Enticing (Red Lips & White Lies, #3)

by Bella Matthews

Shit. Two kids. This would probably be when a smarter man would back away, but I guess I’m not that smart because it makes me want to know more, and I’m pretty sure Addie doesn’t want me to know anything. Guess it’s a good thing I don’t mind putting the work in.

But something was there . . . Not just attraction, but something else. Something bigger. Stronger. Insistent. Something I don’t just want to explore, I need to. Have to. She and her kids and the chaos around them settled me in a way I haven’t been in a long time.

I’m not sure what it says about me that I just realized all the punishments I threaten my daughter with are my actual adult goals. Staying home. Going to bed early. Having to be quiet for five minutes. And my favorite . . . getting spanked. I’ll never spank her, but I’m certain I wouldn’t mind being spanked once in a while.

“I want to be your everything.” I pull the covers over her and run a hand over her face. “But you’re gonna have to let me in for that, sweetheart.”

“Because Adelaide . . .” I breathe her in and slow down. “The minute I laid my eyes on you, I knew you were everything. Somehow, I just knew it. And I knew you were supposed to be mine. You and those girls. But you were never going to let me prove it. This way, I can show you why.”

“I’m not going to hurt you, Addie. Not you. Not your girls. If any of this is going to work, you have to trust me.” “I don’t know if I’m capable of trusting again, Leo . . .” She closes her eyes for a moment, and when they open, there’s a fire there that was missing before. “But I think if I was ever going to try to trust someone, it would be you.” I press my lips against her forehead. “That’s a start.”

“Mine, Addie. And I protect what’s mine. Nothing is ever going to hurt you again. I promise.”

“I love you, Adelaide. You. The girls. You’re everything to me, and I fight for what’s mine. We’ve got this. I promise.”