COCKY_Hard Limits Panty-Melting Romance_SOS Security

by Eva Greer

  My throat grew thick with the thought of my parents, but I quickly shoved it down and released air through my pursed lips.

  “You don’t like it,” her eyes grew wide, filled with uncertainty.

  “I love it, Zee,” I smiled to assure her. “Thank you. It’s the first nickname I’ve ever had.”

  “Me, too!” the little girl exclaimed as she jumped out of bed, giving me a spontaneous hug as she raced to the bathroom that adjoined her bedroom.

  I laughed, turning quickly to move to the kitchen and get the pancakes started, but I stopped short when I noticed Dr. Mills’ imposing frame in the doorway of his daughter’s bedroom.

  He filled the entire frame with his 6’5” height and broad shoulders. I’d yet to find a gym in this massive house, but he had to work out. His arms were crossed, and I watched a streak of pain flicker through his eyes before he masked it with the intense scrutiny I was becoming accustomed to from his arctic blue eyes that rarely, if ever, showed emotion.

  Was he a robot, I wondered? No—that was pain I’d seen flash through his eyes, there was no doubt about that.

  I moved toward him, but he turned away with the grace of a panther and was halfway down the hall before I even reached Mackenzie’s door.

  An odd one. I suppressed a shiver as I scurried toward the kitchen to begin cooking the pancake batter I’d made it earlier this morning, when the sun was just beginning to kiss the sky, slowly making its way up over the horizon.

  I couldn’t wait to see the expression on Mackenzie’s face when she saw the pancakes piled high on her plate with a pat of butter and delicious maple syrup coursing over the sides.

  A smile danced on my lips as I reached the kitchen, moving around the massive island to turn the Wolfe gas stove top on; the cast iron grill would be at the perfect temperature for pancakes in less than a minute.

  I’d only been here two days, but already it was beginning to feel comfortable. It was a dream kitchen—the walls were all painted white with a beautiful gray and white quartz backsplash behind the stove. The stainless appliances were top of the line, and the furnishings minimalist with clean lines—everything except the table, that is.

  It was a long, rustic farm table that was marked with scratches and carried with it the worn look of a well-loved family heirloom. I wondered if it had been his wife’s and if the marks came from family gatherings, holiday parties, and intimate dinners with just the three of them.

  I didn’t know what happened to his wife, or how she had died, but I could tell it must have been very painful for the doctor, and I was fairly certain he was still in love with his dead wife.

  I felt a tinge of jealousy and abruptly pushed it away, shaking my head. Where did that come from? He’s my employer—nothing else—and this just is just a means to an end, I reminded myself.

  Mackenzie prefers to eat at the large kitchen island, so I set a place for her there and flipped the final pancakes just as she came flying through the door.

  “Are those all mine?” she asked with eyes as big as saucers.

  My response was interrupted.

  “Hey now, you don’t think you get to eat all of those, do you? What about me?” Dr. Mills asked with a lopsided grin, following close behind his daughter.

  This was such a different side of him. He was so relaxed around Mackenzie—so normal, even. I paused to study them. It was a nice break from the intensity he always directed at me.

  “Oh Daddy, I’ll let you have a bite or two if you’re lucky,” Mackenzie teased, giggling as he picked her up, swung her around and gently set her on the bar stool, laughing as Mackenzie squealed. Then he took the seat next to her and looked at me. “You’re missing a plate, Daddy, I guess you don’t get to eat.”

  They both looked at me so expectantly that I burst into laughter, placing a plate with two pancakes in front of Mackenzie and one with four in front of Dr. Mills.

  “Hey, that’s not fair!” Mackenzie exclaimed as she dove into her pancakes.

  “What do you mean? I’m bigger than you are, and it takes more to fill my belly.”

  “Yea, but Thea said she was making pancakes for me; how’d you end up with more?”

  I giggled. “There’s plenty for both you and your dad, Zee. Don’t let the amount worry you, okay?”

  “Okay, Thea,” she replied, her mouth stuffed with her final bite. “These are really good. Can I have one more?”

  “I think this one has your name on it.” I smiled as I placed a pancake with an embedded chocolate chip smile in front of Zee, who squealed for the second time and dug in with a vengeance.

  “These are delicious, Athena, thank you.” Dr. Mills nodded in approval, giving me an appraising look.

  Did I just see a break in the Great Wall, I wondered, but I said, “You’re welcome, doctor.”

  “It’s Thea, Dad.”

  “Thea?” he asked as though he hadn’t overheard my conversation with Mackenzie just moments earlier.

  “Yes,” she declared emphatically with a conspiratorial glance toward her father. “Thea gave me the nickname of Zee. But she doesn’t look like a goddess of war. She’s really pretty, right, Daddy?”

  But Zee didn’t wait for her father’s answer, and I breathed a sigh of relief. I didn’t really want to know what he thought about that. Or did I?

  I turned back to the stove as Mackenzie bantered on about the meaning of Thea being “godly” and that Thea was the goddess of light and mother of the sun, moon, and dawn. “Isn’t that cool, Daddy? Isn’t that a better name for her than a war person?”

  “I think both names are wonderful, sweetheart. Is it okay with Athena that you’ve given her a nickname?”

  My skin prickled, and I could feel his scrutiny even though I wasn’t facing him. More than anything, I wanted to keep my back to them, rather than let him see the flush that was creeping up my face. But the right thing to do was to let Mackenzie know I loved her new nickname for me.

  “Thea?” Mackenzie asked, uncertainty filling her voice.

  I put the cast iron pan down, and turned, moving directly in front of Mackenzie. My face softened. “I love the nickname, Zee. It’s the first nickname I’ve ever had, and I love what you chose and why,” I assured her, giving her little hand a reassuring squeeze.

  I was rewarded with a smile that stretched from ear-to-ear.

  “Are you done with your breakfast?” I asked.

  Mackenzie nodded and rubbed her belly. “Yup. There’s no more room. And my name is Zeeeee!”

  “Then scoot.” I laughed. “We don’t want to be late for school.”

  I reached for the plates as Zee scampered away.

  “I can pick up,” the doctor insisted. “The Jeep keys are hanging on the hook next to the garage door, and it’s yours for the day. If you would please come back after dropping her off, I’ll give you a card to use for any necessary purchases, and we can review the contract.”

  He wasn’t asking.

  “Of course. I’ll come back right after dropping her off.” I wanted to argue the point that I was fine with picking up, but it wasn’t worth it. Not on day two.

  I took a deep breath to calm my nerves. I was seriously going to have to get a grip on my reaction to him if I was going to continue working for him. It wasn’t that I was interested in him. Although he certainly was handsome, intelligent, and sexy—or was it that his impressive height, jock’s body, closely trimmed beard, arctic blue eyes, and pure intensity simply made him impossible to ignore?

  Regardless, I wasn’t planning to be in a relationship with any man for a very long time—if ever—and that wasn’t going to change. Certainly not for arctic man.

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  ABOUT EVA GREER

  Eva Greer is a hopeless romantic, and lover of all things good, kind, sexy, and suspense-filled.

  She lives in Maine with her favorite person on the planet (her husband).


  When she’s not writing, she enjoys sailing, hiking, photography, traveling, and bonfires with friends and family after sunset.

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