“Take Henrietta and put her in the yard,” he told the girls. “Then put on your pj’s and brush your teeth. With toothpaste. I’ll be right in to kiss you good-night.”

The girls scampered out, leaving Paige and Zeke alone. Paige watched the kittens nurse and Zeke forced his hands to remain on the tub when they desperately itched to touch her. “Thanks for the brownies,” Zeke said. “My favorite.”

Paige’s gaze locked with his, but she quickly looked away. “I…I meant to tell you earlier that we’ve had some vandalism in the neighborhood.”

“What?” Zeke’s pulse raced. “I thought this neighborhood was safe. That’s why I moved here.”

“It is.” Paige placed a reassuring hand on his arm. “We think the vandals are teenagers. So far, they’ve been sneaking into houses, playing video games, generally messing up people’s homes.”

“Sounds like some real troublemakers,” Zeke said.

“Anyway,” Paige continued, removing her hand, “We’re organizing a neighborhood watch program. The first meeting’s next week at my house.” She absentmindedly ran her tongue over her lower lip as if she were nervous, drawing Zeke’s gaze to the spot. “I hope you’ll come.”

Zeke tried not to read anything personal into the invitation, though he wondered why Paige suddenly averted her gaze again. “I’ll try to make it. That is, if I don’t get hung up at the clinic.”

Paige nodded. “I left a flier on your kitchen counter.”

He winced, wondering how she’d found the counter.

Paige laughed as if she’d read his mind. “It’s by the pizza box.”

He chuckled, aware her eyes darkened when she gazed at him. His body tightened at the undercurrent of attraction strumming between them. Her soft strawberry scent invaded his senses, making him momentarily forget all the reasons he shouldn’t touch her. A dollop of chocolate batter dotted her cheek and he reached out and gently brushed it onto his fingertip. She glanced up in surprise, her eyes widening when he licked the tip of his finger.

Paige’s expression filled with uncertainty, but her lips parted slightly as if in invitation. She was so close her warm breath mingled with his own. Tension, tight and sensual, radiated between them, drawing her closer, dragging him into a web of desire he hadn’t felt in a long time. A year of celibacy surged into need. He didn’t miss the sex as much as he missed the affection, the tender look a woman could give a man, the sweet satisfaction in hearing her whisper his name. Temptation made him tilt his head, and the sensuality and innocence in her expression shocked him.

“We’re ready!” August shouted.

His children’s voices jarred him back to reality. “I’ll be right back,” he said in a husky voice. Don’t move.

He took the steps two at a time, ushered his daughters back upstairs and into bed, then said good-night in record time. He forced himself to walk back down the steps. He didn’t want to act too eager. After all, he’d barely met the woman. He didn’t even know if she had a boyfriend.

But when he stepped into the bathroom, Paige had disappeared.

Paige avoided Zeke all week. Still, the memory of his masculine scent and his breath whispering against her face made her heart pound with excitement. And turmoil.

Why did all the handsome ones have to be married, divorced with kids, or already committed? Not that she was actively manhunting, but a date here and there would be nice. She deserved some fun. But Zeke Blalock definitely didn’t fit the idea of footloose and fancy-free. Even if he wanted a no-strings relationship, it wouldn’t be fair to his children. They wanted a mother.

And she was not mommy material.

She tried to recall the negative aspects of her neighbor—his house was a mess, he had animals everywhere, and he had no sense of style. For heaven’s sake, his pants and shirt hadn’t even matched.

Still, she’d worked late two nights in a row at the dress shop so she wouldn’t give in to temptation and visit him. The other two evenings she’d stayed up well past midnight working on her design project. The black satin dress had proved to be more of a challenge than she’d expected—especially since every time she pinned the material around herself to assess the fitting, she imagined Zeke unpinning it.

Thursday afternoon, she stood in the window of Beverly’s Boutique, redressing the mannequin. She’d chosen a forest green linen suit and elegant accessories to complement the outfit.

“That looks great.” Beverly traced a finger over the paisley silk scarf she’d used to accessorize the suit.

“Thanks.” Paige changed the belt for the third time.

“You have a hot date tonight?” The thirty-five-year-old entrepreneur who owned the store had become a good friend and confidant in the past few months.