AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Her skin is radiant. Her hair is pulled up into a scrunchie on top of her head. I want to tug that scrunchie out and watch it fan out around her.
She’s my best friend, but she’s more than that. So much more than that. We might be two independent people working together for a common goal, but what she doesn’t realize? In my quest for our independence, I became dependent on her. I’m dependent on waking up to her brewing coffee for us every morning. I’m dependent on watching her rock our daughter at night. I’m dependent on her soft laughs at my teasing and her long rants about the gaps in humanity.
I’m an addict. Our co-parenting has turned into my co-dependence, and I don’t know if I can see a future without my girls in it. To hell with a five-year plan, I want forever, and that line of thinking is terrifying.
Gia steps into my space, without knowing it. Her scent invades my senses and fills me with contentment. It’s now or never.
“Honey! I’m home.” I call out as I swoop in, catching her from behind and wrapping her in my arms.
She squeals and immediately pulls her arms up into defensive mode, but it’s too late, I’ve got her.
“Oh, my God! Damien!” She half-heartedly tries to elbow me and fails. I wrap my arms around her and tuck her body into mine.
“How are my girls today?” I lift her off her feet and twirl her in a circle before placing her back down again and releasing her.
“You could have asked that without scaring the living, breathing life out of me.” She pops her hip out, and places her hand on her chest, heaving to catch her breath.
I watch the rise and fall of her breasts, with a hunger that I can never truly satisfy. I’ve been starving for years.
“But then who would save you? Nah, I like scaring you. Then, I can be the one to swoop in and save you. It’s the best of both worlds. I’m the hero. Isn’t that right, Astria baby?” I glance over Gia’s shoulder as our daughter watches us with a brief fascination before turning back to her show.
Gia’s eyes dance with humor as she smiles up at me. I dart in before she can stop me and place a platonic kiss on her cheek. The kiss is friendly enough. It’s not the first time I’ve kissed her over the last year or so. I steal a kiss here, a touch there. The stolen moments are all I have. Those moments are the only thing keeping me from losing my damn mind.
The taste of her skin on my lips widens my smile. I feel lighter with each moment that passes between us.
“What’s got you all giddy? This morning you were pissed at the coffee for not being strong enough. Last night it was the hot water, not being hot enough.” She’s not wrong. I’ve been a brooding asshole lately, but it has nothing to do with them, and everything to do with me.
“Nothing. I had a good practice today, and I get to come home to the two most beautiful girls in the whole world.” It’s the truth. I might be an asshole some days, but I’m a lucky asshole and I know it.
Gia eyes me suspiciously before stepping into me and placing the back of her hand on my forehead.
“Um, Click, what are you doing?” I don’t move. I’ll take any reason for her skin to touch mine.
“Checking your temperature. Are you sick? Did you take candy from a stranger?”
I chuckle to myself as she slowly removes her hand.
I lift my hand and wrap my fingers around her wrist before she can pull away completely.
“No, I’m fine. I just…I was thinking about some things today, and I guess it sort of put my thoughts into perspective. I’ve been living inside of my head too much. I’ve been bringing home my stress about this weekend…about my game in general. It’s not fair to you or to Astria. Dealing with my broody ass wasn’t part of our agreement.” I shrug it off.
“Booty.” She doesn’t hesitate to correct me even though Astria is very clearly preoccupied again behind her, smiling and laughing contently at her show.
“Right, my broody booty.” I tug her body to mine with her wrist. I continue to smile like a damn jackass.
She falls into me easily, laughing at the silliness of my words. It’s all part of parenthood. The made-up curse words on the fly are some of my favorites.
“Has your broody booty eaten dinner? I can make you a sandwich.” She props her chin on my chest and looks up at me with thoughtful brown eyes.
It’s funny how something like making a sandwich can make you go all warm and tingly on the inside. I want to tell her that there are a million things I’d rather eat right now than a sandwich, but I don’t think that would be appropriate. Especially since our daughter is just a few feet from where we stand.
My hand rests on her lower back, and it takes every ounce of my strength not to allow it to travel lower. Pregnancy and childbirth only made this woman’s body sexier, and her curvy backside is no exception to that.
“That’s okay, you’ve done enough today. I’ll make something when I get done packing. We’re leaving early tomorrow, and I’d rather have everything ready tonight.”
We fly out in the morning. We normally travel by bus, but Chambliss is too far, and this is a big game for us. Coach booked us flights, which is a luxury we don’t typically get. The alumni support for an up-and-coming hockey team is severely lacking.
“You sure? You know how good I am with a turkey sandwich. I’ve got a reputation with meat. They know me by name at the deli counter.” She wiggles beneath my hand, and I pray she can’t feel the inappropriate things she’s doing to me through the thin material that separates us. I know how good she is with all meat. That’s the problem. I can’t fucking forget. Maybe I need to have a talk with the butcher at our local market.
