Broadrick's eyes widened into full circles.

"It's true," I cut in for him. "Pretty to look at but horrible once he opens his mouth."

Suze nodded at my confirmation and turned around, marching back toward her mother who sat on the gym bleachers chatting with another mom.

He turned toward me. "When we get home, take two pills."

The lights flickered on and off. All heads turned toward the switch at the doors by the main entrance to the school. The leader raised her hands in the air.

"We all need to tell Ms. Vines and her assistant thank you for tonight's class. Can we say thank you, Ms. Vines?"

The group repeated the thank you, which each child at least a millisecond off in timing from everyone else.

I smiled, waved, and said you're welcome again. Such good kids. Little angels, really.

Broadrick passed me the handle to my suitcase and started walking toward the door. "Let's get out of here while we still can."

I nodded. Little angels or not, I wanted to get far away.

The troop leader met us at the exit door, blocking our path. "I just wanted to say thank you again. When you first volunteered for this, I wasn't sure what we were going to get, but you have a great way with kids."

My cheeks heated, and I kept my gaze on the door. "Thank you. They were a delight."

I'm pretty sure we both realized I was lying, but Broadrick slipped out beside me and made his escape, leaving me behind with the mob. What a traitor.

"Let me know if you ever need help again," I said as I followed him out and gave her one last wave. I'd have to update my to-do list to add changing her number in my phone to a "do not answer" code.

Broadrick opened the trunk for me, and I slid in the suitcase.

"Do you think ingesting so much black powder will hurt that kid?" he asked me as he shut it.

I shook my head and walked to the passenger side, tossing him the keys. No way in hell did I have the energy to drive us home.

"That seems like his mom's problem to me," I said when we were both in the car. "I need a hot bath and fifty minutes of silent time."

Broadrick laughed as he started the car.

**

The next morning, the water shut off in the shower, and I scrambled beside the bathroom door. Not in a creepy way or anything, but I didn't want to miss Broadrick when he came out of the room.

Darkness encroached on the hallway as I never turned on a light. I wouldn't give my presence away in case Broadrick tried to leave without me. This needed to be a total surprise.

The bathroom door opened and Broadrick stepped out, saw me, reared back into the bathroom space, and grabbed his chest. "What in the ever-loving fuck, Vonnie?"

"Morning," I said with my biggest smile. "Are you ready to take NB for his morning walk?"

He squished his eyebrows together and ran a hand through his wet hair. "I'm wearing a towel, so not really."

"Oh." My gaze traveled downward, and I stepped back an inch to give myself a better view.

Damn, my man was hot. All rippled muscle in his arms and chest. The type that could pick you up and carry you around the house. At least he could if I wasn't kick ass enough to walk wherever I wanted.

"Have you had your fill?" Broadrick asked with a twisted little grin.

I cleared my throat. "Let me know when you're ready to go."

He leaned against the door rail, letting God himself keep his towel in place-that was some trust in his tucking ability-and stared at me.

"What?" I asked before walking toward the bedroom.

"You never get up this early," he said, following behind me but walking right to the closet where he kept his stuff.

I shrugged. We really didn't need to get into any specifics. "I just want to enjoy the morning sunrise with you." I almost puked at the reminder of how early it was. The sun hadn't even gotten up. And worse yet, I had no one to blame but myself. "So hop to it and get dressed. Chop. Chop."

"Okay," he said, sticking his head out of the closet, still shirtless.

I clapped my hands at him, hoping it worked on him like it did the scouts last night. It didn't. "NB is waiting. Let's get a move on it."

He walked out, pulling his tight-fitting green T-shirt over his head. "How much coffee have you had already?"

"None." I widened my eyes for some reason. That's why we had to hurry. I needed to make it home again before the delusion of energy wore off and I passed out. "I'm just excited about a new day of possibilities."

He grabbed NB's leash off the rack by the front door as we both put on light jackets. Mornings were always a little cold. "I'm not sure if I should be worried or not, but I'm a little worried." Honestly, I'm always a little worried.

I forced my eyes wide again. It seemed to help with the tired feeling, as if I was tricking my body into believing I actually had energy. "Don't be weird."

We walked outside, and I turned back to lock the door while NB peed on his first bush. Broadrick and the dog turned right and headed down the block away from the water-a weird choice, but I went with it. I wanted to experience the route the two normally walked.

But also, four houses later, I wondered if this was an alternative path for them rather than their regular jaunt. "Do you guys normally go this way?"

Broadrick turned toward me. "Yes."

"Why not walk by the water?" Everyone walked by the water and public beach. It had the best views. My suspicions grew as my stomach tightened. Were they headed somewhere?

They stopped at a street corner and waited to cross the road even though no cars were coming. "We'll get there. NB and I take the beach path on the way home to watch the sun rise over the water."

"Oh. That makes sense." But also, how the fuck long were these walks? When did the sun come up?

A few blocks later, the boys turned. We twisted and turned through the streets, and as he said, the sun came up over the water as we reached the end of the walk. I suggested heading down another street we hadn't taken, and then another, and another. I wanted to cover all my bases.

The sun had cleared the horizon, blazing in the sky, as another enormous yawn hit me. NB stopped to lift his leg next to a bush, but nothing came out. He sniffed the bush and then lay on the ground beside it in a puddle.

"Have you made your point yet?" Broadrick asked, picking NB up and carrying him as we made another turn. "We good?"

"Yes." I rolled my eyes but happily turned back onto our street at the corner. We'd walked NB up and down the streets of Pelican Bay, and he didn't stray from the sidewalk once. He wasn't overly friendly with any dogs in the area, and he never made a beeline for a strange house or had his microchip activate someone else's doggie door.

I unlocked the front door of our place and practically fell inside. "You can walk NB alone from now on again."

Broadrick unclipped NB's leash and carried him to the couch, where the little dog promptly laid his head down and passed out. My plans were identical except I wanted my bed, so I continued on that way.

"When did you figure out I was testing our dog's friendlessness?" I asked as I slipped out of my shoes and left them by the bedroom door.

Broadrick chuckled as I fell on the bed face first. "On block two, when you asked NB if any of the houses looked warm and inviting."

"Well," I said and flipped over. "I had to be sure."

There was no point in getting up so ridiculously early unless I covered all my bases. I definitely wasn't doing another morning walk.

The bed lowered as Broadrick sat on it beside me. He leaned over and gave me a quick kiss on the lips. "Are you tired?"

"Extremely."

He kissed me again, longer this second time, his tongue stopping to press against my lips. "Still."

My heart kicked into overdrive, and my tummy tightened. "I'm a little more awake now."

"Hmm." He kissed me a third time. When his tongue pushed at my lips, I opened them, giving him access.

I moaned when he pulled away. "Much more awake now, but I think you should do it again. You know, to be positive."

Broadrick chuckled and threw his leg over me until he straddled me from above. "I guess I will."

The fourth kiss was one for the record books. He cupped my head in his hands and gently lowered my chin to a meeting point. My toes curled as he took possession of my mouth. I ran my hands over his chest, letting my fingers drag across the fabric of his shirt.

"You seem tired," Broadrick said, resting his hand on the top of my shoulder. It sent tingles across my skin, and I bit my lips. "Why don't you relax and let me do all the work this time?"

I grinned. "If you insist."