A Perfect Ten (Forbidden Men 5)

“Oren!” Scandalized but still laughing, she grabbed my wrist, stopping me. “Cut it out.” She spun out of my arms to face off with me. “You’re playing with fire.” Then she went and jabbed her finger into my gut.

I laughed and dodged away when she came at me again. “Woman,” I warned. “Don’t poke me.”

With a playful laugh, she charged. “Don’t be such a baby. I like it when you poke me.”

As I caught her and imprisoned her arms, I threw my head back and roared with laughter.

Hart covered his face with one hand and groaned. “Jesus. She’s got as dirty a mind as you do, Ten.”

“I know.” Pressing my cheek to hers, I grinned proudly and swayed back and forth with her. “Isn’t it great?”

“Yo, Ten,” Lowe called from across the yard. “Noel’s walking up the front driveway.”

I lifted my face and frowned at him. “What? But he just texted, saying he was running late.”

“Well, he’s on time now, I guess.”

I growled out my frustration. “Shit.” With a last, quick kiss to Caroline’s cheek, I murmured into her ear, “Lick you later, baby.”

My arm slid from around her, and I moved away. A little ache spread in my chest as I did, but I made sure to act cool about it. I meandered toward Ham where he and Blondie were playing with the two toddlers.

“How’s the babysitting going?” I asked, watching the Gambles from the corner of my eye as they entered the backyard. Gam and his wife carried plates of food toward Pick where he was setting shit set up, and the younger brothers went to Caroline where I’d left her talking to Hart.

I didn’t want to resent my oldest friend for showing up sooner than he said he would, but shit, if I wasn’t annoyed out of my mind because he’d shown so fucking early. But I’d promised Pick I wouldn’t cause any drama at his kid’s party, so I stayed away.

“Hey,” Ham said, thrusting one of the kids at me

. “Hold Skylar for me, will you? I’m going to help Mason set up the horseshoes.”

My eyes went wide, but I caught the kid so it wouldn’t fall. Holding it at arm’s length from me, I called after him. “Hey! Hey, what am I supposed to do with this thing?” He just chuckled and kept walking. When I saw Blondie snickering at me, I turned to her, still holding the baby as far away from me as possible.

“Blondie,” I hissed. “Stop laughing and just tell me what to do?”

“I don’t know. Maybe you should, you know, sit down with her on your lap.”

“Her? So this one’s the girl?”

“The pink dress didn’t clue you in, huh?”

“Shut it,” I muttered. I couldn’t think straight with the responsibility of a goddamn kid on my hands.

Blondie laughed at my distress. But her too-kind heart had her patting my shoulder soon after. “Just breathe. You’ll do fine. And seriously, you should sit. You look like you might pass out otherwise.”

I sat as I was instructed and gulped heavily when the chubby-cheeked little thing with dark, wispy curls gazed up at me with the most serious big blue eyes.

“This is the birthday girl,” Blondie introduced. “Her name is Skylar.”

“Right.” I looked up at her for guidance. “So...now what?”

She shook her head. “I don’t know. Try talking to her.”

I growled out my frustration and glanced across the yard, checking on Caroline to make sure she didn’t see me kidding it up and think I wanted one or something now that she knew she couldn’t have any. But she was busy talking with Aspen and Hart. I turned back to the kid.

The little thing was kind of cute with that ever-serious expression.

“Hey,” I said, not sure what the fuck I was supposed to talk about with a one-year-old. “Uh...happy birthday.”

Skylar reared her head back at my voice as if surprised that I’d finally decided to talk to her. Then her lips twitched, and she smiled. At me. Something shifted in my chest and fuck, who knew one little baby smile was so damn powerful? I think I fell I love.