Page 75 of Losing his Daddy

“We need to get up for breakfast,” I whispered to Sir after I woke up to find his eyes already on mine.

He grinned down at me from where he’d propped up on his arm. “We do. I could hear the others leaving a while ago. I’m sure they’re eager to see you during the daylight hours.”

“I want that too,” I admitted. “Shower with me?”

“Absolutely. Come on, Precious. Let’s get presentable.”

One brief shower later, we were dressed and walking up to the main house together, hand-in-hand. It felt surreal to have someone I could be openly affectionate with while on the ranch. I was used to having to sneak around while here.

Being with Sir meant no secrets though. It also meant that when we walked into the kitchen, Robin instantly bombarded us. He ran at us like he hadn’t just seen us the night before.

I chuckled at his excitement as I stepped aside. Only, the move didn’t help since Robin ran straight to hug me instead of Sir. Surprise bolted through me before I managed to get my shit together and hug him back.

“Thank you for getting him here,” Robin said once we pulled apart.

I shook my head. “Oh, no. It wasn’t me. I didn’t do anything.”

“Actually,” Sir said as he directed the three of us further into the house and towards the group gathered around the table. “You are the sole reason I’m here. If I’d asked, Robin would have come to us. But with him here and the ranch here, it made more sense to wait until you were ready.”

My eyes tried to well with tears again. I shook my head, then cleared my throat loudly. “No one else gets to make me cry before breakfast. I’m all dried up.”

The men all laughed at my haughty tone. Harlan waved us to the counter where several trays were covered in foil.

“Guests get the first plate. We’re all taking it easy today since we didn’t know how long you were staying. I made some of your favorites,” he said with a grin.

My mouth watered as he unveiled each pan of food. There was sausage, bacon, eggs, pancakes, French toast, and a massive pile of biscuits. I wanted a dozen of everything, even though I knew my stomach couldn’t handle it.

“Take it piece by piece,” Sir said softly. "I’m sure there will be leftovers.”

Corey snorted from my left. “You’ve clearly never been to a ranch. We could put away twice this amount if we really went after it.”

The man I’d guessed was Ashley walked up to him with a frown. “Be nice, Daddy. I want to meet your family.”

Everyone went quiet at the word Daddy. Knowing it was because of me, I shook my head and stuck my hand out in Ashley’s direction.

“You’re Ashley, right? I saw the photo of everyone and kind of figured it out from there.”

Ashley smiled wide. “That’s me. You’re Gerald.”

“I am. How has the Coleman Ranch treated you so far? I’m sure it’s different than military life, but there’s still a brotherhood here. You’re discharged by now I bet.”

Corey threw up his hands. “How do you know that?! You’re a wizard!”

The room erupted into laughter. Even Sir couldn’t resist cracking up at my friend’s foolishness while he piled our plates high with food. Normally, I’d be the one taking care of that. I knew he was doing it to give me time to visit my friends. It was also because he needed something to keep him busy. He’s used to his office or our weekends at home. Being in a space that he’s unfamiliar with and full of triggers for me has to be wearing on him.

I rubbed Sir’s beard while I faced off my friend and his boy. “I knew because I’d seen one of your letters years ago. It seemed like something you wanted to keep secret, so I didn’t say anything.”

“Hmmm,” Corey hummed as he narrowed his eyes. “That makes sense, I guess. Just making sure you weren’t spying on us.”

It was Robin who interrupted that time. “You mean like we did when we hired Preacher?”

Sir faced his brother with a smirk. “You were never the patient type, Ro. I’m surprised you didn’t hunt me down yourself.”

“I was busy. Griffin here kept accepting clients left and right. The clinic stays busy, plus there are the animals we have to drive out to check on,” he replied.

“Speaking of, I put in a call to the vet from a town over. He agreed to let me transfer the emergency line to him today so we could visit with Gerald and Weston.” Griffin announced the update to the room at large.

“Thanks for that,” Robin told him. “I don’t know how long the big lug is here for. I’ve got a couple of appointments tomorrow morning, but then I’m free for the afternoon.”

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