fight.”
“I know you will, baby, and that’s merely one of the reasons you’re an excellent father,” she said with a sigh.
He loved these moments when he could sit here and be with her, breathe this woman in. “I’m only a father because you wanted kids.”
She snorted, a sound he still found magical. “Sure, because you weren’t a caretaker before. You didn’t change the course of your life and form a whole company to give your family and friends a place to be, a job to do. You’ve been a father since you were a kid. It’s who you are deep inside, and this will be no different.”
He let his hand start to drift up to her breast because she was getting way too serious for him. “Oh, it’ll be different. Tash will probably be easier to deal with than Liam was after he got blown up and had to go on the run. Whiny Irishman.”
She rolled her eyes. “You are a great dad, and if you honka honka me right now you’re going to ruin this shirt because my milk came in and there’s a ton of it, buddy.”
But he liked a good honka honka. “See, kids ruin everything.”
“Dad, Kala’s been listening in, and she says we’re getting a new sister to make up for the fact that Mom keeps having boys. Is she right?” Monster Number Two stood in front of him, her strawberry blonde hair in pigtails and the dog by her side.
He was going to have to do something about Monster Number One’s need to listen in on everything. “Kala!”
“I didn’t do it!”
He could hear small feet running across the hardwoods.
Charlie sighed and kissed his cheek. “Well, we should talk about this as a family then.”
There was another crashing sound. “Okay, I did do that. Mom, a bunch of books fell but they didn’t hit anything except the printer.”
They’d just bought that printer.
“She’s got to be easier than those two,” Charlie whispered.
The baby monitor lit up as a keening cry was heard. Travis was awake.
“You know you would be an even better dad if you could breastfeed,” she said as she got up.
“Ewww, that would be gross. Dad’s got hair there and stuff.” Kenzie was still looking at them. “What’s our sister’s name? Does she like My Little Pony?”
He stood. “You go feed our boy, and I’ll handle the monsters. Come on, Kenz. Let’s find your sister and we’ll talk.”
He’d found talking was an important dad skill.
And so was patience.
* * * *
Paris, France
Three weeks later
It was surreal being here. The Velvet Collar. Where his real life had begun. He’d looked across that crowded dungeon and fate had come for him.
“You’re thinking about her.”
Unfortunately, his baby wasn’t the one here with him. His sister-in-law was. Charlie was home with the new baby while their toddler was with his brother and sister-in-law. He’d made the trip to Paris to pick up Tasha in a private jet he’d borrowed from another of his sister-in-laws. He had four brothers, and they’d all married well. Erin could take out a man with one shot. Grace could organize the world and keep it running smooth as silk. Mia had billions of dollars and a jet. She was really his favorite.
And Chelsea. Charlie’s sister had been the reason she’d walked away from him the first time, but now they were solid. Oh, she still called him Satan from time to time, but they were good, he and Chelsea.
“I can’t walk into this place and not think about her,” Ian said. He was oddly emotional about being in The Velvet Collar again. Of course he’d also had some business to deal with. He and Chelsea had updated Ezra and Solo on what had happened since she’d been arrested by Levi Green and Ezra had rushed in and saved his ex-wife.
Now they were hiding here, and Ian was preparing to move them to Italy in a few days. “Tell me you can walk into The Garden and not think of Simon.”
Chelsea tilted her head up, and the grin on her face proved how much she’d changed since she’d gotten married. “Not even once. It was the first place we played. And now I don’t even mind the Chelsea in Chelsea jokes. Though it would have been easier on me if Damon had settled down in some other part of London.” She sobered as they walked back out into the lobby. “Are you ready for this?”
“We’ve been working with a family therapist, someone Kai recommended. We’ve