Page 229 of Broken Daddy

“We want you here, Devi. And so does Hayes. Once he’s in, he’s all in. I think you know that, though, huh? He’s not a man you will ever have to worry will hurt you or be disloyal. You might need to whack him on the head if he becomes too intense over your safety.”

“He’s been talking about wrapping me in bubble wrap. And today I caught him looking up ways to babyproof the cabin. I do know not to drink the cleaning fluid under the sink, you know!”

Zeke threw his head back and laughed. She had to smile.

“Dear Lord. You’re in such trouble with him,” he told her.

“I know. Truth is, most of the time, I like it.” But eventually, she thought they were going to need to have a chat about where the line was.

“Devi! Devi, where are you?” Hayes’ frantic voice hit her and she winced.

“Shit,” she said, trying to stand.

“She’s over here,” Zeke called out, holding her down. “Let him come to you.”

Hayes suddenly appeared. “Fuck, baby. I thought I told you to stay put. What happened? Did you fall over?” He crouched and started running his hands over her. “Does anything hurt? I’m going to go and find Doc. Zeke, stay with her.”

“No. Wait! I’m fine. Really. Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you. But I’m not hurt. I don’t need a doctor.”

“You’re sure?”

“I am. I promise. I just got a bit tired. That’s all.”

He lifted her so they were both standing and hugged her tight. Shit. She shouldn’t have moved away from where he’d left her. She could feel his heart racing.

“We just came over here to talk,” Zeke said, standing as well. “It can be a bit overwhelming with everyone around.”

“I knew it. This was too soon, wasn’t it? We’re going home.” He picked her up in his arms, holding her against his chest.

“Hayes! Hayes, put me down.” She wiggled in his arms.

“Don’t move,” he bossed. “I’m carrying you home. This was too soon. You’re tired. You need to go to bed and rest.”

She groaned. She could just see it now; she was going to end up in bed for the next week. “Hayes, I don’t need to go to bed. I just needed a breather. I feel fine now. Please, put me down.”

“Come on, if you steal her away now they’re just going to want to hold another party,” Zeke said.

Hayes grumbled to himself. “Fine, thirty more minutes that’s all.”

“Yay! Just enough time to make three more s’mores.”

“You can have one more s’more. And I’ll be the one making it. You’re too clumsy to be near fire.”

“Hey! I am not clumsy. I’m graceful, darn it. Graceful!”

“Sure you are, baby.”

48

It was getting cold in here. Devi glanced at the fireplace. She’d never lived in a house with a fireplace before. Not that they seemed that hard to work.

Open the door, shove wood in, bask in the warmth.

Done.

Only, the fire was dying and she didn’t want it to go out. Who knew how long Hayes was going to be? He’d gotten some sort of urgent phone call and had had to rush up to JSI headquarters. And she doubted he’d had a chance to call anyone to come sit with her. Not to mention that the weather was terrible outside. No one would willingly go out in it.

The wood is right there.