Her voice stopped him before he could leave the room. “Seth.”
Turning around, he met her eyes. “Yeah.”
With a faint smile, she eliminated the distance between them and looped her arms around his neck. Her expression softened as she stood on her tiptoes and kissed him. “I had fun tonight.”
“Did you?” he murmured.
She brushed those sexy lips over his in another fleeting kiss. “I did.” Her lips peppered kisses down the column of his neck. “I had a lot of fun.”
“I’m glad.” He shivered when she nibbled his earlobe, and his hands slid down to cup her ass.
“So please stop treating the word deal like it’s an expletive.” She skimmed her fingertips over his bottom lip. “This is a good deal, Seth. We’re making each other come almost every other night. No promises, no hassles, just a lot of awesome sex. How are you unsatisfied?”
“I’m not. I am satisfied.” He forced a nonchalant shrug. “No promises, no hassles. That’s exactly how I like it, babe.”
To his displeasure, she nodded in agreement. “Me too. Well, in this case at least.” She planted a quick kiss on his cheek. “I’ve gotta go.”
Seth walked her to the front door, doing his best not to dwell on that last zinger she’d left him with. Well, in this case at least. What did that mean? Did she mean that if she were f**king some other man, she would want the promises? So it was just his promises she wasn’t interested in?
So many conflicting emotions raged in his gut that he didn’t even know which to focus on.
“Miranda, wait, before you go.” Dylan suddenly appeared in the hallway, his blond hair damp from the shower, a white towel draped around his trim hips.
“What’s up?” she asked as she slipped into her sneakers.
“Are the twins in school tomorrow?”
“Yes, until three. Why?”
Dylan’s expression turned sheepish. “What do you think about me hanging out with them tomorrow? Maybe going out for ice cream or something? I could pick them up from kindergarten if you want.”
Miranda looked incredibly confused by the request, and when she glanced at Seth, he gave her a f**ked-if-I-know look. He had no idea what to make of it either. He studied his roommate’s face for signs of concussion or intoxication, and found none. But he couldn’t rule it out, either.
“You want to take my kids out for ice cream?” Miranda finally said.
“Yeah, if it’s cool with you.”
“Um. Well. Why?”
“What can I say? I miss the little dudes,” Dylan said, bestowing on her that boyish smile that Seth had seen him use to seduce countless of women.
Sure enough, some of Miranda’s hesitation melted in the face of that smile. “You miss my kids?” she echoed.
Dylan nodded. “I had a lot of fun with them when you guys stayed here. And I saw on the news today that the weather is supposed to be beautiful tomorrow, so I thought, hey, maybe the twins would enjoy hanging out.”
Seth didn’t bother masking his mistrust. He had no idea what his roommate was up to, but this was strange as hell. In fact, lately strange seemed to be the norm with Dylan. Dude was bitchier than usual, hardly ever left the house, and now he wanted to spend an afternoon with a couple of six-year-olds he wasn’t even related to?
If Seth didn’t have complete confidence that Dylan would never harm a hair on a child’s head, he might’ve given Miranda a slight shake of the head, as in, Say no. Now. But Seth trusted Dylan with his life. Whatever this was about, he knew it wouldn’t result in Miranda’s kids getting hurt.
“Well, I guess that would be okay,” Miranda said, still looking baffled. “I can call the school tomorrow and let them know you’ll be picking them up instead of me. Unless you want me to come along…?” She let the question hang.
Dylan flashed those pearly whites again. “Up to you, honey. I figured you’d enjoy having the afternoon off to go shopping or take a nap or do whatever. You know, treat yourself. But if you don’t trust me with your children’s safety, I understand.”
Miranda snorted. “My children are probably safer with you than they are with me. You’re a SEAL, for Pete’s sake. And look at you.”
Seth did not enjoy the way Miranda’s hazel eyes roamed the broad expanse of Dylan’s smooth chest. He glared at his roommate in an unspoken order to go put on a f**king shirt—and pants, damn it—but the guy remained completely unfazed.
“What time are they done school?” Dylan asked.
“Three. I’ll text you the address. You’ll have to show your ID to the school secretary and sign the twins out. It’s the school policy when someone other than a parent picks up a child.”
“No problem. Can’t wait to see them.”
“They’ll be thrilled to see you too,” Miranda said with a warm smile.
Seth found himself bristling again. If Dylan’s plan had been to come out here and present himself as the sweetest, most thoughtful man on the planet while reducing Seth to antichild, pond-scum level in Miranda’s eyes, then he’d totally succeeded.
“And if you decide not to join us, I’m sure Masterson here would appreciate the company,” Dylan said, proving that he always had a fellow soldier’s back. “Poor Seth gets really lonely sometimes.”
Oh Jesus. Why did Dylan Wade make it so difficult to think bad thoughts about him?