Christmas with the Single Dad

Single Dad of Seattle, Zak Eastwood plans to spend Christmas with fellow lonely hearts. His kids are supposed to be at an amusement park with their mom. However, fate has other plans. When a woman from his club finds herself stranded in the snow, he takes her to safety.

Drowning in student loan debt and her father's medical bills, first-year law associate Aurora Stratford allows herself but one splurge--a pricey membership to Club Z Fitness to watch the gorgeous Zak flex his muscles. Though out of her league, fantasizing about his blue eyes and tattoos is the only thing that keeps her sane these days, especially since her Christmas will be spent alone with her dead cactus and money woes. When the snowstorm of the century moves in and the hero of her dreams offers her a ride and a place to stay, Aurora's Christmas begins to look up. However, Aurora is ashamed of her current financial state--she's nobody's charity chase--and her lies of self-preservation begin to take on a life of their own.

“Can I touch your bicep?”

Careful to hide his eye roll,
and instead plaster on a big fake grin, Zak Eastwood pulled his earbud out of
one ear and sat up on the workout bench, coming face to face with a camel toe
in hot pink spandex exercise pants. Slowly, he let his eyes climb the petite
frame. Past the bare midriff with the spray tan, past the fake boobs stuffed
into a tight white sports bra. Past the makeup (who the fuck worked out while
wearing makeup?) to finally see long fake lashes batting at him shamelessly.

“Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” played on the speakers overhead, competing with the rap in his one remaining
earbud.

The woman in front of him
took a half step forward, forcing the camel toe even closer to his head. He
kept his eyes on her face. He just had to.

“I’ve just never seen such
big muscles,” she purred, tossing her shoulders back so her big fake tits
pushed out toward him. “I see you here a lot. It shows.”

He nodded. “Yeah, spend a
fair bit of time here.”

Because I own the place.

She thrust her hand forward,
revealing pointy, sparkly gold fake nails with little green and red gems glued
to them. “I’m Shadley.”

He shook her hand. “Zak. Nice
to meet you.”

She nibbled on her bottom
lip. “I know who you are. Everybody knows who you are.”

He cocked a single eyebrow
but didn’t say anything.

“So can I touch it?”

“Touch what?” He was
quickly losing patience with this woman. He knew what she wanted—that was being
screamed from the tallest mountain—he just wasn’t interested.

“Your arm.” She lifted her
shoulder.

The rap music in his one
earbud switched to something heinously filthy. “Sure, have at ’er.”

He had to keep the
customers happy. Keep the members coming back for more. Even if that meant he
pimped himself out a bit and let the gym bunnies hop around him constantly,
wiggling their little cottontails. Not that he ever did what bunnies do best
with them though. No freaking way.

She bounced on her toes,
then stepped forward, reaching out timidly as if his arms had teeth and would
suddenly lunge out and bite her.

Her hands were cold. Like
fucking freezing. A chill ran through him, and his nipples tightened beneath
his black tank top.

“Wow.” She squeezed. “These
are amazing. And your tattoos are so beautiful.”

“Thanks.”

She wrapped her hand around
and beneath his arm, gripping his tricep. “I don’t live too far from here. Just
a couple of blocks. Was going to head home, have a bubble bath and some wine …”

His mouth flattened into a
thin line as he fought the urge to smirk. “Sounds like a great way to relax.”

“I have a Jacuzzi tub, too.
It’s so big for little ol’ me.”

“You should get a Great
Dane. They’re huge.”

He snorted in his head. He
was fucking hilarious.

Her brows pinched, then
relaxed, and she smiled a bleached-tooth smile. “I was thinking something a
little less hairy and a little more muscly and inked up might be better
company. What do you think?”

Commotion at the front desk
drew his eyes away from the bunny in front of him. A regular patron whose name
he couldn’t remember—but really should—was just coming in and shaking off a ton
of snow from her coat and stomping her boots.

The bunny cleared her
throat. “What do you think? Feel like coming over for a bath and wine? I can
massage out the aches from your workout.”

He pinned his gaze back on
the woman in front of him, careful not to let his distaste for her come out on
his face or in his tone. “Thanks so much for the offer, but I need to get home.
I have my kids tonight.” No, he didn’t, but she didn’t need to know that.
Finding out he had two kids usually scared the majority of the bunnies away.

She released his arm and
stepped back a couple of steps. “Oh, you have kids.”

Ah, there it was.

That’s
right, little bunny, hop away now that you know I come with baggage.

He wiped his brow with his
towel. “Two, a girl and a boy. Eight and ten.”

Her smile was forced,
almost grim. “How sweet.”

Not
into single dads there, little bunny?

She blinked her thick
lashes, revealing what he knew to be the
smoky eye effect with her shadow. Seemed a bit over the top for the gym but
whatever.

His ex had been big into
the smoky eye. Once she’d figured out
how to do it, that is. For the first bit, Loni would come out of the bathroom
looking like she’d just been punched in both eyes. Zak would laugh. Loni would
pout and then head back in and try again. Eventually, she figured it out.
Though he always preferred her—preferred most women with subtle eye makeup
rather than dramatic.

He didn’t begrudge a woman
who wore makeup, got her nails done, took care of herself. Not in the least. He
liked when a woman knew how to put herself together and dress up but also
wasn’t afraid to go out in public looking like a hot mess because she’d just
killed it at the gym.

Life was all about balance.

Fake nails were fine as
long as when the weeds needed to be pulled, she didn’t mind getting a bit of
dirt on her hands.

Or didn’t mind breaking a
nail as she raked them down his back when he was showing her how he liked to
get his cardio workout.

He just wanted a woman who
didn’t prioritize that shit over the stuff in life that really mattered—like
health and family. Besides, there wasn’t anything hotter than seeing a ring of
bright red lipstick around the base of his cock after a really good BJ.