Finally (Neighbor from Hell #12) - R.L. Mathewson Page 0,72

it work. They were usually able to get a sitter at least once a week and when they couldn’t, they turned it into a family date night. They ended their nights together, making love late into the night until it was time for him to leave.

He hated that part.

Just once, he wanted to know what it was like to wake up with her in his arms, but that wasn’t a choice. At least, not yet. While he was ready to spend the rest of his life with Charlie, she…wasn’t. They’d been dating for a little over four months now and she still hadn’t told him that she loved him yet.

He didn’t want to rush her, but god, it was fucking killing him. She told his children at least a hundred times a day that she loved them. She’d also told her best friend, the bunny, the kitten, the dog, and on a few occasions, a fucking jelly donut, but she’d never said it to him. He knew that she cared about him, but he wanted more.

He wanted Charlie.

“Daddy, I have to go to the bathroom,” Dustin said, reminding him that they needed to move their asses if they had any hope of getting to school on time.

“Sorry, buddy,” Devin said as he helped his son off the counter.

“Thanks, Daddy!” Dustin said, carefully stepping over a puddle of batter before quickly making his way to the kitchen door.

“We’ll be up in a minute,” Devin said, trying to figure out how he was going to get a six-year-old and a hundred-and-fifteen-pound dog covered in batter upstairs without making a mess.

Maybe he should try the sink, he thought, glancing at the sink in question. It worked for Charlie, he thought, only to frown as he watched his son who should be upstairs getting ready for school, carefully make his way back into the kitchen and head to the refrigerator where he helped himself to a stick of butter. Once he had what he needed, Dustin turned around and walked back out, leaving Devin to follow him, really fucking hoping that his son wasn’t going to do something to make this worse.

“Dustin, what are you doing, buddy?” Devin said, quickly making his way into the living room in time to see his son walk into Charlie’s apartment.

Shit!

Whenever Charlie was away, Dustin liked to go in Charlie’s apartment and watch television so that he could snuggle on her side of the bed. He missed Charlie. Not that Devin could blame him.

“Summer vacation is coming soon,” he heard his son explain as he walked into the apartment and-

“I know. I’m very excited about spending the summer with you,” Charlie said, smiling warmly as she handed Dustin a plate stacked with pancakes, home fries, and sausages, a Charlie special as the kids liked to call it, to Dustin who happily took it and placed it on the breakfast tray that Charlie bought for him.

“What are you doing here?” Devin asked, unable to take his eyes off her as he walked around the bed.

“Why wouldn’t I be here?” Charlie asked, blinking up at him as she speared a breakfast sausage on her fork.

“Because you’re supposed to be in Boston at a convention,” Devin said, sitting down on the bed so that he could kiss her.

“I am at the convention. They had to move a few things around because one of the presenters had a family emergency. So, I thought I’d get a few things done today,” she said when he forced himself to pull away as she held up the sausage for him to steal.

“It looks like you’re sitting in bed eating breakfast with my son,” he said as he stole the sausage off her plate, not bothering to point out that it was a three-hour drive back to Boston since he’d missed her.

“Well, I mean technically he’s my baby boy,” Charlie said with a pitying look that had him narrowing his eyes on her as he finished off her sausage.

“I really am,” the little traitor happily agreed around a forkful of pancake.

“And Abbi?” Devin asked, narrowing his eyes on the beautiful woman that enjoyed tormenting him.

“Is also mine,” Charlie said as she pointed towards the bathroom just as Abbi walked in with Bradford by her side. “Go take a shower. Your food’s waiting for you in the oven.”

Without a word, Abbi obediently walked into the bathroom as Bradford walked over to the bed to inspect their breakfast. “You, too,” Charlie said, tossing the dog a sausage. Tail