close to her?

She probably thought I was being overbearing. Truth was, I just wanted to drag in more of that fresh laundry scent that seemed to stick to her, the kind that made you want to shove your face into her neck to get a deeper whiff.

Not at all a smart move.

I followed her down the hallway. “Through here.” I pushed the door open from above her head and she sailed through the door.

“Holy crap.”

“Yeah. It’s for deliveries but we have lots of decorations back here for each season as well.”

She spun around, her gaze bouncing around to the labeled tubs stacked on the steel shelves. “Do you have anything in there for me to steal for the MJ2?”

“Maybe. We have some wedding stuff—”

“Yes!”

I laughed. “From weddings where they didn’t want the decorations back. I figured some of it would come in handy.”

“You figured right.”

“Let me show you the lights and then you can dig through the rest.”

“Okay, but I really want to see that one.” She pointed at the box on the middle shelf that was eye level with her. She tipped the top off and started pulling it forward to peek in.

The avalanche of boxes behind it started to tumble her way. I lunged and swept my arm around her waist, dragging her and the baby against me and out of the line of fire. The jolt startled the baby awake and her little fists flared as she wailed.

I turned them both around and into my arms.

“Shit, shit, shit.” Emmaline ran a shaking hand over the baby’s head. “You okay, bean?” Her huge summer sky eyes filled. “So stupid. I’m sorry.”

“Hey, it’s okay.”

“I didn’t even think. I just wanted to look andugh.”Emma sucked back a breath. “She still has this soft spot.” Her lashes starred with unshed tears. “That could have been so bad.”

I gathered her closer as the baby hiccupped a little then settled in between us. “It’s okay. I promise.”

Emma tipped forward to rest her forehead on my chest. “Can you just…for a second. You know?”

“Hold onto you? Yeah, I can do that.”

Her hair brushed my chin. It smelled of sunshine and honey. The golden waves were so inviting, I had to tell myself not to lean in more. She just wanted a little comfort, not me perving on her.

She blew out a breath. “I’m sorry. I know I overreacted, but she was so fussy all last night and I’ve had like four hours of sleep. Then it scared us both.”

“Hey, it’s okay. You’ve been dealing with a lot.”

Her hand brushed my chest as she cupped Adriana’s head and kissed her, then she looked up at me. She was so damn beautiful. Up close, she was even more lovely. The color returned to her cheeks and her lips parted. Her focus dropped to my mouth then swung back up until our gazes collided.

I lowered my head, then I stopped just a breath away from her lips. I pressed my forehead to hers, then stepped back. “I’m sorry.”

She backed away another step and bumped into the box that fell. Something jangled inside, obviously broken and a warped, metallic tune drifted out.

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