As Gracie continued to wail over her now soggy Valentines, Annie jumped out of her chair to avoid the cereal milk running over the table and toward her lap.
Matt moved fast and caught Annie before she stepped on the glass. Then grabbed Charlie under his other arm as the two–year–old wild man had decided he’d like a strawberry and wasn’t at all deterred by the broken platter.
“I’m sorry. I’m sorry.” Jack swatted down, reaching to salvage what he could.
“Freeze. Everybody freeze.” Matt didn’t yell but his low, commanding voice got their attention.
“You.” Matt pointed at Jack, who still stood barefooted in the kitchen, a tiny bit of blood on his shin where a shard had hit him. “Don’t move.” He carried Charlie and Annie a safe distance away and put them down. Then went for Jack.
“Son,” Matt said with a sigh as he picked Jack up and surveyed the damage.
Tears welled in the boy’s eyes. “I just wanted to try one,” Jack said, choking on the last word,
“Okay, Bud.” Matt rubbed his back. “I think you learned a lesson, huh?”
Jack nodded and sniffed. “I’m sorry, Mommy.”
Abby looked up from where she stood at the table, comforting Gracie as she blotted Valentines with a dish towel.
“But I already wrote my name twenty-four times!” Gracie cried.
“I can still see your name and it’s okay, baby,” she said to Jack, inwardly groaning at her own lost work. “It was just an accident. You might as well eat that one.”
Jack looked at the strawberry now squished in his little hand. “I don’t want it anymore,” he said with hiccuping breaths.
Matt growled like a bear and went for the strawberry in Jack’s hand, drawing a small smile from his son and an eye roll from his wife.
“Okay, here’s what we’re going to do,” Matt said, looking around the room at his family. Even with the chaos, he knew he was one lucky bastard. “I’ll take Jack to medical.” He sat Jack on the counter and opened the kitchen drawer that held Bandaids. “Then after I tackle the floor Gracie and I will make a quick fly-by the store and get more Valentines.”
Gracie started to protest again, not wanting to write her name even one more time.
“You only need to redo about five of them,” Abby said, sorting the damp from the ruined. “The rest are fine. See? I bet Annie has enough extra ones.”
“Okay, even without the extra pit stop, we need to hustle. Let’s go, team. Shoes, socks, teeth.” Matt carried Jack a safe distance away and watched the older three race up the stairs then turned to smile at Abby. “And they said the circus wasn’t coming to town.”
Abby just shook her head. Chaos reigned often in their house. And as always, Matt was the voice of calm and reason. Thinking she could spare a couple seconds—it was Valentine’s Day after all—she went to him, laid her hands on his smooth cheeks and her lips on his.
Without hesitation his arms slipped around her. “What was that for?”
“Do I need a reason?” she asked, stepping back with a smile.
“Never.”
He made a grab for her but she danced away. They didn’t have that much time. She grabbed the broom from the pantry. “After the parties, I’ll take Mary and Charlie home for naps so you can make your afternoon meeting.”
He nodded, taking the broom from her hands. He did in fact have a meeting, though that’s not the only reason he’d need a few hours this afternoon. But Abby didn’t need to know he’d also be finalizing his plans for the evening.
“Beth wanted to decorate cookies with the girls after school,” Abby said, dumping the dust pan Matt had filled with broken platter pieces.
“And Jack has karate at four.”
“Yes. I guess Valentine’s Day isn’t reason enough to cancel class.”
“Pfft.” Matt made a face as he scooped up the last of the broken glass. “After all the sugar that will be consumed today, they’re going to need to kick some boards.”
“Good point.”
“Ah, damn. Darn,” he corrected even though the kids were out of the room.
“What?”
Matt held up his phone. “A text from the sitter. Cancelled. Said she’s sick.” And his stomach sank. He really wanted this special night for Abby. “Don’t worry. I’ll ask my mom. As long as none of the others have hit her up, we’ll be good.” He hoped.
Abby took Mary from her swing and Matt took a second to watch her as he often did. Her long, dark hair was pulled back in a messy knot and she hadn’t gotten to her make up yet. So beautiful.
He stepped toward them, kissed Mary’s cheeks. “I think we’ve covered all the mission objectives. Except the last one.”
“Mmm.” Abby shifted Mary to her shoulder, and wrapped a hand around his neck. “What’s that?”
He took her mouth in a deep kiss, pulling her closer until they both heard a stampede of feet coming down the stairs. It was their first Valentine’s Day and he was going to make it one she never forgot.
FIVE HOURS LATER, Matt and Abby pulled up side by side in the school parking lot. They’d need both cars since Abby would be taking home little ones for naps while Matt checked on a few construction sites.
By the time she got out, Matt was already at the back passenger door, reaching in for Mary.
“Hello, my angel. Ready to part?”
Mary gurgled and drooled like any woman would when Matt cooed at them.
“Are you sure you don’t want to leave her in her car seat?” she asked, pulling her knit hat farther down over her ears.
“We’re sure, aren’t we, baby? Who wants to sit on the floor when there’s a party going on? Huh?”
He waited as Abby loosened up the straps of the Baby Bjorn infant carrier to fit over his shoulders. Drawing on his years of Navy SEAL training and strapping on parachutes & high tech gear, Matt worked to get Mary situated.
He slipped her tiny legs into the carrier, then fastened the sides with the skill any mom or Team Leader would be proud of, then made sure her clothes were straight and she was comfortable.
Abby had to admit, he was better at it than she was. Not that she minded, she thought with a smile. It was exceptionally hot. Her husband, in a navy sweater that hugged his chest and arms with a baby strapped to his chest.
Still smiling, she redid the Velcro on one of Mary’s pink buckskin booties. “You know you’re going to be the hit of the party, don’t you.”
“Of course she is.” Matt kissed Mary’s hat covered head.
Abby grinned. “I was talking about you. Mary’s not going to be the only one drooling. I almost feel sorry for the other moms.” And God, she truly did taking in the whole picture. Dark jeans hugging his massive thighs, the brown eyes, killer smile.
“You know I only have eyes for you,” he said, leaning over Mary’s head to kiss Abby’s lips.
She caught his face in her hands. “I know.”
“I love you.” He took one hand from Mary to curl his fingers around the back of her neck and deepened the kiss.
“I might have a surprise for you later,” she said, smiling against his lips.