“I know he’ll just watch TV the whole time and not bug me.”
“Easy it is then,” I chuckled. “But if at all you need a break today, call me, and I’ll make it happen.”
“Oh, Bear,” she sighed. “You really are crazy. I’ll be fine today. Just some shopping and then back home.”
I pressed my hand to her forehead and quirked my eyebrow.
“What are you doing?” she asked.
“Just making sure you don’t have a fever or something. You’re being pretty agreeable with all of this.”
“I normally am pretty agreeable. It’s Luna who tends to buck against whatever anyone else wants.”
“You just like to have a front row seat when that happens, huh?”
“Just seems to happen that way,” she whispered.
“Something tells me that happens way more than it should.”
“Snapper and Mouse are here,” Luna called. “You can leave, Bear.”
Greta laughed and shook her head. “I thought she liked you.”
“I thought so, too.” Luna really didn’t like being told to do anything. The decision to not leave her in charge of the girls had nothing to do with me. Sure, I agreed that she needed to have someone else with her, but I didn’t decide anything.
“Maybe you should leave out the back door just in case she tries to throw a punch at you,” Greta advised.
I quirked my eyebrow. “She wouldn’t.”
Greta tipped her head to the side. “I mean, I don’t think she would, but I honestly wouldn’t put anything past Luna.”
“That’s the advice you have for me?” I laughed.
“Always have your guard up?” she suggested.
“Oh, Greta,” I chuckled.
“No, I mean literally have your guard up.” She raised her hand to cover her face. “You’re too handsome to take a sucker punch to the nose.”
I grabbed her hand and pressed a kiss to the back of it. “No one has ever landed a sucker punch on me, mama. Luna is not going to be the first.”
She stared at her hand and licked her lips. “What were we talking about?” she whispered.
“Distracted?” I asked.
She blinked rapidly and looked up at me. “You’re pretty distracting, lumberjack. You just kissed my hand.”
“I know,” I drawled.
“Would you be willing to kiss other places?”
“Just cutting straight to the point, mama?” I asked.
Her cheeks blushed a pretty shade of pink. “I mean, it seemed like that’s something that could happen since you just kissed my hand.”
“I think the odds are in your favor.”
She gulped and nodded. “Very nice.”
“Bear!” Luna called.
“I’m gonna kick her in the crotch when you leave,” Greta growled. “He’s coming!” she shouted. “Right in the baby maker,” she whispered.
“Remember, call me if you need a break.” I dropped her hand and took a step back. “I can take your aunts.”
“Sure,” Greta drawled. “Now that is a show I would pay good money to have a front row seat to.”
“I better get going before Luna drags me out of here.”
“Later, lumberjack. I’m gonna go hide in the bathroom while I take a shower.” She hitched her thumb over her shoulder toward the bathroom. “If we didn’t have a crew downstairs and Ransom waiting in the car for you, I would ask you to scrub my back.”
“Raincheck, mama.”
Greta winked and headed down the hallway to her bedroom. She closed the door behind her, and it took everything I had to not tell everyone to get the hell out and spend the whole day just being with Greta.
Somehow, this crazy, beautiful woman had wormed her way past my guard, and I liked her there.
Damn.