Flynn laughed. “I know the feeling.”

   She leaned against the counter, and now that her eyes were fully open she checked him out. He wore sweats and a T-shirt, both only adding to the allure of the man’s magnificent body. The shirt stretched tight over his massive chest, his tattoos peeking out from the hems of the sleeves. The sweats were low slung yet cupped his ass perfectly.

   Not that she was ogling his ass when he turned around to make another cup of coffee. Okay, so she was.

   She’d thought one or two or three times with him in bed would have satisfied her and she’d be over the whole need-for-sex thing.

   Apparently not, because her nipples tingled and all she could think about right now was stripping off her clothes and taking him back to bed. Or, even better, doing it right here in the kitchen.

   She bet he’d be up for it. If she suggested—

   The back door opened and Mia stepped in, greeting them with a bright smile. “Hey, good morning, you two. And here I thought I’d be the first one up.”

   Flynn gave her a look. “Please. You know I’m always the first one up.”

   “In your dreams.” Mia looked over at Amelia. “Morning, Amelia.”

   “Good morning, Mia. How did you sleep?”

   “Like the dead. How about you? Or did you sleep at all?” Mia gave her a knowing look.

   “I plead the fifth on that one.”

   Mia laughed and headed over to the coffeepot. “And I’m not going to press you for details because you’re sleeping with my brother and that’s way more information than I ever want to know.”

   “Good idea,” Flynn said, kissing the top of Mia’s head. “What’s on your to-do list today?”

   “Heading to Stanford today.”

   Flynn nodded. “Going through the motions with that?”

   “Not really. I do intend to get my PhD at some point. And if they could put together a program I’d be interested in, I might put off the business project for a while. The only problem with the PhD program is the time commitment. It’s a full-time gig and while I’d be teaching, it’s that many more years before I could work or launch a business. I’m just not sure I’m willing to wait. But I want to do the research into it, so that’s partly why I’m here.”

   “It’s good that you’re weighing all your options,” Amelia said. “That way you can make an informed decision.”

   Mia nodded. “I agree.”

   “How do you think Mom and Dad will react if you don’t pursue the PhD right away?” Flynn asked.

   Mia shrugged. “I think they’ll be disappointed at first, but then excited at the prospect of me starting a business. And then terrified at the prospect of me starting my own business.” She ended with a laugh.

   Flynn took in a deep breath, then let it out. “You’re the baby of the family, Mia. We’ll all be terrified for you. But at the same time we all have faith in you. And you know I’m going to throw this out again. I’m here for you.”

   Mia moved in next to Flynn and put her arm around him. “I’m the baby of the family, but not a baby anymore. Trust me. I know what I’m doing and I’m not going into anything blindly.”

   Amelia watched the interplay between Flynn and Mia, so struck by Flynn’s protectiveness over his little sister, while still letting her know how much he believed in her. It gave her these warm feelings she didn’t know what to do with.

   “I should go,” Amelia said.

   Flynn frowned. “I was going to make breakfast for all of us before I had to head to practice.”

   “I have errands to run and bills to pay and I have to do laundry and grocery shopping, all before I have to go to work tonight.”

   “Are you sure? It won’t take long for me to whip something up.”

   “Absolutely sure. Spend time with Mia. I’ll see you later.”

   “Okay.”

   She gathered up her purse.

   “I’ll see you Sunday at the game, right?” Mia asked.

   She’d almost forgotten about that. “Yes. Definitely on Sunday.”

   “Great.” Mia hugged her. “See you then.”

   Flynn walked her to the door, then, after turning to see where Mia was, walked her outside and shut the front door behind him. He pulled her against him and wrapped his arms around her. “I’m glad you stayed last night.”

   She inhaled his scent, always so masculine. “Me, too. I slept hard. You exhausted me.”

   His lips curved. “Good.”

   He tipped her chin and brushed his lips across hers. “I’ll talk to you later. Have a good day, Amelia.”

   She definitely would now. “You, too, Flynn.”

   He waited on the porch while she got into her car and backed down the driveway. He was still on the porch watching her when she got to the end of his street and turned the corner.

   She didn’t know how to feel about Flynn. She wanted to keep this light and easy, but there was nothing light and easy about Flynn Cassidy.

SIXTEEN

   Flynn didn’t get to see his brothers all that often, so it was great when one of them came to San Francisco. Even better when they played against each other in football.

   He’d been busy with practices and with Mia this week—plus Amelia, which had been a nice bonus. Now that his brother Grant was in town, he was looking forward to seeing him off the field. Come Sunday, he’d lay Grant flat. Today, they’d have beers together.

   They both had practices today, so they made plans to meet up after. Grant wanted to go somewhere where they could kick back, relax and not have to deal with fans. Mia was going to be in Palo Alto today, and Flynn in Santa Clara, which was also near where Grant was having practice, so at least they were all close.

   Mia said she was craving pho, so Flynn sent them both directions to Tamarine. Flynn got there first so he went in and got a table in the far corner and ordered an iced tea, then texted Mia and Grant and let them know where he was sitting. Mia arrived shortly after and found him.

   “How was practice?” she asked as she slid into a chair next to him.

   “Hard. How was your meeting today?”

   “Productive.”

   “Are you intending to tell Grant about what’s going on?”

   She shrugged. “I don’t know. I don’t want to tell too many more family members before I tell Mom and Dad, ya know?”