the time we had left or about how buying my own sandwich that day might be the best decision I’d ever made too.
Chapter 17
11:11 p.m
I can’t believe you’re this much
of an asshole.
All I need is to talk to you for
two minutes.
That’s it.
It’s important.
11:13 p.m.
It’s really fucking important
I was so tired the next morning that I could barely keep my eyes open as I headed down the stairs holding a wide-awake Mo in one arm. I’d jinxed her the night before and ended up waking up twice to her little kitten cries, once because she’d pooped—super soft poop that reminded me of what she’d done to Jonah, which had made me laugh despite being exhausted—and the other because she’d been hungry after crapping out everything she’d eaten and wanted more calories right the fuck then. I had ended up telling myself I’d nap after the second time she’d woken me up, and that “nap” had ended up being a three-hour mini coma, and my back, shoulders, and hips were hating me for putting them through that.
At least the little booger had let me sleep in until nine, but even then, it wasn’t the same.
“You’re lucky you’re a cute little monster,” I told her with a side-eye.
Mo rattled off some animated babble that had me raising my eyebrows at her.
“I didn’t give you a sloppy butt; don’t blame me,” I replied to her, giving her a smile.
“What do you think about going to the park later and giving the swing a try? Maybe we can ask Grandpa to go with us and talk him into getting on one, and we can push him so hard he falls off,” I told her, taking another two steps down the staircase.
Mo just kept on grinning, pulling my hair hard enough to make me wince.
I snuck a quick kiss to her neck that had her squealing and pulling on my roots some more. “You’re right, that’s probably not the best idea. Then we’d have to listen to him whine, and nobody likes that, huh?”
I swore she lifted her chin so I could give her another kiss to the neck, so I did it again, getting another squeal and hair tug, as my feet took another two steps down, finally hitting the bottom of the landing just as I heard a female voice coming from inside the door that led into the kitchen. And that was a split second before a voice said, “Aren’t you two a sight?”
I stopped, instantly looking up to find Jonah standing there in the hallway in black sweatpants that shouldn’t have been fitted but were because he was just that muscular, a clean and crisp long-sleeved white T-shirt with a logo over the chest, and white quarter-length socks, looking totally and completely awake and with a smile on his face, like he didn’t know what being tired was like.
God, I missed those days when I had no problem sleeping nine to ten hours a night because I had to. Because of judo and because sleep was so important for your body to reenergize and heal, and I had needed every advantage I could take because the sport was so hard on everything. I could remember the times I’d groaned at Grandpa Gus when he’d ordered me to head upstairs even though it had felt too early.
It’s the little things you take for granted. Like sleep. And bladder control.
I gave him a sleepy smile. “Beauty and the Beast,” I yawned. “Mo’s the beauty in case you’re wondering. She woke me up twice in the middle of the night.”
The pleased expression on that handsome face fell away, replaced with a concerned one. “Is she all good?”
“Yeah. Her poop was pretty loose, and she took her time going back to sleep. Then she woke up hangry and took her sweet-ass time going back to sleep that time too. Look, she wants you.” Because she did. Mo had already started leaning forward, even her little arms going up in a reaching gesture for him. “What a bandwagoner.”
His worried face didn’t go anywhere, but his hands did, coming up and toward the daughter who was straining even more to get out of my hold and into his. Little traitor. Once he had her and had placed a kiss on each of her cheeks, he glanced back at me and asked, “Are you all right?”
I blinked, eyeing his clothes—and him—again. “Yeah. Just tired and my back and hips hurt from sleeping on the floor in her room. It’ll