Partners in Crime (Gambling on Love Book 4) Read online

  “She’s an amazing kid,” I say, watching Colby introducing herself to the other girls in the class.

  “She looks like your mini-me. Are you sure you’re not secretly her mom? That you hid your pregnancy from us and this being her nanny is just a cover?” Zoe gives me a sideways glance.

  “You’re insane.” I roll my eyes at her. Zoe has always had a very vivid imagination.

  “I’m just saying, she looks like she could be your kid. Anyway, I have to tell you about this gorgeous cop I met this morning at the donut shop.” Zoe has been working mornings at a donut shop to make extra cash during the off season of the Pacific Northwest Ballet, where she is a principle dancer. A ballerina working at a donut shop, now that is something you don’t see very often. How she stays so skinny working there is beyond me. I would be stuffing my face with donuts every chance I got. Zoe, in great depth, describes the guy from the shop. My attention goes between her and Colby, making sure she is getting along with the other girls. The creak of the studio door draws my attention away and to Hank, walking through the door. He made it. Our eyes meet, and a flush rises in my cheeks when he hits me with a smile.

  “Holy hot piece of man meat, who is that?”

  My head snaps back to Zoe, whose mouth is on the floor. We’re not the only ones that have noticed Hank’s arrival, every mom in the place has their eyes gobbling him up. Hank doesn’t appear to notice, his focus is held on me.

  “That’s Hank,” I say. Colby spots him and bolts toward him, leaping into his arms.

  “Holy fuck, that’s Hank? Jesus Christ, he’s fucking hot. Now I see why you like him so much. Damn, are my clothes still on, it feels like they just exploded off my body. And my panties are done for. Hello Hank the hunk.” She is practically drooling down her leotard.

  “Jesus Zoe, don’t make me take the hose to you. My mild crush is gone. Hank is just my boss.”

  “You are so full of shit. I bet those panties of yours are drenched right now.” She starts to lift the skirt of my dress, but I swat her hand away.

  “Stop,” I warn her. “I really like working for this family. and I don’t want to ruin it because I let my hormones get in the way.”

  “It doesn’t take a genius to see there is something between you. You could cut the sexual tension with a knife. The two of you haven’t been able to take your eyes off each other since he walked in here. Let me ask you this, what if instead of working for them, you were a part of their family?” She gives me a sideways glance, then walks away to start the class, leaving me to simmer over her question.

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  Hank

  THE WOOD FLOOR creaks under my feet as I sneak into Colby’s room to give her a kiss goodnight. I hate the nights when I can’t be here to read her a bedtime story and tuck her in. At least I’m home more than when I was a beat cop. The first two years of her life, I worked a lot of night and double shifts. No matter how exhausted I was, I never went a day without spending time with her.

  I kneel next to her bed and gently run my fingers through her hair then kiss her forehead. Her eyes flutter open. “Hi Daddy,” she says in a groggy tone.

  “Hi Princess. Did you have a good day?”

  She nods her head. “I really wike Nora, Daddy. She’s so much fun and nice. We pwayed all day.” A little tired smile slides across her face.

  “I’m glad you had a great time with Nora today. Go back to sleep and, in the morning, Daddy will make you chocolate chip waffles.” The morning after working late, we get up early, and I make Colby a special breakfast so we get a little extra time together in the morning.

  “Yum. Goodnight Daddy. I wuv you.” Her eyes fall closed.

  “I love you too, Princess,” I whisper then lean in to kiss her cheek. There are days when I look at Colby and can’t believe she’s mine, but moments like this, when I look down at her, I feel like I’m the luckiest man alive to have a sweet little girl like her in my life.

  I close the door behind me and head downstairs to have a late dinner. The whirl of a sewing machine redirects my path to the dining room. Popping my head through the doorway, I find Nora hunched over her sewing machine surrounded by a mountain of pink, purple, and teal tulle. And yes, I know my tulle from organza. Her glasses sit low on the bridge of her nose, and a messy bun sits atop her head, making her look like a sexy librarian. I could get used to coming home to this view every night. In my head, if she was mine and I came home to her, we’d be rolling around naked all over that tulle.

  The machine comes to a stop, and Nora’s head snaps up in surprise when she notices me standing in the doorway. “Holy shit, Hank. You scared me. How long have you been standing there?” she says between deep breaths.

  “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to frighten you. I’m not use to having anyone but Colby here, so I was curious what you were doing. I’ll let you get back to work.”

  “No, it’s fine, please stay if you’d like.” She smiles warmly.

  I step further into the room and take a seat at the table across from Nora. “What are you making?” I ask.

  “I’m making Colby some tutus for ballet and for play,” she replies, holding up the finished tutu for me to see. “She had so much fun at the class today, that’s all she could talk about for the rest of the day.”

  “So, we have moved from fairies to ballerinas, huh?” Colby’s obsessions have changed and evolved since she was two. First, it was all about animals, we spent every weekend at the zoo, then she moved to Disney princesses, to her most recent obsession, fairies.

  “The fairies are now fairy ballerinas.” She folds up the tutu and adds it to the stack sitting on the chair next to her.

  “I’m seeing frilly tutus in my future.” I chuckle, shaking my head. The things I do to make my kid happy.

  “It’s a good thing you look good in tulle.” She giggles. “Welcome to the world of having a girl.”

  “I can’t imagine my life any other way. The only part I’m dreading is the teenage years and having boys coming around. If I get my way, she won’t date until I’m dead.” God’s sick fucking joke, giving me a girl to raise in a world full of assholes like me.

  “Good luck with that. I’m one of six girls in my family and, I can tell you first hand, that will never happen. We always find a way to sneak around with boys.” Her words fill me with dread.

  “That is my nightmare. I just hope I can teach her to make the right choices when that time comes.”

  “You are doing an amazing job with her so far. You have a great kid on your hands there,” she praises.

  “Thanks for the vote of confidence. Half the time I feel like I have no fucking clue what I’m doing. I’m just happy I manage to keep her alive most days.” We both laugh.

  “I think every parent feels the exact same way. My dad says having kids is like turning on a blender without the lid. It’s wild and messy, but it’s fun and worth the mess. And yes, that very scenario actually happened a few times in our house.”

  “Sounds like your house was very wild. Where did you grow up?” I ask, curious to know everything about her.

  “I grew up in Renton with my nine brothers and sisters.”

  My eyes widen in shock. “You have nine brothers and sisters? What was that like?” I ask, still in awe of the situation.

  “It was complete and utter chaos, but I couldn’t imagine growing up any other way. We were there for each other. If one of us was having a hard time, the rest of us were there to lift them up. We didn’t have a lot of money, but we were rich in love. I know it’s cheesy, but we didn’t need a lot of material things. Family was, and still is, number one in our world.”

  I hang on her every word while she tells me about her family. I am completely fascinated by her life. I grew up an only child in a world where everything was handed to you. I had all the money I could want, but I always felt like I was missing something. I used drugs and money to fill the void. Here is Nora, who grew up with hardly anything but she is rich in lo
ve and family. She had the life I wish I’d had growing up. It’s the life I want for Colby.

  “You’re very lucky to have had a good support system growing up. I grew up in a world of self-entitlement. I never had to work for anything, which lead me to be a selfish prick,” I admit.

  “I find that hard to believe,” she says.

  “It’s true. Before Colby came along, I was headed down a very dangerous road. I abused drugs and fucked around.” Nora’s face drops when I mention the sleeping around part. It sends a pain through my heart thinking the image she had of me has now changed for the worst. “The moment the nurse put Colby in my arms, I knew I had to change. That little girl saved my life. I don’t want her to go down the same path I did. I hope if she sees the mistakes I made it will keep her from following in my shoes.”

  The light comes back to her face. I must have redeemed myself somehow in her eyes. “I can see why you love Colby so much. We all make mistakes in our lives, it’s how you use those mistakes to change yourself, hopefully, for the better.” She rests her hand on top of mine. “You’re a good man Hank, and I think Colby helped to bring that out in you. You are both very lucky to have each other.” She warmly smiles.

  We get lost in conversation, talking about our childhoods. It’s been way too long since I’ve had a real conversation with a woman that wasn’t about me getting into her pants. I feel so at ease and relaxed with Nora. I want to know anything and everything about her, and I want her to know all the good and the bad about me. This must be what it feels like for my partner, Brian, with his wife Brooke. I aspire to have a relationship like theirs one day. To have someone who knows all your secrets and faults and still loves you unconditionally is a tremendous thing. I want someone I can have real conversations with, laugh with, be a friend to, raise a family with, and have great fucking sex with. I want a partner in crime.

  All this talking has made me forget that I haven’t eaten. The loud growl coming from my stomach lets me and Nora know its dissatisfaction with not being fed.

  “Sounds like someone is hungry.” She giggles. “I have some leftover chicken tacos in the fridge, I can warm some up for you,” she offers.

  “You don’t have to. You already made me breakfast this morning.”

  “It’s no trouble at all. Besides you’ve been working all day, you deserve to sit and relax.” She gets up from the table and grabs my hand to help me up. She is too damn sweet. Nora leads me to the kitchen and directs me to sit down.

  “If anyone deserves to sit and relax, it’s you. You’ve been running around with Colby all day,” I say, watching her move effortlessly around the kitchen. She looks damn good here in my house.

  “I’ve been sitting at my sewing machine since Colby went to bed, so I’ve had my relaxation time.”

  “You must let me pay you for making Colby’s tutus,” I insist.

  “Nope, I won’t take a dime. I had all the materials on hand, and I love making stuff like that. It was my pleasure to do it.”

  “Did you float down from the sky with your umbrella like Mary fucking Poppins?” Nora is too good to be true. Gorgeous, good with kids, and sweet as fuck. She’s like a real-life Disney character.

  “Yeah, right after my musical number with a bunch of cartoon penguins.” Her head falls back with laughter. What I wouldn’t give to make her laugh like that every single day.

  CHAPTER NINE

  Nora

  I STRIP OFF my yoga pants and toss them in the washer with the rest of my darks. With the flick of my hip, the door closes. I spin around and dance my way back to the kitchen for a little liquid happy. The house is quiet with Hank and Colby both still asleep upstairs. I have a good hour to get laundry done before Colby wakes up and my day really begins.

  The first few weeks of living with Hank and Colby were awkward, more so for Hank than me. While I was attending University of Washington, I lived at home to save money. My only saving grace, in this situation, was that I grew up in a house full of siblings. Although I haven’t lived with anyone outside my family, I know to knock before entering any room inhabited by a boy. Walking in on my older brother jerking off in a tube sock was lesson enough for me. Hank, on the other hand, has never lived with anyone over the age of five. But raising a little girl has taught him to respect a woman’s space. It’s taken some time, but we have found our rhythm and routine.

  I stand over the coffee pot and breathe in the fresh, dark roasted aroma. If spirit animals were a real thing, coffee would be mine. Even the sound of it pouring into my cup is heaven to my ears. With the first sip I can hear the angels singing. While the coffee works it magic, I look over Colby’s schedule for the day. It’s my favorite day of the week. Today we have our weekly hot cocoa date at Starbucks after Mommy and Me yoga, and then we end the day with cupcakes at the park before her daddy-daughter date with Hank.

  Hank should get a Father of the Year award for doing these dates every week with Colby, especially with the surprise date he is taking her on tonight. He’s taking her to see the new live action Beauty and the Beast movie, and he commissioned me to make him a beast costume to wear to the theater. Just when I think this man can’t possibly get any more perfect, he goes and does a thing like this. Like I needed any more of an excuse to sit on this man’s face. This also proves Zoe is right, that Hank is the perfect man for me. I won’t tell her that, at least not yet. Spending the past two months getting to know him better, through our nightly talks, has brought us closer. We’re more like friends rather than boss and nanny. I’m sure I’ve crossed a boundary by becoming friends with him. The caretaker in me wants to be the shoulder for him to lean on, or, in his case, just to be a listening ear. He hasn’t really had anyone to come home to that he could vent about his day or have a good laugh with. If I can be that for him, I will happily cross that boundary. Plus, it means I get to spend more time with him and who wouldn’t want that.

  I am standing behind the island, with the last sip of my coffee warming its way down my throat when the back-door creaks open and a shirtless, sweaty Hank steps inside. I about drop the cup in my hand when I get a full, unobstructed view of his tattoo cladded chest. He’s got me so distracted by his insane body, I can’t put together the pieces of how the hell he made it out of the house for a run without me seeing him. I can’t take my eyes off him. I’ve had an idea of the magnificent body that has been hiding under his suits and Henley shirts he normally wears around me. My imagination has filled in the rest, but it pales in comparison to the tattooed, golden-tanned, panty-killing body standing a few feet away from me.

  I shake myself back into reality and wipe the drool from my chin. “When did you get up?” I ask. Normally Hank goes for his runs at seven. Not that I’m complaining.

  “I let Colby sleep in my bed after she had a nightmare so, for the rest of the night, I kept getting kicked in the back and slapped in the face. After the last kick to the kidney, I decided to get up.” He strides over to the fridge to grab a bottle of water. I watch the muscles in his back flex as he opens the door. It should be a crime to look that sexy opening a refrigerator door.

  “I feel your pain. We took a nap together on the couch a couple days ago, and I woke up on the floor.” I snicker. Colby has to be part wildling.

  Hank twists off the cap of his bottle and takes a gulp of the cold water. As he turns in my direction, his view of all of me finally unobstructed by the counter, the water in his mouth comes spitting out. He quickly turns his back to me. “Um Nora, you aren’t wearing any pants.”

  I glance down at my lower half and there are my blue cotton panties for the whole world to see. Apparently, seeing Hank without a shirt made me completely forget the fact that I wasn’t wearing any pants. “I am so sorry. I was doing laundry and decided to add the bottoms I was wearing into the load.” I scramble to find something to cover me up. All I can find is a roll of paper towels. I rip off a few sheets and wrap them around my waist.

  Hank turns around and lets out a hardy
laugh. “That is not doing any good. I’m trying to be a gentleman right now, but if you don’t put on a pair of pants soon, I’m not going to be able to control myself.”

  “Okay, but if I have to put on pants then you have to put a shirt on. I can’t think straight with those glistening muscles staring at me,” I tease.

  He takes a few steps toward me. “Oh, am I distracting you? Well, here, let me cover up.” He stops in front of me and then reaches for the paper towels, ripping one square off. He places it in the middle of his chest. “Is that better?” he asks with a sly grin.

  “Oh yeah, that is so much better,” I say in a sarcastic tone. I really want to reach up and run my hands all over the chiseled plane of his chest. “You should wear that more often.”

  “Only if you wear the matching skirt.” He winks.

  “I’ll go grab some pants from the laundry room.” I turn and head toward the laundry room. “It’s a good thing I wasn’t wearing a thong or you really would have gotten quite the show.” I can’t help but to tease him again.

  “Nora, don’t you know it’s not nice to tease a man who hasn’t had sex in four years.”

  His statement stops me dead in my tracks. I slowly turn back around and take a few steps back into the kitchen. My brain is struggling to comprehend what I just heard. That can’t possibly be true . . . there is no way. He has women falling all over themselves to get his attention wherever he goes. No, it’s not true.

  “You’re messing with me aren’t you, there is no way that is true. Have you seen yourself? You are panty droppingly hot. There is no way you have trouble getting sex,” I say, completely stunned by his admission.

  Hank tilts his head to the side, and his eyes glide down my legs. “I must not be that good looking, your panties are still on.” He chuckles.

  “That’s because I’m holding them up because every time you walk into the room they want to go down to my ankles,” I unabashedly admit. Hank just shakes his head and laughs. “Seriously, you have not had sex in four years?”