Total pages in book: 104
Estimated words: 102016 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 510(@200wpm)___ 408(@250wpm)___ 340(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 102016 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 510(@200wpm)___ 408(@250wpm)___ 340(@300wpm)
“All of the ranches have excellent security and cameras,” he says.
“Yeah, well, maybe we up that security. I wish I could do that for every building in town. But I can’t, so you have to get this guy under wraps.”
“We’re working on it.” He nods once. “There’s going to be a meeting this week with the concert people in charge of security for that show at our ranch. I’d like you there.”
“I’ll be there. Just text me the information. I’ll be bringing Jones and a few others with me so we think of everything.”
“Sounds good to me. There’s nothing more I can do here tonight. I’ll come back out tomorrow.”
I nod, clap him on the back, and then return to my guys.
“We have this, Chief,” Jones says. “Go home and get some sleep.”
“I’ll be in the office by nine,” I reply. “I appreciate it.”
I’ve been on the scene for four hours, and rather than wake the whole house up when I get home, I swing by the station to take a quick shower. It’s after midnight when I get home.
Ready to climb into my bed and curl up around Dani, I let myself in quietly and toe off my shoes, set my keys and wallet on the table by the door, and then make my way down the hallway. But when I peek into Birdie’s room, she’s not in her bed.
With a frown, I cross to my room and find both of my girls fast asleep under the covers, and the scene sends a jolt through me so swift that it knocks me back a step. Birdie’s on the edge of the mattress closest to the door, turned toward me, her little hands up by her chin as she sleeps.
Dani’s in the middle of the bed, curled up around my daughter, hugging her close to her front. Her nose is in Birdie’s hair, and seeing the two of them together like this makes me perfectly aware of two things.
One, I’m completely in love with Dani Lexington.
And two, I’m never letting her go.
As quietly as possible, I shed my uniform and pull on a T-shirt before I climb in on the other side of the bed and slip in behind my girls, wrapping an arm around them.
“She threw up,” Dani whispers and then kisses Birdie’s head, and I hug them both against me a little tighter. I hate that I wasn’t here to take care of them. “But she’s okay now. How are you?”
“I’m just fine, sweetheart.” I kiss her hair and then brush her strands back, exposing her neck, and press a kiss there, too, breathing her in. “Go back to sleep.”
She wiggles against me and sighs. “Okay.”
God, this feels so fucking good. It feels right, having them together like this, tucked up against me where I can keep them safe.
I loved having Dani on the ranch with us today. Even with her meltdown, it was the best day that I’ve had in a long while. But I’m mad at myself for not anticipating that it might have been too much for Birdie.
After a few months of my daughter acting like a normal, healthy kid, it’s easy to forget that there could be days like this, and I need to be more watchful. But I’m glad that Dani was here to help Birdie.
I gently kiss her neck once more, enjoying the way her soft skin feels against my lips, and then I lie back on the pillow and surrender to sleep.
Two days later, Birdie wakes up with the sniffles.
“Shit.” School is a cesspool of germs, especially early on in the year like this, but I have the meeting regarding the Sidney Sterling benefit concert today, and I can’t miss that. So, I do what any single dad would do in this situation.
I load my kid up with medication.
She doesn’t have a fever, and once the children’s cold medicine kicks in, she seems to be pretty normal, sitting at the island, eating her breakfast.
“How do you feel, peanut?”
“Better,” she says. “My nose isn’t running anymore. I don’t want to miss school. We’re doing D words today, and I’m taking in my stuffed dog, Ralph.”
“I know. You can go to school, but if you start to feel worse, you need to tell Miss Dani, okay?”
“Okay.”
“Do you like her, baby?”
“Miss Dani?” She pops a blueberry into her mouth. “Yeah, she’s a good teacher.”
“Do you like her when we’re at home? When she spends time with us?”
Birdie nods and reaches for another blueberry. They’re her favorite right now. “She’s really nice, and she helped me when I was sick, and doesn’t talk to me like I’m a baby.”
I smile and take a sip of my coffee. “I like her, too. In fact, I’d like for Dani to spend a lot more time with us. What do you think about that?”