Page 20 of Hat Trick (Titans Hockey #1)
Like hell I can't. I should have been there.
It should have been me with Annie taking the hit.
I search her face for something. She's reassured me already, but I still have a ball of nerves in my stomach.
She takes the water bottle from me and hisses as she washes her knees with water, blotting the scrapes with the napkins.
"You protected her." I whisper, still uneasy.
"Of course. Wouldn't you?"
I would, of course, I'm her father. But would anyone else have?
That could have ended so much worse than it did.
Emily could have gotten seriously injured, but she didn't even hesitate to put herself in harm's way to protect Annie.
I've liked and appreciated Emily this entire time.
I've resisted my attraction to her this entire time.
But this? This selfless display of protecting and loving my daughter. I'm starting to fall for my nanny.
I press myself between her thighs and pull her against me, resting my head on her chest. From her spot on the tailgate, she's a few inches taller than me.
"Oof." She groans at the sudden contact.
She wraps her arms around my shoulders, water bottle and napkins still in hand, before giggling, and resting her cheek on top of my head.
"I don't think you know how amazing you are." I say, loving the feel of her in my arms. This is where she's meant to be. Holding Annie or letting me hold her.
I pull back just enough to take her cheek in one of my hands and press a kiss against her lips.
"Oh," she says against my lips.
I pull back, terrified I've crossed a line she didn't want me to cross. "Too far?"
She shakes her head with a small smile. "No, just surprising.
" I take that as an invitation to kiss her again.
I mold my lips to hers. I've been dreaming about how her lips would feel for months.
To finally have them is better than any dream.
She's soft, supple, and when I lick the seem of her lips, she parts for me.
The napkins and water bottle drop as she tangles her hands in my hair, angling to deepen the kiss.
She presses her chest into mine and I swear I've never been harder.
I pour everything in this kiss. My appreciation for her, my gratitude, my longing, my love.
I pull away before I lose all control and slide aside that tiny bathing suit and take her on the tailgate of my truck. I press my forehead against hers, eyes shut, breathing hard.
"I'm sorry." I whisper.
"Don't apologize. That was the best kiss of my life."
"Even better than Luca's?"
I open my eyes to watch her reaction. She blushes hard, her smile falling a little.
"He told you about that?"
I chuckle. "Yeah. We tell each other everything. I'm just angry you wore his jersey first. I should have asked you a long time ago. I mean, you are my nanny, not his."
Her smile returns and we stand there for a long moment, my hand still holding her head, her hands playing with the hair on the nape of my neck.
A loud clearing of a throat behind us has us jumping apart. The rookie's approaching my truck, rubbing the back of his neck.
"I just wanted to make sure you were okay. I'm really, really sorry. I should have been watching where I was going."
Emily shoots him a reassuring smile and my chest tightens. I'm a selfish bastard and want all of her smiles. Not this fucking guy.
"It's fine. Really. Don't worry about it. Just a flesh wound. "
The rookie chuckles. "Alright, Black Knight. Let me know if I can make it up to you sometime."
This fucking guy. Is he really flirting with her while I'm standing right here?
"She said she was fine." I growl, shooting dagger at him. Emily places her small hand on my shoulder, begging me to calm down. The rookie waves at her before jogging back to the beach.
"Jealousy's a good look on you, Carter." Emily croons next to me. I grumble some half-assed response that causes her to laugh harder.
We finish cleaning up her scrapes before heading to the reception cabin and getting some larger band aids.
"Do you want to go home after that?" I ask her. She wraps her hand around the crook of my arm, leaning on me as she walks.
"Of course not! I'm just a little sore. I'll stick to the chairs. I don't know how you guys do that every night. Get pummeled into the boards and walk the next day?"
I lead her over to the chairs. Luca and Gabe fawn over her, worried, asking how she is.
"You guys worry too much! I'm a little scraped and might have a bruise or two tomorrow, but I'm fine.
Really. Ben already apologized and offered to make it up to me.
" She says, shooting me a lopsided grin.
This brat. She's going to rub it in my face every day now, isn't she. Luca and Gabe bristle, too.
"Did he now?" Gabe says, searching the beach for 'Ben'.
"You know his name?" Luca asks, a frown marring his handsome face.
She shrugs. "Of course I do. Fan. Remember?
" She says pointing to herself. She laughs before making grabby hands at Annie.
"How's my Annie girl?" She coos as Gabe sets her into Emily's lap.
Annie's eyes immediately go to the band aids, and she reaches out to touch one.
"Smart girl." She says before looking at me.
"She noticed something was different immediately.
You're going to have your hands full with this one. "
"We. We're going to have our hands full.
" I reply. I know eventually Annie will go to school, but I can't imagine my life without Emily in it.
I'll keep her on as nanny. Or part-time nanny.
If I'm still playing, Annie will need Emily while we're at away games.
Or we could homeschool. I bet Emily would be great at that.
I'm spiraling. I'm terrified of a future that may not have Emily in it. I can't tie her to her bed, though. I don't own her. But fuck, the day she leaves us will break me. I need to make sure that day never comes.
I'm going to woo her, make her fall in love with me so she never leaves. I need to talk to the boys.
We need a game plan. If one of us fucks this up and she's leave us it'll not only break my heart, but Annie's too. And I'll gnaw off my own arm before I let that little girl down.
Operation make-Emily-stay is on.