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Chapter Four

BODE

“W hy won’t he stop crying?” I plead to no one in particular.

I’m exhausted. It has been nothing but screaming and crying for the last week. Caleb has been with me for a month. Add in getting peed on this morning, and I’m ready for the day to be over.

It hasn’t been the easiest month I’ve ever had, but I thought we were settling into a good routine.

That was what Harper drilled into my head. Routine. Babies thrive on routine.

Thank God it was the offseason because I don’t think I’d be able to adjust to having a son during the regular season.

Which also causes new waves of panic to surface because I don’t know how I’m going to make that work.

“I can see you’re borrowing trouble,” Gran tells me as she walks inside.

“What? No, I’m not.”

Grabbing the half-empty coffee pot, she gets a mug from the cupboard and pours herself a cup. “Honey, I have raised you more than half your life. I see that face. You’re worried.”

“Why won’t he stop crying?”

“Have you fed him?” Gran asks.

“Yes.”

“Changed him?” She drops down onto a bar stool, kicking one leg over the other.

“Obviously.”

Gran rolls her eyes at me. “Well, maybe he’s just fussy. It happens with babies.”

I sway Caleb in my arms. Tears wet his eyes as his bottom lip sticks out in a pout before he lets out a wail.

“Wait.” He’s flat-out screaming right now, but I think I’ve found the source of annoyance. “Is he getting teeth?”

“Let me see.” Gran walks around the table and rubs a finger around in his mouth. “Oh, poor baby. He is cutting teeth.”

“What do we do?”

Gran pats me on the shoulder and walks around to the freezer. “Let him chew on this.”

She passes me a soft, squishy ring that is ice cold. Holding it up to Caleb, I wait for him to take it. His cries aren’t as loud but he’s not taking it. “C’mon, bud. It’ll help.”

A loud noise filters in from outside. Now what? Whatever it is causes Caleb to start screaming again.

“Oh, that must be Stevie.” Deb flutters out of the kitchen.

“Stevie?” I question.

Stevie? Who the hell is this Stevie person? The last thing I need is another person in this house. I’m already at the limit.

“Oh, good.” Gran leaves the kitchen, heading out to the entryway. Following her, I now see there is a new woman standing there.

“Okay, what in the world is going on?”

My gaze flits between the two older women, who have guilty looks on their faces. “Same question. What in the world is going on?”

As if there’s not enough people in my house, this woman walks in looking just as confused as I do. Although, her confused face is a hell of a lot sexier than mine.

Not that I need to be thinking about that.

Absolutely not.

“Bode William Adams. You do not speak to someone like that.” Gran smacks the back of my head. “Stevie is a guest here.”

“She said it first,” I defend.

“Well, Stevie really isn’t a guest,” Deb corrects.

“Not a guest?” I question. Not only is Caleb still screaming, but a headache is starting to settle between my eyes. “You two need to tell me what is going on.”

“Stevie is going to be staying with us for a while.”

“She is?”

“I am?”

We question at the same time. Her blue eyes lock on to mine and damn. Even though she doesn’t have the first clue what’s going on, they’re beautiful.

A blue like the sparkling night sky.

Two seconds in this woman’s presence and I’m comparing her eyes to the night sky? What is wrong with me? I must be losing my mind.

An elbow to the side stirs my thoughts. “What?”

“I said Stevie is going to be staying with us while she gets back on her feet.”

“And when did you run this by me?”

Gran crosses her arms and turns to me. “Since when do you kick people out of your house?”

“I’m not kicking anyone out. I’m just trying to figure out when I missed someone else moving in.”

“Wait, you didn’t know?” this Stevie woman asks me. “Nan. Are you serious?”

“You needed a place to stay and you were going to stay with me. It’s only a slight change of address.” Deb shrugs her shoulders like it’s not a big deal.

I fight the groan. Clearly the two of us are in this together. When Gran moved in last month to help with Caleb, I didn’t realize her best friend, Deb, was also a part of the deal. Something about how Gran needed a partner in crime to help her out.

I didn’t realize helping out with Caleb required two sets of hands, but who was I to argue? I should have prodded deeper, because now, apparently, I’m getting another houseguest.

One that is much closer in age to me.

One that keeps drawing my eyes away from the troublemakers in question to her.

“Gran, can I talk to you for a minute?”

“I’ll take Caleb.” Deb takes the now calm baby from my arms.

“Thank you.” Stalking toward the office, I wait for Gran to pass and close the door behind her. “Explain. Now.”

“Deb’s granddaughter needs a place to stay.”

“I don’t mean to be rude, but why did you offer my place without talking to me?”

“Because Stevie is going through a hard time and needs to stay with her Nan.”

I sigh, pinching the bridge of my nose. “You realize I have an eight-month-old, right? Do you think she really wants to stay with a baby who is now teething?”

Add that to my list of worries. Teething.

“And you have me and Deb here to help. You are going to go out and tell Stevie she is welcome here as long as she needs. We didn’t kick you out, did we?”

Gran cocks an eyebrow at me as she pins me with a stare that says I should not mess with her. I hate that look. It’s one I can’t argue with, no matter how much I want to.

“You know this is my house, right?”

She shrugs a shoulder. “So? I would have gladly moved in here and kicked you to the curb to stay with that sweet baby boy of yours.”

“Gee, thanks. Love you too.”

Gran pats my cheek. “I know you do, and I love you more than you’ll ever know. Now, go be the man I raised you to be and invite Stevie to stay with us.”

I blow out a breath and do what she says. By the time we get back to the entryway, Caleb is gnawing on his ring as Stevie coos at him. Drool slides down his chin.

“He’s cute,” Stevie tells me.

“Thanks.”

“Look, I can go,” Stevie says. “You have a lot going on?—”

“It’s fine. You can stay here,” I interject.

A hand brushes my back and I swear it’s a warning shot from Gran. Fuck. I’m doing exactly what she asked. I’m being polite. It’s not like she raised me in a barn. I can be polite. I’d flip her off…except that wouldn’t be polite.

“I don’t want to impose.”

“C’mon. I’ll show you to your room.” I don’t leave any time for response and start jogging up the stairs.

Probably for the best for me to lead the way. I don’t need to stare at her ass as I show her to her new living space.

“I’m going to apologize right now for my Nan,” Stevie says. “I’m sorry she sprang this on you, and I’m sorry she’s staying with you.”

I snort a laugh. “She’s just like my Gran, so it’s really not that bad.”

“They’re two peas in a pod, aren’t they?” Stevie smiles at me.

Damn. I really shouldn’t like it as much as I do. It’s soft and sweet and is doing funny things to my insides.

Get a grip, Bode. It’s a fucking smile. You’re not a teenager who has never seen a woman before.

“I’m sorry in advance.” I sweep my arm out toward the only unoccupied room in the house. “I haven’t been in here since I got Caleb.”

“What?” She looks confused. “Since you got him?”

Two queen beds butt up against one another. A potted plant sits in the corner, and a box of knickknacks sits on the dresser. Books are stacked haphazardly on the desk chair that somehow ended up here.

“Story for another time. I’ll work on getting all of this out of here today.”

She shakes her head at me. “I can handle it. It’s the least I can do.”

“And have my Gran yell at me for making you do it? No.”

“I’ll be out of your hair before you can even move it,” Stevie says. “I don’t want to overstay my welcome.”

“Take as long as you need.”

“Are you sure?”

Stevie is standing in the middle of my guest room.

“It’s fine. What’s one more person in the house?”

“You won’t even notice I’m here. I promise.”

“Make yourself at home,” I tell her.

It’s better than what I actually want to say. Because I’ve already noticed her. And Stevie’s presence in this house won’t go unnoticed.

I shouldn’t want her to stay. Stevie is a walking temptation. A sin I wouldn’t mind repeating over and over again. But she’s off-limits. The forbidden fruit.

Her best friend’s granddaughter? Gran would castrate me if I tried anything with her. I’d like to keep my balls attached to my body.

Besides, I haven’t been with another person since Caleb was dropped off at my doorstep.

I’ve been fine with that. My son is my only priority. Right up until this very moment, I was okay with it. I love Caleb. Even in these few short weeks, it’s hard to imagine my life without him.

I would do anything for him.

It’s a cruel twist of fate that the sexiest woman I’ve ever laid eyes on is now staying two doors down the hall from me.

Fuck. I really need to figure out a way to get this woman out of my head because otherwise, it’s going to be a long few weeks.