Page 81 of Whatever You Want

I barked out another laugh. “She sure does.” I tweaked her nose. “She snores so loud, I sometimes worry I might go deaf.”

Her head tilted to the side in confusion. “Why would you go deaf?”

“It’s a joke, but sometimes when you’re exposed to loud noises all the time it can cause hearing loss.”

“Is that why my mom always tells me to turn the TV down?”

“Yup. My mom used to tell my brother and me the same thing.”

“My grandma tells me not to sit too close to the TV or it can ruin my eyes.” She shook her head. “So I eat lots of carrots because I don’t want to go blind. Did you know that carrots are good for your eyes?”

My lips twitched. “I’ve heard that before.”

I spotted Ava making her way down to the foot of the dock. “Morning.”

She looked beautiful with her hair pulled up on the top of her head, she probably put no effort into it, but she still took my breath away. If her daughter weren’t practically sitting in my lap, I would pull her into me and kiss her senseless.

She averted her eyes as if she could read my mind.

Madison jumped to her feet and smiled. “Mom, Logan and I are going to get the boat ready.”

“I’d like you to eat breakfast first.” She set her coffee down and kissed Madison. “There are cinnamon rolls and yogurt on the counter. I’ll be right up.”

“Can I please get a good morning kiss too?” I teased, remembering our conversation yesterday.

She grinned as I pushed to my feet. “You already had your kiss right before you snuck out of my bed, but seeing that you asked so nicely, I think you deserve another one. “

“It was still technically dark outside, so that doesn’t count.”

She tilted her face up, and I couldn’t help but draw her soft lips up to mine. I don’t know how long the kiss went on for, but I knew I didn’t want it to stop. Over the past few months, she’s become the missing piece to my heart that I didn’t even realize was lost. I never thought it was possible to be this happy.

The side door banged shut, and the girls came barreling across the lawn, running straight toward the water.

I pulled back, keeping Ava at arm’s-length. “You ready to go catch some fish?”

She screwed her nose up and looked like she was about to use every excuse in the book to get out of it. “How about I stay back and let you and the girls bond over some boating and bass fishing?”

“Nope.” I shook my head. “First, it’s trout we are looking for and a deal is a deal.”

“I don’t remember making that deal.”

“That’s because,” my voice was low as I leaned in, whispering into her ear so only she could hear me, “I had my mouth between your legs. You must have been preoccupied with other things.”

I didn’t even bother explaining when that conversation took place. She remembered it very clearly but still had every intention of pretending that she didn’t. Ava had a habit of screwing up her nose and scratching the side of her head when she was lying like she was doing right now.

“That doesn’t count.” She pouted, but it only made her look more adorable. “Clearly, I’m not dressed for this type of outing.” She gestured down to her pajamas. “Maybe you guys can come back and get me when you’re done. The water should be a little warmer by then too.”

“The water is going to be cold no matter what time of the day it is, Ava. You’re in the Adirondacks, not at some beach in Mexico.”

“Well, if that’s the case, then I’ll just lounge in the chair, work on my tan, and read a book while you guys go and try to catch smelly fish.”

She smiled smugly, looking too damned pleased with herself. I didn’t have the heart to break it to her that she would be swimming with those smelly fish in about ten seconds.

I sighed. “I really don’t want to have to do this.” I looked at the water and then over to the girls, giving them the signal. We were prepared for this and came up with a plan last night. Ava was going in that lake whether she wanted to or not.

She followed my eyes and started to back up. “You wouldn’t dare.”

I picked her up in a flash and ran toward the dock. Ava was kicking and screaming, trying her best to escape my hold. Too bad for her, she was no match for my strength. I jumped off the dock, and the girls were right behind me. They all shrieked and yelled about how cold the water was. I had to admit, it was fucking freezing. For a minute, I thought my balls were going to turn to ice, but the sound of their laughter and the smile on their faces made it worth it.

---