Page 104 of Sterling Heat

Knox surprises me again by leaning in and giving me a kiss on the cheek. “Don’t let him go.” My gaze follows his retreat. I don’t want to lose Sebastian. Staying would be his choice.

Knox walks back to his brother and claps him on the arm. “Call me later.” Then he’s thundering down the stairs and closing the door behind him.

“What’s this?” I finally ask, nodding at the box.

“It’s a Pack ’N Play.”

My mouth falls open. “A what?” I know what it is, but what I don’t understand is why Sebastian bought the portable crib.

“When I babysat for you, I realized I didn’t have what Adara would need in order to sleep at my place. When I invited you to the parade, I’d hoped you’d spend the night. With her. I’d ordered this thing a few days ago, but with the holiday, it didn’t arrive until this morning.” Sebastian runs a hand over the brown container. “I was hoping maybe Adara could hang out with me sometimes. Or maybe if you traveled out of town and needed help, she could stay with me.”

I didn’t know how to respond. On the one hand, this was an incredibly sweet gesture, and my heart did cartwheels at the thought that Sebastian put into this idea. He wanted to spend time with my baby girl.

On the other hand, it sounded like he was implying some kind of shared responsibility for Adara. Like joint custody, which was ridiculous. Was he hoping for an every-other-weekend arrangement so he could get a baby fix?

I hated that my mind leapt there and roped my thoughts back in to appreciate the considerate gesture.

Sebastian bought a portable baby crib, so Adara had a place to sleep when she was here.

“That’s incredibly generous of you.” My voice doesn’t express the strength of my gratitude. I actually sound off-kilter, even to myself.

His phone rings again and he pulls it from his pocket. With a deep scowl, he answers. “Yeah.” Silence. “Okay, I’ll be right down.”

He clicks off and shakes his head. “I swear. Rena.” As if that explains everything. “I’ve got to get downstairs. I expected a slow day after the fireworks, but everyone is hungover and wants coffee. And Barnett called in sick.”

The high school kid who works for him is sweet in a quiet way.

Sebastian steps over to me. “Make yourself at home.”

“I should probably get to mine.”

Sebastian runs a hand down my arm. “There’s no rush. And I don’t want you there without me. Let me check in with Stone. They might still be investigating.”

I nod and Sebastian leans in to kiss me. The brush of his lips is too soft, too quick, and reminds me too much of the rushed kisses Lance once gave me.

When Sebastian pulls back, his expression questions mine. “What?”

“It’s nothing.”

“It’s something. You have a strange look on your face.”

I shake my head and glance away. “Lance would kiss me like that.” I turn back to Sebastian. “It’s silly. You aren’t him. Just go to work.” I don’t know why I’m suddenly pushing him away. Everything in the last twenty-four hours is just catching up to me, and I need some space. A moment to think or regroup or I don’t know what . . .

“Your father is a dick,” Sebastian addresses Adara, rubbing a hand over her head before lifting his hands for my face and tugging me too him for a real kiss.

One involving his open mouth and strong tongue. He pulls at my lower lip with his teeth before releasing me and stares into my eyes. “I can’t kiss you like that and go to work. It winds me up and now I’ll only think about everything I want to do to you all day.”

My face heats again.

“Actually, I’ll think about you all day anyway.”

“Yeah?” I ask, hating that I’m looking for reassurance. Hating that I hope Sebastian isn’t a dead end, or a wrong turn, or just on an unfamiliar path he wants to travel again and again until he no longer likes the trip.

“Yeah.” He leans in to kiss me once more, a little less intense but not too quick. I’m going to think about him all day, too.

When he steps away, I say, “Lance isn’t her dad. I already told you that.”

Sebastian gives me a disbelieving look. He wants the truth, and I can trust him with it. “I’ll tell you the story later, okay?”