Page 28 of Dirty Puck

Oh, good lord.

Rather than waste any more time, I ran around to the opposite side, climbing in the back seat, and yanked Benny’s new car seat hard and fast, toward me. Reece lost his grip, cursing up a storm, and ran around to my side to try to remove me, but that was all part of the plan. I reached to the front door, clicking the lock. Then I slid to the other side of the truck to pull the door closed.

The man was so shocked that he forgot that he had the keys in his pocket, giving me time to get the hook in place and start weaving the seatbelt through the back before he got the door open again.

I smiled sweetly up at him. “Now, how about you go get Benny and Miss Claudia?”

If looks could kill, I’d be dead on the floor. Still, he turned, stomping off to get my boy. Then I realized after maneuvering the seatbelt through the hellishly small slots, I had to unhook them to fix the latch at the top into place first. If you didn’t fix the latch first, there was no fixing that damn latch.

By the time he returned, holding Benny’s hand, I might add, with Miss Claudia carrying Benny’s bag, I had the seatbelt secured.

“You want me to show you how to hook him in?” I asked.

“Are you trying to be insulting?” Then he dropped his voice for only me to hear. “Because naughty girls get punished and I know exactly how to do it.”

I sucked in my bottom lip as my heart sped up and my damn nipples betrayed my every thought. How did I know? “Noted,” he said, then he kissed me as he set me away fromthe truck. And I might’ve sighed, but it was hard to tell, given the way my pulse pounded in my ears along with my lady bits. I’d never had a man do it for me the way Baker Reece did.

And if that weren’t embarrassing enough, Miss Claudia stepped to my side saying, “Reminds me of Mr. Grazia” as she handed me Benny’s bag. Maybe she meant my reaction to his kiss because other than that, there was nothing about this situation that looked anything like her romance-filled life with Mr. Grazia. Their story made a disillusioned woman believe in soulmates. Whereas I already knew Reece’s and my story ended very differently. We were blissfully in business arrangement and both content to be so.

But rather than argue, I smiled politely at the woman before heading around the front of the truck to heft myself into the front seat. Good to his word, Reece helped Benny into his seat. I watched carefully to make sure he had a good handle on the tightness of the belts securing Benny’s little body into place. After finishing with my boy, he helped Miss Claudia up into the seat next to Benny.

“What store?” he asked Miss Claudia.

“Aldi, if you don’t mind.”

“Perfect,” he said, cranking the engine and pointing the truck toward the exit of the complex.

That was how we ended up looking like one little happy family with the best goalie in the league. Yeah, well… it sounded just as odd to me. Benny seemed to enjoy himself. Miss Claudia sang him songs while I sat quietly looking between Reece, my boy, and Miss Claudia wondering if we’d jumped timelines because that was theonlyexplanation to any of this.

CHAPTER

SIX

REECE

Bree dropped her head as she caught me staring at her, but hell if I could help it. I’d grown up with a great mom—the best mom, and Bree reminded me of my own—no wait, that was fucking sick. She in no wayreminded meof my mom, just how she was with Benny. The love, the patience, always putting his needs ahead of her own. Any kid could do worse than to have someone like that in his corner, but for a kid like Benny, he’d won the mom jackpot.

A woman like Bree shouldn’t have been alone long enough for me to swoop in with this ridiculous arrangement—but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t glad she was.

Given the brow beating my mom gave me the last time she came to stay, I knew exactly how she’d react. Mom would adore her. Hell, I already did, and that was becoming a problem because if I’d known a fake relationship could be this much fun, I might’ve signed up for one years ago. Of course, that would’ve meant not ending up withBreein my bed and…Jesus. I rubbed a hand down my face. I couldn’t let my brain go there, not now. The last thing I needed was to walk around Aldi sporting a damn tent in my jeans.

I’d never stepped foot in an Aldi before, mostly becauseon any given day, I’d rather shove burning-hot fire pokers in my eyes than grocery shop. My food got delivered—a time and sanity saver. But with Miss Claudia and Benny to entertain me, and Bree casually tailoring her meal plan around what I liked? I could almost call this outing…fun.

“Do you eat meatloaf?” she asked me.

I jerked my head back but let a smile spread over my face because I liked being consulted andmeatloaf. “Sunday dinner,” I replied.

“Sunday dinner?” she asked.

Nodding, I explained, “My mom made us big dinners on Sundays. Meatloaf, mashed potatoes and gravy, creamed spinach, a salad, and homemade bread—that was my favorite. But she made pot roast, Salisbury steak, IKEA Swedish meatballs… Those all-day kinds of meals.”

“That sounds yummy,” Miss Claudia said and she wasn’t wrong.

“We ate quicker, healthier meals during the week. Saturday was take-out night. Pizza, usually, but it could be anything we were in the mood for. Even when I got to be a teenager, she and I always made time for Sunday dinner.” Still now, with me living in Charleston, we FaceTimed during our respective meals so we could still have Sunday dinner together. My gut clenched and my step faltered. For thirty-one years—my whole fucking life—she’d never missed one, and I’d never skipped out. How was I expected to—I wasn’t ready. My mother was actively dying and there wasn’t enough money in the world to save her.

Just then, I felt a hand touch my shoulder. “Hey,” Bree whispered. “You okay?” My gaze dropped to her hand and those delicate fingers, then around to the rest of the aisle. Miss Claudia had Benny and the cart, turning out to head to another aisle, leaving us completely alone. Without thinking, I grabbed a handful of Bree’s hair at the nape of her neck, tugging her to me, slamming my mouth to hers. She grippedmy shirt at the waist while I walked her backward to the shelf.

She moaned, digging her fingers deeper into my sides. Maybe she liked it or maybe she wanted me to let her up for air, but I couldn’t stop kissing her. She helped me to not think about that shit and Ineededto not think about it. Hell, if I thought I’d get away with it, I’d yank down her sweats, bend her forward, and fuck her until her legs gave out, right here in the store because nothing bad happened when I fucked Bree.

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