He couldn’t risk letting that guy resurface.
No matter how much his heart wanted him to.
Hallie flinched when Princess Pumpkin’s nose pressed against her bent elbow. Despite knowing the dog wouldn’t maul her tonight, old habits died hard.
“You don’t like dogs?” Christian asked, following the golden retriever into the kitchen. He still wore his work clothes, though he’d abandoned his tie, and his top button was undone.
She placed the last snickerdoodle into a plastic container she’d found in a cabinet. “They’re not my favorite.” She spared him a glance before setting the dirty cookie sheet into the sink. “I had a bad experience with one in my neighborhood growing up. I haven’t gotten over it.”
“No problem. I’ll put her outside.”
Hallie grabbed the sponge from behind the faucet, running it through the stream of water. “It’s okay. We’ve reached an agreement.” She patted the dog’s side. “I’ll keep scratching her behind the ears in exchange for her not biting my head off.”
The sound of Christian’s tired chuckle hatched a single bee buzzing in her stomach.
“You won’t bite Hallie’s head off, will you, Pumpkin?” He dropped to one knee and cupped the dog’s face with both hands. “No, you wouldn’t. You’re a good girl.”
Hallie continued wiping the stove, hiding the smile caused by his baby talk.
After a moment, he came up beside her, and the bee in her stomach invited its friends to come play. Ugh … she shouldn’t find him so irresistible.
“When I asked you to babysit my kids, I wasn’t hiring a maid.”
“I know.” Hallie placed the sponge back in its spot before turningto face him. “We made cookies, and things got pretty messy in here. I had them help me clean up after we finished.”
“How does that explain the living room?”
She flashed him an amused side eye in response. “You hungry?”
“Starving.” His stomach growled in confirmation.
Hallie opened the microwave and pulled out the plate she’d heated up a few minutes ago. “I wasn’t sure what you’d planned for dinner, so I ordered pizza. I hope that’s okay.” She placed two snickerdoodles next to the slice and held it out to him.
“That’s great.” He took the meal from her. “Thanks for being here. How were they?”
After securing the container’s lid on top of the cookies, she joined Christian at the table. “They were fine. Isla wasn’t happy to see me at first, but she seemed to warm up after a while.”
“How’d you work that magic?”
“What can I say? I have a talent for luring young children in with baked goods.” Heat rose up her neck. “Forget I said that. I’m not the witch fromHansel and Gretel.”
Christian barked out a laugh, almost choking on his pizza. “I sure hope you don’t intend to eat my kids. I’m kind of attached to them.”
“As you should be. They’re adorable.”
The small tilt of his head to one shoulder made it clear that her comment caught him off guard. And the slight smile softening his features as he studied her turned her body temperature up several notches.
Pull yourself together, girl. You’re not ready to be a mom.Acting on her instincts when it came to Christian would only lead to heartache later when she realized she couldn’t have him.
“You’re probably tired,” she said, placing her hands on her thighs. “I’ll leave you to your dinner.”
His hand on her arm stopped her before she could make her getaway. And dialed up the heat even more. Pretty soon, she’d need a fan to cool herself down. Or a bucket of ice water.
“I promised to pay you.” He reached for his back pocket, but Hallie shook her head.
“That’s not necessary.” A little piece of her heart lodged in her gut at refusing his money. She needed the boost, small as it was, but she didn’t feel right about it. “I did this as your friend.”
Christian’s lips pursed into a thin line as he pulled out his wallet. “At least let me spot you for the pizza.”
