On the Edge Read online

  “Nicole belongs to Milo,” Jericho said.

  Milo had a kid? He didn’t look like the fatherly type. He wondered if the guy had taught the baby how to snarl. “How old is she?”

  Jericho twisted the lid off the tea and took a drink. “Wow, this is good. She’s almost a year and a half.”

  That really was young. Milo might be an asshole, but Joe had to give him props for taking care of his child. “And her mother? Does she live with you guys, too?”

  Did that mean Milo was straight? That would be a tragic waste of a sexy man. But maybe that was for the better. Joe didn’t need to lust after Milo, anyway.

  “God, you’re nosy as hell,” Mark said. His gaze dipped to Jericho’s ass before he quickly looked away.

  Jericho bit his bottom lip as he squeezed the bottle harder. From the look in his eyes, there was more to the story that he wasn’t willing to share. “Thanks for the tea, and I’m sorry about your dish. I’ll see you guys later.”

  Joe watched as Jericho walked out. “Was it something I said?”

  Mark snorted. “You think?”

  Joe glared at his brother. “I hadn’t asked anything that damn personal.”

  Mark shrugged. “Now you know the topic of the kid’s mom is off-limits.”

  Maybe Milo’s piss-poor attitude was because the mother had run off and left him to be a single parent. Whatever the case, Joe decided to give his neighbors plenty of space. They seemed too complicated, and Joe didn’t do complicated.

  Chapter Three

  “You ready for breakfast, kiddo?” Milo lifted Nicole up and set her in her highchair. After the run-in with Joe, Milo and the others had gone to the nearby city to purchase things the baby needed.

  Nicole had an official crib in her room, as well as a changing table, a rocking chair, and so many toys that Milo had cursed last night when he’d stubbed his toe on one of them.

  He’d also bought her a highchair, stroller, and a ton of clothes. Raising a baby wasn’t fucking cheap, but thankfully, the cost so far hadn’t put a dent in his wallet. Milo had worked his ass off for the past one hundred and seventy-five years. He had enough money that he didn’t have to work if he didn’t want to, so he could put his sole concentration into his niece.

  “Dit!” Nicole bounced in her highchair as Milo mixed her dry baby cereal with some milk. After doing a ton of research on the internet, he’d discovered that he didn’t need to buy formula. She was old enough for regular milk. Even so, he’d gone with almond milk. He also shouldn’t have fed her burgers and fries. She was old enough to eat food, but the millions of websites said that she should eat healthy and nutritional things.

  “What have we talked about?” Milo said. “That’s a potty word. Say crap instead.”

  “Seriously?” Jericho asked as his jaw dropped. “Don’t teach her to swear. She’s a lady and should talk like one.”

  Milo rolled his eyes. “She can’t talk, at least not intelligible words. All she keeps saying is shit.”

  “Dit!” Nicole clapped her tiny hands and laughed.

  Milo groaned. He saw now that he had a battle on his hands. He was also exhausted. She’d gotten up twice last night crying, and after changing her diaper and giving her a warm bottle, she’d kept on crying until four in the morning when she’d finally fallen asleep.

  One thing Milo had discovered was that Nicole calmed down whenever he shifted into his jaguar. His niece seemed to be fascinated with his cat. She’d even taken a nap yesterday curled up in his fur.

  But last night, even after he’d shifted, she hadn’t settled down. “I think I’m gonna make her a doctor appointment for a checkup.”

  ”That sounds like the smart thing to do.” Jericho poured himself a cup of coffee as he yawned. “One more night of her crying and I’m sleeping over at Joe’s.”

  Milo ground his teeth at the mention of their neighbor. “No way are you sleeping at that asshole’s house.”

  Jericho shot his gaze to the highchair. “Language.”

  Milo grimaced. “Sorry, kiddo.”

  He took a seat at the table and fed her. He’d learned quickly that letting her feed herself ended up in a mess, more food in her hair than in her mouth.

  Nicole grabbed her bottle off her tray. “Mamamama.”

  Milo’s chest ached as she babbled mama. He wished to god Alice would’ve called him. He would’ve helped her through her addiction and made a better life for his stepsister and niece. Now Nicole had to grow up without a mother because of the bad choices Alice had made.

  But he’d gathered as much of Alice’s stuff as he could so Nicole could have it when she was older, like Alice’s grandmother’s pearl necklace, which Milo had been shocked was still there.

  Drug addicts normally sold anything valuable. It gutted him to think of her that way. Not his sweet, loving Alice. Milo decided to forget what he’d found and center his thoughts on the memories he had of her when she was growing up. Those memories were much fonder and made him feel a lot better, and they didn’t make him feel as though he could murder someone.

  Like Joe.

  He still couldn’t believe that uptight jackass. Milo had already been feeling down in the dumps, and having that guy harass him nearly made Milo remove his head.

  He fed Nicole her breakfast then set her on her feet so he could clean up the mess. Nicole whizzed through the house, running from one end to the other as though she was in some kind of race.

  “She’s got a lot of energy,” Jericho said.

  Nicole fell twice, got right back up, and zoomed past him, her brown curls bouncing as she ran.

  Jericho tapped the tablet in his hand. “It says here that, at this age, she should be using a sippy cup.”

  Milo was in the middle of wiping the table down when he frowned. “What the hell is a sippy cup?”

  “It’s like a bottle, but shaped like a cup,” Jericho said. “The article also says you should introduce her to potty training.”

  “Give that back!” Ben chased behind Nicole as she ran from the living room, the remote in her hand. She squealed with laughter as she ran down the hallway, Ben going so slow so she could get away that he should’ve been crawling instead of fake running.

  Milo didn’t want to think about having to train her to use the bathroom. He wasn’t sure he was ready for that. There was just so much a person had to know in order to raise a child, and he felt a bit overwhelmed. So far he hadn’t killed her, and that was a plus. But bathing, teething, potties, and bottle cups. What else did he have to know?

  Jericho placed a hand on Milo’s arm. “Are you okay? You look a bit pale.”

  Milo didn’t want to admit to any weaknesses. He’d taken on Nicole with the thought that raising a child couldn’t be all that hard. He’d had a gung-ho attitude about the whole situation.

  But now that reality was smacking him in the face, Milo felt weak at the knees. He dropped into the chair behind him and sighed. “No, I’m fine. I just didn’t get a lot of sleep last night.”

  “Ben and I can watch her if you want to take a nap.”

  Milo caught Nicole on her race back toward the living room. He pulled her into his arms and blew raspberries on her belly. She squealed with laughter before he set her down and watched as she took off again.

  If only Milo had that much energy.

  “Thanks, but I got her.” He wasn’t pawning her off on them. Nicole was his responsibility.

  Ben came into the dining room, holding Nicole under the underarms and away from him. “I think something died in her diaper.”

  He thought about what Jericho said. Potty training. How the fuck was he supposed to predict when she needed to use the bathroom?

  Telepathy?

  He took her from Ben and walked to the nursery, putting her on the changing table. At least he’d gotten changing diapers down pat. Everything else was up for debate.

  Once she was changed and took off, Milo’s thoughts circled back around to Joe. The guy had piss
ed him off, but there was no denying how hot the human was. Joe had blond hair and amber eyes, and fuck, he was downright gorgeous.

  But he was also a fucking prick. Joe would be good for a one-night stand, but since he lived next door, Milo wasn’t even going there.

  Then he thought about what Ben had said. Joe was their neighbor, and they needed to play nice. His best friend lived here now, permanently, and Ben wanted a good relationship with those he lived around.

  Maybe Milo had been the dick instead of Joe, although that “motherly” voice had grated on Milo’s nerves. Still, he was gonna go next door and see if he could smooth Joe’s ruffled feathers.

  “On second thought, can you watch her while I apologize to Joe?” The human’s feathers weren’t the only ones that had been ruffled, and Milo didn’t want any hard feelings between him and Ben.

  Jericho’s green eyes lit up. “Thank you so much for trying.” He leaned in and whispered, “But watch out for Joe’s brother. His name is Mark, and I think the guy is a straight-up horndog.”

  Milo smiled and then went to his room and dressed. He really was exhausted, but after he set Joe straight, he just might take Jericho up on his offer and take a nap.

  Thank fuck he had those two to help him, even though he didn’t want to admit he needed the help.

  Milo crossed the lawn and stepped onto Joe’s porch. He knocked and waited, his head buzzing from lack of sleep. He yawned just as the door swung open.

  Joe glared at him. “What do you want?”

  He’d definitely made an enemy. It was on the tip of his tongue to tell Joe to go to hell, but he bit back that reply. “I came over here to make amends.”

  Joe eyed him but didn’t say anything.

  “I wasn’t in the best of moods yesterday morning, and I took it out on you.” He stuck his hand out. “Can we start over? I’m Milo Ozier.”

  The human looked reluctant but shook Milo’s hand. “Joe Zelko.”

  As soon as they touched, Milo felt his body come alive. His jaguar snarled and yowled as Milo’s cock hardened.

  With Joe’s hand still in his, Milo yanked his neighbor closer and inhaled deeply. The scent of vanilla washed over him as his jaguar continued to go nuts.

  Milo dropped Joe’s hand so fast that he nearly shoved the guy away from him. No! This couldn’t be. The uptight prick was his mate.

  * * * *

  “What the hell did you shove me for?” Joe took a step back when Milo stared at him as though the guy was about to punch him. “I thought you said you wanted to mend things, not get pushy.”

  Milo blinked a few times as he kept staring at Joe with those gorgeous brown eyes. “I’m uh…sorry. I’m just exhausted.”

  “You’re not making any sense,” Joe argued. “What does being tired have to do with pushing someone?”

  Thank god Mark hadn’t come over this morning, or he would’ve shoved Joe out of the way in order to flirt with Milo. Why did that thought suddenly make Joe want to slug his brother when he wasn’t even there?

  “Can I come in for coffee?” Milo looked toward Ben’s house and then turned back to Joe. “I feel kind of stupid just standing on your porch. I really wasn’t trying to push you.”

  Tell the son of a bitch to piss off. You don’t do complicated anymore, remember? But coffee wasn’t complicated, and it wasn’t as though Joe planned on asking Milo to be his next-door hookup. Besides, Milo was straight. He had a kid for fuck’s sake.

  Still, if they became friends, maybe Milo would be more considerate with noise in the morning.

  “Okay, come on in.” Joe left Milo at the door as he walked into the kitchen. “You’re in luck. I just made a fresh pot.”

  If Milo said one wrong word, Joe was clucking him over the head with the carafe. He grabbed two cups from the mug tree and set them on the counter.

  “I’ll take mine black.” Milo took a seat on one of the stools at the island.

  Joe handed Milo his mug before he went to the fridge for some cream.

  “Thanks,” Milo said.

  God, that fucking baritone voice. Mark had been right. Milo’s voice was dreamy as fuck when the guy wasn’t growling at him. He wanted to beg the guy to say his name, but Joe stopped the request from leaving his mouth.

  “What do you do for a living?” Milo asked as he took a sip of his coffee. “Fuck, this is good.”

  The compliment went straight to Joe’s dick. “Thanks, and I work for a small website design firm.” He poured a dollop of cream into his coffee and put the container back in the fridge. “In fact, I have to fly to Alabama next week to help Tillman Tech set up for a convention they’re hosting. I’ll be there all week.”

  Milo grinned, and Joe’s heart did somersaults. “I have no idea what you just said, but it sounds interesting.”

  Joe chuckled. “It’s just a bunch of computer stuff I have to do for the technical side of the convention.” He leaned a hip against the edge of the counter and clutched his mug with both hands as he drank in his fill of the sexy biker. “And what do you do?”

  Milo held up his hands and twisted them back and forth to show the back of them and his palms. “I like working with my hands.”

  Joe recalled the revving motorcycle. “I can tell.”

  “Sorry about that. I’d just taken her on a very long ride and needed to do a little maintenance on her.”

  “Her?”

  Milo grinned. “My motorcycle.”

  Joe had heard that some men named their cars. Now he knew some named their motorcycles or at least assigned them a gender. “Does she have a name?”

  “Nah. You should only name your car or motorcycle if it’s vintage. That’s my opinion, at least.”

  “So you work at a garage?” Joe imagined Milo bent over a car, working on an engine in tight jeans that showcased his ass. He just bet the guy looked gorgeous covered in grease with a wrench in his hand, the smell of oil clinging to his skin, a bandana wrapped around his head. Or better yet, he imagined Milo naked, just fresh from a shower, but the smell of oil and man still clinging to his skin.

  Joe pressed the rim of his cup to his mouth and closed his eyes, forcing those scenarios out of his head. His dick was getting hard, and he didn’t need to pop wood in front of Milo. Since Joe wore nothing but pajama pants, the guy would know right away, and if Milo was straight, he just might sock Joe in the mouth for getting so horny.

  Milo shook his head, seeming not to notice Joe’s dilemma. “No, right now I’m concentrating on other things in my life that are more important to me.”

  Like his daughter. It was on the tip of Joe’s tongue to ask about her, but he recalled Jericho’s reaction to Joe’s question about the baby’s mother, so he steered clear of the subject.

  “So you’re staying with Ben and Jericho for the moment?”

  “Until I find my own place,” Milo said.

  Why was Joe disappointed that Milo would move away? Didn’t he want that? Hadn’t he cursed the man yesterday and wished Milo had never come to town?

  But Joe was now seeing the softer side of Milo, and he truly liked the guy.

  Milo got up and leaned in close to Joe as he set his cup in the sink. Their bodies touched, and Joe’s fight to make his cock go down had become a losing battle. He was so hard that a tent formed in the front of his pajama pants.

  “I could make you another cup,” Joe offered in a breathy voice.

  “I don’t want to intrude. Don’t you have to get back to sleep or something?” Milo had yet to pull away. He stared down at Joe with something close to need in his chocolate-brown eyes.

  Joe wanted to scratch his fingers over the low beard while kissing those supple lips.

  “You should go.” Joe pulled away and nearly ran into the island.

  “Yeah, I should get out of here.” Milo turned, and they collided.

  Joe’s cup fell to the floor, wetting his feet and the bottom of his pajama pants.

  “Crap, sorry,” Milo said as he grabbed Jo
e’s upper arms to steady him.

  For reasons Joe couldn’t understand, he pressed his hands against Milo’s strong chest to keep from falling over, as though the man’s pecs could save him.

  Their eye contact was deep and prolonged, as though neither could look away. A fluttering sensation grew in Joe’s stomach as the room grew twenty degrees hotter.

  “I really should leave.” But Milo had yet to let Joe go. His gaze burned into Joe’s as he stood there looking at him.

  The sound of a text message on Joe’s phone broke the spell. He jerked away and fluttered a hand to his throat. Milo pressed a hand against the edge of the counter, closed his eyes, and sucked in a deep breath.

  What in the hell was going on? Milo was straight. He had a kid. Why on earth were they making such a deep connection?

  Needing a distraction, Joe grabbed his phone from near the fruit bowl and looked at it.

  It was a text from his ex-boyfriend Lange. All Joe saw was a map with a pin dropped on The Canteen’s location and a message that said for Joe to meet him there at six.

  Was the guy for real? Why did Lange want to meet, and he had to text Joe right now? Talk about the worst timing ever. Joe set the phone down. He wasn’t going to dignify that text with an answer. Lange could go fuck himself.

  Milo straightened and smiled. “I’m gonna go home. Thanks for the coffee.”

  Joe didn’t bother to offer another cup again. He needed to get his lust under control. His body felt tight, and his cock was still hard as fuck. There was no way Milo hadn’t noticed. Was that why he was running? Did the sight of Joe’s boner horrify him?

  That couldn’t be the answer, because Milo had looked seconds away from devouring his lips.

  He watched as Milo headed for the door, and Joe nearly begged the man to come back and kiss him.

  But he didn’t. He let Milo leave as he stood there and wondered what in the hell had just happened.

  Or hadn’t happened.

  Chapter Four

  Milo sat on the couch as Nicole slept in her playpen. He would’ve taken a nap with her to catch up on his sleep, but he was still shocked as fuck about Joe.