Page 159 of Counter Bet

“Anything for you.” Dallas winks.

“Mommy, come sit with me,” he says, pulling me along behind him while Ben puts on the movie and Dallas goes to get the popcorn.

Noah gets himself settled on my lap. I place a soft kiss on his forehead.

“I challenge you to a double dare,” Ben says, taking a seat next to us.

I roll my eyes.

Ben winks as Noah climbs on his lap instead. Phoebe wags her tail by my feet, demanding a fuss, so I scratch her behind her ear and make kissy noises, talking in my best baby voice. “Your daddy is so silly! Always challenging mommy. We don’t like it. Do we, sweetie? Bad daddy!”

Noah giggles next to me.

I smile at him. “What do you say, buddy. Should mommy listen to daddy?”

Noah nods, looking very serious.

I suck my lips between my teeth, suppressing a laugh, and then smile at Ben. “Let’s hear it then. What’s the bet?”

“Another dare? What’s it this time?” Dallas asks through a mouthful of popcorn when she joins us on the couch.

Ben, sitting sideways, his elbow on the back of the couch, rubs his lips. “I dare you not to cry during the movie.”

Dallas bursts out laughing and chokes on a kernel. “Ben, anything but that. Everything on tv makes her cry. Last night she cried to that cat food commercial, remember? She’s hormonal right now, so it’s an unfair advantage.”

I quirk an eyebrow, agreeing with everything Dallas just said.

He waves us off, smirking. “Okay. I promise to reward her thoroughly tonight if she can sit through this movie without a single tear.” He winks.

I groan. “That’s just cruel. You know there’s no way I won’t cry.”

He shrugs, looking far too pleased with himself. “Good incentive, though.”

Dallas chuckles, patting me on the shoulder.

“Mommy, you have to dare daddy back,” Noah grins.

I glare at Ben over Noah’s head. “Look at the influence you have on our son.”

He throws his hands up defensively, chuckling. “You heard the boy. What’s my dare?”

I give it some thought as I ruffle Noah’s hair. “If I manage to get through the movie without crying, then I dare you to take up couple’s yoga with Dallas.”

His eyes bug out.

Dallas is laughing next to me, clutching her midriff. “Why did I have to get pulled into this?” She gestures between us both. “Don’t involve me in your games.”

“Baby, we’re in this together, remember. Besides, I get a free pass over the next couple of months,” I say with a sugary smile that melts butter.

Amused, she scoffs. “You’ll try to get away with anything.”

She’s not wrong.

I flash a smile and turn my pearly whites on Ben. “What do you say, babe. Do we have a deal?”

He does a poor job of suppressing his smile as he leans in close to Noah and stage whispers, “Mommy is crazy.” He straightens back up and smirks. “It’s a deal. Let’s play some games.”

The End.

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