"The overprotective brother." Travis chuckled and let his hand dangle over Lia's shoulder. His palm hovered over her breast, and even I wasn't okay with that display.

A growl rumbled from Collin's throat. "And who the hell are you?"

"Collin!" Lia shoved his chest, giggling. I cringed. Family drama was not my area of expertise. "Play nice. Travis is a good friend of mine."

Ignoring Collin, Travis leaned over, whispering into Lia's ear. Her face lit up, bright as the northern lights, and the growl rumbling from Collin grew louder.

Deciding there needed to be an intervention to prevent bloodshed, I reached for Collin's hand and tucked him to my side. He jumped at the contact, eyes flashing as he studied my face. I held my breath, praying my touch distracted him enough not to murder Mr. Mohawk Man. If there was one thing I'd learned over the past month, it was that Collin had a temper.

"I think I'm going to stay behind. You two run along home. Make sure Max isn't torturing my niece," Lia said.

At the mention of Max, Collin whipped his head toward her. "He's gonna come looking for you, ya know."

A look of challenge spread across Lia's face-with something like fear mixed in. But because Lia was the queen at hiding things-even more so than her brother, it seemed the look disappeared as quickly as it had appeared.

"Doubt he'll find me."

Before I could say my good-bye, Lia was off, hand in hand with her sexy rocker guy, leaving me outside in the dark with Collin.

"Christ," he hissed, pulling me with him. "Can this night get any worse?"

Struggling to keep up with his pace, I yanked my hand back.

"What're you doing?" He stopped, turning to face me.

"Walking at a normal pace, maybe?" I snapped.

"You're too slow. Gotta get out of here before I do something I'll regret." He reached down to grab my hand again, but I pulled it back to my side.

"Maybe if you'd ask me politely to hurry up, then I would. But it's hard to walk in heels on this bumpy road." Which is why I shouldn't have worn the stupid things in the first place.

"Then let me help you with that."

Before I could say no, he wrapped one arm around my waist, and the other behind my knees, lifting me and cradling me to his chest.

"What the... Put me down!" I laughed, not nearly as annoyed as I wanted to be.

"Nah, I kinda like toting you around like this." He winked at me, the warmth of his breath hitting my cheek. "Makes me feel like a badass."

I snorted. "Or a weirdo is more like it." A weirdo who really liked being this close to her boss.

"Besides, this is a bad part of town and-"

"There is no bad part of Carinthia."

"Maybe there is, and you just don't know it." He squeezed my side and grinned. "Now stop talking and let me get you to the car. I've gotta get home, talk to Max... He'll know more than me about who Lia's got herself hooked up with."

Frowning, I let my chin fall to my chest, worry for my friend at the forefront of my mind. I didn't know Lia that well, but I cared about her. And if Collin was worried about her, I couldn't help but be that way too.

"What was that back in the club with Gavin, by the way?" We got to his truck door, and he slowly set me down on my feet, keeping a hand along my waist the entire time.

"What are you talking about?" I swatted my wild hair from my face, trying not to arch into his hold.

"You like him."

"Well, yeah, he's a good friend, and I-"

"Not what I meant." Two steps in and he had me backed me against the truck door, his movements slow, sure, and completely sensual. He trapped me there, his hands on either side of my body.

"W-what did you mean then?" I licked my lips, and his eyes darted to my mouth before he flicked his gaze back up again.

"You want to kiss him?"

I blinked. "Kiss him?"

He nodded.

Never in my life had I seen eyes as feral as Collin's were. Darkened by the night, with hints of blue that sparkled from the streetlight.

"There's nothing between us but friendship, so no, I don't want to kiss him."

"You sure?" He lifted his hand, trailing his finger down the side of my cheek.

My breath quickened at his touch. Goose bumps danced along my arms, my sudden shiver not caused by the wind blowing around us. The soft sound of music echoed from the bar we'd just been in, but right then and there, the loudest thing I could hear was my heart beating in my ears. "I'm sure."

He hummed, amusement and heat flashing in his eyes. "You looking at me like that goes against the rules, sweetheart."

"I didn't know there were rules. You didn't explain them to me, and I've been with you all night." My words were said on a whispered gasp, and his nostrils flared in response. He moved in closer. Only his clothes and mine separated our flesh.

"Sometimes, Addie, the rules are unspoken."

He lowered his chin to his chest. Just when one of his massive hands gripped the hem of my dress, pulling it up, and up, and up...his cell phone rang.

"Fuck." He lowered his forehead to mine and I shut my eyes, unable to catch my breath.

Fuck was right.

Job, job, money, money.

I repeated the mantra in my head, needing to remember, once and for all, that the rules he'd spoken of-the unspoken ones?-were not the type to be broken.

Chapter 19.

Addison The most beautiful sound was coming from Chloe's room, and since just the three of us were here tonight-and only two of us who could talk-I knew exactly who the sound was coming from.

Invading their privacy wasn't one of my most respectful moments, but I couldn't help myself. Hearing Collin sing an old Willie Nelson song to Chloe was probably the sexiest thing I'd ever experienced in my life. Add that it was one of my favorite songs, and I was damn near melting by the time he stepped out of her bedroom.

Maybe I didn't hold you All those lonely, lonely times.

I guess I never told you That I am so happy you're mine...

On and on he went, his voice cracking as he sang the words with hoarse elegance.

Tears filled my eyes as I leaned against the doorframe and watched him rock her. It was one of those moments I'd never forget-never want to forget. There really wasn't anything more beautiful than a father and his daughter.

Once he was done, I decided it'd be better to announce my appearance rather than to be discovered.

"Hey," I whispered.

He jerked his head back in surprise. And were his cheeks pink? I bit my lip, trying to point my smile toward Chloe, who was tucked in his arms and already dressed in her pajamas. She yawned and laid her head against Collin's chest.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you, just figured since you gave me a key..."

"It's fine." He cleared his throat and handed Chloe over with not a lick of hesitation. I loved how he'd entrusted me to be a part of her life in such a short time.

"Hey, beautiful." I brought my lips to her forehead, inhaling. She smelled like baby and her daddy. A scent so heavenly I wanted to wear it as perfume.

"She's really tired tonight. Probably won't take her long to fall asleep." He took a step back and tucked his hands into his black work slacks. His hair was damp, likely from a shower, and droplets were spilling down his temples. I sighed and looked away, trying to contain the beat of my heart.

I tossed Chloe into the air, and her eyes went wide. Sleepy, my butt.

The giggles coming out of her mouth proved her daddy wrong. I knew I had at least another hour of munchkin time.

"You good then?"

So entranced by the little dimples on her cheeks-the ones mirroring her father's-I'd almost forgotten he was standing there. So I met his stare, expecting the normal brood and gloom, but instead finding a softness on his face I'd been glimpsing more of over the past few days. Ever since the parking lot incident last Friday night, the moments we shared seemed to be shifting. He wasn't angry all the time anymore, while I felt a sense of peace I hadn't experienced in a long while. I'd like to say it was from my new job security, but deep down inside I knew the truth. Collin was getting to me.

"I'm good."

He grinned, I smiled, and between us, Chloe babbled and beat on my neck with her fists.

A few minutes later, Collin was gone, leaving us two girls alone for the night. "So, little girl. Tell me I shouldn't like your daddy the way I do." She babbled and yanked on my hair. I snorted in response. "My thoughts exactly."

She giggled as if knowing what I was saying, so I lifted her up high and blew a raspberry over her tummy to reward her for being so stinking cute. Her little laughter grew louder and louder, until all I could hear in the house were her squeals and my weird mouth noises.

This is exactly what I imagined mothering would be like someday. Not that I wanted to become Chloe's mom; I just more or less loved the idea of becoming a mom.

I'd always been drawn to children, even in high school when I took child development classes and did course work at a day care. My parents, on the other hand, didn't find my career choices worthy, which was one of the main reasons for the distance between us.

I sighed. "You don't know how lucky you've got it, kiddo." She snuggled against me, so attuned to my words. It's crazy how an almost one-year-old had suddenly become my new best friend.

Two hours later, after I got Chloe settled down for the night in her crib, I scooped up the remote control and flipped on the DVR. The last time I was here, I'd recorded a movie and I was dying to finish it. And since the luxury of premium cable wasn't in the cards for me at home, this was my only way.

Once midnight rolled around, and I'd shut off all the lights, I sprawled out on the sofa and snuggled with my pillow and a blanket. On cue, my eyes began to close. Exhaustion was a feat to overcome now that I worked these strange hours. Luckily, I was the type of person who could snooze anywhere.

Needless to say, I drifted off quickly, completely relaxed. But right when I felt myself being taken over by my dreams, the front door flung open, making way for a staggering couple: Max and some random girl with red hair down to the top of her butt.

Taken off guard, I hid under the blanket with my eyes and the top of my head uncovered. Everything in the room was quiet, except for the sound of slurping kisses and heavy moans. Biting down on my thumbnail, I waited for them to notice me, but as Max lifted the girl onto the dining room table and proceeded to unbuckle his pants, I quickly learned they were oblivious. And I was also discovering what it was like to be an official voyeur.

And oh, what I learned.

Max liked it rough.

This girl liked it hard.

And I liked how the ceiling looked in the moonlight much more than I liked Max's butt cheeks.

"Yes. Harder, Max. God, yes. Please...harder, harder, harder."

I giggled behind my hand, my eyes watering so hard I couldn't contain my snort. But my laughter wasn't what broke their moment. The creak of the door and another male voice did the job instead.

"You awake, Addie? I got off early and... What the hell?" The door slammed against the wall. Up popped Max, his girl scrambling to get herself covered at the same time with her shirt.

"Colly, you're off early," Max said, doing little to make himself decent.

"No shit, moron." And then he jabbed a finger toward me. On the couch. And what did I do? I waved.

"Short Stuff!" Max waved back, taking his time to pull up his boxer briefs. "Good to see you." He winked at me, like I hadn't just seen his bare ass.

"Um..." I pointed down to his pants, the jeans still wrapped around his ankles, making me snort even louder with laughter.

Collin, on the other hand, didn't look a bit amused. "What the hell do you think you're doing?"

"Nothing." Casual, cool, collected, Max finally pulled his jeans up, stepping back from the girl on the table. Her face was red-I could see it even in the dark-and I offered her a sympathetic smile in return.

I stood and motioned toward the hall. "So I, uh...I think I'll just go check on Chloe then."

"Don't leave on my account." Max's grin grew wider as he stared down at my boobs in my pajama shirt.

Groaning, Collin walked into the living room, toward me, throwing the blanket I'd been holding around my shoulders. "It's late. Stay here tonight. No need to be driving home."

I should've asked him why he was home so early. Should've tried the conversation thing with him too. But instead, all I could say were two little, very unimportant words. "Sounds good."

He nodded once, a dismissal-always a dismissal with me. I felt almost as humiliated as the girl Max was opening the door for, the one he smacked on the ass as she walked out of the house.

Once I made it inside Collin's room, I stood by the door, curious to hear what went down between the two friends.

"...dumbass. And in front of her?" Collin.

"I know, man, but Jesus. I can't always take them to their place. And I thought Chloe was at Lia's tonight." Something hard slammed against a wall or a table. I jumped at the noise, biting my lip as I looked across the hall at Chloe's closed door.