Chapter 17
17
CHERRY
Cherry stretched in sleepy contentment halfway sprawled across her husband and tucked under the rumpled covers. At some point, the sheet had come dislodged on one corner of the bed, and she didn’t even care in the slightest.
And she smiled sublimely as the memories of last night washed over her, replaying behind her closed eyes. The look in Evan’s eyes, the way his body moved, and muscles flexed – and she sighed happily, realizing there was no better sight in this world than her husband’s hands splayed across her body as he held her against him.
“I swear if you were a cat, that would have been a purr…” his husky voice mixed with sleep was everything.
“I’m going to need you to re-record the greeting for the house phone with that voice,” she chuckled in delight. “Or at least record something for me so I can play it over and over again.”
“Oh yeah?” he chuckled, rolling over and taking her with him. She looked up into his incredible eyes and saw the love lingering there as he gazed at her. “You just tell me what you want me to say – and I’ll do anything for you.”
“Tell me you love me…”
“I love you,” he whispered, his voice achingly soft and tender as he leaned forward, leaving a trail of feathery kisses down her nose and obviously heading toward her lips. “I love you more than all the…”
*knock, knock *
“Hey, Daddy,” Jeremy called out, rattling the doorknob in the distance. Both of them froze as they stared at each other in awareness that their idyll was over. Real life was here, and he was probably hungry. “Guess what? The doorknob is broken…”
“I wish,” Evan muttered, rolling his eyes, and Cherry chuckled easily as she saw his smile a moment later.
“Let’s get up.”
“Already there,” Evan whispered crassly, wagging his eyebrows at her as he buried his face against her neck a moment later, nibbling on her throat. She arched against him, loving this playful side of her husband, only to hear the doorknob rattle again.
“Hey, Daddy? Are you home?”
The concern in Jeremy’s voice caused both of them to freeze once more as Evan looked at her silently. She smiled, nodded, and caressed his cheek.
“Raincheck until tonight?” she breathed knowingly.
“You’ve got it.”
“Then answer him.”
“I love you so much, Cherry,” he said hoarsely before turning toward the door to answer Jeremy. “Hey, buddy. I’m here, but the door is locked because your mom and I were sleeping.”
“How are you talking if you are sleeping?”
Evan sagged and she laughed in delight, holding him close and hugging him before he propped his head on his arm, looking at her.
“Well, I was sleeping, but I woke up when you asked me if I was here.”
“Oh… what’s for breakfast?”
“Food.”
“Should I get something and let you sleep?”
“NOOO…”
Cherry and Evan both answered in unison, giving each other a horrified look. Both had learned their lessons apparently in the past, and her’s had been eye-opening. Jeremy had taken a spoon, sampled each container in the refrigerator with the door wide open, dropped an egg on the floor, and was in the middle of making a swirl of ketchup on a spoon when she caught him.
“Let’s go,” Evan urged.
“Already there,” she countered, hopping out of bed quickly, yanking on her robe and fastening it around her. Glancing back at Evan, he was yanking his pajama pants on quickly and nodded to her. Opening the door, she saw Jeremy peer into the room curiously.
“The knob wasn’t broken?”
“No. It was locked.”
“Why?”
“Because we were sleeping and wanted privacy.”
“Why?”
“Because I had a bellyache,” Evan answered from behind her, chuckling, and she felt him caress her hip through her robe in a possessive manner. “But I feel much better. Sure hope that bellyache doesn’t come back. That would be terrible…” he said dramatically and winked at her.
“A tragedy for sure,” she smiled as he kissed the tip of her nose.
“Y’all are weird,” Jeremy shrugged, walking off. “I was thinking maybe we could have pancakes.”
“I can make some pancakes for you.”
“How about we say ‘Please’ to your mom?” Evan prompted, and she couldn’t help but smile. It was like they were really becoming a true family with all the quirks and quips that she had once wished would happen in her own home growing up.
This is what it should have been like – and this was how it would be from here on. This was her ‘castle’ in her own private ‘fairytale.’ Evan was her ‘king’, and Jeremy was her beloved little ‘prince’ that she would be miserable without. No, things would be very different in her world. This was a ‘kingdom’ full of the sweetest stolen moments, avid happiness, and overwhelming love that they would foster and grow - together.
“Want to help me make the batter, Jeremy?”
“Oh, I’ll make your batter,” Evan murmured, pulling her into his arms, causing her to laugh in delight as he nuzzled her throat again, tickling her with his slight beard from where he hadn’t shaved.
“Ugh,” Jeremy made a face and rolled his eyes. “First off, Daddy keeps making weird faces and saying things that don’t make sense, and secondly, if he’s getting a tummy ache again, I’m gonna go wash my hands. We both know I never do that, but I don’t want a leaky butt either.”
Evan and Cherry exchanged a look before laughing in sheer delight.
“Outta the mouths of babes…?”
“No kidding.”
“Hey, if it gets Jeremy to wash his hands, perhaps I need to spend more time cuddling with my bride,” Evan whispered tenderly, kissing her gently.
“Whatever works, right?”
“My thoughts, too.”
“Talk about a win/win situation…”
“Don’t I know it.”