“I’m sure Jordan would love to have your ear all night. As long as you don’t mind hearing all about the kittens and the new Barbie clothes Chelsea bought her last week.”
“Heck, I’llplayBarbies with her if it means I don’t get caught hanging with Dina tonight.”
As Theo chuckled, Rico jogged over to the little girl and scooped her up in the air.
“Hey, munchkin, you get to be my date for the night. How’s that sound?”
Jordan giggled and clapped her hands as Rico swung her around only stopping when Dina approached him.
Rico shrugged. “I’ve already been promised for the night. Her parents need some cozy time.”
Dina’s disgusted look turned to acid as she stared at Theo. Not his problem. Chelsea was a few yards away, folding a blanket. He hoofed it in her direction and kissed her cheek.
“Seems we’ve got a babysitter for a while.”
“What?”
Theo explained about Rico, then sidled in closer. “So that means I can put the big moves on you tonight.”
“Bigger than what you’ve been putting on me all week?” Her eyes sparkled with joy. God, he loved seeing her this way, almost as much as seeing her in his bed every night and every morning. It had only been a week since they’d reconnected physically, but it had been incredible.
“Okay, maybe not as big as that. We’ll still be in public. But the thoughts I’ll be having are going to be X-rated.”
“I can’t wait.”
People started getting in the wagons that would bring them to the top of the mountain. Rico helped a few others into one of the carriages and then tossed Jordan up, too. Waving him and Chelsea over, he waited until they got on, then climbed up.
“Had to make sure this wagon was full, so no one else could fit on,” Rico whispered as he passed them to get to where Jordan sat on their other side.
After settling on one of the blankets they’d brought, Theo pulled Chelsea between his legs and circled his arms around her. Jordan sat in front of Rico, animatedly telling him some story of the field trip she’d been on last week. His friend blatantly ignored the daggers Dina sent his way as she was told this carriage was full, and she’d need to get on another. Theo was too ecstatic with his wife in his lap to even worry about the redhead.
“Does the Park Service do this type of thing all the time?” Chelsea asked as the horses trotted along the carriage roads.
“They set up a few activities each summer for the year-round staff, so we can all participate in at least one fun event. With so many different shifts, and the crowds during the tourist season, we can’t all go on the same one.”
“I love the idea of a carriage ride up the mountain.” Her smile told him she liked more than simply the ride. “We did this the summer we met.”
Her smile dimmed. Remembering the dark years in between?
“The sunset from the top will be great,” he said, trying to turn her mind back to the present.
“Will we be able to see the fireworks they’re having in town from up there?”
“I’m not sure. We might already be on our way down by then. It’s one of the reasons we got the carriages tonight. Everyone will be in town with the Fourth of July events and fireworks.”
As the horses trotted slowly up the trail, Theo enjoyed the simple act of holding his wife. A few of the other employees chatted with them and made small talk, but his mind kept slipping back to the conversation they’d had last week. About living together in her house. Having more kids. Being a real family. Something he’d almost given up on when Jordan had been delivered to him with Chelsea’s message of not wanting them.
The fact someone had tampered with the brakes on his car also crossed his mind. Far too often. Aiden hadn’t come up with any more information on who could have done it or when. The line had definitely been cut but not all the way through. Had the person meant to kill or merely harm or scare? Like the tree incident and the rocks. It could have been basic carelessness or the work of some evil intent. Whatever it was, he planned to keep Chelsea and Jordan safe. It scared the crap out of him that he might not be able to.
Their daughter’s giggle got his attention, and Chelsea snuggled closer.
“He’s so good with her,” she said, tilting her chin at Rico, who had a string in his hands and was teaching Jordan to do Cat’s Cradle. Not very successfully, but then she was only four. Still, the little girl seemed to be having a blast. “Why isn’t he married with a bunch of kids? He’s older than you, right?”
Theo nodded. “A year or two. But he’s got stuff in his past.” The secrets were Rico’s to tell, so he kept them to himself. At Chelsea’s concerned look, he said, “He was a Navy rescue swimmer for a while. Can’t have been an easy life.”
She seemed to understand that he wasn’t about to tell her more and went back to staring at their child as she enjoyed herself. The sun sank lower behind the trees, and it grew chilly. Chelsea pulled a sweatshirt out of the bag she’d brought and handed it to Jordan, then grabbed one for her.
“I brought yours, too. Do you want it?”
