Feisty Firefighters Bundle

smooth, and so purposely relaxed that he knew she had to be the exact opposite-strung tight as a drum.

“I like to be alone,” she said.

“That’s too bad.”

She flinched.

And that was where more unwanted conflicting emotions came into play for Dax. He didn’t pretend to understand this woman who had tipped his world on its axis, but at the time, he found he couldn’t purposely hurt her. “I’m not threatening you,” he said gruffly, hating that she clearly thought he was. “You’re the mother of my child.” Which made his stomach twist. “We need to talk this out, Amber.”

“I know.” No nervous fluttering for this woman. Standing directly in front of him, her body and hands still, her face guarded, she waited.

Waited for what exactly, he hadn’t a clue. Her eyes gave nothing away, but he could have sworn she was expecting him to light into her one way or another. Again, he was struck by her cool beauty. That he knew exactly how much heat and passion lay just beneath that surface didn’t help things. “Will you sit?”

“Don’t.”

“Don’t what?”

She didn’t move a muscle. “I can’t handle the small talk. Just get down to it. You’re going to fight me for custody.”

It took him a full moment. “What?”

“You’re going to try to take her away from me, right?”

He stared at her, shocked. She was standing there, cool as a cucumber, waiting for the ax to fall, waiting for him to try to destroy her. “Hold on.” He shook his head, trying to clear it. Then he slowly stood to make them even. “Have I at any time in these past few hours said anything, anything at all, that could have possibly made you believe I would take Taylor from you?”

“You have to admit, it’s something a person in your position would consider.”

A headache started, right between his eyes. A tension headache, he realized with surprise. He almost never got tension headaches. “You’ve been in business too long,” he said wearily. “You think with that cutthroat mentality.”

She still just waited, making him sigh. Was she really cold? Or was she dying of fear inside? “I have no intention of suing you.”

“But?” Her lips curved, but the smile wasn’t warm. “I think I hear one at the end of that sentence.”

He let out a disparaging sound and massaged his temples. “But…hell, I don’t know. I can’t believe I’m here, doing this.” Restless, he strode to the playpen.

Taylor turned her attention from the mobile, staring at him with the somberness of an old woman. Bending closer, he smiled at her and suddenly she came to life, wiggling, waving her arms, pumping her little legs for all she was worth, cooing and babbling, doing everything in her three-month-old power to entice him to pick her up.

As if he could have resisted. He scooped her to him, cuddled her close and…nearly passed out. “Holy smokes.” He wrinkled his nose and held her out at arm’s length.

“I need to change her.”

“Yeah.” But at the dare he found in Amber’s eyes, he held onto his stinky daughter. “I can do it.” He tucked her close despite the smell and vowed not to inhale. Taylor’s head bobbed, not quite steady, and he settled a hand behind her neck, supporting her. She blinked and a long line of drool dripped from her mouth to his shoulder.

Then she gave him a toothless smile.

His heart tightened, and just like that, he fell in love.

Then she opened her mouth and spit up, hitting him full in the chest with a white, foul-smelling liquid that rivaled the scent coming from her diaper.

Amber bit her lip, and he knew damn well it was to hide her laugh. “Would you like some help?” she asked sweetly.

He had no intention of backing off now, even if his eyes were watering. “I can do this.”

Obviously pleased with herself, Taylor cooed and smiled wetly.

Dax held his breath and hugged her close. He’d throw his shirt away later. “Let’s go, Squirt.”

TWO MINUTESinto it, Dax was no longer so certain he could handle this fatherhood thing at all. He had ten nieces and nephews, and somehow he’d managed to avoid changing any of them.

Taylor lay flat on her changing table, naked and shiny clean from the sponge bath he’d given her. But for the life of him, he couldn’t figure out how to get her to hold still long enough to get the diaper on her. She seemed to have twenty arms and legs, and all of them were doing the bicycle thing at the moment.

Amber appeared in the doorway, an unreadable expression on her face.

Dax wanted to think that the flash of emotion he saw was guilt, regret, sorrow, pick one of the above, but he couldn’t be sure.

“Need some help?” she asked.

Yes. “I’ve got it.” He managed to slide the diaper under Taylor’s bare tush, only to have her wriggle to her side and kick it free.

“She’s a slippery thing,” Amber said. “Tenacious, too.”

Pride filled him, and before he could remember how furious he still was, he grinned. “Yeah.” Once again he tried to corral her on her back. Taylor grunted and fought him, smiling as she did.

God, she was his. His.

All his life he’d been a goof-off, the class clown. And all his life he’d been treated that way. He had to face the fact he’d done his best to live up to that reputation. With older sisters constantly babying him, and women frequently offering themselves, he’d never really thought of himself as particularly…well, family worthy.

Even his job, as serious and important as it was, was really just an extended form of play. He caught bad guys who started fires.

The truth was, he’d never grown up.

The realization wasn’t something to be proud of, and suddenly he didn’t like his image. He wanted more.

Taylor blew him a bubble.

Putty in her hands, he had to smile, thinking that maybe, just maybe, he’d just been given more.

Oh, he was still hurt at Amber’s deception. Angry, too, and a whole bunch of other things he couldn’t name at the moment. But he found he could deal with that separately. He wanted this child with all his heart, and he had no intention of letting anything between him and Amber stand in the way of that.

Behind him, he heard Amber shift as she came forward. He could feel her, could feel that unnamed thing that shimmered between them. Glancing at her, he found her watching him as well.

And for a long moment all that was between them disappeared. He remembered the day they’d spent locked in each other’s arms. The heat, the passion, the fear, the need. It had been incredible, and he had to admit, he wouldn’t have changed a thing that happened.

Except for maybe Amber’s disappearance afterward.

Then he remembered, he was standing there, holding his daughter-his daughter!- and that Amber had kept her from him.

And just like that, the moment was gone.

With a strange sense of regret, Dax turned back to the baby and Amber left him alone, without a clue as to what she was thinking.

Nothing new.

Taylor blew him a bubble, and Dax had to let out a laugh. “I don’t think she’s nearly as charmed with me as you are, sweetheart.”

Taylor just drooled.

TAYLOR SLEPT peacefully, oblivious to the tension around her, her little butt sticking straight up in the air, her fist stuffed in her mouth.

Dax watched her, actually feeling his heart contract. Just looking at her hurt.

It hurt to look at her mother too, he discovered, as he came down the stairs and met Amber’s deep, dark, impenetrable gaze.