Page 98 of Driven Daddy

We both looked up to find Rita on the stairs. She must have taken a shower while upstairs. Her hair was damp around her face. She had on a cropped white T-shirt with a ripped collar that slipped off one shoulder. A hot pink tank showed that matched hot pink cropped pants with daisies stitched around the pockets. As usual, her feet were bare.

“Hello, Miss Rita. Nice to see you again.”

“Think your accent and manners makes up for that comment?”

Larsen had the good grace to flush. “Yes.”

She patted his arm. “You’re right. Nice to see you too, Larsen. I hear you’re a bacon fan.”

“Who isn’t?” He followed her to the kitchen island.

“What have you done to my kitchen?”

I shrugged. “I was hungry.”

She shook her head. “Go. I’ll handle this. I’m assuming you two need to discuss something?”

Larsen shrugged. “I’m really here for the bacon.” He snagged one from the paper towels beside the frying pan. “But I suppose we could discuss strategies.”

She shooed us. “Take Bruce outside so he doesn’t sneak food.”

I hooked a finger through the dog’s collar. “C’mon, big guy.”

“Grab plates and silverware, Larsen.”

“Yes ma’am.” He made a snappy salute and took the pile on the counter with him as he followed me out the door.

There was a patio set outside, and we both set the table as Bruce found himself a sunny spot to plop down on the grass.

“Did you already call Asher?” I asked as I set around cups.

Larsen made a ridiculously unnecessary folded bird out of the napkins and set one in the center of each plate.

“Kiss ass,” I muttered.

Larsen waggled his eyebrows. “I left a message with his secretary, but she said he’d be at the paper today for a school career day thing. Figured we might be able to ambush him and see the printing operation.”

“You’re a sneaky bastard. And I love you for it.” I grabbed his face and kissed his cheek just as Rita came out with a platter of food.

“Am I interrupting?”

I took the platter and handed it off to Larsen, then I picked her up and spun her around. She gripped my shoulders with a surprised squeak. “We have an actual plan. Kind of.” I set her down and dropped a kiss on her shocked mouth.

“Kind of a plan is more like it,” Larsen said as he put the platter in the middle of the table. “I’ll go get drinks.”

“I left a carafe of juice on the island,” Rita called after him. She rested her hands on my chest. “What’s going on?”

“Remember how I said there’s some things about Duality Press that are driving me to drink?”

She laughed, then she patted my cheek before stepping away from me to sit down. “I do.”

“One of them is printing.”

“Kind of important.” She served up a pancake and bacon with a scoop of scrambled eggs.

“Hey, thought I said over easy.” I kissed her cheek and sat next to her.

“Do you want white slime by the time we sit down?”

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