Teague (The Family Simon 4)

“Oh. Well. That’s a relief.” Her sarcasm was heavy and Teague’s scowl deepened. The whiskey was looking better and better.

“Look, I’m here for some R&R. That’s all. So if you and your husband could keep a lid on your kids, I’d appreciate it. I don’t think that’s too much to ask.”

“My daddy’s in heaven,” the little girl blurted.

His eyes darted to the kids. Shit.

Her brother nodded vigorously. “He’s an angel and mommy says he watches over us all the time. Like every single second so he always knows when we do something we’re not supposed to.”

Startled, Teague didn’t know what to say. He glanced back to the woman, unease settling in his gut as she gathered up her children and took the puppy from her daughter.

“Don’t worry about me or Morgan and Harry,” Sabrina said. “I only came over to check on you because Jack asked me to. I won’t be back.”

She was upset. He could tell.

“Look, ah…”

She nailed him with a look that was cold as hell. “Sabrina.”

Right. “Sabrina. I ah…your husband.” Wow. He was making a mess of this. “I’m sorry about…I didn’t know.”

Okay. He should just shut the hell up. Teague took a couple steps back and swore when he nearly fell over the side of the stupid Adirondack chair he’d vacated moments earlier.

He was tired. Anxious. More than a little on edge. And he sure as hell didn’t want to deal with any of this. Not the kids or their damn dog, and certainly not their mother. He glared across the deck at the invaders. He wanted to be alone. That was it. End of story.

Once more Sabrina Campbell nudged her kids in the opposite direction, but paused before following them around the side of the house and the down the stairs leading to ground level.

“I’ll make sure the kids don’t bother you again.”

“That’s not what I meant.” But his reply was weak and he knew it.

“Yes it was but it’s fine. I get that you’re going through stuff. I get that you need to be alone. I get that you don’t want to hear my kids or the dog. Trust me. I get it. I’ve been there. But you don’t have to be rude.”

She took another step away from him.

“Also? We wear clothes up here and those boxers don’t really cut it. I don’t need my daughter telling my mother-in-law about the half-naked man living beside us because if she comes up here, you’ll never get any of that peace and quiet you want.” She shook her head. “And neither will I.”

Sabrina disappeared from sight and for a few moments Teague was silent, his eyes staring into space before dropping down to the white sports briefs he wore.

With a sigh, he headed inside. Sabrina Campbell wasn’t a fan of his choice of underwear. Huh. For whatever reason that thought brought a ghost of a smile to his face.

Though the smile faded almost as soon as the thought fled. Teague stripped and walked into the shower, letting the water slide over him until it ran cold.

And for a few moments, he forgot about everything.

Chapter Two

Sabrina Campbell’s head felt as if it was going to explode. Seriously. Could this day be over already? It was almost dinnertime and she’d just now made it to the grocery store. It had taken her more hours than she cared for to unpack and organize their things—partly because there was a lot, but mostly because she couldn’t seem to focus on any one thing.

With two energetic kids running around, focus was something she needed to work on. Good God, she’d had to tell Harry at least five times not to wander over to the cottage next door. Teague Simon was someone she had no desire to tangle with anytime

soon and he’d made it more than clear that he wanted nothing to do with her or her kids.

She scowled at the thought and her cheeks flushed with anger. Who the hell did he think he was anyway? She’d only been doing his brother Jack a favor.

“Whatever,” she muttered.

“Can we get these?”