Kieran grunted. “It’s different with mine. We were never… close. He was always working. I spent most of my time growing up with Tessa, making sure she didn’t get into too muchtrouble.” He seemed to think about that. “Well, I guess it’d be better to say she threw all her troubles at me and expected me to deal with them—and I did. For so long I did, and I never complained, never saw anything wrong with it.”
“Until?”
“You, obviously.”
I grinned to myself, waiting a few moments for his words to sink in before I said, “So you don’t think you’ll reconnect with daddy while he’s here?”
He groaned. “Please, I will do anything you want as long as you never call him that again.”
“Why does it bother you so much? Hate to be the one to break it to you, but he definitely gives off daddy energy.”
“I think I need to pull over. I’m going to be sick.”
His comment made me giggle. “Come on. Stop exaggerating.”
“Exaggerating? Me? I would never.” He sounded totally dramatic and aghast when he said that last part. “I am one hundred percent serious all the time. I never make jokes. I don’t even know what a joke is—”
“Funny, that’s what I’m always trying to tell you: you aren’t as funny as you think you are.”
He held a single hand over his heart and muttered, “Ouch. Big talk for a girl who’s begging me to chase her through the woods. Maybe I’ll let you go and just leave you there—” All I could do was stare at him, which forced him to say, “Okay, I’d never do that. If, however, you call him that one more time, I might just have to resort to patricide.”
Another laugh bubbled from my throat. “You wouldn’t kill your dad.”
His brows lifted. “Wouldn’t I? You met him, what, twice, and you’re practically obsessed.” He threw me a knowing look. “I know exactly what’s going on in that head of yours, and I don’t like it.”
“You can read thoughts now? Do tell, what am I thinking about when it comes to Daddy Miller?” I laced my fingers together and rested my chin on them, angling my face toward Kieran as I waited for his reply.
“I’d rather not say it out loud,” he mumbled.
I dropped my hands to my lap and laughed. “You are being ridiculous.”
“Am I? Or are you the ridiculous one for having a crush on the man who gave me life?” As if it wasn’t already clear, he had to add, “The man who gave Tessa life? Hmm? Think about that, why don’t you? You really want to have a crush on the man who’s responsible for one of your boyfriends being alive and the woman who’s currently making your life miserable? To me, it doesn’t really make sense.”
With a shrug, I said, “I’m sorry, but your dad is hot. I have eyes. I bet most of the women who see him think he’s hot. Plus, he had you guys when he was young. He’s… a fine specimen of a man.”
“I’m sorry, should I give him a call and see if he wants to join us tonight?” Kieran deadpanned.
“Would you?” I waited only a second before saying, “I’m kidding. Mostly.”
With a hard sigh, he asked me, “Do Mike and Fang know how obsessed you are with my father?”
“I think Mike has an idea, and Fang… he knows, for sure.”
He scoffed. “I bet Fang would be more than okay with you getting down with him, too. I, on the other hand, would have to vomit. Repeatedly. Mike would… well, I’ll be honest, I don’t really know what Mike would do, but I bet he wouldn’t be too thrilled about it. He’s still not a fan of sharing you with me.”
Kieran reached for me, and I let him take my left hand. He ran his thumb over my knuckles, the warmth of his skin on mineleaving a trail of fire everywhere that thumb went. “It doesn’t matter right now. You’re mine for the night, Laina, all mine.”
My eyelids fluttered shut as he said that to me, and a calm breath flowed from my lungs. Hearing him say that made me feel so at peace, I’d go to the ends of the earth with him, if he asked me to.
Of course, I’d have to bring Fang and Mike with me, but that was beside the point.
And when it came to Jason… you couldn’t blame a girl for having a pipe dream, even if it was a little weird and would make everything so much more complicated. The man was the very definition of lick-able.
We ended up stopping at a restaurant a good hour and a half away from the city, far enough that there was no way in hell anyone would recognize us. Kieran’s two seconds of fame ended a long time ago, while mine had slowly faded into the past—though the hair and contacts helped mask the little girl who emerged from her two-year kidnapping.
After the restaurant, when we were getting close to our destination, I had to say, “You’re going to give me a little head start, right?” I didn’t eat too much for dinner; wanted to be able to run at full speed if I had to. You know, to make this hunt last, give him a good challenge.
“Is this you telling me you need a head start?” He grinned at me. “How about… ten seconds? That sounds fair to me.”
