Bonus Kisses - Freya Barker Page 0,75
sour since Henry died…gosh, damn near thirty years ago. Never got over it, never moved on. There was a time that woman was happy and smiling all the time, but when her husband passed too young, it’s like a light went off.”
“I never knew her like that,” I admit.
“You were too young to remember.” He lifts my hand and kisses the back of it, before he continues in a gentle tone. “I know you haven’t had an easy time here. Not before you left, and not now, but I hope you stick it out, sweetheart. I understood why you wanted to leave, but I sure like having you back.”
“I missed you, Dad.” I’m getting all choked up. Talks like this are something else I’ve missed for too long.
“Me too, Baby Girl,” he responds in kind. “You don’t have to stop reaching for the sun, though. Grab on to your chance at happiness, Natasha.”
Chapter Twenty-Six
Rafe
I wake up with Taz’s scent up my nostrils.
Last night after her parents left and the kids were asleep, she’d been quiet. Halfway through an episode of Designated Survivor she announced she was tired and going to bed.
Earlier I’d watched her talking to her father through the kitchen window. She’d seemed emotional and I kept an eye out, but since it didn’t look like they were arguing, I didn’t want to interrupt.
The whole night had been uneasy. Sarah had seemed subdued to the point of uncommunicative, and Taz had been on eggshells, which is why I didn’t stop her when she went to bed. I finished watching the episode, took the dogs out for a pee before locking up for the night, and followed her upstairs.
“I know you’re awake,” she mumbles, her head on my chest. She’d curled into me the moment I slipped into bed with her.
“How long have you been up?” I stroke my hand up her back and under her nightshirt.
“A while.”
“How come?”
I can feel her shrug. “Trying to anticipate how they’re going to react when we tell them.”
“Your parents?”
“Hmmm. Mom’s going to blow. I’m not sure about Dad, though. He said something last night that made me wonder.”
“You looked like you were having an intense conversation.”
She lifts her head, her eyes meeting mine. “Not really intense; it was sweet. I haven’t had a talk like that with my father in forever. It felt good.”
“So those were happy tears I saw?”
She smiles, her eyes soft. “Yeah. He told me to grab hold of happiness. I’ve been wondering if he was talking about us. About you.”
I curl my fingers in her dreads and lift my head so I can reach her mouth for a brief kiss. “I wouldn’t put it past him,” I whisper against her lips. “I think your dad is more perceptive than he’s credited for.”
“But if that’s the case, why did he seem upset with me when I first got back?”
This time it’s my turn to shrug. “Don’t forget I was too. Misunderstandings tend to be persistent when you only get one side of the story.”
“I guess so,” she mumbles, dropping her head down to my chest, my hand resumes stroking her back.
“It’ll be okay.”
“You keep saying that.”
“Because it’s true. I’m not saying it’ll be easy, but we’ll get through. You wanna know how I know that?”
“How?”
“Love.”
Her head pops up again and her eyes search my face. “Yeah?”
“Absolutely. It’s what connects us all. Nicky, the children, your parents, and us; you and me.”
“Are you saying you love me?”
“I’m saying I love everyone, but I’m in love with you.”
Her eyes go soft and I feel the sudden need to be inside her. A little smile tugs at her lips when I roll her on her back, quickly shed my boxers, and wedge my hips in the cradle of hers.
“Make love to me, Rafe.”
“I always do.”
I feel her already wet when I pull aside the gusset of her panties and rub my cock along her crease. Our eyes stay locked when I slide deep inside her, her heat closing around me.
“For the record,” she whispers on a gasp. “I’m in love with you too.”
“Don’t hit your fingers.”
Spencer is wielding the small mallet like a tennis racket as he tries to hammer a tent peg down.
The kids are helping me set up the tent in the backyard to make sure the mice haven’t eaten any holes in the fabric. It’s been packed away for quite a few years. The sleeping bags are hanging on the laundry line to air out, and Taz is inside making