Page 5 of Daddy Crush (Silver Fox Daddy)

It wasn’t exactly feeding kids, nor was there any milking involved, but I had to admit the colts were pretty sweet. I missed the babies back home a lot, and that was just one more reason God gave me to hate Hoss.

As I wiped down the tables, the sinking sun shone through the front window in the café, highlighting the glint of Duke’s brown eyes and tanned skin as he worked on the espresso machine behind the counter, his biceps bulging. I felt his presence around the café even when he wasn’t there and continuously watched the door for him more than I wanted to admit.

“That should do it, Clover,” he murmured, his dark eyes unreadable as he leaned across the counter and wiped his hands with a kitchen towel, making his forearms flex in a way I found quite disturbing. “You certain you’ve been doing a two-second flush of the shower screen after every brew, like I taught you?”

There it was. That strict command of his which made my entire body fill with an awareness of longing.

Being a barista wasn’t as easy as it looked. I knew farming. I was born into it and remained on my parents’ property way longer than was acceptable in the outside world—the world outside tending animals for a living—because my parents needed me. Raising goats for milk, soap, and cheese, we made enough to maintain the buildings and pay the bills, which was saying a lot nowadays for a small farm. That was another reason I resented that gastropod whose sausage I’d zapped. I wasn’t there to help them anymore.

Even I could see how living at home until age twenty-eight might delay my adolescence. Faith and I had each other for companionship, and living on the land where I’d grown up was easy.

Cozy and familiar. Not exactly an environment that made me want to leave.

But when the back of Duke’s fingers brushed against my arm as he reached for a tea towel, it was worth every ounce of the trouble that brought me here.

A jolt of electricity surged in my blood, and the air became charged with energy as his skin moved lightly against mine. My body erupted into tiny goose bumps, and a hot-cocoa warmth spread through my being, as café mocha flowed through my veins. Sweet, liquid heat that jolted me awake.

I was more alert than I’d ever been in my life.

Every cell in my body awakened in a sudden rush, humming with an electricity I’d never known.

Not including the cattle prod, of course.

“Promise.” I sighed, like all of a sudden, he was a stranger. Someone it pained me to be close to, and it made me ache.

A lot.

Only not in the way I expected. “I listen to what you say. You’re the one in charge.” I whispered, “Boss.”

The words that left his lips could have been stated innocently, but the way they landed between my legs was anything but. “Good girl.”

I tried to keep my expression neutral, but his nutmeg-colored eyes were so determined that I stiffened and colored fiercely. His touch lingered for a moment, then cautiously pulled away, but even then, he held my gaze for a few seconds longer than would be polite.

Was I imagining it? Or in the moment when our eyes locked, did he spark a tiny sprinkling of hope within me? It seemed highly likely there was something here worth exploring beyond the strict boss-employee rapport.

Something I’d never encountered.

A relationship with arealman.

After all, the café was empty.

No one was watching.

What would he do if I hopped on that counter and spread my legs for him to slide between?

Everything he did—his smiles, his jokes, his occasional grouchiness—filled me with an ease I’d been chasing after all my life without even knowing it. Even when he scolded me for improper espresso machine maintenance, I thought it was adorable. And when I laughed at him for being grumpy, it was always like someone popped a pin in his bad temper, which melted away beneath my delight.

That was the word, all right.

Dukedelightedme. And no man, other than my father, had ever accomplished that.

Holy moly.

As evidenced by the way my heart hammered against my ribcage like a wild thing trying to escape its cage, I had a crush on my dad’s best friend.

Later that day, I beamed with pride as I walked into the bank, still wearing my apron from The Daily Grind. It was only my second paycheck. Duke let me handle the bookkeeping, pay bills for the café, as well as make deposits after learning I had a head for numbers and had helped out my parents with the same. I even sent a portion of my wages back home to help my parents. As I counted out the money I had in hand, it felt like an incredible accomplishment—to have cash of my own that I could use however I wanted.

I stepped out of the bank onto the sidewalk, and the anticipation of a new adventure came to life. I peered up at a small boutique shop I’d spotted from afar. The inviting shop, called Spell on You, seemed to ooze with girly secrets, and I was ready to unlock every single glittery, shiny one of them displayed in the window. I entered the doors and was in awe of what I found. Every item captivated my attention, but there was one dress that beckoned me closer—a little black number that matched my curves as if it had been made just for me.

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