Kara Lennox - The Good Father

It quickly became apparent that this wasn’t just a cozy dinner, but a party. Sara and Reece arrived, then some neighbors with a little boy just Kaylee’s age.

Jane’s happy, warm mood vanished when Max showed up-with a gorgeous, auburn-haired beauty in tow.

Allie ran to the door to meet them while Jane cowered in the living room. Oh, God, how was she going to handle this? She hadn’t expected the surge of jealousy that welled up inside her at the sight of her boss with another woman.

Deep breaths. He didn’t owe her anything, she reminded herself. Just because she’d sold her boat for him, just because two days ago he’d been so hot for her he hadn’t been able to control himself, was no reason she should start thinking they shared something special.

It was better if he was interested in someone else. Her divorce was still so fresh; bouncing into another relationship, even a casual one, was a terrible idea. Yeah, she’d let herself fantasize about it, trying to justify the attraction that simply would not go away. She had told herself that maybe it could work if they were careful…

But it had all been a useless mental exercise, because here he was with this stunning woman who had a laugh like a chimpanzee-

“Jane?” It was Sara. “What’s wrong?”

“Uh, nothing. Nothing.” Deep breaths.

“You’re hyperventilating. Something must be wrong.”

“Fresh air.” She turned and headed out the sliding glass door to the patio, where Cooper and Reece were debating how best to arrange the charcoal.

“Jane, you’re all pale.”

“It’s nothing. I’m okay now.” She forced herself to slow her breathing. Talk about an overreaction. She’d had no idea her feelings for Max were such a big deal, but apparently she’d been hiding them even from herself.

“You’re not pregnant, are you?” Sara whispered.

That made Jane laugh. “Of course not!”

“I just thought…since you stayed at the Hotel Alexander with Max-”

“Nothing happened. I told you that. Anyway, even if it had, I’d hardly be having pregnancy symptoms yet. It’s only been a week.”

“It didn’t take me long to notice something was up. Hey, look, I’m showing!” She raised up the hem of her shirt slightly to reveal a small baby bump.

Jane smiled, relaxing. “That’s great, Sara.”

“And I feel fantastic.”

The sliding glass door opened, and Max stepped out, with the beautiful woman hot on his heels. Jane instantly tensed up again.

“Oh,” Sara said with a knowing nod. “I see what’s got you all discombobulated.”

“What? What are you talking about?”

Sara rolled her eyes. “Give it up, babe. It’s all over your face.”

Hell. She was going to have to leave if it was that obvious.

Unfortunately, Max made a beeline for her. “Jane. Can I talk to you a minute? Oh, hey, Sara. It’s about work. You don’t mind, do you?”

Sara grinned. “Of course not.”

The auburn-haired siren watched intently as Max touched a hand to Jane’s back, right on her bare skin, and guided her away. She shivered from the roots of her hair to her toes.

“You’re not cold, are you?” Max asked solicitously.

“No. Is something wrong at work?” Maybe she shouldn’t just leave without telling him.

“Everything at work is fine. I just wanted to ask you, if you don’t mind, not to mention our pink-magazine disaster to anyone else.”

“I won’t, of course. But why would you worry? From what I can tell, your cousins are completely supportive.”

“Yeah, but not all of the family is. I just don’t want it to get back to my brother or either of my parents that…well, that I let an employee bail me out.”

“I won’t say anything.” She didn’t really want it to get around that she was selling her boat, either. Cooper and Allie knew, but since Cooper was acting as her attorney, he wouldn’t blab it to anyone.

“You look hot.”

“A minute ago you thought I was cold.”

“No, I mean…hell, what am I doing? I told myself I wouldn’t do this.”

Oh, now Jane got it. Duh. She looked hot. Her nipples tightened beneath her halter top, and she really, really wished she’d chosen a shirt she could have worn a bra with.

“Maybe you better get back to your date,” Jane said primly.

“Who?”

Goodness, he had a short attention span. “The gorgeous, six-foot woman you arrived with?” She nodded toward the woman in question, who was staring holes through Max’s back.

Max glanced over her shoulder. “Her?” He laughed. “I just met her.”

“You work fast, then.”

“No, I mean, I really just met her. We arrived on the front porch at the same time. She’s Cooper’s neighbor.”

Jane’s face grew even warmer, if that were possible. She had just made a complete idiot of herself. Worse, Max was no longer safely out of reach. He was a free agent.

She was in trouble.

“Are you jealous?” Max whispered.

“Stop flirting with me,” she whispered back.

“I’ll stop if you really want me to. So long as you know-anything personal between us has nothing to do with work.”

That wasn’t really her biggest concern. Yes, workplace romances could cause heaps of trouble, but she was more concerned about her heart. She wasn’t just attracted to Max. She saw the potential for a deep emotional attachment, as well. And how could she trust her judgment right now?

He made her feel appreciated and valued, all the things she hadn’t gotten from Scott. And he related well to Kaylee, also another of her ex’s shortcomings. Her budding feelings for Max could be nothing more than a knee-jerk reflex.

“We shouldn’t, Max. Really.”

His mischievous grin disappeared. “Okay. Guess I’ll have to flirt with Wendy.”

“Wendy?”

He nodded toward the siren.

Jane’s reaction was swift and instinctual. “Stay away from her. She’s a barracuda.”

Max’s grin returned. “I like barracudas.”

Just then something catapulted into Max’s leg.

“Max!”

He looked down as Kaylee wrapped herself around his leg, and his grin widened. “Hey, there, Kaylee. Are you ready to eat some fish tonight?”

She nodded and held her arms out, wanting to be picked up, and Max obliged. Apparently she’d either forgotten or forgiven him for kicking Scott at the restaurant. Max hugged Kaylee and she hugged him back, her eyes squeezed shut as she reveled in the experience.

Jane watched with a lump rising in her throat. Scott had never hugged his daughter that way. The child was starved for fatherly affection. Last weekend during his visitation he’d barely spent any time with her, leaving her with his parents while he partied.

But Max?

Why had Kaylee formed a bond with him so quickly? She’d spent a lot of time around Cooper and Reece, both of whom had babysat, and she liked them fine. But she had especially close feelings reserved for Max.

Maybe it was that overnight trip, when they’d behaved so much like a family.

Kaylee had pretty much lost the only father she’d ever known, a father she loved, as lousy as he was. Jane was determined to prevent her daughter from forming an attachment to Max, who certainly wasn’t destined to be around long-term.

That meant she had to keep Kaylee and Max apart.

Though it pained her to do so, she pulled Kaylee out of Max’s arms and set her on the ground. “Kaylee, your new little friend looks lonely. Don’t you want to play with him? Why don’t you two try out the teeter-totter?”

“Okay, Mommy.” She dashed off, unconcerned, confident that Max wasn’t going anywhere. How many disappointments would it take before she would become mistrustful, slow to give affection?