Total pages in book: 80
Estimated words: 76887 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 384(@200wpm)___ 308(@250wpm)___ 256(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 76887 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 384(@200wpm)___ 308(@250wpm)___ 256(@300wpm)
I wasn’t sure he was in the right headspace for that conversation, so I was glad when he nodded. “Yes, grown-up and personal.”
Telling myself we’d come back to that later, I nodded. “That’s right. Okay, you grab the wipes out of my bag for me. It’s right up front. Do you remember?”
I’d given him a run-through about what was in my pack before we’d left, so I wasn’t surprised when he bounced and nodded. “I remember. Got to wash hands.”
“That’s right.” As I shifted so he could get into the correct pocket, I kept chattering to do my best to keep him in the right headspace. “Hey, you never told the waiter what you wanted to drink.”
And the giggles escaped again.
“Oh, I’m a naughty customer.” He snickered as he finished fishing out the wipes. “Like the naughty men at the diner. Oh, I don’t know what I should have.”
His fabulous impression of one of our disgruntled busybodies made me laugh.
“I shouldn’t have the coffee. You know what that does to me. But your juice is too sweet.” Grown-up Paxton had been pretending not to listen but little Paxton had been hanging on every word and could repeat the conversation without thinking. “Gonna have a rough afternoon either way, so I might as well have both.”
Good grief.
“He wasn’t talking about his poop in the diner, was he?” That must’ve happened before I’d come in because Paxton started laughing and laughing and could barely hand me the wipe so I could clean my hands. “That’s terrible manners.”
What the fuck had he been thinking?
“He was naughty, Daddy, but the food lady frowned and frowned and told him he’d get prune juice if he couldn’t remember his manners.” Paxton thought that was hilariously funny and just telling me what had happened set off the giggles again.
Paxton liked gossiping just as much as the rest of them, but it seemed like little Paxton was the only one who could tell me about what he’d heard.
“She’s going to get mad and punish him if he’s not careful.” Reaching back behind me, I managed to tuck the wipe in a side pocket and took his hand. “Miss Nancy doesn’t like people being naughty in the diner.”
As we started heading back to the trail, Paxton sighed and nodded. “The Kenzie person had to eat soup when he was naughty. He doesn’t like soup.”
Ignoring the ridiculousness of him already knowing that, I nodded. “Yes, he was dramatic in the diner and Miss Nancy said he could only have soup and he doesn’t like soup. He was glad when his punishment was over.”
We’d all been glad when that was over.
“I’m not naughty, Daddy.” Paxton’s eyes widened and he shook his head. “No, I’m a big boy with manners in the diner.”
Limit or personal rule?
“I think that’s very reasonable, little bug.” For a variety of reasons. “Big boy with manners in the diner and then fun little boy at home with Daddy.”
Paxton was back to beaming. “That’s what the internet said too.”
The internet was clearly very helpful, but I just hoped his research didn’t take him places he wasn’t ready for.
Chapter 11
Paxton
“And the internet said that Daddies give baths and they—” Daddy leaned over and kissed my head.
“Someone is coming up the trail, little bug.” Daddy looked down at our hands. “Should we be boring or still be cute together? I’ll let you decide since we haven’t talked about that yet.”
Hmm.
I whispered soft as I could. “Boring? Is that okay?”
The internet said it was, but I was glad when Daddy smiled and nodded. “Yes, people are nosy.”
They really were.
Oh, I had another story he needed to know.
But we had to be boring first, so I released Daddy’s hand and stood straighter. I looked very boring and grown-up as we walked down the trail and got closer and closer to the car where Daddy was going to give me juice because I was tired of water.
First orange juice.
Then lemonade.
Then Gatorade.
“Afternoon.” Daddy sounded very boring as we went around the corner and there were people coming the other way.
“Hey.” Several people nodded and said hi, but they weren’t the nosy old people I’d seen in the diner. So I was a good grown-up and gave them my professional boring-person smile as we passed them.
I looked sooo boring Daddy kept glancing at me and frowning.
But I had to be boring or everyone would talk, so I stayed quiet until we got close to the parking lot and he stopped us. “They can’t hear us anymore, cutie.”
Giggling, I kissed his cheek. “I was very boring, Daddy, and they can’t gossip ’cause this is my job.”
Shaking his head, Daddy gave me a teasing frown. “I was worried and you were just a good actor.”
“You’re a good Daddy.” They worried. The internet said so. “But I’m fine. Well, I still want my juice and my food and my massage.”