Total pages in book: 111
Estimated words: 104448 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 522(@200wpm)___ 418(@250wpm)___ 348(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 104448 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 522(@200wpm)___ 418(@250wpm)___ 348(@300wpm)
“I’m glad you have your friends, too,” I finished lamely.
But there was something knowing in Dev’s eyes. Something soft and accepting, affectionate and sweet. But he was also exhausted. I could see the effort it was taking him to remain standing.
“You should lie down,” I said, pulling back a little. “Rest before the beast emerges from her cave and wreaks havoc over our evening.”
“We’re screwed, aren’t we?” Dev smiled, but I could see the reminder of Lellie’s sleep situation had tired him out even more.
“Remember the day I arrived? That was a late-day nap…” I leaned in to peck him on the cheek before whispering in his ear. “But this time, I promise I won’t pretend to sleep.”
He grabbed the back of my head to keep me from pulling away and turned his face to kiss me hard on the mouth. “I knew you weren’t asleep, but I’m glad you kept your eyes closed so you didn’t see me staring at the bulge in your shorts.”
I walked him closer to the bed and nudged him down on it before following him and pressing him into the mattress. His arms came around me and held me firmly against him. I could feel the length of his hardening cock against mine and arched into him.
“I want you,” I murmured against the skin of his neck. “But you need to sleep.”
Dev’s hands made their way into my hair. “Sleep with me.”
Just the words made my dick harder. “Pfft. That’s the best way to guarantee neither of us will sleep.”
“Fuck me, then.”
I wanted to. Desperately. But I knew we would be interrupted. “After we get Lellie to bed tonight,” I promised.
He rolled his eyes. “At 3:00 a.m.?”
“At 3:00 a.m.” I grinned at him before kissing him long and hard on the lips. “And not a minute sooner.”
I forced myself off him, reached out to give his cock a nice firm stroke over his pants, and groaned before walking out of the room.
After taking a moment to calm down, I made my way back downstairs in time to hear a familiar voice in the kitchen.
“Renata,” I said with a big grin when I saw Lellie’s beloved nanny. She came over and gave me a tight hug. Her dark hair was in oversized Bantu knots, and her giant gold earrings pressed coolly against my warm skin. I was overwhelmed with nostalgia and loss, wishing Katie was here with us.
“I saw activity over here and got excited. Hope it’s okay I came unannounced. Mom and Dad sent dinner.”
“Of course,” I said, swallowing past yet another lump in my throat. “Did you meet Kenji?”
He smiled and nodded. “I’ve heard a lot about you from Katie through emails, at least. It’s nice to finally meet you in person. I know Katie appreciated your friendship.”
I was touched by Kenji’s kindness in focusing on their friendship rather than Renata’s employment. It was true what they said about being able to judge a person based on their friends. Good people surround themselves with other good people.
Renata thanked Kenji for his kind words before turning back to me. “Where’s Lellie?”
“Napping.”
Her eyebrows winged up. “Are you serious? You’ve got to get her up, or she won’t go to bed at a decent hour.” She rubbed her hands together. “Let me at her. As soon as she sees me, she’ll drop the grumblies.”
“As soon as you wake her up, she’ll become Frankenstein’s monster,” I corrected.
“Cut up an apple while I go get her. She’ll be putty in my hands, and you’ll thank me later when you get to go to bed at a decent hour, too.”
She didn’t wait for me to respond. Instead, she skipped up the stairs to Lellie’s room. When she came back down a little while later, Lellie was a strange mix of cranky and happy. Not even the apples made a dent in her mood.
“What about PB&J?” I asked, remembering how quickly she’d devoured one on the plane.
She stopped whining and blinked. “Peej.”
By the time Dev came down half an hour later, Lellie was happily babbling in her toddler chair while eating a second peanut butter sandwich and repeating her new word over and over while a small stack of steamed broccoli I’d added out of guilt at the last minute sat neglected on her plate.
Renata was catching me up on how her semester had finished and what classes she was registered for next semester. It was obvious she was avoiding asking me any details about Dev or Lellie’s future, which surprised me.
Only until Dev showed up.
As soon as I introduced them, she began interrogating him.
“Are you keeping her?”
He blinked at her. One half of his hair was smushed flat, while the other side had two or three wayward waves sticking out in the wrong direction from his nap. “I’m, um… what?”