Page 20 of Rebel

This was my way in, and I was taking it however I could get it.

Chapter Nine

Nikki

“Well that was unexpected.” Logan’s lips spread into a sheepish grin. “Was it something I said?”

I stared at him before laughter exploded out of me. “It wasn’t you. If anything it was me, all that time at the park wore her out. It happens a lot at this age.”

His brows shot up. “She often falls asleep on top of her onion rings?”

“Believe it or not she’s fallen asleep in her spaghetti, stir-fry, and even mashed potatoes. Kids her age have a lot of energy but when it runs out, it’s on empty.” What the hell was I doing, talking to him about this? When he found out, he would think back to this conversation and hate me. I really needed to tell him about his daughter. When he confronted me earlier, I was angry about being watched and lashed out. If I was dating a guy, I was always upfront about having a kid—not that I had many relationships that got to that stage.

And none of those relationships were with my daughter’s damn father.

“Here you folks go. I added some extra onion rings for your daughter, she seemed really excited about them.” The server grinned as she handed Logan the bags of food.

He looked dumbfounded at her assumption, but he recovered quickly. “I’ll make sure she knows. Thank you.”

“I’ll take those, and you can meet us back at my place?” I knew it was playing with fire to invite him back to my home, but we’d barely taken a bite of our food before Livvy conked out at the table.

“You sure?”

Hell no.“Yep. Absolutely.” I smiled brightly and swooned a little when he handed me the bags and scooped up Livvy in his arms. He was so big and so strong and my—our—little girl was so small. So trusting, as she wrapped her arms around his neck and snuggled against his chest. “Come on.” I felt Logan’s gaze on my ass, and I might have swung my hips a little more than necessary.

“She’s so small, how old is she?” he whispered, awe tinged his words.

“Maybe you’re just so big.” I ignored the last part of his question, then slammed my eyes shut and pulled my lips into my mouth to stop the mortified groan that threatened to escape when I realized what I’d just said. Sure, he was big.

“Maybe I am,” he grinned at me when I opened the back door.

“Sit her in the seat and I’ll take care of the rest.” I didn’t need to do anything because it turned out Logan knew exactly what he was doing. “You have children I don’t know about?”

His grin was stunning as he shook his head. “Nah, but there are a lot of kids in the MC now, so I know how to do things like fasten car seats.” He let out a laugh and shook his head.

“Thank you.” I walked around to the driver’s side and grinned at him over the roof of the car. “I would say follow me, but it seems you’ve been doing that all week.” His laughter wasthe last thing I heard as I slipped between the steering wheel and the seat and headed home.

My mind raced as his single headlight stayed behind me the entire ride. What was I doing? This was madness, inviting him into our home before he knew the truth. I should just tell him.I knew that without my annoying conscience reminding me every fifteen seconds, but I wasn’t ready. Not yet.

I didn’t have a choice—I knew that—but I also knew that once he found out, it would change everything. Either he would be furious and disappear from our lives again, or I would have to get comfortable with the idea of sharing my daughter. Those thoughts dominated my mind while I got Livvy inside and tucked into bed with a soft kiss to her forehead. “Good night sweet girl.”

I found Logan in my living room staring at the photos on the walls and shelves. My heart stopped for several long seconds. I waited for him to really take in Livvy’s details and put it all together, but his expression said he hadn’t. Yet.

“Hey, want to eat in the backyard?”

Logan turned slowly, a knowing smile on his face. “Trying to keep me out of your personal space?”

My brows knitted together. “Of course not. It’s still nice outside and Livvy is a light sleeper, one deep rumble of laughter and she’ll come back down and finish her thousands of questions for you and never get to sleep.”

He studied me for a long minute before he nodded. “What can I do to help?”

I nodded towards the kitchen, and he followed me, his gaze a weight that pressed upon my back. “You grab the bags, and I’ll get everything else. There’s a table on the back porch.”

Minutes later our food was unwrapped and we both dug in hungrily for a few minutes before Logan slowed and watched me. “Where is Livvy’s father?”

“That,” I sighed. “Is a long story.”

He nodded as if he understood and didn’t want to pry. “What’s your plan for dealing with the Blood Fangs?”

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