Page 6 of Waiting For A Girl Like You
“Are you complaining?”
“No, ma’am.”
She leaned in and dropped a kiss on his lips. “Didn’t think so.”
If someone were to ask him how much he loved his wife, Devon would readily confess he couldn’t answer the question. He was a numbers man, so confessing there was no limit made his brain go crazy. The data gathered is what told the story. It laid out the details, giving him a path and plan that was easy for him to understand.
But Simone…she was an enigma. His enigma. Perfect in every imaginable way.
“So, ah, Ben’s here.” He stepped closer, snaking an arm around her waist as he ate his popsicle. “And last week, he bought a new grill for the back patio. Maybe we should let him handle dinner while you and I rearrange the furniture in our bedroom.”
“That grill is enormous.” She placed her hands on his chest. “And yes, I want some alone time with you, too, but Benjamin cannot grill. I don’t know if he’s ever even turned a grill on.”
“I bought hamburgers.” Devon gave the popsicle a long lick, hoping the move would seduce her. “He can’t mess up hamburgers.”
“Oh, yes he can.” Simone pressed her lips together as she fought a smile. “He’ll set the whole house on fire.”
Squeezing her butt, he grinned when she giggled, but the sound was drowned out by the chorus ofewwsandyuckscoming from the side porch.
“Daddy, don’t grab Mama’s booty!” Hands on her hips, Annabeth shook her head at them. “That’s dirty business.”
Holding Annabeth’s popsicle and her own, CeCe rocked vigorously in a side porch rocking chair. “Mama SiSi, you should spank him.”
“Yeah, you should totally spank me,” Devon whispered, finishing off the popsicle in one go. “And then I’ll return the favor.”
His beautiful wife rolled her eyes and elbowed him as if offended. He snatched her close, popping the ice to his lips to run it down the columnof her neck. Simone shrieked, the girls gagged, and Devon realized that maybe enjoying this hot summer day wasn’t so bad.
“No!” Livy’s cry of denial echoed out of the forest, and two seconds later, Samuel appeared. The kid was hauling ass, long legs and arms pumping hard as he ran across the yard.
“Patio is base!” Samuel screamed, his foggy glasses half hanging off his face. “Victory is mine!”
Genetics dictated early on that Samuel would be tall like Ben. Once they were grown, he and Selah would be well over six feet, but Samuel would take top billing in the height department.
Livy shot out of the forest next, too far behind to have a chance of winning. “Someone stop him!”
Reaching the patio seconds later, Samuel collapsed. “I win,” he panted up at the sky. Turning his head, he caught sight of Ben coming over. “Oh, hey. I won.”
“I see that.” Taking Jamison from Laura Jean and settling her on his hip, Ben arched an eyebrow at his son. “Don’t you think it’s a little hot to be running?”
Samuel lifted a finger in the air. “I had a point to make.”
Livy gave up, taking her time as she walked over. “I need a popsicle.”
“I got you one,” Evie announced, striding out from the rear kitchen door. The screen slapped shut behind her with a satisfying pop. Crossing the patio, she stepped over Samuel like he was roadkill and casually dropped a popsicle onto his stomach. “And you. It’s blue.”
“I knew you loved me.” Still on the ground, Samuel stripped the paper off the popsicle. “It was only a matter of time.”
Evie turned to kill him with a death stare, but saw Ben standing with her mother, and she instantly turned on the charm. “Ben! You’re home!”
“Hey, kid.” Ben let out anoofwhen Evie tackled him with a hug. “I missed you, too.”
“Are we grilling tonight?” Devon called over to Ben. “We can make you the chef.”
Ben hesitated. “Um… Sure?”
For a man who ran a corporate empire, it always cracked Devon up how out of sorts Ben became with domesticated things.
“I ain’t eating Ben’s cooking.” Ty rounded the corner from the opposite side of the patio. Dressed in his gardening overalls, he wascovered in sweat and dirt. “I’ve worked hard today and don’t want burnt meat as my reward.”
