Page 172 of Cruelest Contract
As for me, I don’t leave the ranch too often anymore. The heart of our family is right here so it makes sense to run the family from here, with my wife and children nearby. They will forever come first.
Fort and Getty walk a few paces ahead but I gently tug on the reins with a “Whoa” command to bring Omerta to a pause. I just want to take in the sight of my family.
Cecilia is sitting on a picnic blanket spread out in the flat grassy field in front of the barn. A shade umbrella is unfurled overhead. Her legs are tucked underneath her and she’s a vision in a pale pink dress with her hair loose. She doesn’t see mebecause she’s looking down at our boys. The sound of her laughter carries across the field and speaks directly to my heart.
Nearby, Tye is sprawled in the grass with his sunglasses on. He stayed behind to keep Cecilia company. Of my three brothers, Tye is enjoying his role as uncle the most. It’s not uncommon to run into him in the middle of the night when we’re trying to get the twins back to sleep. If one of the babies wakes up, usually both of them wake up. But no matter the hour, their doting Uncle Tye never fails to come running when he hears their cries.
Any other time, I would take Omerta back to his stall myself. But today when Caleb jogs over and asks if I need a hand, I climb down and hand the reins over.
“We’ll ride again soon,” I promise the horse and tell Caleb to make sure he gets a treat.
Cecilia is watching me now. As always, when our eyes lock, an electric current races through my blood. The day she chose me was the day my destiny began.
Quickly erasing the distance between us, I drop to my knees at the edge of the blanket, remove my hat, and lean over to kiss my wife’s cheek. At the last second, she turns her head and our lips meet. My deep groan of desire is suppressed. She’s still healing from her C-section and exhausted from breastfeeding two infants so I’ll keep my sex-deprived thoughts to myself for a little while longer.
She’s not fooled and breaks away with a knowing smile. “Looking good out there, cowboy.”
I tuck a strand of hair behind her ear because I’ll snatch any excuse to touch her. “Nothing beats this view right here.”
I still have the power to make my wife blush. I consider this my timeless obligation.
Our sons are wide awake and dressed in little baby overalls that were sent by Alice. She already claimed the role of FavoriteAunt and often insists on speaking to the twins directly via phone, declaring that they need to get used to the sound of her voice.
Alice will be moving to Vigilance this summer. She’s already secured a teaching job at the middle school. I have no problem with this or with anything else that makes Cecilia happy. In fact, unbeknownst to even my wife, I nudged the school board to hire her best friend.
The babies, lying side by side, are always very aware of each other. They cry whenever separated for more than a couple of minutes.
Devoted brothers already, they are Antonio and Massimo Tempesta.
Heavy names for such little guys.
We call them Tony and Max. My initial fear that I’d fail to tell them apart was unfounded. Watching their distinctive personalities assert themselves by the day is hilarious.
Tony has an easygoing nature. He already laughs a lot. Max is tougher to please. His mouth turns down whenever he’s irked that his world hasn’t been arranged correctly. Then his little arms wave in the air, irate about the injustice of it all.
Needless to say, their mother and I adore them both.
Grabbing a giraffe rattle that’s lying nearby on the picnic blanket, I shake the thing right above their heads. Tony studies the toy with a thoughtful look on his cute little face. Max, however, tries to kick it out of my hand and then his face crumples when he doesn’t immediately succeed. I lower the rattle and until one of his flailing arms knocks it free.
“Good job, buddy,” I tell my son and he gives me a gummy grin.
Tye rolls to his side and props himself up on his elbow, watching us. “Are we going out tonight to celebrate our birthday girl?”
“Out?” Cecilia laughs. “What’s that?”
“And what do you meanourgirl?” I possessively pull my wife into my lap.
Cecilia slings her arms around my neck. “Mel says Enzo is making a special birthday dinner tonight with all my favorites. And these two gentlemen hanging out on the blanket can’t be without their primary food source for long.” She turns her face to whisper in my ear. “Then we can celebrate in private after we get the kids to sleep.”
FUCK YES!
“You guys go ahead,” I tell Tye, keeping Cecilia in my lap while I try not to pant over the prospect of getting naked with her later. “Just promise you’ll behave yourselves.”
“No worries.” Tye gives me a lazy grin. “I’m a great chaperone.”
The hell he is. But I’m in no mood to argue when I’m holding my wife and the sun is shining.
I’ve approached Cecilia’s birthday with caution, unsure if she’d want to celebrate at all. I figured it might hurt too much and dredge up too many memories of Gabriel.
