“How was your time with Daddy?” she asked as she lifted Sophia to her feet again and wiped her down. “Why were you crying?”
“Be-because Daddy couldn’t find Pegsis, and you were gone, and Abby’s not here…” Her voice rose a little more with every word.
“Okay, okay,” Tessa soothed. “I’m here now, Pegasus is here now, and you’re going to see Abby when we get home. Tell me what you and Daddy did while I was gone.”
“I cried a lot.”
Tessa winced. “Uh-huh.”
“And he tried to play games with me, and he tried to watch movies with me…” Her lashes fluttered as she fought sleep. “But I just cried…”
“Until you fell asleep?”
Sophia frowned and thought about it. “No. He read to me. Every book.” She met Tessa’s eyes with a flicker of excitement and held up three fingers. “Two times. No, no.” She opened both her hands and held them up to Tessa. “Five times.”
“Five times?” she asked with amazement. “Wow, that’s pretty awesome.”
“Yeah,” she said with a sigh and a sad little look on her face. “Then I pee-peed on him.”
Tessa bit her lip but still laughed a little. “He’ll get over it.” She finished drying Sophia off and walked her into the bedroom, where she tugged on a pullup and slipped a nightgown over Sophia’s head before carrying her to bed. “Bet you’re ready for some good sleep. You’ve had a really big day.” She tucked Sophia in and sat beside her, brushing curls off her forehead. “I’m glad you had a good time with your daddy.”
Her lashes flickered a little more before they finally closed, and she murmured, “Can I have some water?”
“Just a sip.” She leaned down and pressed a lingering kiss to Sophia’s forehead, pulling in her baby’s sweet scent. “I’ll get it for you.”
17
When Tessa turned into the kitchen, she found Zach standing at the sink with his back to her. He was shirtless, using his tee to clean himself up much the way she had just cleaned up Sophia. Tessa stopped at the threshold between the living room and the small kitchen to admire all the muscles rolling beneath his tanned skin.
A rush of desire flooded her. God, she wanted him. Knowing she should end their physical relationship to maintain the current goodwill between them didn’t keep the desire from flashing in her blood. She loved the way he made her feel when they were together—like she was the most beautiful woman he’d ever been with. Like she could do no wrong. Like he felt the same bond between them that she did. Like it wasn’t just sex.
“Hey.” Zach’s voice startled her from her thoughts.
“Hey.” She continued into the kitchen, slipped off her blazer, and opened the refrigerator door to pull out a bottle of water, then grabbed a plastic tumbler from the cupboard. “I’m really sorry about tonight. That sort of thing doesn’t happen often—”
His arms circled her, sliding around her waist and pulling her back up against him. Tessa gasped and instinctively stiffened at the sudden intimate contact. Then the front of his body molded to the back of hers, and the desire rushed back in, heavy and hot.
“Did you do that on purpose?” he asked at her ear, his voice husky and soft.
“What?”
“Take Pegasus?”
She started to bristle at the accusation, but realized his voice held no menace, no anger, not even irritation. In fact, she thought she heard a hint of humor. She glanced over her shoulder to read his expression. Sure enough, he was smiling.
“Do you really think I’d do that?” she asked.
“If you did, I wouldn’t blame you. It gave me a crash course in three-year-old damage control.” He turned her in his arms, backed her against the counter, and leaned in. His blue eyes were heavy lidded, his grin fit only for the bedroom. “But I do think you owe me.”
She lifted her brows. “Owe you?”
“Owe me some TLC after suffering through three hours of listening to my baby cry.”
She huffed. “If that’s what you’re owed for a few hours, then I’m owed a lifelong vacation in Belize with a pool boy and a masseuse.”
His hands slid up her back, then down again. “I’ll be your masseuse…” He pulled away only enough to ease her body from the counter and slip his hands over her hips to her ass. “And your pool boy.”
With a sigh, he pulled her into him, tilted his head, and pressed his lips to hers. And before she knew it, she’d opened and let him taste her.