“Yeah, and my other leg gets tired from doing all the work.”

“I should send Sven to see you.”

“Who’s Sven?”

“My massage therapist. His hands are magical. I don’t know how I ever lived without him.” She picked up her martini and took a sip. “I made Grace let me schedule her regular prenatal massages. He does in-home appointments so I’ll just text you.”

“Thanks. That sounds awesome.”

“You’re welcome,” she said brightly.

When the first batch came out of the oven, we let them cool for a few minutes, then taste tested. They were perfect—a little crisp around the edges with chewy middles and gooey chocolate chips.

“Holy shit, Gav, you weren’t kidding.” Cara licked chocolate off her finger. “You really can bake cookies.”

“Told you.”

“I must admit, I’m impressed. Turns out you have a side to you I never knew about.”

When the cookies were all finished, she packed most of them into a couple of plastic containers and put them in a bag for me. I figured I’d head straight for the firehouse and share the goods while they were still warm. Chocolate chip cookies were best that way.

I drove down there and got out, struggling a little with the bag. Maybe I needed a backpack or something. I went inside and slowly made my way up the stairs. The kitchen was empty, but the cookies wouldn’t last long once word got around that they were here. I opened one of the containers and left them on the counter.

Chief came in with an empty coffee mug. He was looking a little rough—tired with a stoop to his shoulders. “Those look good. Did Gram make them?”

“Nope, Cara and I did.”

He raised his eyebrows while he poured some hours-old coffee into his mug. “Should I try one or just leave them for the guys?”

“You should definitely have one. They’re good.”

He reached for one but hesitated.

“It’s not a prank,” I said with a laugh. “On my honor. They’re good.”

“Mind if I ask why you and Cara were baking chocolate chip cookies?” He grabbed one and sniffed it.

I shrugged. “We were bored.”

“Good reason, I suppose.” He took a bite and his skepticism melted like one of the chocolate chips. “Okay, you’re right. These are good.”

“Told you.”

He took his cookie and coffee to one of the small round tables and sat. Grateful to be getting off my feet—or foot—for a while, I sat across from him.

“You feeling okay, Chief?”

“I’m all right.”

“You sure? Is your back bothering you again?”

His brow furrowed. “How did you know my back was bothering me?”

“It’s kind of obvious when you stand up, hold your back, and wince.”

“I’m not very good at hiding it, am I?”

“Not really.”

“You have a lot of your Gram in you,” he said. “You notice things.”

I shrugged. “I guess.”

“You have a lot of your dad in you, too.”

Clearing my throat, I glanced away. I didn’t really like talking about my parents. They were a shitty topic for me, best avoided. I decided to change the subject.

“How’s Skylar doing?”

“She’s getting settled.” He took a sip of coffee. “But she’s a bit shy. Has a hard time meeting people.”

I thought about mentioning that I’d seen her at the coffee shop yesterday, but I had a feeling I’d accidentally say something weird. Like how I’d touched her hand and it had felt like my entire life had flashed before my eyes.

A life with her.

Fuck. I needed to get my head together, so I went for a little humor instead. “Yeah, she had to run me over to meet me.”

He gave me a wry look, but I could see the hint of a smile. “Anyway. I suppose it’s not easy being new in town, but I’m a little worried about her.”

“Why?”

“She spends a lot of time alone.”

The thought of Skylar being lonely tugged at me. Shy girl. New in town. There wasn’t anything I could do about that, but I hated the idea of her being all alone.

Except… maybe there was something I could do about that.

Chief finished off the cookie and I stared at the wall, suddenly at war with myself. Because I had an idea.

A bad idea.

But so tempting.

Maybe even irresistible.

“Chief, I think I can solve both our problems.”

“Both? What’s your problem?”

“I’m bored off my ass. I can’t even be on light duty for a while. I need something to do. I only know like three cookie recipes, so that’s going to get old fast.”

“And my problem is?”

“You’re worried about your daughter.”

“I’m not making the leap. How can you solve both problems?”

My lips curled in a smile. Yep, I could totally do this. “I’ll be Skylar’s first friend in Tilikum.”

I could totally see Chief trying to keep his face neutral. “Hmm.”

“I know what you’re thinking—”

“I’m pretty sure you don’t.”

“Just friends, Chief.”

He eyed me over his coffee mug.

“I’m not suggesting I date your daughter. You said she’s shy and doesn’t really know anyone in town yet. I’m the opposite of shy and I know pretty much everybody. We can hang out, I can show her all the cool stuff there is to do. Introduce her around. I can help her get used to Tilikum life.”

“Why do I feel like I’d be inviting the wolf into my pasture?”

I grinned. “Evan’s the wolf. I’m just an otter.”

With a soft laugh, he shook his head. “Don’t get me wrong. I’ve known you your whole life. I know what you’re made of, and it’s the same stuff your dad was made of. Which is also why it makes me a little nervous.”

“How much trouble can I really get into? I only have one leg.”

He raised his eyebrows. “You and I both know if you’re presented with a cookie jar, you’re going to steal a cookie.”

I put my hands up in a gesture of surrender. “I’m not going to steal this cookie. Besides, I know how to make my own cookies.”

His brow furrowed.

“That kind of sounded like a masturbation joke and I totally didn’t mean it that way.”

He rolled his eyes.

“But I don’t have any issues with that, so you know, if the cookie jar started to look really tempting, I could always take care of things myself. Make my own cookies, so to speak.”

“Jesus, Gav.”

“I’m just saying. It’s like a release valve.”

“Okay, I get it. Look, Skylar’s a grown woman. She can be friends with who she likes. You don’t need my permission.”

“Awesome.”

“But Gavin.” He met my eyes.

Wow. I’d never taken the full force of a protective father stare before. It gave me a quick hit of adrenaline. “Yeah?”

“She’s been through some stuff recently. Be careful with her.”