Page 85 of The Bartender's Baby

Nate returned in time for me to pass off the baby, instruct him not to make dinner, and then drive to campus for my three o’clock class. On my way home, I picked up a couple orders of fish tacos, his favorite—apparently the Kozlowski siblings both had a thing for tacos—and a small cake.

I walked into the house to find Nate standing close to the television, Frog strapped to his chest as he explained the ins and outs of football.

“See? You see that? That’s called a blitz. That’s when the defense rushes the offense. That’s what I used to do. And that guy right there? He’s the best cornerback in the league.” He raised George’s hands, chanting. “E-A-G-L-E-S, Eagles!”

I cleared my throat, and Nate swung around in surprise. “Tabby cat.”

I held up the bag. “I got your favorite. Extra guac for the chips.”

He came straight to me, his hands on my face, kissing me. “You’re the best.”

“Picking up dinner is hardly a chore.” I leaned in to kiss George’s head. “I’ll get the plates. I would ask if you wanted a birthday beer, but since you’re going out?—”

“I’m not. Well, I mean, I am going out, but not to work.” When I quirked a brow, he said, “I’ll take that beer. And after dinner, I want to take you out. Show you something.”

Intrigued, I set the bag on the dining room table. “Where?”

“You’ll see.”

I shot him a look.

“Patience.”

“Funnyyou’retellingmeto be patient.”

He winked in that annoyingly charming way of his and then turned back to the television in time to see something that made him clap a few times. I spread the food out on the dining room table and called him to sit down, taking George to place him in his bouncer.

After we finished the tacos, I lit the number candles on the small vanilla cake with sprinkles then sang “Happy Birthday,” punctuating it with a kiss. “Make a wish.”

He paused, gazing at the flickering candles for a moment before blowing them out. “What’d you wish for?”

“Can’t tell you that. It won’t come true,” he teased, but as I sliced into the cake, he placed his hand on my hip, finger hooking under the belt loop, admitting, “It was anal.”

I gasped, refusing to give in to a laugh, and walloped his shoulder. He caught my wrist, pulling me into him, his mouth smiling against my neck. “What else can I wish for? Everything I want, I have.”

I melted into him, angling my head so he had better access to my throat. “I guess we can talk about it.”

He perked up. “Really?”

I shrugged. “We won’t be doing it tonight, obviously. We haven’t even had regular P in V sex yet.”

He left an openmouthed kiss on the slope of my shoulder. “Mm-hmm. I’m ready when you are.”

He ground me down on his dick to emphasize his point.

Technically, I’d gotten the go-ahead two weeks ago, but I hadn’t felt very sexy, and I especially didn’t want to get naked in front of Nate. Then again, I’d really enjoyed this morning and would like to do more of that.

I placed the slice of cake on a plate, but Nate kept me in his lap, splitting it between us, feeding a piece to me and then to himself until we finished. He didn’t even give me time to clean up before he instructed me to put shoes on so we could go out.“Come on,” he said, pushing me out the door, with George in his car seat. “Quick trip.”

I played along, curious about where he could possibly be taking us on a random weeknight, but we didn’t end up going far. Only downtown, where he parked in the back of his bistro.

“What are you?—”

“You’ll see,” he said, smiling as he pocketed his keys to remove George’s car seat. He escorted me around the side of the building. “Close your eyes.”

When I did, he tucked my hand into the crook of his elbow, ushering me farther along. “Don’t open them,” he warned. “Here. Turn a little. Yeah. Like that. Now, don’t move.” I heard him step away from me, a door unlock and open, and then more footsteps after half a minute or so. “Did you open your eyes?”

“No.”

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