by Chelle Bliss
I always loved the book fair and missed being surrounded by so many new novels. “I miss the fair. Maybe we can stop in there this week.”
“She’d like that.” He nodded and took a seat as I pushed the mug in front of him. “Thanks, Sunshine.”
After refreshing my cup, I leaned over the counter and stared at him over the rim while I took a sip. His hair was a little shorter than usual, probably Georgia’s doing. His face had barely aged a day since I’d met him. That’s what happened when you didn’t have three little ones to wear your ass out. I felt like I’d aged twenty years in under seven. There were barely any wrinkles near the outer edges of his almond-shaped eyes. “Any plans for babies?”
He started to choke on his coffee. “Not yet. G’s too young still.” Using the back of his hand, he wiped his lips.
“That’s the best time to start. You’re not getting any younger.”
“Thanks, Ma.”
“How are your parents, anyway?”
He moved to Florida to escape them, but after his mother visited when he was dating Georgia, she decided to move closer to her son. She was a piece of work. She made Mrs. Gallo seem like a lightweight. “They’re good. They’re way too much in our business, but I know Ma’s heart is in the right place.”
“Does she like Georgia now?”
“It only took a year or so, but I think she finally accepts her.”
“She doesn’t think she’s a tramp anymore?”
That earned me a laugh. “No. She realized the error in her ways.”
“About damn time,” I said before finishing the last drop of coffee in my cup. Just as I was about to speak, Ro started to scream upstairs. Before I could move, Lu joined in. “I gotta get them.”
“Want help?” he asked, setting his coffee down and standing.
“I’m used to doing it myself.”
“I have two free hands, Suzy. I’m not going to follow you around all day. I’m going to head outside soon to survey the perimeter, but I can help you carry the babies downstairs.”
“I won’t turn down the help.” The girls were so heavy that, at times when carrying them both, I wondered how my back didn’t give out. Especially when carrying them down the stairs. I hadn’t thought ahead when we built the house. Why didn’t we build a ranch?
Frisco followed me up the stairway and into the girls’ room. “Shh, Ro,” I whispered before pulling her from her crib. She was already waiting, holding on to the side for dear life and making sure to scream toward the door so I would hear her.
“Man, they’re getting so big,” Frisco said when he lifted Lu up and cradled her in his arms. She instantly quieted and peered up at him with wide eyes.
“They grow like weeds, my friend.”
By the time we made it back to the kitchen, Lu was cooing at Frisco and touching his face. His eyes lit up when he stared at her.
“You look good with a baby in your arms.”
“Soon, Suzy. When Georgia’s ready, we’ll start our little army.”
I handed him a bowl of rice mush for Lu and grabbed one for Ro before sitting down at the counter with him. “Just feed her small bites. Like this,” I said, scooping some of the bland, colorless food onto the spoon.
“What about a high chair?” He stared down at her with a twinge of fear in his eyes.
“It’s easier since there’s two of us to just hold them. If you’re not comfortable, you can put her in the chair.”
“No. I can do this.” He swallowed hard before repeating my motions and filling the spoon with food. “Just shovel it in?”
“Put it near her mouth and she’ll open for you.” I placed the spoon near Ro’s mouth and she immediately opened. “See?” Lu’s eyes sparkled as she stared up at him.
Frisco tentatively placed the spoon in front of Lu’s face, but she opened for him without hesitation. “There you go, baby girl. Eat the nummies.” Frisco had a paternal side. He just didn’t know it. No one calls it that unless they have the baby talk down pat.
“She likes you.” I smiled at them both.
He leaned forward and kissed her forehead, lingering just a little to take in the baby scent. “She’s a cute little thing.”
I didn’t have the heart to tell him that her cuteness would wear off soon. After she had her cereal and drained her bottle, she’d have her morning poop. Lu was great that way. Her body was like clockwork. I could almost set my clock to her morning bowel movement.
“So what are you going to be doing here all day?”
He gave her another spoonful, keeping his eyes on her as he spoke. “I’ll be outside a lot. I need to make sure no one enters the perimeter, and since you have a lot of land, there will be a lot to cover.”
“Don’t stay outside too much. It’s too hot to be out there long.”
“I’ve been through hotter when I was on the battlefield, babe. We didn’t get a break.”
“Well, this isn’t the military. Come in whenever you need something to drink or to just cool off.”
“I will,” he promised when he placed the last spoonful of cereal into Lu’s hungry mouth. “Now what?”
“Bottle time.” I nudged the waiting bottle toward him. “Want to go sit on the couch for it? It’s just easier.”
“Sure.” Frisco grabbed both bottles in one hand, holding them between his long thick fingers and carried Lu with him to the couch. I followed behind with a fussy Ro and took a seat next to him. “Here,” he said and handed me a bottle before adjusting Lu in his arms. When he stuck the bottle in Lu’s mouth, she instantly started to drain it. “Jesus,” he muttered as he stared at her with wide eyes.
“Yeah, they eat like they’re starving to death.”
“It’s cute.”
“Just wait.” I giggled because I knew in under five minutes he’d meet the not so cute side of Lu.
We sat in comfortable silence, feeding the babies and enjoying the quiet time. Frisco had always been one of my favorite friends of Joe’s. He quickly became my friend, and especially once he hooked up with Georgia. I knew he’d always have my back. I think I liked him the most out of the Neon Cowboy guys because he wasn’t a perverted sicko like Tank and Bear, although they had their moments when I loved them too.
“What’s that smell?” Frisco’s nose wrinkled.
“Lu.”
“Oh my God. How does something so horrid come from someone so beautiful and tiny?” His lips angled down and his face turned a funny shade of green. Big, bad military man couldn’t take the smell of baby poop.
“Just be happy it’s not climbing out of her diaper and soaking through her onesie.”
“What?” He looked at me with wide, confused eyes.
“You’ll learn someday, Frisco.” I placed Ro in her carrier and snapped her in before placing her on the coffee table in front of Frisco. “I’ll change her, just finish giving Ro her bottle.” I held the half-full bottle in front of him.
We swapped bottles and I lifted Lu from his arms, instantly hit by the stench. “Will she do the same thing?”
“No.” I chuckled and glanced down at Ro. “She’s more of an afternoon pooper. We still have a few hours until she clears a room.”
“Thank God.” He scooted forward to get closer to Ro.
“Men are such lightweights,” I whispered to Lu when I carried her into the den, which we’d set up as a makeshift nursery so I wouldn’t have to run up and down the stairs all day. “A little poop and they freak out. Not Daddy, though, he’s like a pro.” I smiled down at her as I set her on the changing table. She blew raspberries and grabbed her toes.
After I unsnapped her onesie and exposed the dirty diaper, I held my breath. “I wish I could keep you like this forever.”
Someday she’d grow up, far too fast, and I’d have to deal with her teenage years. I couldn’t imagine her old enough to have a boyfriend. Joe would probably be the one crapping his pants when his daughters started to date. It would be payback time for all the ladies he woo
ed in his youth.
“You’re such a pretty girl,” Frisco said in the cutest baby voice to Ro. “Just like your mommy.”
I couldn’t stop the smile on my face from growing wider. Frisco made me blush. He probably didn’t know I could hear him, and I’d never embarrass him in that way, but it was nice to know that even after three kids had ravaged my body, I still had it.
After I cleaned up Lu, we headed back into the living room to find Frisco cradling Ro in his arms. “Couldn’t help yourself, could you?”
“They need to bottle this scent. It’s intoxicating.” His nose rested on the top of her head as he gently rocked her back and forth in his arms.
“You’re so ready to be a dad. Be careful, once you get the baby bug, it doesn’t go away.”
He exhaled and his shoulders relaxed. “I could do this.” Just as he went to kiss her cheek, the little princess let out the biggest burp. Frisco gagged, probably getting a whiff of the baby formula that had already soured in her belly. “Maybe I need a little more time,” he said, backing away from her and taking a deep breath of fresh air.
“You still have time.” I giggled and placed Lu on the rug in the middle of the room.
“I better get outside. City would have my balls if he knew I was in here playing house.”
“Probably right.”
Ro looked like a newborn in his giant arms when he stood. He rocked back and forth on his feet, gently patting her back before he set her down next to her sister. “Thanks for a nice morning, Sunshine.”
“Thanks for the help,” I told him, before taking a seat next to the girls on the floor.
“Holler if you need me. Text if you hear or see anything, and I’ll be inside before you know it.”
I gave him thumbs up. When he walked outside and the door closed, I collapsed onto my back next to the girls and stared up at the ceiling. All I wanted to do was climb into a warm bath and relax. But mommy duties superseded everything else. Maybe in five years when the twins started school, I’d have a moment to myself again. Maybe.
* * *
Frisco stayed outside until late afternoon. I kept peeking through the curtains to check on him, but I’d barely catch a glimpse before he’d disappear again.
“Everything okay in here?” he asked after I let him through the sliding glass doors that lined the back of the house.
“Everything is quiet and calm.”
“Good.” He nodded and wiped the sweat from his brow.
I quickly grabbed a towel for him and a glass of water. “Sit down for a bit. You deserve a break.”
He took the water and downed it before I had even had a chance to move. “Where are the girls?”
“Sleeping.” I handed him the towel and took the glass from his hands to refill it.
“I’ve been thinking a lot about what you said.”
With my back to him, I stared down at the water with my eyebrows furrowed. I couldn’t remember what I’d said to him earlier. I was still half asleep and worn out.
“I think I’m ready to be a dad.”
I whipped around, almost spilling the water in the process. “You are?” I couldn’t stop my eyes from being as big as saucers.
“I am. Now to convince Georgia.”
I tried not to jump up and down. I already knew she was ready. She had talked about it to me many times, but she worried Frisco wasn’t ready. She didn’t want to rush their relationship, especially since they were newlyweds.
“I’m sure she’ll be on board. Talk to her about it. She may surprise you.”
His face brightened. “You think?”
“I do!” I screeched and had to tell myself not to run to my phone and text Georgia the good news. Soon he’d be back outside and I could drop the bombshell on her.
“I think it’s time we start a family of our own.” His smile grew large and his shoulders went backward, puffing out his chest. “I’m ready for it.”
The baby smell had gotten to him.
It gets everyone.
Spanks for the Memories
Joe
Frisco texted me every hour with a status update. Everything had been quiet on the home front, and nothing out of the ordinary had caught his eye. When I pulled into the driveway, he was waiting for me outside.
“Everything okay?”
He nodded and absently rubbed the back of his neck. “Yeah, everything is fine.”
“Why do you look like you’ve seen a ghost, then?”
He dragged his eyes to mine. “I realized something today.”
“And that is?” I twirled the key ring in my fingers, trying to keep my anxiety under control.
“I want a family. Spending time with Suzy and the girls has made me realize that I want that too.”
I trapped the keys in my fist and laughed. “You scared the fuck out of me.” I punched him in the arm and shook my head. “You can be a prick sometimes.”
“I’m being serious. I didn’t think I was ready for kids, but now, I’m not so sure.”
“You better be sure, brother. There’s no return policy on a kid.”
“I know.” He hung his head and ran his fingers through his hair. “I’m going to talk it over with G and see what she says.”
“Suzy’s probably already told her you want them.”
“What?”
“You know Suzy. She can’t keep a secret. If you told her how you feel, I’m sure Georgia is already expecting the conversation.”
“Fuck! I forgot she can’t keep a secret.”
“Yep.” I laughed and glanced over his shoulder, noticing Suzy waving at me through the window.
“You’re going to be a good father, Frisco.” I grabbed his shoulder and gave it a light squeeze. “There are very few men that I can say that about, but I’ve known you long enough to know that any kid would be lucky to have you as a dad.”
The unsure look on his face changed; his lips that had been set in a firm line curved into a big smile. “That means a lot coming from you, man.”
“Now go the fuck home so I can spend some time with my wife.”
He nodded and punched me in the chest. “Don’t make another baby.”
“Fuck you. I’m all about the practice.” I laughed, pretending to pound into someone.
“I’d have thought you’d have figured out how to fuck by now.” He shrugged and waved at me over his shoulder.
I flipped him off, but he didn’t see. When he pulled away, I took a final glance around the yard, grabbed the baby gates out of the trunk and headed inside.
Suzy greeted me with the biggest smile and not much else. “I missed you today.” The sheer, pink nightie she had on didn’t leave much to the imagination.
“Did you have this on in front of him?” I held her at arm’s length and took in her beauty.
“Are you crazy? I had my robe on, and he’s been outside for the last hour. When I saw him pull away, I threw my robe over there.” She pointed toward the white robe that had barely made it onto the couch.
“Sorry,” I said and put my lips against hers. “I don’t want any man seeing what’s mine.”
“Honey,” she whispered. “There’s no man I’d let see me naked besides you.”
“Fuckin’ better not,” I growled. “So what’s for dinner?” I didn’t have the heart to tell her I had a burger at work because she’d probably spent all evening burning the shit out of something inedible.
She rested her hand in the center of my chest and looked up at me with a naughty grin. “Me.”
I lifted her off the ground, smashing her tits into my chest and feeling the hardness of her nipples through my shirt. “Kids sleeping?” I asked against her lips.
“Out like a light.”
Without another word, I tossed her over my shoulder and took the stairs two at a time. She squealed halfway up and I smacked her on the ass to remind her to quiet down. If she woke the kids, our fun-filled night would turn to shit in a heartbeat.
“How am I supp
osed to stay quiet when you smack me on the ass?”
That statement earned her another tap on her cute, perky ass. “Shush it, woman. Save it for when we’re inside our bedroom.”
“Promise to spank me some more?” she asked and massaged my ass cheeks with her small fingers.
“I plan to do more than that,” I told her as I kicked open our bedroom door with my foot, but not hard enough to make it smash into the wall behind it.
As she slid down my body and her feet touched the floor, I said, “I think it’s been far too long since I’ve felt your mouth on me, sugar. Be a good girl and I’ll reward you for your efforts.”
She licked her lips and glanced down at my already bulging hard-on. “I’ve been dying to taste you all day.” Without hesitation, she knelt and started to undo my jeans.
I pulled my shirt off, throwing it on the floor across the room and readied myself for the feel of her lips on my cock. Although I loved being inside her, Suzy’s mouth was heavenly.
The feel of her small, strong fingers wrapping around my cock made my body jerk forward. My dick led me out of instinct, wanting to be inside her more than anything in the world. When her tongue touched the tip, my eyes closed and my breath hitched. Even after all these years together, there was no other woman I could imagine being with besides my sugar.
Her velvety tongue slid against the underside of my shaft as her lips closed around my length, toying with my piercing. I felt drunk on lust and had to hold on to the wall for support before my knees gave out. She palmed my balls in her hand, moaning deep in her throat, causing the vibration to shoot straight to my spine.
I’d never been quick to come, but seeing her on her knees and sucking me off the way she was, it took everything in me not to make it over before it ever truly began. I cleared my mind and concentrated. It required all of my attention to focus on the tiny things—the scrape of her teeth against my flesh, the softness of her lips around my dick, and the flick of her tongue as it passed over my piercing.
I tangled my hands in her hair, needing her to slow down and wanting to savor the moment. “Slower, baby,” I said, glancing down at her and almost losing it after watching my cock disappear between her lips.
