Von’s relief was palpable. He chuckled, letting out a huge breath. Then he gripped Thad by the shoulder and said, “Well, let’s get back to work, because we’ve got a shit ton of it to do.”
It was well past eight by the time Thad made his way to Barkingham Palace. Ashanti, Duchess, and Puddin’ were waiting on the porch. Even the dogs gave him side-eye, but thenPuddin’ ran up to him and started jumping around like he was actually glad to see him.
“Does sorry mean anything at this hour?” Thad asked Ashanti.
“Only if it’s accompanied by dinner,” she said.
“In bed?” Thad added.
She grinned. “That sounds even better. Come on, Duchess.”
They were at his house twenty minutes later. They had each other before their dinner arrived.
Thad pushed up from the sofa at the sound of the doorbell, surprised that he had the strength to stand. He pulled on his jeans and made his way to the door, tipping the delivery guy extra for having to wait. He returned to the living room and found Ashanti sitting up on the sofa, the blanket that was normally draped on the side chair wrapped around her.
“Do we need plates?” Thad asked.
“I’m okay eating from the carton if you are.”
Thad settled in next to her and ate Chinese food bare chested in his grandparents’ living room. He barely tasted the food. This was sustenance, its sole purpose to recharge his body so that he could take Ashanti to his room and go another round. Or two.
Fuck, he could go the entire night and into the morning, despite having spent much of the day doing backbreaking work. She was like an elixir, capable of curing all ills.
Ashanti had eaten maybe a third of the chicken lo mein when she set the carton on the coffee table and stood.
“That’s about enough of that,” she said. “You ready to go again?”
“Okay, I love you,” Thad said. The words slipped out before he could rein them in.
Ashanti threw her head back and laughed loud enough towake both Duchess and Puddin’ from a sleep that the smell of Chinese food hadn’t been able to disturb.
He hadn’t been joking, but Thad let it slide. He had the rest of his life to tell her how much he loved her. For now, he would show her.
They went through two more condoms before Thad finally admitted to himself that he was getting too old to go all night. Ashanti was in this for the long haul. He would pace himself.
He pressed a kiss to her bare shoulder before settling his chin in the soft spot between her shoulder and jaw. How could someone who’d spent their day around dogs smell this damn good?
“Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way,” Ashanti said, turning so that she faced him. “I’ve got some news to share. I’ve had quite the interesting day.”
His brows quirked. “Share away,” Thad said.
“I called Fido Foods and informed them that I am willing to sell Duchess Delights.”
Thad jerked his head back. His mouth opened, but no words came when he tried to speak.
“It’s the right thing for me. I’m at peace with it,” she said.
“Wait, wait, wait,” Thad said. “When you said you had an interesting day, I thought maybe one of the dogs got out of the gate or something.”
“No, thank goodness.” She laughed. “This is a good thing, Thad. They can take Duchess Delights places that I could never, and I realize that I don’t want to take Duchess Delights anywhere. Last night, I sat on my front stoop with my dog and a glass of wine and examined where my life is right now and where I want it to go in the future. When I took stock ofeverything, I came to the conclusion that my sisters, my dog, and the daycare are what’s most important to me.”
“Does this have to do with the situation with Kendra’s teacher?”
“It has everything to do with it,” she said. “I let her stay home today because Principal Keller was at the State Board of Education in Baton Rouge, but I’m going to the school with her tomorrow, and she is telling the administration everything.”
“That’s going to be rough,” Thad said.
“This entire thing has been brutal for her, and I hate that she felt she couldn’t be honest with me. Kendra and I should have had that conversation a long time ago, and maybe we would have if I didn’t have so many things vying for my attention. I knew it was more than just teenage moodiness, but I had treats to bake, and kennels to clean, and a stupid online contest to win.” She shook her head. “I failed her.”
