“I’ll build you a better she-shed. You can turn the tiny house into your she-shed or have the whole garage. Whatever you want, Cozy. Just don’t leave.”
A squeaking noise has both Max and I turning back to the house where we find Everly and her three uncles pressed up against the window staring at us. As soon as we make eye contact, they all sprint off in different directions, Wyatt nearly knocking Everly over as they attempt to conceal themselves.
I laugh and turn back to Max, running my finger over his sexy brow line. “If you want me to move into the Fletchpad, you’re going to have to fire me as the nanny first.”
He arches a perfect brow and states happily, “You’re fired.” He presses his lips to mine and murmurs against them, “Pack your bags.” He pulls back and gazes down at me to add, “I love you.”
Is firing a kink? If so…sign me up.
“She’s asleep,” Cassandra whispers, glancing down at Everly’s head resting on her lap as her fingers run through my daughter’s blond strands, making me jealous of my own kid.
I’ve missed Cassandra’s hands.
“Should we wake her to go to bed?”
“I can carry her,” I murmur, shifting off the couch and bending over to pick her up. After my brothers left, the three of us got into our pajamas and sacked out on the couch for a movie. Cassandra made popcorn, Everly talked through most of the film, and I made a couple of dad jokes. All in all, it was a pretty boring night.
It was fucking perfect.
I stand with Everly in my arms, and she mumbles something about Uncle Calder. My shoulders shake as I turn and walk around the sofa toward the winding staircase.
Cassandra follows as I make my way up the stairs, careful not to bump Everly’s head. When I reach her darkened room, Cassandra hurries around and pulls the blankets back for me to lay her in her bed.
Our hands touch as we both grab her blanket to tuck her in. I lace our fingers, staring at her in the dark for a moment, both of us absorbing the peaceful sound of Everly’s heavy breaths.
We walk out of her room hand in hand, and before Cassandra can say another word, I turn and press her against the wall, my lips crashing down on hers for a desperate, needy kiss. I barely heard a word my daughter said tonight because all I could think about was that this woman loves me. The real kind of love. The kind of love I don’t doubt.
We break apart, foreheads pressed together as I say, “I’ve been wanting to do that all night.”
Cassandra breathes heavily, her hands folded behind my neck. “Pretty sure we did that by the pool in front of a captivated audience of Everly and your brothers.”
“That was hours ago,” I moan, dipping my head to steal another kiss. “You have no idea how much I’ve missed you.”
She sighs deeply. “Likewise.”
“It was hell being mad at you these past two weeks,” I admit honestly. “Every morning you came in the house, I wanted to grab you and pull you into my room to see if I could fuck you into loving me back.”
Cassandra inhales sharply at my raw confession. She grabs my jaw and forces my eyes to meet hers. “It wasn’t that I didn’t love you, Max. I just needed time to trust that loving you wouldn’t lose me. I was getting there on my own, but honestly, that conversation with Paisley was healing for me on so many levels.”
I nod knowingly. “After seeing who Jenson really was, I knew there had to be more to the story with your coworkers. I can’t imagine anyone ever willingly letting you out of their life.”
Her chin trembles as she scores her hands through my hair, sending shivers down my spine. “I still don’t know why you love me. You’re a successful, amazing single dad with cool friends and a sweet family. You could have anyone, Max. Why on earth would you see a cuddly, twenty-six-year-old nanny on the run from her past who pitched the idea of doing nothing all summer with your kid and think…that’s the woman I’m going to fall in love with?”
My lips part at the bleak description she paints of herself because it’s nothing like the image I see. And if it takes the rest of my life to remind her just how fucking wonderful she is, that is a responsibility I will gladly take on.
I lean back to look her in the eye. “Day one, when Everly yanked you into the pool and injured you…you still wanted to take the fall for her and act like you quit instead of me firing you for not being able to swim. Day fucking one, Cozy.”
“I know but—”
“I’m not done,” I state firmly, pressing my finger to her lips. She smiles meekly and lets me continue. “It was your concept of doing nothing that let my daughter blossom like a flower this summer. Both Jess and I somehow missed the fact that our daughter was burned out and begging to just be a kid for once.”