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Callie’s surprised eyes meet mine that night when she finds me in my kitchen on her return from work. She frowns. “Why are you here? I thought you were working tonight.”
“I hired a new staff member a couple of weeks ago and he’s finally ready to take on some of my shifts.”
“You never told me you’d done that.” She dumps her handbag on the kitchen counter and closes the distance between us.
I snake my arm around her waist. “I didn’t want to tell you until I knew for sure he’d work out.”
Her face breaks out in a huge grin. “This is the best news I’ve received all day. How often do you think you’ll take the night off?”
“Not sure yet, but I’m aiming for at least Monday to Wednesday night off and to cut my hours back on other nights so I’m home by midnight or just after.”
She practically climbs up my body. Her arms circle my neck and her legs wrap around me. She then blesses me with a kiss that shoots all kind of need through me. “You know what this means, right?”
“I know what I hope it means.”
“You tell me yours first.” Fuck, I love it when Callie gets excited. She’s like a grown child bursting with happiness, and I can’t help but get caught up in her excitement. She makes me feel more alive than I’ve felt in years.
“I hope it means more time with you.”
She sighs. “It definitely will.”
“What were you thinking?”
Her eyes sparkle. “It means more A-game for you.”
I groan because I can hear Sean running through the house towards us, and all I want to do is sink as deep inside her as possible and lose myself to her love. I wouldn’t have it any other way, though. Any time spent with these two is time I would never give up.
Callie moves out of my arms and smiles as Sean rounds the corner. “Callie!” He squeals with delight and flings himself into her arms.
She pulls him up and wraps him close as she presses a kiss to his forehead. “Hey, mate. I missed you today.”
“Daddy said we could have ice cream for dessert!”
She laughs and meets my gaze. “Really? I bought a treat home that I thought we could have, but I guess we can have ice cream instead.”
Sean’s eyes bulge. “What did you bring?”
I lean against the counter and cross my arms. “Yes, Callie, what did you bring?” She knows I don’t allow dessert most nights, but I would never begrudge her giving him something special every now and then. I love the relationship she’s building with my son.
She wrinkles her nose at me. “This is just between me and Sean. You’ll have to stick with ice cream, buddy.” Turning to Sean, she whispers something in his ear. The way his body moves with delight tells me she’s hit gold.
“Yes, yes! I want that,” he exclaims.
“You know you can’t have it and ice cream, right?” Callie says.
Disappointment crosses his face, but only for an instant. He nods. “Yes.”
Callie grins and lets him down before shaking his hand. “It’s a deal.”
I lift my chin in the direction of the bathroom. “Go wash your hands, little man. Dinner’s almost ready.”
After he’s gone, Callie eyes me. “You wanna know what you’re missing out on?”
“I’m intrigued. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him pass up ice cream so fast.”
She opens the paper bag to reveal cookies. “They’re from that paleo café near my work. Banana and dark choc chip cookies. Much healthier than ice cream.”
