Page 115 of In Spades

“Huh? I’m up, I’m up!” She sat up and rubbed her eyes. “Shit. Am I late for work?”

I chuckled and kicked the door shut behind me. “You’re off today, Sunshine. Remember?”

She flopped back against the pillows and laughed. “I can’t remember the last time I slept in this late.”

“Sleep well?”

She nodded. “So good. How’s it going out there? The kids haven’t gone all Home Alone on you yet, have they?”

Food in hand, I shuffled over and slid her breakfast onto the nightstand. “No paint can concussions, icy steps, or blowtorches.” I pressed a kiss to her temple. “But the day is still young.”

“I’ll be out in a sec. Just need to get dressed and brush?—”

“Sit,” I said firmly, then pointed to her breakfast. “And eat.”

“Will,” she groaned. “You’re spoiling me too much. I need to get up and check in on the kids.”

“The kids are fine. They’re eating breakfast. When they’re done, I’ll tell them to get dressed and then take them out to play in oncoming traffic. If we have time, I’ll teach them to put forks in light sockets. Might even let them run with scissors.”

Kristin hurled a pillow at me. “Smartass.”

I snickered as it ricocheted off my body. I headed out the door and left her to stew. The woman needed a fucking break, and damn it, I was going to give it to her.

“So, what are we supposed to do?” Hunter asked when I made it back to the kitchen.

Four sets of eyes turned to me. I couldn’t tell if they were planning a mutiny or awaiting further instruction.

“Well, what do you want to do?” I asked.

“I wanna finish my book,” Hunter said.

“Cool with me.”

“Can we play outside?” Zoey asked, swinging her feet back and forth.

I shrugged. “Yeah, it should be pretty nice outside. I’ll be in the backyard if y’all wanna join me.”

They quickly loaded their plates and forks into the dishwasher, then disappeared into their rooms to change clothes.

I wandered outside with a cup of coffee and sat down on one of the Adirondack chairs I had lined up on the edge of the waterfront. There were four chairs, but I only ever used one. Maybe it was time to get two more.

I didn’t want to make things weird by lingering in the house. I decided to let them come to me. The kids were responsible and respectful. I didn’t know jack shit about parenting, so making up ground rules as I went would have to do.

To my surprise, Logan was the first one out the door. He wandered toward me with his hands shoved in the pockets of his jeans.

“Hunter is in his room,” Logan said as he drew closer. “The girls are still gettin’ dressed. Zoey wanted braids, but Kylie isn’t good at doing them. It’s taking her forever ‘cause she doesn’t wanna bother Kris.”

I patted the chair beside me. “Women are a handful.”

He smirked.

“How’d you like the room?” I asked before sipping my coffee. It was lukewarm now, but I didn’t mind. “The video games I have up there are kind of outdated. I figured if you let me know what you like, I can pick some new ones up.”

“You don’t have to buy us shit, you know.” His words carried a sharp edge. A warning that the fleeting moment of affection he showed last night was just that—fleeting.

“I know,” I said calmly.

Teenagers confused the shit out of me. Even though I preferred computers, working as a civilian defense contractor taught me how to deal with all kinds of people. Letting the emotions of others direct a conversation always led to disaster.

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