Page 47

Forty-Seven

SUNNY

It’s game day, which means Ellie is up with the sun, holding her Blue Devils bow in her hand, patiently waiting for the game, although it’s hours away.

Her little feet kick back and forth while she eats her blueberry pancakes—blueberries for the Blue Devils, of course—and with every little noise she hears, she perks up and gets ready to shout, “Go Blue Devils! ” the second she sees her dad.

I am also perking up with every little noise I hear. Except, I’m perking up for all the wrong reasons, those of which I will keep under lock and key.

Last night was impulsive and sporadic.

The last few times Rhodes and I have been alone together, we’ve blurred the lines. It hasn’t been on purpose, from either of us, but our chemistry is palpable. Now that I’ve let him in, I’m having a very hard time keeping him out.

He was the first thing I thought about this morning.

And then again when I hopped out of the shower and saw what he left on my thigh from our little escape . I grew giddy at the thought of his hands on me again.

Except, there won’t be an again .

The few times we’ve crossed the line are a few times too many. We’re both mature enough to recognize that.

“Go Blue Devils!”

I spin at the sound of Ellie’s high-pitched cheer. Hot coffee splashes out of my mug and onto my hand. A hiss slips from in between my teeth, and the mug clanks to the counter.

Rhodes is over to me in seconds. He takes my hand in his and inspects it with that heavy browline of his.

“You okay?”

I nod quickly. “I’m…” I clear my throat and push thoughts of last night out of my head. “I’m fine.”

Our eyes meet, and I freeze. His lip tugs at the side, and it’s obvious that he’s thinking about last night too.

How can we not?

We’re touching.

Finally, he drops my hand and walks back over to Ellie. I regain my composure quickly and grab my phone as a distraction.

La, la, la. Nothing to see here.

I’m staring at my phone, but I can’t comprehend anything on the screen.

My mind is too captivated by Rhodes’s voice and his conversation with Ellie about the game.

I glance at the two of them sitting at the island. Rhodes steals some pancakes from her plate.

Before I know what I’m doing, I’m placing a plate of blueberry pancakes in front of him.

He looks at it and then to me. Something unreadable flashes across his face.

“I made enough for you too,” I say. “Gotta get you ready for the game.” I wink at him, attempting to be casual.

He is stoic.

What is he thinking?

He stares at me for so long I grow uncomfortable.

Eventually, he takes a bite of his pancake, and now I’m the one who can’t stop staring.

His eyes close, and he inhales. It’s scarily similar to what he looked like last night when he was dick-deep inside of me.

My face grows warm.

I quickly put my back to him.

He chuckles, but I choose to ignore it and pull up our schedule for the day as a distraction.

“So…” I turn and land on Ellie instead of Rhodes, which is difficult because he’s standing above her, braiding her hair with concentration.

“Yeah?” he asks, not bothering to look up from his task.

It’s cute, watching him focus on something so insignificant to many, yet it means so much to him.

“Today is the anniversary of Marco’s wife’s…”

Passing .

It’s a hard day. One that he’ll always dread.

Rhodes glances at me briefly. “I know. I arranged for flowers to be sent to the grave.”

He did?

“You look surprised.”

I smooth my face. “I’m not surprised.”

The look he sends me over his daughter’s head goes right in between my legs. His eyebrow hooks, and the flirty twinkle in his eye tells me he knows I’m lying, and that brings up a whole new set of thoughts.

“What kind of flowers did you send, Daddy?”

Ellie does her best to sit still as Rhodes attempts her braid. She winces a few times, and I quietly laugh. Eventually, I walk over and help.

I slip underneath Rhodes’s arms and am sandwiched between Ellie’s back and his front.

Instead of taking over completely, I place my hands on top of his to guide his fingers. His slow swallow hits the back of my head, but I pretend I don’t hear it and help him braid.

“Sunflowers,” he says.

A shiver rushes down my spine. He takes a step closer.

Sunflowers?

Because of me?

“Every other strand,” I say, moving Ellie’s hair in between our hands.

His presence is too much. He leans forward to get a better look. “Got it.” His breath hits the side of my face.

I turn my head slightly, and he’s right there.

My eyes grow wide.

We can’t be near each other. Not until last night wears off.

I hastily pull my hands away, drop down like there’s a fire, and crawl out from beneath his strong arms.

My hair whizzes past my face when I pop back up.

Rhodes is grinning to himself.

I sort of want to throw my coffee mug at him because he’s certainly not helping the situation.

“Anyway,” I start with a stern voice. “I asked Scottie to pick Ellie and I up for the game since Marco needs the day.” To grieve .

Rhodes catches my eye.

“Is that okay?” I ask.

He nods slowly and puts his attention back on Ellie’s hair.

The braid isn’t bad. I’m proud of him.

“You could just take my truck,” he says, grabbing the bow from the counter and tying the end of the braid with it. Once he’s done, Ellie hops down and runs to the bathroom to check her braid in the mirror.

“Your truck?” I’m shocked. “You trust me enough to drive the second love of your life?”

The first being Ellie, of course.

I suspect some type of humorous response or a glint of amusement in his green eyes, but instead, I get the serious version of him. He walks away for a second and comes back to the kitchen with his keys in hand. “I trust you .” He reaches across the island. “I thought I made that clear.”

He lifts his palm, revealing the keys. Before I can pull them toward me, he traps my hand there. A spark jolts me.

“Don’t wreck it,” he warns. “And you’ll have to wait for me after the game so we can leave together. I’ll have one of the guys pick me up while you take Ellie to school this morning.”

The heat from our hands touching rushes to my cheeks.

Rhodes observes me, and when he smirks, I know he knows.

Last night didn’t get him out of my system.

Not even in the slightest.

As soon as he lifts his hand, I back away with his keys pressed against my chest.

I can’t get away from him fast enough.

He looks disappointed but pleased at the same time.

I can’t help but say something.

“Stop looking at me like that,” I demand.

“Like what, Sunshine?” He glances at Ellie through the opening in the kitchen.

“Like you’re thinking about last night,” I say quietly.

Those green eyes darken, and I lose my confidence. “Of course I’m thinking of last night,” he admits. His palms lay flat on the counter, and he drops his head. “You’re going to have to be the reasonable one.”

My phone vibrates against the counter, but I can’t be bothered to look at it. “The reasonable one?”

He flicks his gaze to me, and my heart flips. “You’re going to have to tell me no when I come begging.” A swallow moves against his neck, his Adam's apple catching my attention. The veins on his arms start to bulge like he’s already having a hard time holding himself back.

It should scare me.

But it entices me.

His gaze lazily makes its way down my body, and butterflies fill my stomach. “Because trust me, Sunshine.” He pins me with a dark look. “I will come begging.”

My mouth parts, and he notices. He curses in Russian—something I recognize now—and turns to stalk toward Ellie.

This is messy.

I’m the one who has to keep it together?

How the hell am I supposed to do that?

I sigh and glance at my phone with dirty thoughts continuing to dance inside my head.

But as soon as I see an unfamiliar text, they disappear.

The grip on my phone grows heavy. I reread the message on the screen and grow nauseated.

Unknown: Is this Ally Edwards?

Ally.

My phone slips through my fingers and crashes to the floor. I catch the eye of Rhodes and Ellie both staring at me from the living room.

I play it off well and dip down to retrieve it.

Before standing upright again, I exhale and get my bearings together.

Not many people call me Ally, and if it’s him, there’s no way I’m texting back to let him know he has the correct number.

I quickly block the number.

There.

At least one problem is solved.

I brush away my nerves and busy myself in the kitchen.

I woke up this morning full of giddiness because of Rhodes, but now, I’m full of dread, which is probably just the wake-up call that I needed.