Page 43 of Ruthless Love

EPILOGUE TWO

CAIN

Two YearsLater

"Son of a bitch." The water for the spaghetti I'm making for dinner has started boiling over, and I've gotten soapy dish water on my shirt. Throwing the shirt off onto the floor, I reach over and grab the pot off the stove.

I'm used to keeping my cool, but I'm never good at trying to manage household chores. Marissa makes it look so easy. Especially when she has busy days at Enchanted Chapters. It never seems like she's struggling to keep it together. Unlike me.

Over in a high chair, our daughter squeals.

Turning my attention to her, I grin. Her arrival was the best day of my life, and since then, they've all been great. Her eyes are bright, the smile on her face is a balm to the wounds of the day, and those little earrings shining in her ears? They give me something to fight for.

"Ser, what are you doing, girlie? I'm royally fuckin' up dinner, but hopefully Mama will be home in a few minutes and save us both."

Just as I say those words, I hear the garage door going up. Turning back to the stove, I do my best to control the over-flowing pot and the popping marinara.

"How's it going in here?" Marissa asks as she comes swooping into the kitchen.

"Controlled chaos. I'm fucking up this meal." I push back a curse as the water hits my finger.

"No, you're not, and don't cuss in front of her," she reprimands.

I look over, and of course Ris looks like she's walked out of an influencer photo. Her hair is perfect, clothes aren't wrinkled, and she isn't the least bit stressed. She bends over and picks Serena out of her high chair. "You take her, and I'll get this dinner taken care of."

"With pleasure."

If there's one thing I can do, it's entertain our daughter. I stand over in the corner, making funny faces and tickling her stomach, while Marissa gets everything under control. Which she does in an embarrassingly short amount of time.

"What did you do today?" She asks.

I was off work, but it doesn't mean I wasn't putting hours in. "Went to see Alex."

"Oh, how's he doing?" Her eyes are sad as she thinks of our friend.

"He's getting harder every year he's in there. I hope I can find something that's going to help soon. I refuse to give up."

She turns, smirking at me. "That's hot. You being a dad, supporting your friends, and standing there like you don't know how badly I want to jump your bones right now."

"Oh, yeah?" I saunter over to where she stands. Reaching out, I cup her hip with my palm. "You can jump my bones any time."

"Trust me babe, when we get her to bed? I goddamn plan on it."

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