Page 109 of Four Steps to the Perfect Fake Date

“Who’s hungry?” Eileen called out as she exited the car, herding the little ones inside. It was hard to imagine Eileen as a neglectful mother; she was a doting grandmother to Caroline and Benji, and a loving mother to Ceecee.

“I brought bread,” Claude answered with a wink. Daphne smiled, knowing it had been baked inthepot. All their special-occasion baked goods had been ever since Calvin and Daphne returned it to Mabel’s grateful hands.

Some days, after visits to the Yarrow residence, Daphne saw lingering tightness around Calvin’s eyes. She knew he still experienced pain from childhood memories, but it didn’t stop him from showing up and trying. He’d had many conversations with his mother over the years. They’d mended their relationship and reached a place of mutual respect. As their family grew, those bonds had strengthened.

It was one of the things that Daphne admired most about him. He was a man who wasn’t afraid to do the right thing, even if it was difficult. It was what made him a good sheriff, a great father, and the most perfect husband she could have asked for.

A short while later, Ellie and Hugh arrived with Grandma Mabel in tow, along with their daughter, Maisie. Kathy burst through the door and started shouting commands at Archie as he manned the grill. Friends drifted through the door to congratulate Ceecee, and the party went late into the night—with no arrests, no stolen cookware, and no cast iron–induced concussions. In other words, it was a success.

That night, once the kids were passed out after the excitement of the party and tucked in their beds, Daphne climbed under the blankets beside Calvin. He spread his arms and pulled her close, and she rested her head on the bare skin of his chest, her fingers running through the coarse hair growing between his pecs.

His fingers trailed over her side, rucking up the silky fabric of her nightgown. “I like this,” he said, feeling the fabric between his thumb and forefinger.

Daphne smiled. “I figured you would.”

After rolling her onto her back, Calvin propped himself above her. “You’re still the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen, you know,” he told her, nose coasting over her jaw. His hand slid up her thigh to squeeze her hip.

“Am I?”

He hummed. “Even when you fish for compliments.”

Daphne laughed and curled her hands around his shoulders. She kissed him deeply, then lifted her knees so he could settle his hips between them. “I love you,” she whispered.

“Love you more.”

“Not possible.”

She felt him smile against her cheek a moment before he dipped his head and bit her earlobe in response. A shiver went through Daphne’s body, fire lighting in the pit of her stomach. She turned her head to kiss her husband, knowing that in his arms was exactly where she was meant to be.

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