Page 27 of Rebel

“You have a girlfriend?”

My brows dipped at her out of the blue question, but I didn’t show any discomfort. “I don’t. Do you?”

“No, Mommy says I’m too young to date.” She nibbled on her bottom lip as she swiped yellow nail polish across my entire knuckle. “Wife?”

“Nope again.”

She nodded, her lips tugged into a small smile. “My friend Marlo Brown has two dads.” I wasn’t sure where she was going with that until her next question. “Do you have a husband?”

“No.” I choked on the answer, surprised at how much she knew. “I’m single, Livvy.”

She looked up then, brows dipped in confusion. “How come?”

“I don’t know. Maybe I haven’t found the right woman yet.” If there was even such a thing as the right woman. My brothers in the MC certainly seemed to think so, but I wasn’t so sure. Affection? Sure. Attraction? Absolutely. But was that all it took to create a life together? “You’re very smart for your age.”

“Thank you. I’m five but I’ll be six really soon.” She looked up from my nails again, leaving a long black streak down my finger. “You can come to my birthday party. You’ll come?”

How in the hell could I say anything but the words that tumbled out of my mouth instinctively? “Absolutely. Of course.”

Her satisfied smile made the answer worth it. “Yesss!” She fist pumped the air adorably and then finished my nails, or my knuckles more accurately. “I’ll fix ‘em!”

I watched with a smirk as she carefully used a cotton swab to remove all the excess polish that decorated my fingers. “Thanks. It looks much better now.” I wiggled my fingers in front of her face, which earned me another giggle.

“Very pretty, Rebel!” She clapped her hands excitedly. “Now what?”

I laughed and glanced at my phone on the table. “Now we need to figure out dinner. What do you like that isn’t sugary?”

Livvy tapped her chin thoughtfully, something I was sure she’d seen Nikki do more than a few times. “I like burgers. Mommy likes steak,” she offered that last bit of information with a frown that indicated she did not like steak.

“I know just the place.” I picked up my phone and placed an order for dinner to be delivered before we left to pick up Nikki. I wasn’t sure what the nanny usually did around thehouse, but I knew she would appreciate not having to worry about dinner for at least one night.

“Can I have extra ketchup?” She pushed her bottom lip out. “I love extra ketchup!”

“I prefer barbecue sauce,” I offered with a shrug. “Fries?”

“The big fat ones?”

I nodded. “They’re called steak fries, and they are, of course, the best fries.”

The smile she sent my way was another of those things that left me feeling a little unsettled. Kids needed to be protected, all kids, not just the ones that were important to you or to the people who were important to you, but the way I felt about this little girl was nonsensical. “The fries are made out of steaks?”

I blinked and then laughed. “Not exactly. Let’s just say that steak fries are the ones usually served with steak.”

“That’s silly,” she giggled.

I was clearing up the nail polish when a knock sounded on the door.

“I’ll get it,” Livvy called out.

Before she made it two steps, I reached out and hooked an arm around her waist.

“I’ll get it. What if it’s a stranger?” I set her on the sofa and aimed a finger at her. “Stay here until I get back. Got it?”

She pouted but she nodded. “Got it.”

Thankfully, it was a pimple-faced delivery kid and not one of the Blood Fangs. I tipped him, took the bag, and shoved it into the oven on the warming setting. “Okay kiddo, ready to go pick up your mom?”

“Yes!”

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