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“Hey, I might be engaged, but that doesn’t make me blind. No, your Captain Matt ishawt!”

Darcy had a flashback to him standing there, shirt undone, with what looked like a truly impressive erection trying to get out. She wanted to see that erection. Hell, she’d wanted to more than see it. She’d craved it deep inside her, where it had no right to be. Even now, just the memory made her all hot and wet and needy. She shifted in her seat and sighed. This whole thing would be easier if he was short, fat, and bald. “Yeah, he’s sort of stuffy. He likes to have rules, and he likes everything set out just so. And I’m…”

“Chaos incarnate?” Regan suggested.

She liked that, though it was probably a bit of an exaggeration. She just didn’t do well within confines, whether mental or physical. It had made prison super hard for her.

“Anyway, it was a bad idea, and it won’t be repeated.”

“Why?” Summer asked.

“Because, while in most things we are total opposites, I suspect neither of us is the happily-ever-after type. And we’re all Lulu’s got, so we need to find a way to get on. Sex will only complicate that. I need to stay objective.” Which meant she’d never get to see that erection for real. Life wasn’t fair. But there were other erections, which came with fewer complications. She glanced around her. The place was busy and there were lots of men around. One of them at the bar caught her gaze and smiled. She looked away. Perhaps she just wasn’t ready for dating yet.

“Maybe you’re right,” Regan said. “And are you convinced he’s not like Steven?”

“I think so. Though every time we meet, I get this overwhelming urge to wind him up. See what it takes to make him lose his temper. But so far, the only time he’s come near to it is when I suggested he might be like his brother.”

“That’s good. What happened to his parents? I take it they’re not around.”

“They’re alive. But they immigrated to Australia when Steven was sixteen—or so Emma told me. Steven went with them but came back five years later. Matt stayed here. He was a year older than Steven and he’d just joined the army.”

“Which would explain why they weren’t close,” Summer said.

“Yes. And Emma told me Steven had a sister born soon after they left.” Another aunt. Maybe one day Lulu would meet her. It would be nice for her to have some other family. But Australia was so far away.

Time to change the subject. “So, what do I do if I’m in the middle of a crowded place and Lulu starts screaming?”

“Run,” Regan suggested.

Definitely the blind leading the blind.

“I have an idea,” Regan said. “I know someone who’s had vast amounts of experience with children.” She pulled out her phone and pressed a number. “Mom, we have an emergency. How do you fancy a chocolate martini?” A minute latershe put her phone away. “She’s on her way.”

…

He was nervous.

There, he’d admitted it.

Though nervous wasn’t quite the right word. On edge? Wary? Horny?

Don’t go there.

He’d been trying not to think about Darcy over the last couple of days. He’d been busy at work, which was good; it took his mind off sex. Diana, the new nanny, was working out well. She was a lovely woman. Lulu liked her and was behaving better than he’d ever known her to. He was also pretty sure Diana was interested in him but too professional to make it obvious. Which made him respect her more. She was the sort of woman he should be seeing.

He had a training exercise coming up in a couple of weeks. He would be away, out of the country for five days. He was hoping she’d stay over. If not, he wasn’t sure what he would do. Though that had been part of the arrangement with the agency. He hadn’t been on active duty since before Steven died, and he was eager to get back. This new role was something he’d been working toward.

A little niggle of guilt prodded him in the middle. He glanced to where Lulu sat on the floor, her expression concentrated, a small frown on her face as she tried to put a puzzle together.

The work would be dangerous, and he had responsibilities now.

What if he were killed? What would happen to Lulu? He didn’t think Darcy would want the obligation of a child full time, despite the effort she’d expended to be part of Lulu’s life. He suspected, reading between the lines, that much of that was due to guilt. And because her sister had asked her.

Maybe his parents would step in. He’d half expected them to offer when Steven died. But money was tight, and only his father had made it to the funeral. His mother had stayed in Australia with his sister, and the subject hadn’t come up. Maybe he needed to talk to his mom.

Through the window, he saw Darcy walking up the driveway. She was right on time—no doubt making an impression, since he was guessing she wasn’t normally the punctual type.

She wore the same black dress she’d worn the other morning. It almost touched the ground. Over it, she wore a denim jacket, and she had flat black boots on her feet, and a big black bag over her shoulder. If it was any consolation, she looked nervous as well. Her lower lip was caught between her teeth.