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His arms banded around me, holding me closer. He tipped his head down and brushed a kiss over my lips. “I missed you this morning. Wish we had woken up together.”

He kissed me again, and heat bloomed, spreading through my body. “Me too. The joys of running a bakery. Lots of early mornings.”

I pulled back to look up at him. “How was the team meeting? I didn’t see a lot of the game, but it sounded like you guys had a rough time today.”

Carter grimaced. “It wasn’t pretty. Multiple fielding errors that allowed runs to score, plus two baserunning mistakes that cost us runs. But it’s only the second game. We have a long season ahead of us to get better. How was it for you? Were sales good?”

My stomach growled, and he released his hold on me. “You’re hungry. Did you want to shower before we eat, or after?”

Heat raced through me again as I thought about what I wanted. I sucked in a breath. “Food first. Then a shower—and you can join me.”

Carter’s smile was full of promise. “Deal.”

Monday

I groaned out loud when I turned onto my street and saw Chad’s black Mercedes in front of my house again. It was bad enough that I saw him more than I wanted to. He’d been spending more time with Ethan, even volunteering to help with one of Ethan’s baseball teams, but this was invading my space.

I wanted to believe that he’d turned over a new leaf. I wanted to believe he would keep his word to Ethan, that he wouldn’t let him down again, but I had too much experience to fall into that trap. Ethan had a kind heart and wanted his father’s attention; it had taken him less than a week to forgive Chad for all the years of missing games, skipping visits, and generally being absent from his life. I wasn’t nearly as forgiving.

I unloaded the groceries I’d brought home. Maybe I’d get lucky and Chad’s visit would be brief, and I wouldn’t have to talk to him. I didn’t have it in me to spar with him right now.

Today the club didn’t have a game, only practice before another series of home games. Then they’d head out on the road, and I’d have a few days to breathe. Monday was normally my day off, but I used today to map out a plan to get us through the next month without me burning out. After spending the day at work catching up on our regular orders and still prepping for the next three days, I was exhausted.

I managed to carry all the bags from the SUV and juggled to get the door open without dropping anything. I cursed when my keys slipped out of my fingers and fell toward the ground, until a tanned hand reached out and caught them right before they landed.

I locked eyes with Carter, soaking in the way his eyes twinkled when he smiled at me. Warmth spread through my midsection. All I wanted was another one of his panty-melting kisses, but we’d both agreed to keep this thing between us private, and Ethan and Chad were both here. Too bad my libido hadn’t gotten the memo. I cleared my throat to break the tension. “Nice catch.”

He reached past me, and I noticed the strength in his wrist as he turned the key in the lock and swung the door open. I was being an idiot. It was a wrist. He’d had a whole lot more than his wrist pressed up against me on Friday. And Saturday. And Sunday.

“Let me help with those.” He took two of the bags I was struggling with and waited for me to enter the house first.

I let out a relieved sigh when I didn’t see Chad in the immediate vicinity. With Ethan around, I wasn’t too worried about a confrontation between him and Carter—he was usually only a real dick when he’d been drinking. I still didn’t want to press the issue.

Carter and I made short work of putting away the groceries, moving carefully around the kitchen to avoid touching each other. The atmosphere was charged with awareness, our bodies drawn to each other even as we consciously stayed away. If we weren’t careful, Ethan would figure out the change in our relationship in no time. He was no dummy.

“How were things at the bakery today? Were you able to get everything done? You could have texted me if you wanted more help.”

Carter’s back was to me, and all I could think about was the last time he’d helped me, and having his lean, hard body pressing me up against my industrial-size refrigerator. I’d never look at it the same way again. “Thanks. We were good, though. Emily came in to help, so we’re ready for the rest of the week. Besides, didn’t the club have practice today?”

Carter crossed his arms over his chest. His white Fliers T-shirt outlined his pecs to perfection, and my mouth went dry. The man was built, and at least temporarily, he was with me. How did I get so lucky?

“It was only a half day. I had physio after, but I would have come by if you wanted help. I could have at least picked up the groceries for you. You already do too much for us.”

I tried to untangle my jumbled response to his offer. The automatic refusal that came to my lips made no sense. Even if we weren’t sleeping together, Carter was living here. There was nothing weird about him grocery shopping or doing any other domestic chore that went into running a household. No one would question it. “Thank you. Next time I’ll take you up on that.”

Carter reached for me, brushing his thumb over my lips. I leaned forward, trying to sneak a kiss, when the thump of the basement door reminded me that Ethan was here with his father. The sound of the front door closing lessened some of the tension I’d been feeling ever since I’d spotted Chad’s SUV.

“Mom, I need to talk to you.” Ethan came into the kitchen, his mouth pressed into an uncharacteristic frown.

What had Chad done now? It sucked that my instinctive response was to blame Ethan’s father, but they’d been together all weekend, and years of experience told me Chad was at the root of whatever was bothering Ethan.

“I have some video to review before tomorrow’s game,” Carter said.

I shot him a grateful glance before he went upstairs. His sensitivity around Ethan’s need for a private conversation was one more way that he proved he was a good man. “What’s going on?”

Ethan sat on one of the barstools at the island, looking dazed. “Dad was at practice today. He wanted to talk to me about the draft next year, offered to take me out for dinner to talk strategy. I told him I had to come home because I had homework.”

He fell silent. His frown was more pronounced, and he was pulling at the loose strings from a tear in his jeans, a habit he’d developed during the divorce.