“I never knew that,” I said, realizing there were probably a lot of things about her I didn’t know, and wanted to. “Are you okay now?”

“Yeah, I had surgeries to correct the problem when I was younger, but my mother has always been overly protective—both my parents, actually. Even though the doctors say I’m fine, I feel like my parents look at me and see a sick kid.”

Placing my spoon in the empty bowl, I carried it to the sink. “As a father, I can understand that. We can’t help seeing our kids as innocent, helpless babies who need our protection.”

“Well, I’m not a baby,” she snapped. “And I don’t want to be treated like one.”

I turned around and looked at her in surprise. I’d never heard her speak angrily. “I’m sorry, Frannie. I didn’t mean you’re a baby. I meant that it’s hard for a dad to let go. Mentally, we know our kids need us to, so they can make their own way in the world, but in our hearts, we can’t stop trying to prevent them from making mistakes. We never want to see them get hurt.”

She took a breath. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to snap at you. I had an argument with my mother earlier, and … I just get a little tired of being seen as a kid all the time. I want to be seen as an adult capable of making my own decisions. You know?”

What I knew right then was how good she looked standing in my kitchen, feisty and worked up, a little color in her cheeks, a little skin showing where her top had slipped off that shoulder. I wanted to bite it.

I leaned back against the sink, gripping the edge of the counter. “I hear you.”

“I mean, I’m twenty-seven years old.” She took a step closer. “Don’t you think I should be allowed to make a few mistakes?”

Talk about mistakes. In two strides I could have covered the distance between us. Taken her in my arms. Crushed my lips to hers and felt her chest pressing against mine.

But I wouldn’t do it.

Maybe she wasn’t a baby, but she was only twenty-seven—ten whole years younger than I was. She was the boss’s daughter. She was the nanny. She was here doing me a favor.

And she trusted me.

There was no way.

Frannie

I was holding my breath.

I wasn’t even sure why, but it was something about the way Mack was looking at me. And the tension in his body—the taut muscles in his neck. The grip of his fingers on the edge of the counter. The set of his jaw. It gave the impression of restraint. Like he was holding himself back.

Something unfamiliar hummed in the air between us. I could feel it—he wanted me the way I wanted him.

No wonder I couldn’t breathe.

Then he cleared his throat and turned away from me, cutting off the current. “Sure. Everybody needs to make mistakes now and then.”

I’d forgotten I’d even asked the question.

He turned the sink on, rinsed his dishes, and placed them in the dishwasher. I stood there staring at his muscular back, at the width of his shoulders, at the snug fit of his jeans on his butt. If I were his and he was mine, I’d go over and wrap my arms around his waist, press my cheek to his back. Then he’d turn around, winding his arms around me. He’d lower his lips to mine, and—

“I should get you home,” he said, interrupting my fantasy. “Want to grab your coat?”

“Sure.” But I didn’t really want to leave. I wanted to stay in this warm, chaotic house with him and the girls. Pretend I belonged here. Pretend I belonged to him.

“Want me to put the chili in the fridge?” I asked.

“I can do it when I get back.”

“Okay. I’ll say goodnight to the girls.”

“Actually, they should probably come with us. It’s late.” He went over to the back door and pulled on his boots, leaving them unlaced. “Can you tell them to put on their stuff? I’ll warm up the car.”

“Yes.” I went into the front room and rounded up the kids, and we were zipping up our coats when Mack came in the back door again, a frown on his face. “Of course, my fucking car won’t start.”

One of the girls clucked her tongue. “That’s a dollar, Daddy.”

He glared at them. “I should get a freebie for car trouble.”

“Is it the battery?” I asked, pausing with one glove on.

“Maybe. But the way it’s parked in the garage, we wouldn’t even be able to get your car close enough to jump it.”

“What about using my car to drive me home? You can drop me off and borrow it for tomorrow. Or for as long as you need. I can always use my mom’s SUV if I need to go somewhere.”

His brow furrowed. “I could try, but your car is pretty well buried. Might take me a while to dig it out. Was it okay on the roads earlier? The streets haven’t even been plowed here yet.”

“It wasn’t awesome,” I admitted. My Beetle was adorable and fun in the summer, but every winter I regretted not choosing something bigger and better in the snow.

Mack sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. Snowflakes were melting on his shoulders, scarf, and hair—he’d gone out without his hat. The tips of his ears were red from the cold.

As we were standing there, the phone rang, and Millie whooped. “Snow day! Please, please, please!”

Felicity made it to the phone first and picked it up. “Hello?” Then she nodded excitedly and did a little dance. “Snow day tomorrow! No school!”

While the girls cheered, Mack looked at me over their heads, his expression grim. “I need a beer.”

I laughed, shaking my head. “I don’t blame you.”

“Dad, can Frannie spend the night?” Millie asked.

“She can sleep in my room!” shouted Winnie, clapping her hands.

“She doesn’t want to sleep with you,” said Millie. “You wet the bed.”

“Do not!”

“Do too!”

“Dad, Millie said I wet the bed and I don’t anymore!”

“Enough!” Mack put out his hands. “I need to think.”

“But can she sleep over, Daddy? Please?” Felicity clasped her hands beneath her chin.

He looked at me. “I hate to say it, but I think you might be stranded at the zoo for the night.”

“I don’t mind. I just need to call my mom and let her know.” I rolled my eyes, thinking that at twenty-seven, it shouldn’t have been necessary and probably made me sound even more like a child. “Otherwise she’ll freak out.”

“I get it,” he said.

“Yay! Then we can bake something in the morning for breakfast. Frannie knows how to make gluten-free monkey bread!” Millie danced around the island.

He unwound his scarf. “Well, I guess that settles it. I can’t turn down monkey bread.”

My heart was thumping hard as the girls crowded around me. Which was silly—I wasn’t staying because he wanted me to. I was stuck here.

Still. We were going to sleep under the same roof. It gave me a thrill I hadn’t felt in a long time.

Was that pathetic?

I removed my coat and boots and took my phone out of my purse to text my mom.

Going to stay at Mack’s house. His car won’t start and mine is buried on the street.