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“We both know that’s not true. You could have easily pushed this case off on someone else. I’m grateful it’s you working on it.”
“I’m always willing to help one of my son’s friends. Speaking of which, have you talked to Bryan lately?”
His tone is lighter when he answers. “As a matter of fact, I have. He came by yesterday and told me the good news. He wants me to officiate the ceremony. I told him I would be honored."
I chuckle. “Yeah, I can’t believe my boy is getting married.”
“I’m not surprised. Bryan’s always been the type of guy to settle down. He just had to find the right woman to do it with.”
We talk for a few more moments before we hang up. Grabbing a bottle of water from the fridge since I noticed Aleah was done with hers, I carry it with me back to the living room. The movie is paused when I walk in, and Aleah is curled up on one end of the couch with her phone to her ear. She smiles when she sees me.
It’s been two days since her birthday and since I gave in and gave us both what we wanted. We haven’t left the house at all, and I’ll admit, it’s been nice playing house with her. Tomorrow is Monday and back to reality. I’m not looking forward to it. If it were up to me, we’d spend another week holed up in the house with the outside world forgotten.
“I gotta go, Luna. I’ll see you tomorrow at school.” She laughs at something Luna says, her eyes sparkling as she continues to look at me. “We’ll talk more then. I promise.”
She sets her phone on the coffee table, then lets out a cute squeal when I scoop her up into my arms. Going back to the position we were in before my phone call, I lay on my side on the couch with Aleah in front of me facing the TV. My arms drag her body against mine.
“Everything okay?” I ask, my face buried in her thick hair.
“Yeah. Luna was just being nosy.”
I chuckle and press a kiss on the back of her neck. “What did you tell her?”
I sense, rather than see, her smile. “Only the good parts,” she says. I dig my fingers in her ribs and she giggles. “I’m kidding. Well, sort of. I just told her we’re together.”
With most people, I would worry they would blab their mouth about Aleah and me. It’s not that I don’t want the whole world to know—on the contrary, I want to shout it from the rooftops—I just don’t want Bryan to find out from a rumor. I want to sit him down and explain.
Something tells me, though, that we don’t have to worry about Luna telling anyone, except maybe August, and again, I don’t see him saying anything either. Their situation isn’t much different than ours.
Tightening my arms around her, I murmur against her neck, “Grab the remote and press play, baby.”
Instead of reaching for the remote, she wiggles her body around until she’s facing me. I tense my arm because I know her ass has to damn near be hanging off the couch.
“I was thinking,” she says, her voice turning seductive and her hand creeps around my waist and slips inside my jeans to palm my ass, “it was time for Daddy to tuck me into bed.”
One minute my cock is half-hard—because let’s face it, it’s that way anytime I’ve been around Aleah for the last couple of months—and the next, after hearing her husky words, I’m hard enough to hammer nails.
Doing an ab curl, I’m up off the couch with a laughing Aleah in my arms, stalking out of the living room, seconds later.
Chapter 10
SPENCER
A week later, I’m still no closer to telling Bryan about me and Aleah. If I’m honest with myself, I’m a fucking chicken shit. To be as old as I am and seen what I have as a police officer and a detective, you’d think I’d have balls big enough to do it, but fuck it all, I’m dreading the way Bryan will look at me after he knows. My son and I have always had a close relationship, especially after his mother left. I’ve always told him, no matter how much he may be afraid or how much trouble he may be in, to come to me. We don’t keep shit from each other. Secrets have a way of revealing themselves, and they’re much worse than had you admitted the truth from the beginning.
I’m an asshole and a shit father for not following my own advice.
I’m just not ready for the stress of telling Bryan yet. I’m not ready for the disgust he’ll no doubt feel toward me. I’m not ready for the comfortable bubble Aleah and I have been living in to burst.
But, no matter how much I’m not ready, I have to be. At least, I have to be by tomorrow night. That’s when Bryan and Charlotte are coming over. Aleah and I talked last night, and we decided to tell Bryan then. Actually, it’ll be only me who tells him. I don’t want Aleah there because there’s no telling what his reaction will be, and I don’t want her to witness it. Despite Aleah’s attempts at seduction, it was my decision to give in. I want Bryan’s anger directed only at me. Aleah protested, of course, but I told her I wasn’t giving in on the matter.
Aleah called today after school and asked if I wanted her to grab dinner for the two of us. She’s due back any minute with takeout. I’m currently sitting at the kitchen table, working up some notes on Wesley’s case on my laptop. Unfortunately, when he and I went to the spots where homeless people tend to gather, we had no luck with him identifying the girl who keeps stealing stuff from the church. The case is at a standstill. I can tell the situation is bothering Wesley, but unless the girl messes up and gets caught, there’s nothing we can do at the moment.
“Dad! You home?” Bryan’s voice comes from the front of the house, surprising me.
I turn just as he appears in the doorway. “What brings you by?” I ask.
“Charlotte dropped me off on her way to Taylor’s. Taylor has something for Charlotte, so she’s picking me up afterward. I need to grab your jumper cables.”
