Chapter 14
FORD
Connor drops his bag by the door to the garage and starts to run in the direction of the den off the main living room that houses the game system. Today was the end of camp.
“Hey, cutie, how about we pick up the bag you left on the floor?” Brielle suggests with a sweet smile as she walks from the kitchen, drying her hands with a towel.
I was on pick-up duty, as I wanted to check a few things in my office, and Brielle stayed home to study in quiet.
Our son groans and mopes back on the trail he took until he picks up the backpack, then hangs it on the hook. “Happy now?”
“Very,” Brielle answers dryly.
Connor starts his trek, but I grab him by the back of his shirt. “Whoa there, cowboy, how about a hug for your mom?”
“Ugh, fine.” Connor walks to his mom and gives her a lazy hug.
“How about I get you a snack?” Brielle ignores his behavior and coddles him.
“I’m starving. Can I have popcorn?” he asks.
“Sure.”
Then he is off again.
I rub my face, reminding myself that he’s a kid who is entering an awkward age because these sure as hell are no longer the days of never leaving our sides because Mom and Dad are the best thing in the whole world.
Following Brielle back into the kitchen, she heads straight to the cupboard to collect a popcorn bag.
“He needs to unwind, but after that, it’s full-on family time whether he likes it or not.” I grab vitamin water from the fridge.
Brielle is busy pressing buttons on the microwave. “You’re right.” She turns and heads to the sink to clean a mug she must have used while I was away.
Walking straight to her, I stand behind her and allow my hand to sneak underneath her skirt to tease that soft stretch of skin on her inner thigh.
She gasps instantly. “What are you doing?” she mutters, and I can hear her smile.
“It’s impossible not to touch you when the opportunity arises.”
“Ford, our son is in the other room, and you better get used to behaving because we’re not sharing a bed the next few nights.”
I sigh at the reminder, but this morning we agreed that it was for the best. Connor is the priority, and we need to be tactful and slowly ease him into the change in his parents’ relationship status.
Ignoring the reality of our parameters, I let us have these few minutes while our son is nowhere in sight.
I slip my finger between her thighs, riding up but stopping short, but it doesn’t mean I don’t feel her heat near my finger.
I bet if I touched her pussy, she would be soaking, but I’m not that reckless.
My other hand grabs her hair with a little force to bring her neck to my mouth. “All I want to do is watch you touch yourself to show me how much you want me before I bend you over the kitchen counter and defile you until you scream,” I growl low against her throat.
“That’s quite a picture you paint,” she hisses.
“I’m not the teenage boy you lost your virginity to. I’m a man now who has had years to think of all the dirty things I want to do to you, before I kiss you gently because I love you.”
I pull her tight to me, only to feel her shudder as she melts against my body.
“Ford,” she hums.
“Why don’t we take these off?” I begin to tug on the string of her thong.
A scoffed sound escapes her mouth which now hangs open. “No way. You need to back up and find me a bowl for the popcorn.” She shimmies against me but rides my finger at the same time as the sound of corn kernels popping fills the room.
“I can get used to you standing in my kitchen.” I move my hand away from her middle and follow the curve of her ass that I gently spank before stepping back. “A bowl you said?” I casually inquire, as if nothing just happened.
Brielle grips the edge of the sink as she catches her breath. “Yeah, and some manners!” She twists her body and playfully swats me as I walk away.
Grabbing a ceramic bowl from the shelf, I proceed to open the microwave that beeped.
“Should we do homemade pizzas for dinner? That’s easy, right?” She seems to be focused again.
I wash my hands then pour the bag of corn into the bowl. “Sounds good. Tomorrow, we can just chill by the pool, or go on the boat, walk around town. I kind of feel like Pioneer Park is no longer on the list of options.”
Our son rejoins the room and is quick to inform us, “No way. I’m way too old for that shit.”
“Whoa, language.” I’m not impressed and hold the bowl up in the air so he can’t reach it. “Maybe we keep that word out of our vocabulary.”
“Why? Other kids and Aunt Violet say it all the time.” He attempts to reach for the popcorn.
“You are not other kids, and Aunt Violet is in her twenties, trying to figure out her life, and she still considers ice cream its own food group, so she’s not exactly the pillar of goals.”
I notice Brielle drop her face into her palm. “How about we try a clean slate from your arrival at home.”
Connor sits on a stool and slouches against the counter. “Sure, but it’s Dad’s home, not yours.”
Brielle’s jaw clenches, and I can tell she is frustrated with the attitude.
I carelessly drop the bowl of popcorn onto the counter, ready to correct him. “It’s family week. My home is your home, it’s your mother’s home, it’s our home. Clear? Got it? Great.”
His hand claws the snack. “Fine. Is this all because I told my teacher that you two act strange sometimes?”
Brielle steps closer to the counter. “It’s because we should do more things as a family. We don’t always need to keep everything to your time with Dad or your time with me.”
“I get it. You want to do things together outside of special occasions.”
“Bingo.” Brielle taps her finger into the air.
Our son now has a mouth full of popcorn. “What’s for dinner? I’m starving.”
“You’re eating right now.” Brielle looks on in astonishment.
“I know, but I’ve worked up an appetite. I built muscle the last two weeks.” He proudly flexes his arm.
Brielle and I look at one another and smile. “You’re a growing boy.”
“A little man,” I add.
He chomps on more popcorn. “Exactly.”
“I guess I will get to work on pizza then.” Brielle walks to the fridge, and I continue to lean against the counter, staring at Connor who is oblivious that he has it so lucky; everything we do is for him.
Apparently, food is the key to Connor’s growing attitude. His mood pepped up after a second slice of pizza. Brielle made everyone their own, which is perfect since we all have different tastes. We’re sitting outside on the patio around the pool relaxing and being together, just the three of us.
For the most part, we’ve always had a reason to be together for dinners. A birthday, a school recital, or a post-game dinner. We never did this just because… and it feels too right.
“The dog is here,” Connor points out.
We all skim our gaze in his line of sight and see April and Spencer’s beagle, Pickles, padding along into our yard. It happens occasionally. He is harmless and old, except when he sees Spencer or a squirrel, then suddenly, he has puppy energy.
“Ah, we will need to take him back. Most of the time, April doesn’t realize he wandered off. I’m pretty certain a raccoon or something will get to him one of these days.”
“Ford,” Brielle scolds me.
I roll my shoulder back before picking up my beer bottle. “What? It’s true. This is Lake Spark.”
“Can I have a dog?” Connor asks before taking a bite of his food.
“Since when do you want a dog?” Brielle grabs the salad bowl.
“I’m a kid, shouldn’t I have a phase of wanting a dog?”
I chuckle at his reply. “You’re a kid now? A few hours ago, you made it clear you’re no longer a kid.”
“Stop with the psychology,” my son retorts.
“A dog is a lot of responsibility,” Brielle notes as she watches Pickles walk to me for a pat on his head.
“True, and soon I will have hockey practice like all of the time,” he explains.
I rub my chin, as I can only imagine Connor in a few years playing high school hockey. There is a prep school nearby with a great team.
“How about you take Pickles back after dinner? That’s the closest you can get to having a dog,” Brielle suggests.
“No way. Hadley is there, and she looks at me all funny.”
I grin to myself. “Hadley is younger than you, probably with a little crush, and I’m not sure she’s there since Spencer has an away game this week, so April was going to take her to watch.”
“Exactly, it’s yuck that she has a crush on me.”
Brielle reaches to her side to touch Connor’s arm with affection. “It’s not yuck. It just means you are a handsome guy. And get used to it, because as you get older, then, well, I hate to tell ya, but the girls will be lining up.”
“Can we end this conversation? Next thing I know, you will be giving me the baby talk and how it has to happen later in life. Aunt Violet says you two are the exception and made me early, and you won’t let me forget it so I won’t become a dad in a few years.”
Brielle gives me wide eyes, with a look that is half-worried and half-entertained.
“Your Aunt Violet, to my surprise, makes a solid point.” Huh, my sister kind of nailed it. I tip my beer back for a sip.
“Tomorrow, can we just hang by the pool?” Connor drops his pizza on the plate.
Brielle nods. “Sounds good. I can study.”
“That big test,” he volleys.
“Exactly,” she says. “I have a really big test to take. Two days of tests, which is why you might spend a little extra time with your dad this summer,” Brielle explains.
I notice Pickles is resting at my feet. Hopefully, he doesn’t get too comfortable. “We’ll hold down the fort, and when your mom finishes her test, then we can celebrate.”
“Does that mean we are going to the jewelry store?” Connor innocently asks, but Brielle chokes on her drink.
She attempts to clear her throat. “Why do you say that?” Her voice is strained.
Our son looks at her. “Because that’s what we always do when it’s a special occasion. Geez, Mom, you know nobody at this table believes in Santa, so who do you think helped me pick out your Christmas necklace?”