Page 6 of The Grump I Got Stuck With

“What are you doing in here?” he growled.

I gestured to Princess, who turned and made a grumbling sound in Alistair’s direction. “I’m on a rescue mission.”

He ran his hand through that Harry Styles-esque hair, his fingers curling in frustration. “I told you not to wander, especially over here. What about that sounded like an invitation to you?”

“Daddy!” Kenna cried, derailing Alistair’s fury. She sounded absolutely delighted. “Look! Santa brought me a doggy!”

I could see the look of utter horror on his face at the thought of having to keep Princess. He bit down on whatever expletives had been reserved for me and cleared his throat. “Santa hasn’t been yet, sweetheart.”

“Come meet her,” Kenna insisted, ignoring him. “It’s okay. She’s so nice.” She giggled, holding out her hand. “See, she licked me.”

Alistair stalked over to the side of the bed, but I was relieved to note that he was very gentle with Kenna and Princess as he separated the two of them and tucked the dog under his arm. As Princess wiggled in his grasp, I shook off the whiplash of watching Lord Crankypants be all sweet and doting. “Come on,” he said softly to Kenna. “Get cozy. It’s late.”

She shuffled down into the blankets. “Madison said she and Princess are staying!”

He snapped his head around, throwing me an exasperated look over his shoulder. He looked oddly hot, like he should be smoldering at me from a magazine cover. Heat prickled in my cheeks, and I was glad for the dimness of the night light.

“Just tonight,” I clarified. “That’s all I said.”

Alistair was clearly annoyed, but his expression softened as he turned back to Kenna. “The puppy has to go to sleep now. And so do you. Remember, Santa can’t come if you’re awake.”

Kenna gasped, pulling the blankets up to her chin. She snapped her eyes closed, then popped one open a beat later. “But can I play with the doggy tomorrow?”

“We’ll see,” Alistair said diplomatically. “I think you’ll have many other things to play with.”

Kenna nodded, yawning. “Me and Princess are friends now.”

“I think acquaintances at best,” Alistair said, leaning over to kiss her on the forehead. “Night, love.”

He turned around, that scowl in place again as he stalked up to me, those blue eyes flashing a warning. A lock of gorgeous hair had fallen across his forehead, and I sort of wanted to reach out and see if it was as silky to the touch as it looked. The guy could have model haircare no problem.

“Out,” he hissed. “Now.”

“Okay, Crankypants,” I muttered, taking Princess from him as he ushered us back into the hallway. He pulled Kenna’s door closed. I waited for the click. “In my defense⁠—”

“What defense could you possibly have? I was incredibly clear.” His patience was clearly wearing thin as he stepped closer to me. I was suddenly engulfed in a cloud of very manly cologne, and my head buzzed.

I shook off the daze, putting Princess down. “I didn’t realize I was in the west wing.”

“Did you need me to draw you a map?” he grumbled. “The guest room is in the east wing. This is on the total opposite side of the house.”

“Well, I’m not used to houses you need a compass to navigate! The only kind of wing I usually deal with is the chicken variety.”

Alistair pinched the bridge of his nose.

“Besides, how was I supposed to know this was what you were hiding?” I said, gesturing to Kenna’s room.

“You weren’t,” he growled. “That was the point. So take yourself back to your room. Now.”

“Fine,” I said, turning around. Princess dashed after me. I could feel Alistair at our heels. “We know where we’re going—we don’t need an escort.”

“Clearly you do since the concept of following directions eludes you.”

I rolled my eyes. “Princess was the one who wanted a midnight escapade, not me.”

Bark. Bark.

“Can you not keep her quiet?” he bit out.