His energy was a black storm as he stalked towards me. He leaned down and grabbed the flowers before motioning for me to get in.

  I smiled sweetly, but it didn’t reach my eyes. “Thank you.”

  I got back in the limo and buckled in across from Jud and Collin, next to Joe. I closed my eyes and took some deep breaths in and out, trying my best to get back to my good mood so I could be present for Kendall. I felt Joe shift beside me but I ignored him. He was lucky I wasn’t violent because I would’ve loved to jab one of my heels into his toes.

  Joe stretched his arm out behind me and chuckled under his breath when I leaned forward so his arm wouldn’t touch me. I shot him a dirty look and he smirked. “I think you might be my karma.”

  I scoffed. “That’s rude!”

  I heard Jud and Collin laughing across from us and tried to glare over at them but something about seeing them laughing together took the wind out of my sails. I sighed and even smiled before rolling my eyes.

  Joe leaned over and whispered to me. “Thank you.”

  I looked up at him and searched his face. “You have to be better. For Kenny.”

  He turned away from me but I saw him nod ever so slightly. “By the way, I heard from Ken’s mom earlier. She’s coming.”

  My eyebrows climbed my forehead and I made a strangled noise. “Oh?”

  “Yeah. She’d booked some ridiculous world cruise with her boyfriend and apparently it wasn’t everything she had in mind.” He shrugged. “It’ll be a fun surprise for Kendall.”

  I’d reread through the small part of the binder Collin had handed me the first day about custody agreements and moms. There had been times listed for the school year but since the summer time slots weren’t filled out, I just didn’t question it. I’d ignored the rule about not talking about the kids’ moms after hearing the kids mention their maternal parents in passing and I knew enough but the idea of meeting Joe’s ex made me feel weird. I wasn’t sure what to expect.

  “Are Kenny and her mom close?”

  “Yeah, I guess. She stays with her mom part time during the school year, unless her mom decides to go on a world cruise. Then she stays with us full time.” Joe played with one of my loose curls like it was the most natural thing to do. He also kept sneaking glances down my dress but I pretended not to notice.

  “Does she do that a lot? Go on world cruises?” I shuddered. “How long does that last? The world’s a big place.”

  “Nine months.” He outright laughed at the horror on my face. “Yeah. Angie only made it three.”

  “Nine months on a boat? No, thank you. No amount of money would get me to agree to that. The same people for nine months straight, all confined to one space? Nope.”

  “You know you’ve spent a ninth of that time confined to the house with us, right?” Collin helpfully added.

  “That’s different. You guys are…you.” I realized how that sounded and rushed to fix it. “I mean, there’s only three of you. The kids are amazing and don’t count. I can handle three pains. On that cruise, who knows how many pains there are? There could be hundreds.”

  “You like us.” Jud grinned at me and it took my breath away.

  I rolled my eyes and looked over at the twins. “Are you guys excited to see Kenny in her play?”

  Avery rolled his eyes. “I’d rather be playing Mario.”

  Alex nodded. “I heard Tim’s parents leave him home alone. We’re old enough. We could’ve stayed home.”

  Collin scoffed. “Tim’s parents are idiots.”

  “What I think your dad means is that Tim’s parents are…idiots… Yeah, I’m sorry. I tried my hardest. Tim is your age? You’re still so young. Anything could happen. What if there was a fire? Or an intruder? Of course, in your mansion, it’d take the intruder two months to search everywhere for you.” I shook my head and then saw that they were all staring at me. “What?”

  Avery groaned. “You sound like a mom.”

  Seeing an opportunity to mess with the guys, I rested my hand on my stomach. “I am a mom.”

  Joe choked while Collin stopped breathing and Jud just stared at my stomach. Avery and Alex looked back and forth at each other before Alex shrugged and they both went back to their own world.

  “Kidding! I’m kidding!” I grinned. “Oh, my god. You should see your faces.”

  Dirty looks came my way but I was okay with that. Before any of them could lecture me, we were pulling up to the Gingham Performing Arts Center.

  I leaned over Joe and saw that we were in a line of cars, some of them limos like ours. As I watched car after car unload I was so grateful for Collin and the dress. “Collin, you angel.”

  Joe grunted and frowned down at me to where I was practically in his lap. “I’m the angel. Not everyone could put up with your threats, you know?”

  I tapped the end of his nose and smiled. “Get your smile ready, Mr. Grump.”

  35

  ***Collin***

  The play ended and Ada was on her feet, cheering Kendall’s name. Jud and I looked at each other and shrugged before joining her. Joe, Alex, and Avery couldn’t resist, either. We cheered hard, despite all the looks we got. Kendall looked horrified on stage, but her eyes were bright and I could tell she was secretly thrilled to have everyone at her play, supporting her. Ada deserved all the credit. She was willing to fight for the kids and it was sexier than I ever imagined it could be.

  After the play, everyone milled about in the entrance hall, waiting for their kids. Ada looked regal with her shoulders back and her curves shining in the dress I’d picked out for her. She was almost as tall as us in the heels and I had completely inappropriate thoughts about fucking her with those heels on. She glanced my way and when our eyes met, she grinned and winked before turning back to Kendall. My stomach clenched with desire and I had to look away.

  “Who’s the girl?” Angie’s voice in my ear was definitely a mood killer.

  I turned to face Joe’s ex-wife and forced my face to stay neutral. I hateed the woman. She was even worse than my ex-wife and I refused to even think about my ex so that was saying something. “Angie. Good to see you.”

  She crossed her arms and eyed Ada suspiciously. “Don’t waste my time, Collin. Who is she?”

  I noticed the man next to Angie eyeing Ada, too, and my neutrality vanished. “Have you even spoken to your daughter yet?”

  I didn’t wait for her to respond, I just walked over to Joe and cleared my throat. Nodding towards Angie, I did my due diligence before wrapping my arm around Ada’s waist and guiding her towards a quiet spot in the corner of the room.

  She looked up at me when I pulled her to a stop and immediately reached up to straighten my bowtie. “Good evening, Mr. Carrington. How can I help you?”

  I ducked my head and shoved my hands in my pockets so I wouldn’t grab her. “I just thought you might need a break. Wrangling a crowd of Carringtons is a lot for most people.”

  “Good thing I’m not most people.” She looked down at her dress. “I really don’t know how to thank you, Collin. I didn’t feel like the help at all tonight. I mean, I am the help. I’m the nanny, of course. It was just nice to pretend to be one of you tonight.”

  Throwing caution to the wind, I gripped her hips and tugged her into my chest. “You’re not just the help and I think you know that.”

  She let out a breathy laugh and bit her lower lip. “Collin, people are watching.”

  I kissed her then, long and languidly, tasting the mint she’d snuck during intermission. My dick hardened and I moaned against her mouth before pulling back to press my forehead to hers. “I don’t care.”

  It was a swift kick to realize that I didn’t. After my failed marriage, I’d kept all trysts and dalliances private. I didn’t want to be publicly connected to another loss. With Ada, I didn’t care that the people who talked the loudest in our community were watching.

  “Spend the night with me tonight.” The words were out before I could stop them and I found that I was glad. I wanted her.

  She started to nod and then stopped. Her smile dimmed slightly and she took a step back. “I can’t. I don’t want to hurt anyone. It’s probably best if I just stick to myself.”

  I was going to murder Joe and Jud. “It’s okay, Ada. I’ll wait for you to figure out that I’m the best Carrington.”

  She laughed like I was hoping and wiped my top lip. “Lipstick smudge.”

  “Collin.” Angie was back, honing in on her target. “And you must be Ada. I’ve heard all about you.”

  Ada stuck out her hand to shake Angie’s and smiled brightly. “Hi! All good, I hope. Are you…”

  I had to choke back a snort when I saw Angie’s face. Ada didn’t automatically recognize her and that pissed her off. I couldn’t hide my smile as I introduced Angie. “Ada, this is Joe’s ex-wife, Angie.”

  Ada laughed easily, letting the knowledge of who she was speaking to roll off her back. “It’s nice to meet you, Angie. Kenny talks about you all the time.”

  We both knew that wasn’t true. Angie was about as good at being a mother as she had been a wife. Angie worked her jaw back and forth and I could practically hear her grinding her teeth. “Kenny?”

  “Kendall?” Ada shrugged. “We like it.”

  “It’s a man’s name.” Angie frowned like she thought Ada was an idiot.

  “I once knew a boy with the nickname Catfish. Nicknames are supposed to be silly or different. My dad calls me-”

  “Oh, my god.” Angie held up her hands, rolled her eyes, and walked away.

  I opened my mouth to shout at her to apologize to Ada but Ada was laughing. I stared at her and tilted my head. “Why are you laughing?”

  She wiped her eyes and tried to stop. “I’m sorry. I just wasn’t expecting that. I think I sounded like an idiot but I’m fine with it.”

  “You didn’t sound like an idiot.” I glared at the back of Angie’s head. “She’s a pain in the ass. She spent most of her marriage to Joe fucking other people.”

  Ada gasped and her lips turned comedically down. “That bitch.”

  It was my turn to burst out laughing. Ada grinned and then playfully slapped my arm. It took me a bit to gather myself and by the time I did, my face hurt from smiling and I’d used a different set of muscles in my stomach that felt like they’d never been used. “I’m proud of you. I think we might be rubbing off on you.”

  She shook her head so hard that the whole right side of her hair sprung out of the hold she’d had it in. Her eyes widened and she stared at me in shock, her mouth slightly ajar. “Did my hair just do what I think it did?”

  I rolled my lips into my mouth and nodded while trying not to laugh again. She sighed and reached up to take the left side of her hair down, shaking it all out as she went. The curls stuck out all over the place and somehow, she looked even better.

  “Looks like it’s midnight and Cinderella’s carriage has turned back into a pumpkin.” She smiled ruefully at me. “Do I look okay?”

  “You want me to tell you what I really think?” I gave her a look that conveyed exactly what I thought and what I wanted to do to her.

  She blushed and shook her head. “I’m not sure I could handle it.”

  I took her hand in mine and motioned towards the thinning crowd. “Why don’t we see if we can’t get Cinderella home?”

  36

  ***Ada***

  That weekend went by slowly. Kendall was at her mom’s but the boys were cooped up inside because of stormy weather. They somehow managed to be bored and bratty despite having a massive mansion to play in. I saw the guys during meals but I kept away from them for the rest of the time.

  I’d been deep in thought about what Collin told me about Joe’s ex-wife. She’d cheated on him and when I’d heard that, I wanted to rip her hair out. I hadn’t been able to sleep that night, though, because I worried about how I’d slept with his brothers and if he thought I was just like his wife. It shouldn’t have mattered to me, but it did. I felt guilty for continuing a line of shitty behavior.

  That was why I made my way to his office on Sunday night after putting Milo down. I’d already changed into my pajamas and scrubbed my face but I didn’t think I’d be able to rest until I talked to Joe. I knocked on the door quietly, unsure of myself once I was that close.

  Joe opened the door and looked surprised to see me. “Ada.”

  I squeezed past him and hurried over to stand by his desk. I needed to keep my distance and spit out what I needed to say. “Collin told me about what your ex-wife did to you. At first, I kept thinking about what an idiot she was and I kind of wanted to cut her hair off or something equally horrible. Then, I started thinking about it more and I don’t think I’m any better than she was. I know we’re not married and we aren’t even in a relationship but I slept with you and then I slept with Jud. I’m so sorry, Joe. This whole summer has been crazy and I don’t really know what’s going on but that’s no excuse. If I hurt you, I couldn’t live with myself if I didn’t apologize.”

  Joe stood with his hands on his waist, just watching me with a blank expression on his face. He looked tired and I knew he’d been working hard all day long. I wanted to smooth out his shirt and maybe feed him some cake, or something.

  “I’m sure you must have your ideas about me and what kind of person I am, but I’d only slept with three men before coming here. I don’t normally find a family of hot brothers and go through them like bad Taco Bell. I’m not sure what’s happening here, in this house, but it was out of character for me to sleep with you and then sleep with someone else. I just want you to know that your ex-wife was wrong. I was wrong. But there are so many women out there who would never dream of cheating on you.” I motioned towards him. “I mean…look at you. You’re beautiful, you’ve got muscles big enough to crush someone, and you’re pretty good at the other stuff that I’m not going to talk about. Sure, your work ethic sucks for anyone around and you’re kind of a giant grump, but you’re a catch.”

  Joe blinked and slowly shook his head. “Ada?”

  I chewed on my lip nervously. “Yeah?”

  “Can you do me a favor?”

  I nodded and twisted my fingers together. “You want me to go?”

  He laughed and the sound carried straight down to my core. “I want you to stop talking.”

  I opened and closed my mouth a few times and then sighed. “I can do that.”

  “First of all, you’re nothing like my ex-wife. She was not a very nice person and I knew that going into the marriage. Second of all, you did nothing wrong. We never made a commitment to each other.” He took a step closer. “You didn’t hurt me. You’ve made me crazy and made me want to leave my own house, but you never hurt me. Are we clear?”

  I nodded jerkily as I watched him come another step closer. “Okay.”

  “That line about Taco Bell was disgusting. I’m going to request that you never say that again.” Another step. “You showed your cards, Ada. You like me. No matter how much I drive you crazy and make you furious, you like me.”

  I gasped. “No, I don’t. Why would you even say something like that?”

  He grinned even wider. “You think I’m beautiful.”

  “And? I also think Mount Everest is beautiful but I don’t want to climb it.”

  “You think I’ve got muscles big enough to crush someone.”

  I ground my teeth together. “So what? Muscles are overrated.”

  He was within reach. “You think I’m pretty good at fucking.”

  “I didn’t say that!” I heard how loud I was and took a deep breath. “I didn’t say that.”

  He crossed his arms and raised his eyebrows. “You like me. Just admit it.”

  “What are we? Twelve?” I turned away from him and huffed. “I don’t like you.”

  “You can deny it all you want, Ada. You exposed your soft underbelly and I want to sink my teeth into it.”

  I turned back to face him and made a disgusted face. “If I can’t say the Taco Bell thing, you can’t say that. That was weird. And creepy.”

  He shrugged. “I’ve been called worse. By you.”

  “I know! I came down here to apologize and you’ve made me insult you even more. Be better, Joe.” I saw his door open behind him and we both turned as Collin and Jud walked in. I immediately started scooting around the parameter of the room to make my escape but Jud shut the door behind him and leaned against it. “Shoot.”

  “Joe was trying to make a move, wasn’t he?” Collin smirked and shook his head. “You’re too easy to read, Joe.”

  “He wasn’t. I mean, he did say something creepy about biting my underbelly but we talked about it and I think he got it.” I tried to cover a laugh with a cough. “I just came down here to tell Joe to stop breathing so heavily into my intercom speaker. It’s hard to sleep.”

  Joe scoffed. “You brat.”

  I smiled sweetly and inched towards the door. “I’m just going to leave you boys to it. I’ve got a big day tomorrow. Lots of eating, swimming, reading books. I need my rest.”

  Jud caught my hand and gently pulled me into his chest. “We should talk about this.”

  “About my eating, swimming, and reading? Why? Is that not why you’re paying me? Oh, darn.” I slipped out of his hold and was able to get the door open a few inches. My first leg and arm fit through but my ass and boobs wouldn’t fit. I hung my head, bumping it on the door, and sighed. “Can you all just look away from this trainwreck?”

  Jud laughed and opened the door wider. “You can’t run forever, sweet girl.”

  They had no idea. If it meant avoiding what I was terrified would be a painfully awkward situation, I could and would run forever.

  37

 

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31