“Okay. Time to move the cookies.” I distracted her with the task.
“When can we eat some?” she asked.
“About five minutes. We don’t want to burn your mouth.”
By the time we got the cookies moved and created a second batch, it was tasting time.
“Ohhh,” Mitchell said, and darn the tingle that zinged through me.
Sex had never been a priority to me, but how quickly my mind and body caught on to the phenomenon. There was no way I could stay in the room. I snagged a cookie after giving instructions for the next batch. Then I fled out of the back door and walked to the side of the barn—far, far away from the only man in history to have me thinking about the benefits of hot and sweaty sex.
Though the day was cool, my body was on fire. I leaned against the aged wood and pulled the top of my sundress away from my chest and back to cool myself off.
It was really time to consider my options. Zoe’s mom would hopefully be back soon. James didn’t need a full-time caretaker. Though Nate had ensured my position, I did not know how Mitchell felt. If Mitchell terminated my job, I had nowhere to go.
I’d lost track of time when a voice out of nowhere said, “There you are.”
Scared out of my skin again, I said without thinking, “You are going to be the death of me.”
A smug smirk sprouted on that beautiful face of his. Oh, dear Lord, save me from myself.
FIVE
Mitchell
With no hesitation, Zoe had called me Daddy and hadn’t stopped saying it when she wanted my attention. It had been jarring the first time, but every time I looked in her face, I saw a little version of my mother. There was no denying the family relation.
Though Zoe put on a brave face, she was suffering from her mother’s disappearance. Thankfully, in a short time, she’d formed a connection with Sunshine. However, it was clear from the worry on Zoe’s face as she looked around the room that she was having separation issues. “Where is Sunshine? She has to taste this batch.”
We’d followed Sunshine’s instructions to a tee. But Zoe needed Sunshine’s stamp of approval.
“I’m sure she’s fine,” I said, but Zoe didn’t look relieved. “I’ll go find her,” I said, and immediately relief covered my daughter’s face.
I took the back door, as I’d watched Sunshine leave that way. The woman moved with the grace of a dancer. My eyes hadn’t strayed from her body as she’d slipped out the back door. Though she wore a loose dress, my mind raced with possibilities of what lay hidden underneath. As a lawyer, I knew better. But I was only human. As long as I kept my thoughts to myself, they couldn’t hurt anyone.
Out back, the ranch was just as it had been the last time I was there. The animals and hands were gone, but the structures were still there. I vaguely remembered something about my brother renovating the bunkhouse, but that wasn’t where I ended up.
Instead, I followed the faint footsteps left in the dirt, heading toward the barn. Sure enough, my employee—as I told myself in reminder of our roles—rested her back against the far side of the barn.
“There you are,” I said, trying and failing not to notice her curves as she had a hand between her breasts.
“You are going to be the death of me,” she said, her voice as velvet as the most expensive wine.
“I could say the same,” I admitted as my eyes roamed down her body.
Clearly, the cookies were spiked because I knew better. Yet I couldn’t help it.
Her tongue slipped out of her parted lips to moisten them as the first stirring of heightened desire took hold of my cock.
“Is there something I can help you with?” she asked.
What I’d thought was mutual attraction reflected in her face changed to defiance as one perfect brow arched while she waited for my answer.
I cleared my throat. “Zoe was looking for you. I think with her mother’s disappearance and Avery leaving, she’s experiencing separation anxiety, not that I’m a doctor.”
Sunshine’s expression cooled as she nodded. “I’ll go find her.”
Before she could disappear, I snagged her wrist, stopping her. Her skin was soft, and I wanted nothing more than to explore every inch of her. I did not know what I should say, only that I didn’t want the moment to pass.
Her gaze heated as it landed on me.
“I don’t know what this is,” I began.
Her eyes dropped to where I clung to her. “I know what it’s not,” she said.
I let go and licked at my now parched lips. “Can you tell me you don’t feel it?”
“I know you’re my boss.”
A sigh so long and suffering released from my chest. “Yes, you’re right.”
“So let’s leave whatever you think this is right here.” And with that, she left.