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Presley thought about Kayne’s words for the rest of the ride home. Why couldn’t she move? Yes, she loved her position on the CObrA Securities team and her coworkers, but it was only a job. Dominic, Gia, and Major were her heart. Her home.

True, she’d never thought about returning to Serenity Shores permanently. Presley had been so eager to get away when she was younger. She’d never looked back, nor had any desire to revisit it, especially after her parents had moved away. As lovely as her hometown was, it would forever hold memories of Gwen. Good and bad. Now, there would be reminders of Margy, Nancy, and Charmaine. Everything had been tainted. Presley wasn’t sure she wanted to deal with that every day.

As much as she loved Dominic, she didn’t want to resent him for uprooting her life. Bosses like Luke Colton and Logan Bradley were few and far between. They’d believed her—believed in her—when she’d been at her lowest. Presley had been coming from a job she’d quit because of accusations of her boss attacking her. They’d only had her word. No one else had listened to her. They had. That meant the world to her.

With a deep inhale, Presley weighed each side. Beloved job. New love. When it came down to it, Dominic and Gia won every single time. She simply didn’t want to live without them. What was an excellent career without the people who made you happy?

Presley was feeling optimistic when Kayne navigated the driveway to the house. The fatigue that had plagued her earlier was replaced with a giddiness boarding on hyperactivity. She wanted to proclaim her love as soon as she saw Dominic.

“Make him work for it.”

“Uh, what?”

“I know you, Presley. You want to run inside and declare your love to Dominic. Am I right?”

Yes. “No.”

Kayne chuckled. “If you’re going to quit your job for him, at least make him grovel at your feet.”

Kayne dumped rain on her parade, but he was right. She deserved some concessions for her life-altering decision.

“Presley!”

Presley barely had time to brace herself upon entering the house before sixty pounds of girl and seventy pounds of canine attacked her. She absorbed the blows, scooping Gia up with one arm while scratching Major with the other. Once they’d both calmed down, she looked up and met Dominic’s eyes. Oh, my, she loved him. There was no choice. Disregarding Kayne’s suggestion, she opened her mouth to tell him. “Dom—”

“Who are you?” Gia’s question cut her off.

“Hello, Gia.” Kayne bent over to shake her tiny hand. “My name’s Kayne. I work with Presley.”

“You do?”

“I do, cher. It’s nice to meet you.”

Gia giggled. “My name isn’t Cher.”

“That’s a term of endearment in Cajun. I’m originally from Louisiana.”

“Ooh, I like it.”

“I could also address you as la petite fille or ma belle .”

Gia covered her mouth and giggled again, obviously smitten with Kayne. “Were you named after Adam and Eve’s son?”

“Well, no, but it’s pronounced the same way. My maman’s name was Kay, and my papa was Neil. They decided to combine them and came up with Kayne.”

“I like it.”

“Why, thank you, ma belle . I guess it’s better than Neka.”

More little girl chortles. “You want to make friendship bracelets with me, Kayne?”

“I’d love to.”

She grabbed his hand and tugged him away. Presley gaped at Gia. She’d been replaced with a six-five, two-hundred-thirty-pound beefcake.

“Welcome to my world,” Dominic whispered in her ear.

“You’re going to have your hands full with her in a couple of years.”

Dominic paled. “Don’t remind me.”

Presley smiled, wanting to be with him every step of the way as Gia transitioned from girl to teenager to young woman. Would he want her by his side?

As Gia guided Kayne into the living room, Presley called out, “I’m going to shower.”

“Me too,” Dominic echoed, then yanked Presley up the steps. She tried not to giggle like Gia as they hurried to her room. When they reached her bed, he stripped her in record time. The laughter instantly fled, replaced with groans and moans. Their hands and mouths were frantic with need. Then he entered her, and she gasped at the incredible sensations.

“I’m sorry. I couldn’t wait another second.”

“So good,” she managed, as he stole her breath. He didn’t let her bask in the first climax before driving her to the next one. Maybe it was facing death earlier or her decision to uproot her life for love, but this was the most explosive, overwhelming experience of her life. Multi-colored fireworks exploded, a cacophony of bells chimed, and Presley lost her mind. She wasn’t sure she could move.

They made good on their claim of bathing by showering together to conserve water. However, that backfired because they made love again under the hot spray and probably used gallons more than necessary.

After they dressed, Dominic went downstairs first, even though Kayne had already figured out their relationship. When Presley walked into the living room, Gia jumped up.

“There you are, Presley!”

Gia threw her arms around her, and Presley hugged her back. Gia handed her a bracelet.

“I made this for you.”

“Thank you, honey.” She read the letters W, W, P, and D. “What does it mean?”

“When the bad man kidnapped me, the only way I got through it was thinking, what would Presley do? You gave me strength.”

Tears flooded Presley’s eyes, and, with a sob, she scooped Gia into her arms. Gia squeaked, but she didn’t care. This girl was so precious. There was no way she could leave her.

#

Dominic watched Presley interact with his daughter and wondered if he’d made a critical mistake. It had been his idea to have Presley stay with them when she first arrived. He hadn’t anticipated Gia falling in love with her as much as he had. His daughter had gone through so much in her short life. His job was to shield her, and he’d failed. He hadn’t protected her heart.

“Hurt her, you and I will have an échauffourée, bon ami .”

Kayne’s voice snapped Dominic from his thoughts. “What the hell are you saying?”

Kayne leaned forward. “Hurt Presley, you and I will battle, my friend. Capiche ?”

“Who are you, the Godfather?” Dominic wanted to slug the man, but Kayne had been a Navy SEAL. He didn’t play fair. Dom had already seen him in action with the Vulcan death grip thing. He didn’t want to encounter that again. “Besides, I don’t plan on it. Maybe you should have this conversation with her.”

Kayne leaned back with a smug smile. “Already have.”

“She’s going to leave.”

“Don’t let her.”

Dominic narrowed his eyes. “There are nothing but terrible memories for her here. She loves her job.”

“Ask me, she loves you more.”

Dominic’s pulse triple-timed it. Could he be right? Suddenly, Dom found himself unloading everything on Kayne, telling him how Gia hated it here and how he’d thought about moving somewhere that didn’t remind her of her abusive mother.

“Karma stepped in and gave you the perfect opportunity,” Kayne remarked. “If you’re willing to relocate, why not join Presley in Indiana?”

Before Dominic could answer, Gia skipped back into the room. “Kayne and I made this for you, too, Daddy.”

She handed him one of her bracelets with the same W, W, P, D, letters. What Would Presley Do? Dominic hugged her. “Thank you, baby. I love it.” She smiled as he rolled it on his wrist.

“Can we watch You vs. Wild ?”

She’d been through so much that Dominic would’ve let her watch Spongebob Squarepants if she wanted. He shuddered, hearing the theme song he’d heard way too many times reverberating through his head. Who lives in a pineapple under the sea . . .

“Daddy?”

“Sure, baby.”

“Yay! Come on, Presley, Kayne, we’re going to watch my favorite show. I’ll make popcorn!”

Once everyone had a bowl of the buttery treat, they settled in the living room, with Major snoring away in his bed. It only took ten minutes of the show before Gia was out like a light.

“I’m going to put her to bed,” Dominic whispered, scooping her into his arms. He hated that he wouldn’t be able to hold Presley tonight, but his daughter was his priority, always.

Gia woke and groggily held out her hand to Presley. “Come with us.”

“I’ll take Major out and ensure the alarms are set,” Kayne offered.

Dom tipped his chin at Kayne. “Thanks.”

He carried Gia into Presley’s room with the bigger bed and placed her in the middle. He climbed in one side, and Presley slid in the other. Dom was afraid he wouldn’t be able to sleep, but with the two most important people in the world safely beside him, he drifted off to dreamland.