Page 80 of Don't Call Me Daddy
“If anything, I went easy on you last night.”
I take a gulp of my coffee, not caring as it burns all the way down my throat. Is he being serious right now? Is this real life?
I go in for another gulp, but Leo’s hand moves over the top of my cup.
“Slow down. I don’t need you burning that pretty mouth before I have time to enjoy it.”
And I think my panties might have just incinerated.
Leo smiles, wiping a drip of coffee from my chin with his thumb. “You’re so fucking adorable when you wake up. You have no idea how hard it is to not crawl into that sleeping bag with you and forget about my entire family right now.”
My mouth falls open as I stare at him.
Who is this, and what have they done with my self-righteous curmudgeon? Did I finally manage to break the emotionless robot? I can’t help but feel the tiniest bit of pride at the thought. I knew I could break him … eventually.
So, I guess the real question is, what the hell happens now?
Before I have time to spiral over that thought, he pushes my open jaw shut and laughs. “Why don’t you get dressed? My dad’s making breakfast, and I’ve got to help rouse my hungover brothers. I’ve got a surprise planned for us after breakfast.”
He tugs the end of my hair, and then he’s gone, leaving me equally surprised and confused in the best way possible.
Holy shit. I think I’m going to need more coffee.
“There she is,” Frank calls at the same time Mary asks, “How did you sleep?”
I take a seat on the log bench beside Leo, and he wraps an arm around me, sliding me closer to him.
Leo is looking wholly unbothered and, dare I say, comfortable. “Like a baby. I could get used to being out here.”
“Well, I’m happy to hear it. By the sound of it, you all had quite the eventful evening. I hope the boys aren’t hurting too badly this morning after finishing off that entire bottle of whiskey.” Frank laughs as he pulls the skillet from the hot rocks in the fire, and Leo jumps up to clear a space for him.
As if on cue, Roman and Luka climb out of their tents with a groan, wiping their sleepy eyes with their fists.
“Good morning, family,” Roman says as he pours himself a cup of coffee and takes a seat by the fire.
“Why does bacon have to smell so bacony?” Luka grumbles, pulling the hood of his sweatshirt over his head.
“Ah, there they are, the party animals who kept us up well into the night. How’re you feeling, Luka? Regret any of your choices last night?” Mary gives them each a pat on the head before passing Luka a bottle of water.
“I feel perfectly fine. Slept like a baby on a tiny boat in the ocean,” Roman says. He nudges Luka with his elbow. “Some of us know how to hold our liquor while others are still learning.”
Luka grunts, pressing his fingers to his temples. “Stop yelling, would you? My head is pounding, and your voice is making me nauseous.”
“Here, eat this and stop whining.” Leo tosses Luka half a sleeve of graham crackers, to which Luka doesn’t even try to catch. Instead, the crackers smack him in the head and land at his feet.
“Thanks.” He reluctantly takes a bite, looking absolutely miserable.
“I guess you and your brothers will think twice before getting piss drunk again.”
“Oh, come on now, Frank. Let them enjoy their youth while they can. I’m glad everyone seemed to have had a good time. I just wish Jett had wanted to join us. I miss having all my people together like this. Now that we have more reasons to celebrate, maybe we can do things like this more often.” Mary’s smile beams as she looks around the campsite like she wouldn’t rather be anywhere else.
My stomach twists at the thought of disappointing her, but the guilt is soon forgotten when Leo places a plate in my lap.
“And for my beautiful bride-to-be, eggs and bacon, cooked just how you like them.”
I look down and smile when I see he used the yellow scrambled eggs to form a circle in the middle of the plate and added two blueberries and a piece of bacon to form a smiley face.
“Hey, why didn’t you make mine cute? You know I love that shit,” Roman says as he takes his plate and plops down on the log beside us. “Just because you got laid in the tent last night doesn’t mean you shouldn’t share the wealth.”
