by Sosie Frost
Hopefully that’d be a long time from now.
Clue bounced in her high-chair, giving me a surprisingly toothy grin. Not that I hadn’t already noticed my baby transformed into a milk-shark a month ago. Those chompers were more than enough reason to wean her once she hit that magical one year mark.
And it was coming soon.
Within a week.
And somehow, it felt like my birthday too. Or an awakening. One year of love, loss, and reconnection.
Or maybe the kiddo made me overly emotional while she chucked Cheerios off the high-chair.
“Mama.” The cereal dropped to the floor. “Mama.”
This was the new game. I stooped to one up, earned her giggle, and then watched as she threw it again.
“Mama!”
“I should never have let your father teach you this.” I thwarted her next throw with a kiss. She giggled and bounced. “Why don’t you throw his dinner around?”
On cue, she made grabby hands for the bowl of soup.
That wouldn’t go well.
“No, no. That’s not for you.” I offered her another handful of Cheerios. Half ended on the floor. Three stuck to her forehead. It was progress. “The soup is for the boys.”
If they’d ever come in from the street. I texted Shepard.
Get in here. Soups on.
It took only a minute before the herd stampeded into the house. Clue screeched at the sight of her father, demanding hugs and cuddles and all the attention. Shepard wiped his brow of sweat first. He tossed the football to one of the young boys he hauled in tow.
Shaun was still shy—twelve years old going on fifty. He didn’t trust the cop, and for the right and wrong reasons. The outreach program was still new, and he had been through enough with his father’s incarceration. He blamed Shepard and most of Ironfield’s men in blue, but we were winning him over one warm meal at a time.
It was amazing what a safe home, good dinner, and positive mentor could do for these kids.
Granna had been right all along.
Not that I’d ever doubted her. I only hoped I could live up to her standards.
“Smells good.” Shepard kissed me on his way to the powder room. He led the three boys to the hall, instructing them to wash up. “I’m starving.”
“Me too.” Rex, the fourteen-year-old wannabe police officer said. He still mimicked most of what Shepard did. All he needed was a good influence. “I could eat a horse.”
“You ain’t never seen a horse.” His brother, Eli, older, wiser, and harsher, snapped.
“I have to!”
“Did not!”
“Yeah, I did!”
It took mere seconds for the boys to throw down. Rex punched first. Eli dodged. Shepard attempted to separate them.
And I stood in the hall, hands on my hips, staring all the boys down.
“There’s no fighting when soup’s on the table.” I pointed the spoon at them. “Got me?”
Food was a better motivator than even Shepard’s influence. The boys murmured an apology and washed up.
Granna would have been proud.
She also would have demanded that I smack some butts with the spoon, but she had always been old school.
Shepard left the kids at the table to help me set up. He hauled Clue into his arms and gave me a deeper kiss.
“I think this is working out,” he said.
“Me too.” I tickled the baby. “Rory even said some of the Rivets were eager to help. We could do some joint efforts with the outreach program and Family First.”
“Sounds like you’re gonna be busy.”
“Gotta earn that social sciences degree.”
Shepard stared at me. “You’re amazing. You’re doing so much for these kids.”
They needed it. Someone. Anyone. A little love, some discipline, and a chance to do good.
“Someone should have carried on Granna’s legacy.”
“You’re going to do fantastic.”
“Yeah?” I grinned, tugging him closer. “You think so, Detective Novak?”
“I do, Mrs. Novak.”
I liked hearing it as much as he liked saying it.
But our kiss was interrupted by a dining room full of hungry young boys. I gestured for him to take the soup in. He brushed my cheek with his hand instead.
“I couldn’t be prouder of you, Evie.” His voice lowered, serious and awe-struck. “You have no idea how much I love you.”
“I think I do.” I gave him a sexy wink and sensual kiss. “But you could always prove it to me.”
“Oh yeah?”
“I say we eat dinner, take the boys home, then return here to celebrate.”
“Celebrate what?”
“Us.” I smiled. “This. Our perfect life.”
“You think it’s perfect?”
“Not just perfect.” I hugged the baby and stared into his eyes. “It’s unforgettable.”
The End
ALSO BY SOSIE FROST
Bad Boy’s Series
Bad Boy’s Baby
Bad Boy’s Revenge
Bad Boy’s Bridesmaid
Touchdowns and Tiaras
Beauty And The Blitz
Once Upon A Touchdown
Happily Ever All-Star
Standalone Romances
Sweetest Sin - A Forbidden Priest Romance
Hard - A Step-Brother Romance
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