Page 22 of Worthy Now
The absolute highlight of my day, however, was when Nathan unintentionally disclosed more about his parent’s kinky sex life than I ever wanted to know. The conversation between him and his godfather went something like this:
Nathan: “Uncle Jake? Are you and Auntie Teresa dating?”
Jake: “Well, we were on a date last night, so I guess you could call it that.”
Nathan: “Okay. So, let’s say Auntie Teresa is your girlfriend. Would you ever spank her butt if she did something wrong?”
Jake, after choking on his cookie: “Where’s this coming from, bud?”
Nathan: “Well, the other night I woke up dreaming about that scary movie I wasn’t supposed to watch, and I wanted to crawl into Mommy and Daddy’s bed like I always do. But when I got to the door, I heard Daddy tell Mommy she’d been a naughty girl. Then there was a loud smack, and Mommy yelped, and I got even more scared, you know? Obviously, Daddy was real mad and Mommy was in trouble. So, I decided it was probably safer in my own bed after all.”
Nathan, looking pensive: “It just had me wondering. I mean, Mommy must’ve done something real bad because we’re naughty all the time, but he’s never spanked our butts.”
Jake: “Christ almighty.”
I giggle, thinking about the exchange, as I give the salad dressing a final stir. Watching Jake sputter and flail to come up with an appropriate response was hilarious, but I can’t deny that he handled the situation beautifully. I’d almost forgotten how good he is with kids. Seeing as he pretty much raised his own siblings, it really shouldn’t have come as a surprise.
Throughout the entire day, Jake remained patient and kind, and he genuinely seemed to enjoy his time with the little ones. I alwaysknew he’d make a wonderful father someday, but watching him interact with them now, all grown up and ready to be a parent himself, makes my chest ache with longing. Suddenly, I can easily picture myself, belly rounded with his child, and I want nothing more than to watch him chase our own kids around the yard.
I’ve always wanted children. A house full of them, seeing as I’ve never enjoyed being an only child myself. I’d just never found someone I could picture that life with during my time away. When I thought about a family, I saw a little boy with an unruly mass of dark curls and a little girl with ocean eyes framed by thick lashes.
My heart has always known it would be Jake. It just took the rest of me a little longer to catch up. I laugh when his loud whoops and hollers pour through the door opening as he cheers on the older two while they run through the sprinklers, shrieking like banshees. It’s obvious by their bond that Jake has played a huge part in their upbringing, and any remaining resentment I may have held toward Megan for having taken his side at the saloon vanishes. How can I hold on to my anger when Jake being such a vital part of her family is all but slapping me in the face? I, on the other hand, have been MIA for close to a decade, only calling sporadically and never visiting long enough to be of any real help.
I have no one but myself to blame for our estrangement, and I make a silent promise to myself to make more of an effort to be abetter friend. I’m snapped out of my musings when the front door opens and Carter steps inside, helping his wife navigate through the doorway on crutches.
“Oh my God, Megan. Are you okay?” I cry out, abandoning my task and rushing toward my injured friend. Megan waves a hand, dismissing my concern before she offers me a sheepish smile.
“Please don’t fuss. I’m already embarrassed enough. I swear, I’m such a klutz sometimes, and it looks a lot worse than it is. I wasn’t paying attention and tripped on the stairs. Luckily, I caught myself but missed the bottom step and twisted my ankle. Hurt like a son of a bitch, but it’s just a bad sprain. No biggie.”
“Yeah, no biggie for you,” Carter grumbles, pushing past me to snatch a crouton from the bowl. Popping it into his mouth, he says, “I’m the one who has to cater to your every need until you’re back on your feet, and I just know you’ll milk the shit out of this. I kid you not, she was checking out call bells online on our way over.”
Megan lifts a shoulder. “How else am I going to get your attention?” she asks, throwing me a wink before she slowly hobbles toward the open patio doors. “Where are my babies, and how much crap did he feed them?”
As if summoned by her words, Jake slips inside, making a beeline for Carter. Ariana hangs from his outstretched arms, pumping herchubby legs at the sight of her father, whose exuberant expression falls the second she comes within sniffing distance.
“I know,” Jake says, scrunching up his nose like this is the vilest thing he’s ever smelled. “Your little lady has been farting up a storm all day. I don’t know what you’re feeding this kid, but this is the third time she’s filled her diaper, and honestly, the first two times were two too many.”
Jake thrusts the baby forward, and Carter rears back, eyes flaring at the intense odor wafting off of such an adorable package before he gives a resigned sigh.
“And for the record,” Jake adds, grabbing a bottle of water from the fridge before he turns to Megan. “Everything I fed your children was one hundred percent organic and nutritious,” he announces, obviously proud of himself. “Which started right after our ice cream breakfast.” Megan releases a frustrated groan. “Hey,” he snaps, narrowing his eyes at my friend. “It’s not like you guys gave me much time to prepare, bringing them around at the butt crack of dawn. My fridge was a literal wasteland.”
“I can attest to that,” I chime in, and Megan gives a mumbled, “Whatever,” before she resumes her awkward hobble to the backyard.
“You’re welcome, by the way,” Jake calls after her. “Glad to see your unfortunate accident hasn’t impacted your delightful personality at all.”
Megan ignores him completely, choosing to greet her children instead, who squeal with excitement upon spotting their mother and begin checking out her crutches. Shaking his head, Jake wraps his arms around my middle and presses his hard body against my back. He takes his time nibbling the side of my throat before sucking my earlobe into the heat of his mouth.
“If you don’t want to end up taking me to the hospital to reattach my severed finger, you’d better stop that right now, Mister.”
“Yeah, Mister. Keep your hands to yourself. There are children present,” Carter teases as he re-enters the kitchen with a kicking Ariana.
“Whatever, Christian Grey,” Jake shoots back, and I can’t hold back the bark of laughter that rips itself from my throat.
“What’s that about?” Carter inquires when neither one of us cares to explain our juvenile behavior.
“Let’s just say,” Jake starts with a wide grin, grabbing his unfinished water bottle to take outside. “The next time you feel the need to spank your naughty wife, you better make damn sure your kids are fast asleep.” Carter’s eyes widen, and an honest-to-God blush spreads from the base of his throat all the way to his hairline. Jakeslaps his thigh, laughing heartily at his friend’s expense before he goes back to tend to the grill.
“What I’d like to know,” I say once he’s out of earshot, “is what exactly Megan did to deserve such a harsh punishment,Master Evans?”
