Page 56 of Collateral Damage

Chapter Twenty-Four – Tank

What the fuck just happened? I stare at the kitchen floor while Jess finishes up giving Tatum a bath. It looks like the middle of a war zone, not our kitchen. Jess and I have both spent countless hours with Jensen and Skyla, so we’ve seen their usual routine. We’ve been to their house for dinner so often that I was confident tonight would go a lot smoother than it had, but I do not know what the fuck hit me.

I chuckle softly as I take in the mess. There’s mashed-up baby food all over the place. Tatum’s spoon served more like a slingshot than an eating utensil. I’d seen that kid eat with a spoon before. It was child’s play for her. But when she caught her spoon on her gums and accidentally shot a spoonful of food all over Jess’s hair, I’d made the mistake of laughing. After that, it had all been a game to Tatum, and she torpedoed more food at us than she got into her belly. I watched her in the bath while Jess had taken a shower to clean up, and then Jess had taken over while I tackled the kitchen.

I grab a roll of kitchen towel and go to work scooping up most of the food on the highchair tray and floor before I get the mop.

“What a beautiful sight.” Jess’s teasing voice greets me from where she leans against the kitchen door, watching me. Her wet hair is tied up in a messy bun.

“Where’s Tatum?” Fuck knows what that little missile could get up to unattended. Before dinner, she got into my vinyl collection and spread them all over the floor. Thankfully, they hadn’t come out of their jackets. And when she was done annihilating the living room, she hit the Tupperware cupboard like she was looking for stolen goods in a raid.

Jess laughs. “Oh my God, you should see the panic on your face right now.”

“Did you see what she did to our home in a couple of hours? With us less than four feet away? Can you imagine what she could do if she was left unattended?” The thing is, though, although she ran us ragged, it was an awesome night. I can see why Skyla and Jensen get that look they do on their faces every time they look at their daughter.

“You don’t need to worry. She’s sound asleep.”

“Yeah? That was quick.”

“I think she exhausted herself destroying the place.”

“I think you’re right.” I lean the mop on the counter and make my way over to Jess. Cupping her face, I dip my head and languidly capture her lips. She trails kisses from my mouth to my neck, nipping lightly at my ear. “She’s adorable.”

“Hm? Who is?”

Jess giggles. “Tatum, of course.” Her hands trail over my body.

“She is all types of cute, yes.”

She kisses down my neck again. “How many do you want?”

“How many what?” Jesus, I’m having a hard time keeping up with this conversation with her hands and mouth distracting me in delectable ways.

She traces the edge of my shirt with her nails, and my abs twitch. “Children.”

My whole body stiffens. Not this. Not now. “You really wanna talk about kids now? As in right now?”

Jess’s hands stop moving, and she looks into my eyes. “Why not? We have to talk about it sometime, right? So how many? Just don’t tell me you expect me to punch out half a football team.”

I feel the shutters come down and see the exact moment when Jess feels it too. “It’s a big number, right? You want four kids.” She’s making light of this. Trying to ease the suffocating tension.

Fuck! I wanted more time. A nice dinner where we could both have a conversation about this. In all honesty, this conversation should have happened before I proposed, but I didn’t feel as strongly about my stance on kids until I came back from Turkey.

“What? Why are you looking so serious?” Jess tries to smile, but I can see it’s forced.

“We need to talk.”

Her hands go around her middle. “Why do I get the feeling I’m not going to like this conversation?”

“Let’s go sit.”

“Chris. What’s going on?”

“Jess, this isn’t the conversation one has in the middle of the kitchen.”

“Just tell me what’s going on, please?”

I head to the fridge. I’m gonna need a drink for this. “Want something?”

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