Man, he was a fun kid.
After trying to wipe him off, I gave up and stripped him down. Kacey was giggling the whole time. Probably on a sugar high.
Kacey was draped over my shoulder, snoring. In nothing but underwear. We came in the front door and Miranda’s head popped up from the couch, a huge smile across her face.
Before she could say anything to wake him, I lifted a finger to my lips.
She jumped up and waved me to follow her up the stairs. In their room, she clicked on a sound machine and pulled the covers back. I gently placed him on the bed, tucking the blankets around him.
His head lolled back onto the pillow. That kiddo partied hard and slept harder.
When we were back in the living room, Miranda raised an eyebrow. “Let me guess. You got cones?”
I laughed. Relief flooded me. For the first time, I allowed myself to acknowledge how worried I’d been that it wouldn’t go well, or he’d cry for his mom, or wouldn’t like being with me. But it went perfect. The relief came out as a laugh and felt really good.
“How’d you know?”
“Been there a time or two.”
“Yeah. Lesson learned. Cups next time.”
A genuine smile crossed her face as she went around to the front of the couch. She leaned to scoop up a few books.
“I got some books.” She lifted them like she was eager to show me. “Two romances from the clearance section and a book on gardening flowers.” She dropped them back. “Thank you, Jack. That was the nicest thing you could’ve done for me.”
She was striking. Her hair was down, like beautiful waves around her face. She had a shirt on that was a smidge too short, meaning I got occasional glimpses of skin around her waistline. She had better color than she did a few weeks ago. I wasn’t meaning to ogle or stare at her. But I couldn’t help it. Dragging my eyes away from my wife was the most pointless and impossible mission.
I’d never tried to hide my feelings, only keep them held back so I didn’t scare her away. Every day was proving harder.
At first, I thought we would never come back from the misunderstanding. That notion was zapped so fast. Now, I was pretty sure I’d watch her six while she murdered someone.
I had to find some way to convince her to stay.
I forced my gaze back to her face. “So you had a nice time then?”
“Yes, actually. I think I needed that.”
“Of course you did. You’ve been on duty for three years and eight months.”
She dipped her chin, pushed hair behind her ears. “Guess so.”
My feet pushed me forward. Couldn’t stop them. Couldn’t stop my hand from coming to her chin and gently pushing it back up. Couldn’t help it when my breathing shallowed looking into her dark irises.
“You’ve done a wonderful job with Kacey.”
She swallowed and moisture pooled in the corners of her eyes. “He’s a great kid.”
“Because you’re a great mom.”
She shrugged.
“Really, Miranda. I don’t know all the details about your life with Chris, but it’s safe to say Kacey is happily unaffected. There is no reason that would happen unless he’s had an incredible mother to protect him.”
She blinked the moisture away and I let my hand drop.
“Can you show me his bedtime routine tonight?”
FORTY-TWO
