Page 23 of Faking it with the Billionaire
I stand, guiding Emerson off my lap as I stalk toward Owen, swing my fist back, and land a blow square across his cheek.
I’m not done with him. I’m nowhere near done. “Don’t you ever talk about Em like that,” I say, snarling as I grab him by the lapels and shove him across the lawn.
We’re just feet from the raging fire blazing beside us, and the three guys seated closest to us jump up to intercept.
Owen pummels me back in the chest, pushing me back, not the least bit interested in walking away.
Good.
Neither am I.
It’s an all-out brawl between the two of us.
Jasper grabs Owen, yanking him back, keeping him from lunging forward. It takes both Levi and Noah to hold me back from breaking Owen’s face into dozens of tiny pieces.
The other guys on the team stand. “Walk it off,” Asher says, his gaze on me like this is somehow my fault. What the hell?
“Daddy.” Bristol’s voice is soft and filled with concern.
I spin around and find her standing by the door in her pajamas. She’s clinging to her stuffed monkey. That toy gives me the creeps with its beady eyes, but she loves the damn thing.
“What is it, sweetheart?” I ask, stalking across the yard and back toward the house.
“The movie ended,” she says, staring up with wide, soulful eyes. “Can I watch the mermaid movie next?”
I glance at my watch as I head into the house. I’m about to shut the door when I look over my shoulder and realize that Emerson is following me. Is it because of what happened outside? I can’t deal with her right now.
“Of course,” I say to Bristol and follow her into the living room. She climbs on the sofa and curls up under the blanket. She stretches out, laying her head on the pillow and staring at the screen while I switch movies.
Within seconds, I’ve gotThe Little Mermaidplaying, and she’s happily fixated on the screen. Oddly enough, she knows how to change the channel and find any movie she wants, but I suspect she wanted to see what we were doing outside.
I drop a kiss on Bristol’s cheek, and she pushes me away. “Daddy, I can’t see the movie.”
“Okay, okay!” I laugh, holding my hands up in surrender. I head for the hallway and notice Emerson watching the two of us.
“Need any help?” she asks, although I suspect she doesn’t mean it. She made it clear that she wasn’t Bristol’s nanny. I can’t expect her to help tuck my daughter in or get the kid ready for bed. That’s my responsibility.
Emerson is here to protect her.
I run a hand through my hair. The thought is still strange to me, a girl protecting my daughter, mostly because of her size and stature. But she proved herself in the locker room, and I can’t keep testing her as much as I may want to.
“I’ve got it. She just wanted another movie,” I say, and gesture for Emerson to follow me down the hallway toward the kitchen. I’m careful to make sure I’m out of Bristol’s earshot when I add the last part. “And I think she secretly wanted to see what the adults were up to.”
“What was that—outside?” Emerson asks. She licks her lips and folds her arms across her chest.
“I didn’t like the way Owen was talking about you.” I step closer, encroaching on her personal space, trying to defuse the tension building around us. She’s irritated with me. At least that’s what her stance and tone are telling me, and I don’t need her getting feisty when all I was doing was protecting her honor.
She scoffs and stares up at me, her gaze never wavering. “I don’t need you fighting my battles. I can handle Owen or any of your guy friends.”
“No,” I say.
I take another step closer, and she steps slightly back, bumping into the counter behind her.
She has nowhere else to go.
“No?” she squeaks. Her voice betrays her. The longer I stare into her eyes, the darker they become. Her cheeks are a faint shade of pink, and her lips part.
Does she think I’m going to kiss her?
