Page 34 of Bonus Daddy
As I watched, I couldn’t help but feel a little bit silly too.
“You have to dance,” Greta said, grabbing my arm.
Jess approached me, her swaying hips holding my attention. Despite the words “gummy bear” being repeated endlessly, all I could think about was gripping her there and digging my fingers into her soft flesh.
“Come on,” she said, pulling me from my stupor.
I had a lot of work to do, and I was not the kind to join in when Sloane did break out the karaoke machine. In fact, I typically volunteered to babysit the boys when the rest of our group wanted to head out to the Grasshopper on karaoke nights.
But with the look Jess was giving me? I’d have walked over hot coals if it meant seeing her smile.
So I loosened my tie, shed my jacket, and bopped around like the world’s biggest idiot while the song played.
“Play ‘It’s Raining Tacos’ next,” T.J. yelled.
Nodding, Kit slid a finger over the screen of the device, and soon, we were dancing to a new beat and my face hurt from smiling. I hadn’t felt this carefree and silly in I didn’t know how long. And it hit me then that I’d been missing this kind of joy in my life for decades.
Sully and Sloane continued to stare at each other like no one existed, and Cal was swinging and twirling Lo around like he’d had professional dance lessons. The kids were yelling and laughing, and I was sweaty and red-faced and having the time of my damn life.
“Ooh,” Jess said, plucking the iPad from Kit’s hands. “This one is for Brian and me.”
She set the device down, sauntered to me, and loosened my tie further, her face lit up in the brightest grin.
“Ready to dance?” she asked as the opening chords played.
It took half a second to recognize the song, and when I did, I’m certain my brows hit my hairline.
“You remembered,” I said softly as “Dance, Dance” by Fallout Boy played.
She pulled my tie off with a flourish. “’Course I did. You were such a cute punk nerd.” With her lip caught between her teeth, shespun and danced wildly. The girls joined in, yelling the lyrics. I guess she had remained a fan.
Soon T.J. was spinning around Sully, Sloane was swaying with Tia, and Cal and Lo were back to flirting as they danced. Lo’s giggles were loud enough to be heard over the music, and Murphy joined in too.
Lo had worked for me for almost a decade, and I could count on one hand the number of times she’d giggled before Cal had finally worn her down and wooed her.
“Come on,” Jess said, grabbing me by the arm and pulling me toward her.
Surrounded by kids, with my best friends in the world close and the only woman I’d ever loved in front of me, I wasn’t sure I’d ever been happier.
After one more song, Sloane turned the speaker off. “It’s bedtime,” she said.
She was met with a round of groans from Greta and the boys and quickly gave in to the pleas for one more song.
Smiling, Kit tapped the iPad screen and put on another Lake Paige song. Then she broke out into an elaborate dance.
When it had ended and the music was turned off for good, the entire crew collapsed in a sweaty heap, some lounging on the couch, others on the chairs, and the kids sprawled out on the floor.
As Cal and Sully wrangled the boys so they could get ready for bed, Greta approached me. “Mom brought pizza. Want some?”
“So what were we celebrating?” I asked Kit when she handed me a slice of cheese on a paper plate. Jess was busy cleaning up the kitchen and chatting with Lo.
“It’s dance party Wednesday.”
“Our mom loves to make traditions,” Greta said, popping up behind me with a full glass of water.
I took it from her with a nod of thanks and sipped from it so it’d be less likely to spill.
Kit sat on the couch. “Right after the divorce, things were rough. So Mom started doing all these silly things with us to cheer us up.”
