Page 19 of Daddy’s Little Secret

“I love them. You could easily sell these for thousands of dollars. I didn’t know you could sew?”

I had to laugh. “That I cannot do. The cushions were made by a local seamstress who also does upholstery in town. She made the curtains, so they’d match the floral patterns on the cushions. Trey said that anything purple you’d love.”

“Trey was right, they’re beautiful.”

“We can take you to meet her sometime if you’d like.” I loved how self-sufficient this town was. Huh, it just hit me, that was why they wanted us to move up here. They wanted us to be a part of their community.

“I’d love that. You boys didn’t miss a thing. This feels like home. Not just a house, but a home.” Her words meant more than she knew. Every one of us in this family, our found family, has suffered losses. That fact that we all found our forever homes with each other, much like the cats we’d adopted, was a bond that wouldn’t be broken. We worked hard and loved even harder and would give our last cent to the others if they needed it.

Blessed.

In whatever form that word was meant to be taken, we were all blessed to have found each other. I glanced around that room, all but Samian present, gathered together to share this with Esther—there wasn’t a dry eye in the room.

We may not have had a lot to give, but what we did have a lot of was love.

Shit, where were the tissues?

“This is the first time I don’t have secondhand appliances or furnishings. Well, secondhand anything except for my mother’s hutch.” Now I understood the connection she had to it. “Thank you, boys. From the bottom of my heart, thank you.”

“We’ll let you get settled in, Grandma.” Trey hugged her first, then we each took a turn. Trey had even put her clothes away. There was nothing left but for her to familiarize herself with the new space.

Back inside our home, I grabbed my laptop and sat on the couch. “Hey, Angel, can you come here?”

He picked up Sabrina and carried her over with him. “What’s up, Daddy?”

“I was thinking, we’ve been so busy that we haven’t had any real us time. What do you think about taking a vacation? Maybe a couple of days in Las Vegas.” His eyes lit up and I knew I’d hit it. “Unless you’d like to go somewhere else?”

“No, Vegas sounds great. I’ve never been and it looks like fun.”

I pulled up the Circus Circus website. “This hotel has a lot of fun places. Arcades, a midway with games and rides. You can win prizes too. There’s the M&M factory on the strip and the Hershey store. Plenty of things to see along the strip.”

“Prezzies, Daddy.” He nearly choked me when he tried to hug me. “That sounds like so much fun. When can we go?”

“We have the jobs we started in town to finish up first. Uncle Chuck said he and Tae will watch Sabrina while we’re gone, plus Momma and Grandma will check on her too. How about I make reservations for us to go in two weeks for three nights? It’s only a four-hour drive which isn’t bad.” The more we talked the more excited we both got.

“That sounds perfect, Daddy. Thank you for thinking of me.” Trey kissed my cheek and headed off toward the kitchen with Sabrina. Guess I hit it on the nose, we needed time to bond as a couple and do couple things. In our haste to get Grandma’s cabin done, I’d once again failed as a Daddy by not paying enough attention to my boy. Trey, much like Tae, wasn’t one to complain, and that was something Chuck and I had better be more cognizant of.

I decided to call the hotel directly and see if they could put a package together for us. Unlimited time in the Adventuredome, that way we could pop in and out between visiting other attractions in town without having to worry about paying each time. Glad I’d done it this way. The associate was more than helpful. With the package deal, she booked our room, was able to remove the resort fees, and hooked Trey up with an Adventuredome pass. And hey, free parking—that right there was a great savings, based upon my research.

“Daddy?” Trey called out. I had moved to our room to change and relax. It was rare to have an afternoon off but nice after starting as early as we did today in Grandma’s cabin.

“In here, Angel.”

He came trotting in, the sound of Sabrina’s bell collar as she chased after him followed them down the hall. “Whatcha doing?”

“Just relaxing.” I hissed, taking off my binder. “Guess I forgot to pump today.”

“I can help.”

“That would be wonderful, Angel. Want Daddy to read to you while you help?”

“Yes, please. I’ll pick a book while you get comfy, Daddy.”

“Thank you, sweetheart.” Trey hopped off the bed and went right over to his bookshelf. I should have opted to make this a three-bedroom cabin instead of two so he could have his own playroom. Maybe I’d convert Samian’s room since he was hardly here.

“Here, Daddy.” He handed me the book then stripped down to his boxers. “Now we match.”

“Ha-ha, yes, my love, we do. Slide on up and get comfy while Daddy reads The Brave Little Kitten to you.” I’d read his favorite book so many times he had it memorized. I sighed as the rush of relief hit me the moment he latched on. Generally, we took regular breaks where either Trey would nurse or I’d pump, but today got away from us.