Delinquent Daddy (Banks / Kincaid Family #2)(36)

Delinquent Daddy

by Linda Kage

wanted. Plus she'd grow up in a neighborhood where she could play out in the open in a safe environment and attend a nice, reputable school.

So far, Ellie had been able to provide all of that; she wasn't about to lose slack now. Most of her good fortune had come from luck. The house she owned, or at least would own after another twenty-five years of payments, could actually be accredited to her louse of a boss. Winston's brother, Dr.

Mendel Young, had wanted to sell his guesthouse for years and when it went on the market, Winston mentioned it to Ellie.

Like a dog to a bone, she'd jumped on the chance to live next door to doctors and bankers. It didn't even matter that her home was only an eighth the size of every other house on the block. It was hers and didn't have wheels under it. She adored it.

She lived in a beautiful, safe community with a wonderful neighbor friend in Dr. Young's wife, Nora. Even their son, Keller, was a blessing to have nearby. From the moment the two children had met, they'd been best friends.

So yeah, Ellie pretty much adored this life she'd built up all by herself. She might've had grand dreams when she'd lived in Tennessee, but she'd never really thought she'd get this far. Hard work and pure determination actually did pay off sometimes.

As she listened to Cassidy's even breathing, she was helpless but to remember the man who had helped her create this gift. It was like meeting him for the first time all over 137

Delinquent Daddy

by Linda Kage

again. She'd fought so hard not to like him, not to fall for him. But she'd failed miserably.

She couldn't let that happen again. She refused to trip into Boston Kincaid's seductive web one more time. This round, they were enemies. It wouldn't do to lose sight of that.

He wanted to take her daughter.

Remembering the look on his face, however, when he'd seen Cassidy for the first time and the way he'd treasured her body tonight, touching her like he'd actually missed her, Ellie gnashed her teeth even harder. Closing her eyes, she swallowed back the guilt over keeping father and daughter apart. Though she tried to stop it, her mind wandered further into the past, back to Cassie's conception, back to when those good times started to turn not so good.

It was early April, and Boston was in a mood. He often became irritable and tightly wound when he had a big test or a paper deadline to make. The man was the ultimate worrywart. Ellie teased he was going to have an ulcer before he hit twenty-five. But his mood swings had never turned her off before. She'd always delighted in the fact she could pull him out of his doldrums. That was one of the reasons she'd been so drawn to him. Because he'd been so positively affected by the mere touch of her hand.

As one who'd never been comfortable with getting close to other people, she could curl up to Boston and have his body humming in seconds. It was unreal how near she always wanted to be to him. He was like a drug, and she'd become addicted. So addicted, in fact, the first time he'd pulled away from her had felt like a bad overdose.

138

Delinquent Daddy

by Linda Kage

She went to his apartment to visit. It was a rainy Saturday afternoon. Though she'd been scheduled to work, another waitress had begged to switch shifts with her. So, Ellie unexpectedly had the entire day off. She could've caught up on a little homework. But she went to Boston instead.

After tapping on his door, she heard his muffled call, "'S

open." So, she grabbed the handle and entered.

He sat on his bed, one leg tucked under him, the other hanging over the mattress as he tapped his toe on the floor to the tune on the radio and worked from an open textbook in his lap.

He glanced up briefly. When he saw her, he didn't smile as he usually did. In fact, he looked a little sick. His face drained of color, and a haunted expression crossed his features so quickly Ellie convinced herself she'd imagined it. Still, warning bells went off.

"Hey," he said stoically and immediately dropped his face to return his attention to his homework, tapping his pen against the textbook.

"Hey," she murmured in reply, closing the door behind her and easing closer to his bed. Something was wrong, ergo, she immediately wanted to fix it and soothe him back into being the guy she loved so much.

"I got off work today. Angela begged to switch schedules so she could go out with some new guy tomorrow night."

"Hmm," he responded, not even bothering to sound interested.

Wanting to cheer him the quickest way she knew how, she sat down on the mattress and scooted closer. "Anyway," she 139

Delinquent Daddy

by Linda Kage

went on. "I was thinking...since I have the entire afternoon off..." She left the invitation open ended.

Spotting a lock of his hair obstructing his view from reading, she reached out to brush it out of his eyes. But before making contact, he shifted his face away. Ellie's fingers froze and her body constricted with pain. He'd never rejected her touch before. Swallowing, she quickly pulled her hand back to her lap.

He glanced over. When he saw the hurt on her face, his eyes filled with regret, and he opened his mouth as if to apologize. But then he forced his gaze away and mumbled, "I really need to study."

"I'll help," she offered and once again reached out, intending to slip his book off his lap. She'd grown accustomed to helping him study. And he'd always gratefully appreciated her efforts, especially when they did the strip off, where she peeled of a piece of clothing for every question he answered correctly.