Page 13 of A Baby for the Firefighter
I groaned, but then Dean stepped up to the task before I could. Muscles rippling, he jumped into the water and caught up to my nephew within moments. He dragged him back onto the grass, hauled him up over his shoulder and carried him to me, Jake's legs kicking. “Express delivery,” he said, setting the rascal down in front of me.
“Not fair!” Jake complained.
“What's not fair?” Dean asked, while I watched as a single drop ran down from his chest to his abdomen and past his belly button. My brain nearly short-circuited.
It was definitely not fair for anyone to be that hot.
How was I supposed to keep my cool?
“It's not fair because you're like... super fast,” Jake said.
“Well, in my job, I have to be.”
“What's your job?”
“He's a firefighter,” Conner said, startling me, because I hadn't heard him approach.
“Really? Coooool.” Jake's eyes lit up. “Do you like, save people from burning buildings?” He gazed at Dean intently, clearly starstruck.
“It's not always that dramatic.” Dean laughed, but something about it sounded forced. Like there was something haunting him that he didn't want to talk about. I wondered what it was.
Dean changed the topic too quickly for me to latch on to anything.
“What do you say we teach Conner how to swim?” he said to Jake. “It's an important skill.”
Jake agreed, and Conner simply went along with the two alphas' shenanigans. I got the sense that he was a good kid, just a bit disappointed by the world.
He didn't learn how to swim that day, not really, but I did hear him laugh once or twice, which was good. This was why we'd come here after all, not so I could freak out over Dean's half-naked body.
It was a little better now that he was half-submerged in the water, if only slightly. How could it be that I wanted to touch him and run away from him at the same time?
I bit my lip, hard, and told myself to focus on something else. Dean and the kids made a lovely picture together, splashing in the lake. I dug out my camera to take a few snapshots.
“You have to come visit me, I'll show you my dog.” I heard Jake say later when they waded back out.
Conner nodded—a bit hesitantly, but still. I smiled. My nephew was the best.
“Who wants some food?” Dean asked, reaching into his basket again. Apparently, he'd brought sandwiches. He was also the best.
Even so, I ate mine mostly facing away from him. It was the only way I could get myself to eat with him being so naked next to me and smelling likethat.
I hoped he didn't think I was trying to avoid him, even if I was. And I also hoped he wouldn't ask about it because I had no idea how to explain to him that he was both too gorgeous for me to think straight, and too alpha for me not to lose my shit if he got close. I wanted him. But I also knew that as long as I couldn’t get a handle on my issues, we were better off staying friends.
And that hurt more than I wanted to admit.
5
Dean
“I'm telling you, he just wouldn't look at me for longer than five seconds at a time.”
Shane stirred his coffee without looking up. “Did you do something to him?”
It was the same question I’d asked myself over and over since parting with Griff the day before. What had I done? Had I creeped him out somehow? I’d tried my best not to stare at him or be weird in any way, and I liked to think that I succeeded too.
“I can't think of anything. I spent most of the time playing with the kids, honestly.” The memory put a smile on my lips. It had taken Conner a little bit to warm up, but in the end, it had seemed like he was having fun. Griff and I had accomplished our mission. “You should have seen Conner. He actually laughed.”
Shane looked up at that. “He did?” His features softened. He put on a tough façade most of the time, but he did care about his kids. He was just a bit lost on what to do sometimes, but then, so was I. “That's good,” he said. “Mary spent a whole day yesterday singing a new nursery rhyme she’s learned. She's a lot like Ron, you know. He'd sing all the time.”
