Slow Burn (Dynasties Seven Sins #7) - Janice Maynard Page 0,41
had sent a text, offering to pay for a babysitter so they could go out to dinner again, but Nikki had declined politely. Perhaps it was unfair, but she felt the need to test Jake’s reactions in a boring family setting. He couldn’t always splash his money around and expect to make problems go away.
Nikki liked being pampered as much as the next woman, but this relationship with Jake had three sides, not two. Tonight’s focus would be Emma. After Emma went to bed, all bets were off. Nikki hadn’t planned that far ahead. Some things were best left to chance.
Jake hadn’t asked again about staying over, and she hadn’t brought it up.
Unfortunately, the weather had taken a raw turn. The flurries they’d had for a few days were predicted to become accumulating snow sometime during the night. She wondered if Jake would cancel, and then felt sheepish when she realized how very much she dreaded that phone call.
She could tell herself all she wanted that she was keeping an emotional distance, but the truth was far different. Jake was deeply involved in her life already. She had allowed it, encouraged it and enjoyed it.
The real question was...did she want him to stay involved?
When the doorbell rang at five thirty on the dot, she dried her damp palms on her pants and took a deep breath. Emma was playing in her room, but she would soon be asking for dinner.
Nikki had decided to dress casually. Her stretchy black leggings and gold ballet flats were comfortable and cute. The off-the-shoulder sweater was turquoise. She looked like what she was—a middle-class suburban mom home for the evening.
The bell rang a second time. Evidently, she had dithered too long.
Scuttling through the house, she swept her fingers through her clean hair and checked her reflection in the hall mirror. Not bad. Her eyes were perhaps too bright, her smile too big. She inhaled sharply and let the air escape slowly. Calm, Nikki. Calm.
It took her two tries to grab the doorknob. At last, she flung open the door, letting in a rush of cold air and revealing the identity of her visitor, not that she’d had any doubt.
“Jake. Hi. Come on in.”
In a quick glance, she saw everything about him. Leather jacket unzipped over a tailored blue cotton shirt. Jeans that were just the right amount of worn. Jeans that hugged his legs and man parts in a very distracting fashion. And my gosh, were those...?
She blurted it out. “Are you wearing cowboy boots? Mr. Sophisticated World Traveler, Jake Lowell?”
“Let me in, Nik. It’s freezing.”
“Sorry.” She stepped back quickly.
He brushed past her, bringing in the scents of the outdoors. “These are for you.”
The large bouquet of deep yellow roses definitely didn’t come from a run-of-the-mill supermarket. The blossoms were huge and fragrant. She took them automatically. “You didn’t have to bring me flowers.”
He shot her a glance that included irritation and banked lust. “I know that. Put them in water, Nik.” He glanced down the hall. “I brought Emma something, too.”
“Honestly, Jake. Gifts aren’t necessary. She’d just a little kid.”
Without warning, he kissed her, his lips lingering, pressing, summoning memories of the night in his hotel room. “She’s more than just a little kid. She’s my daughter.”
Ten
Jake noted the stricken look on Nikki’s face, but he couldn’t quite pinpoint the cause. Was he being too abrupt about claiming his parental rights? Did his words sound like a threat? He hadn’t meant them that way.
Giving Nikki a chance to regain her composure, he shrugged out of his jacket and rolled up his sleeves. The little house was cheery and warm. “Dinner smells amazing.”
At last, Nikki’s posture thawed. “I hope you like lasagna.”
He followed her into the kitchen and watched as she rummaged under the sink for a vase. Her position gave him a tantalizing view of her perfect, heart-shaped ass.
Just as his libido began to carry him down a dangerous path, little Emma appeared in the doorway. “Is it time, Mommy? I’m hungry.” She turned to Jake. “Hi! Are you eating with us?”
Jake nodded. “Sure am. And I’m hungry, too. Maybe we should get out of the way for a bit and let Mommy get everything on the table.” He shot Nikki an inquiring look. “Unless you need help.”
Her cheeks were pink. “I’m good. Give me five minutes.”
In the living room, he handed Emma the gift that was wrapped in shiny red paper.
She cocked her head in a movement eerily reminiscent of her mother. “It’s