Total pages in book: 104
Estimated words: 98264 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 491(@200wpm)___ 393(@250wpm)___ 328(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 98264 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 491(@200wpm)___ 393(@250wpm)___ 328(@300wpm)
That little boy immediately became our entire world. As I’d expected, Nora was an incredible mom, and to hear her tell it, I was doing a damn good job breaking the mold from my childhood too.
Ramsey and I gently set the giant Christmas tree down, the tree stand making it even taller, but with mere inches to spare, it cleared the ceiling. Collectively, we all blew out a sigh of relief.
“All right.” I clapped. “Ladies, let the decorating begin. Ramsey and I will be—”
“Oh, no you don’t. We have lights to hang and popcorn to thread. Boys!” she called. “Time to decorate!”
A stampede of kids came barreling from the playroom. Ramsey and Thea had welcomed Andrew a few months before Owen was born, so along with Joseph, those three were like a pack of wolves destroying everything in their path.
Owen slammed on the brakes the minute he saw me, skidding across the wood floor on socked feet. “Daddy!” he yelled as though I’d just come back from war and not a twenty-minute trip to pick up the tree. He was a daddy’s boy.
And yeah, I fucking loved it.
It was scary how much he looked like me. His hair was darker, but the blue eyes were mine—something that thrilled his mother.
My mother, on the other hand, had never come around to the idea of me being with Nora. We hadn’t spoken in years, but after Owen was born, I’d thought she’d at least want to know she had a grandson. She hung up on me. And to be honest, it was startling how much I did not give one flying fuck.
I loved my life.
I loved my wife.
I loved my kid.
As far as I was concerned, I had it all.
If she didn’t want to factor into that happiness, it was for the best she stayed gone.
Besides, Owen had some pretty great grandparents on Nora’s side.
“Ho! Ho! Ho!” Joe said as he came through the front door, a massive stack of presents cradled in his arms.
“Papa!” all the kids yelled, racing toward him.
Misty was right behind him, unfortunately holding a Crockpot. “Hot plate coming through.”
Being the gentleman I was—and also needing to steel my stomach for whatever was inside—I walked over and took it from her hands.
“Oh, wow. Pot roast,” I announced.
She patted me on the chest. “I know the girls are cooking tonight, but I couldn’t resist making your favorite. I threw in a few extra artichoke hearts, so there should be plenty for you to have leftovers.”
“Mmmm,” I hummed, internally gagging. Yes, she put artichokes in her pot roast. Sadly, that was not the worst part. “You are too good to me. I’ll just put this in the kitchen.”
Nora followed behind me, giggling with every step.
Setting the pot on the counter, I glanced around the corner to be sure Misty was out of earshot. Then I turned on my evil wife. “You told her it was my favorite, didn’t you?”
“Uh, technically, it was Thea.” She bit her bottom lip. “But I didn’t correct her.”
Grabbing her hand, I gave her a tug, pulling her against me. “If you weren’t carrying my daughter, I’d—”
“Shhhh!” She slapped a hand over my mouth. “We aren’t telling them until after dinner.”
I tilted my head, freeing my mouth. “You mean if I make it through dinner.”
“Does it help if I tell you I made banana pudding for dessert?”
“Maybe.” I leaned over and caught her mouth in a kiss. “Or maybe you can make it up to me later tonight down by the creek.”
“Awesome. So I can catch pneumonia?”
I scoffed. “You’re not going to catch pneumonia. We’ve never caught anything down by that creek.”
She peered up at me, her golden-brown eyes sparkling with more love than I ever knew possible, and smirked. “I caught you, didn’t I?”
The End