Page 50 of The Alpha's Forced Rejected Mate

Robyn turned to lift Sydney. “Love always wins in the end.”

I got to my feet and accepted the plastic sword from Robyn. When I sheathed it on the belt loops of my jeans, I held out my hands to Sydney. “Want to go for a ride with the knight outside?”

She gasped and wiggled like an unearthed worm to get to my arms. I had her safely snug in my grip when she propped herself over my shoulder and yelled, “Mommy! Sir Charles!”

I cringed. “Daughter, my ear.”

“You have two ears.”

“That doesn’t mean I don’t need my left ear, Princess Sydney.”

She giggled maniacally while I carried her outside. Bangor felt brilliantly sunny today, with enough wind to carry Sydney off with the birds if I didn’t hang onto her tightly enough. I got her to sit on my shoulders as soon as we were past the porch and marched dutifully toward the street, where she demanded I trot around like her noble steed.

She patted my head. “Giddy-up, Horsey Dad!”

“Ugh, don’t call me that, Princess Sydney.”

“Okay, how about Pretty Horsey, Dad?”

I snickered. “Well, since you’re being so nice about it…”

“Would Princess Sydney like Sir Charles to ride with her?”

Robyn extended the tattered rabbit with long ears to Sydney, who bounced on the back of my neck hard enough to make my stomach hurt. I laughed while holding her steady. “Alright, careful. You’re going to kick my—Sydney, that’s my ear again.”

She stilled herself. “Sorry, Daddy.”

Robyn smiled warmly as she patted Sydney’s leg. “It’s okay. Just don’t beat your father up too much. I need him later.”

“Uh oh, am I in trouble?” I asked, but Sydney was kicking my chest with her tiny feet to get me to gallop.

Robyn grinned triumphantly while waving me off. “See you later, Sir Pretty Horsey, Dad.”

I scoffed while trotting along the road. “You know, she did that on purpose.”

“Whoa! Whoa!” Sydney blew her lips together to make sloppy raspberry sounds that cast a mist of spit all over my head. I closed my eyes with knowing defeat as she continued, “Giddy-up, go!”

“This is animal abuse,” I complained, “I want a lawyer.”

Sydney giggled while hanging onto my head. Now that she had a good spot for Mr. Charles and she wasn’t smacking my sternum with the balls of her hard feet, it was manageable to carry her around the block. We trotted past Sonya and her hard shutters that she was pressure washing. We galloped past Larry’s lawn and then Jacob’s flowery mailbox that he kept changing the colors of every month.

When we got back to Robyn’s house, I paused in front of the walkway, continuing to trot in place while Robyn gave us a welcoming smile. “Back so soon?”

“Yeah, I didn’t want the Princess to get upset.”

“About what?”

I hummed thoughtfully. “About being left behind.”

Her brows parted softly, and then she dropped her gaze to the ground. “I see. Well, the knight doesn’t have to worry too much about that. The princess and I are just handling business.”

“How about the princess and I go on a date?”

She met my gaze. “A date?”

Sydney gasped and started to babble when I hauled her into the air and ran around making plane noises. I set her on the porch, where she promptly darted for the hammock and climbed into it without flipping over. She was like a wild animal wiggling inside the hammock, making shooting and explosion sounds while talking about the Pretty Horsey Dad saving the day.

Robyn appeared next to me.

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