go to her while Aaron is here. I know for a fact I don’t have the kind of willpower needed to not steal another kiss or a simple touch, not when she’s curled up in my bed, her long brown hair spread out on my pillow. Nope, definitely not going upstairs.
Aaron eats his plate of lasagna with one hand, refusing to put Lexi down. She’s still wide-awake. “I think this is the longest she’s been awake at one time.”
“You know why, don’t you?”
“Enlighten me, old wise one.”
Aaron tsks like I should know the answer. “She refuses to miss out on any Uncle Aaron time, duh,” he says.
I don’t bother to argue with him, because to be honest, I have no clue. He could be right. Could be that my little girl already knows her Uncle Aaron is going to be a big part of her life. Kinley said babies are perceptive.
“I think it’s time to give her back,” Aaron says, scrunching up his nose.
“Again? How can you have anything left, kid?” I ask my daughter as I take her from Aaron.
“I got to get up early anyway. Looks like you are on your own until Kinley wakes up. She’s a bear when you wake her up, so I would not advise it if I were you.” He laughs his way out the door.
After getting Lexi changed, I make her a bottle. She went longer this time between feedings. By the time she’s finished, she’s sound asleep. I carry her up to her room and ease her into her bed. Reaching over, I turn on the baby monitor. Leaving the door open so I can hear her, I head to my room. Kinley is curled in a ball, my t-shirt riding high on her thighs. Careful to not make any noise, I set the baby monitor down on the opposite side of the bed and turn it on high. No way do I want to miss hearing Lexi wake up. I’m a little nervous with her being in the other room, but she’s just right across the hall. I refuse to let her sleep with me after all the horror stories I’ve read. Slipping out of my jeans, I place my cell phone on the nightstand and pull my shirt over my head. Without a second of hesitation, I slide into bed, pulling the covers up and over both of us. I lay there, stiff as a rail, staring at the ceiling. I’m tired beyond words, but can’t seem to let sleep claim me when I’m lying here next to Kinley.
Finally, after staring at the shadows on the ceiling, wasting away precious hours of rest I could be getting while Lexi is sleeping, I start to drift off. It’s also in this exact moment that Kinley decides to roll over. And by roll over, I don’t mean just to face me. No, she rolls over and pushes her tight little body next to mine. On instinct, I wrap my arm around her and pull her close.
Suddenly, I’m once again wide-awake.
I tell myself I’m just going to hold her. That I’m going to enjoy having her this close to me. That gets shot all to hell when I run my hand through her silky hair. It’s so damn soft, not to mention the simple movement causes Kinley to burrow further into me. Stroking her hair leads to my fingers trailing ever so softly up and down her back. My heart is pounding in my chest just from this simple act. That shows me right there how much she affects me. Never before has this happened.
Only McKinley.
There are a million reasons why what I’m doing is wrong. There is only one that tells me it’s right, and that’s the way my heart is racing. I block out all the questions running through my mind, all of them but one. How soft is her skin? Without further thought, I slide my hand up underneath her t-shirt—my t-shirt. I run my bare hands up and down her back until my hand connects with silk.
Silk fucking panties.
That’s it.
Silk panties and my shirt are all that cover this gorgeous girl.
Fuck me!
Chapter 26
McKinley
I wake to the feeling of warm hands softly caressing my back. Keeping my eyes closed, I focus on even breathing. I don’t want to give him a reason to stop touching me. I know when I wake up, this will all be over.
I’m not ready for it to be over.
My wish is short-lived when Evan’s