It took over an hour before his daughter was in bed, but as soon as she was, he went and showered and changed into a pair of shorts to sleep in. Then he got comfortable on the bed and texted Lexi.
Connor: Hey, is Jonah asleep?
She didn’t reply right away, but he didn’t expect her to. But five minutes later, she did.
Lexi: He is. It took longer than I thought.
Lexi: Then I grabbed a quick shower and almost fell asleep while shampooing my hair.
He grinned.
Connor: If I were there with you, I definitely would have kept you awake. Wink, wink!
Lexi: Lol! Yes, I’m sure you would have, and I would have loved it.
Connor: Can I call you, or are you too tired?
Lexi: I think I can manage to stay awake for a little longer.
Lexi: Plus, I love the sound of your voice.
He didn’t even hesitate before dialing her number.
“Hey, beautiful,” he said as soon as she answered.
“Mmm…there’s that voice,” she said, her own voice sounding both a little sleepy and sultry. “How’s Annabeth? Did she go to sleep okay?”
“Yeah. She was a little wound up, but she’s good once we get through our nightly routine.”
“That’s good. It’s hard to keep Jonah on one since we’ve been eating with everyone. I used to be able to have him in bed by eight before we moved here. Now every night is kind of like a free for all.”
“Damn, I’m sorry. And I remember you telling me something to that effect on that first day.”
“It’s okay. It’s also been good for him to be around new people and experience all the things that he has. It’s a trade-off.”
Nodding, he got a little more comfortable. “So…we get four whole days away next week. What are you thinking?”
She laughed softly. “Didn’t we already have this conversation? Why don’t you tell me what you’re thinking, and I’ll let you know my thoughts?”
“Fair enough. Okay, my first thought was Disney World.”
“Um…I think that’s a more than a four-day kind of trip,” she said.
“Good point. Okay, how about we go to one of those indoor water park resorts? I’m pretty sure Annabeth’s mentioned wanting to go to one of them before.”
“Could be fun. Jonah took swimming lessons at the YMCA last summer, so…”
But she didn’t sound particularly excited about it. “How about Cape Cod? My family has a house up there we can stay at.”
“I’m not sure it’s got a lot to offer Jonah. Annabeth will enjoy visiting a family home, but…”
“Okay, okay. That makes sense.” But he was losing hope. “What about going to San Antonio? They have a phenomenal zoo, and we can stay on the River Walk. I think Jonah would love it!”
“Connor, that’s a lot. Jonah’s never been on a plane, and that would be a long flight.”
The sigh was out before he could stop it. “I get the feeling you don’t really want to go away with me.”
“That’s not it.”
