Page 72 of The Challenge

“No costume needed for that one,” she teased back.

God, she was gorgeous. Chloe’s hair was a beautiful mess this morning, fully down and a little knotted from sleep. She was still dressed in her pajamas and had just thrown a down vest over herself, which meant that unfortunately I couldn’t peek at her beautiful braless morning tits.

With Chloe’s guidance, Effie continued to be busy at work stuffing the scarecrow’s arms with hay. I wouldn’t have had the mental energy to get up early on a weekend and be so creative, so I was grateful Chloe could give my daughter this experience, something I suspected Effie would always remember.

“You guys need help?” I asked.

“Oh, now you ask?” Chloe snapped playfully.

My daughter looked up. “Nope. Go back inside, Daddy. We got this.”

Chloe locked eyes with me, and I smiled. Though I quickly turned away. I couldn’t look at her anymore without remembering what she tasted like. It’d been driving me mad, even if I’d vowed not to let it happen again. It was bad enough that we’d had that near-miss with Effie, thanks to my hard head.

“I left you a plate of waffles,” Chloe said.

“I saw. Thank you. I can’t wait to eat it.” The way I said that last part was suggestive. I knew it. Sort of like “Eat the Chex and lick the bowl.”

“Just pop them in the toaster oven for a minute.”

“Will do. Thank you for making me breakfast.”

“Anytime.” Chloe winked.

Once I was done fucking Chloe with my eyeballs, I enjoyed a quiet breakfast all by myself in the kitchen. As peaceful as it was, it made me realize how much I didn’t actually need quiet. Alone for less than twenty minutes, and I already missed my daughter’s bombardment of silly Saturday morning questions. And I missed Chloe’s laughter as she answered every single one of them before I had a chance to. This was eye opening: Chloe was right outside…and I missed her. I wondered if this feeling would be unbearable when she inevitably returned to Chicago.

***

That afternoon, I put on a plaid shirt, dark jeans, and my most rugged pair of boots, and I dug a cowboy hat out of my closet. After I plopped it on my head, I looked at myself in the mirror and thought, basic. Damn, I really could’ve put more effort into this. But there was no time to go out and buy a costume or make something more creative. The cowboy was better than nothing.

“Hey, Daddy.”

I turned to find Effie in the doorway to my bedroom. My heart squeezed at the sight of her dressed as Elsa from Frozen. Moments like this reminded me how much Katerina was missing.

“You look so beautiful, honey. Love the side braid.”

“Chloe helped me with my hair.”

“It’s perfect.”

I had Effie stand under the good light in my room while I snapped several photos of her. Knowing my daughter, she’d be a sticky mess by the end of the night, so now was the time to document her costume.

“I like your cowboy hat, Daddy.”

I tipped the hat. “Why, thank you.”

“Chloe is still getting ready,” she said.

“Let’s go out to the kitchen and wait for her.”

A few minutes later, Chloe emerged from her bedroom. My jaw dropped at the sight of her dressed as a sexy nurse. And now it hit me why she’d seemed so cheeky earlier. This entire costume was for my benefit—to drive me crazy.

Effie jumped up and down. “It’s Nurse Chloe!”

“It sure is.” I swallowed hard.

She spun around. “You like, Effie?”

“I love it!”