“What am I walking into?” he asked, all hesitance.
I just lifted my shoulders.
“Damn it,” he hissed as he held out a hand for Emberly.
“I ate your dinner. Sorry, but not really,” Emberly said in a rush as she grabbed hold of Cayson’s hand and began quickly pulling him away so I wouldn’t have the chance to respond.
I just smiled at Savannah as she pressed close to my side and followed them to the door.
Once they’d left, after Savannah and Emberly had said half-a-dozen goodbyes and finished other conversations they’d been having, I locked the door and latched the deadbolt.
“Hey, I thought of something when I saw you and Cayson talking,” Savannah began, wrapping her arms around my waist and looking up at me.
I dipped down to pass my mouth across hers, then started leading her toward the stairs. “Yeah?”
“Wait.” She pulled me to a stop, eyes wide. “Is that the first time you’ve really talked to him since he’s been back?”
“No. I’ve seen him a few times these past weeks.”
“Oh, well, it was nice to see,” she said, a soft smile tugging at her mouth as she started up the stairs. “Anyway, I was thinking . . . you explained last night how you’ve managed to control everything over the years—how you stopped being afraid of what you might do.”
“Right,” I said when she looked to me in question.
“But when Cayson came home and exposed everything about your dad, you were terrified in a way I’ve never seen you.” She reached up, gently grasping my shirt. “Beau, you were afraid to be around the kids.”
Assent rumbled in my chest as I turned us and started for our room. “That . . . yeah.” I scrubbed a hand over my jaw before shrugging, not wanting to voice the thoughts that had haunted me.
“What?”
A heavy breath escaped me after a moment. “When Cayson first explained everything about Dad and said he thought Dad might’ve been like me as a kid, it scared the shit out of me,” I admitted. “The only way I’ve figured out how to control my anger is to accept and welcome it when it’s there. And I kept thinking, what if that’s what my dad had done? What if controlling it got to be too much, and he snapped on Cayson one day, then continued to because he knew he could get away with it? And what if I eventually do that?”
“Beau,” she whispered, voice twisting with anguish. “You wouldn’t. I know you wouldn’t.”
“That’s how I got past it,” I muttered, head nodding absentmindedly. “Because I’d die before hurting one of them.”
“You’re an amazing dad,” she said, eyes searching mine to make sure I was listening.
To make sure I heard her.
“Yeah, well, we all thought he was too,” I said pointedly.
Her head shook as she grabbed my hand and crawled onto the bed, pulling me with her. “If I’d ever had a second of fear or the slightest hesitation with you, we never would’ve had kids. And you . . .” She glanced away for a moment, a bright smile creeping across her face. “The kids and I are so beyond lucky to have you.”
I fought a smile at the glistening in her eyes and dipped low to place a trail of feather-soft kisses from her lips to her neck, breathing in all that sugar and the faintest hint of cinnamon. “I love you.”
“I love you.”
Brushing my knuckles across her stomach, I asked, “So, what are you thinking for his name?”
“His, huh?”
I lifted an eyebrow and looked pointedly at the tears filling her eyes. “Babe.”
She glared at me for a moment before understanding fell across her face as she sucked in a slow breath. “Oh . . . oh, that makes sense.”
I hummed my agreement and gave up fighting the smile when I said, “And showing up at the school today.”
“Okay, but wait . . . that was so not planned, and you know she had it coming.”
“I never said she didn’t.”
“Did she really get fired?” she asked, eyes widening when I dipped my head in response. “What happened, and what does that mean for you?”
I rolled to my side and continued my lazy trail against her stomach. “More or less, we have Emberly to thank . . . and Kevin. All my write-ups were dropped.”
“Really?” Relief wrapped around the word and poured from her. “Oh, thank God. I still can’t believe any of this happened. I could’ve punched one of her fake boobs.”
A startled laugh burst from me and was echoed by Savannah, all soft and slightly embarrassed.
“I could’ve. I was so mad,” she mumbled, heat creeping up to her cheeks as her golden eyes danced around my face. “Try to get my husband to sleep with her and then say all the things she did and bring the town into it.”
“Walking out there and seeing you ready to throw down . . .” A groan built deep in my chest. “Do you know how hard it was to walk you outside and not take you to the nearest empty room and fuck you right then?”
Her next grin was pure sin as she rolled to her knees and pushed me to my back, following me down until she was straddling me. “I know you said all night, but—”
“Now,” I said firmly, my voice gravel as I pressed her harder against me. “Night starts now.”
She reached for my jeans, fingers stilling once she’d gotten the button undone. “Oh! I still love Kevin.”
“What the fuck?” I demanded, harsh and low.
“For a baby name—for a girl,” she clarified as if I should’ve known what she was talking about.
I dragged a hand over my face, my head shaking quickly. “Savannah, don’t ever say another guy’s name when you’re on top of me. I don’t care that we’re still dressed.”
“It’s for a girl,” she reasoned.
I lowered my hand and gave her a look. “For the fourth time, we’re not naming a baby after Kevin.”
“It wouldn’t be after him. I just love the name.”
“Do you know how fucking weird it is every time I see him after we have this conversation? How awkward it would be to say, ‘Hey, Kevin. We’re naming our baby Kevin . . .’” I lifted my brows, but she just continued to stare at me, not ready to surrender on this one yet. “Besides, I am positive we’re having a boy.”
“Again, it’s not like we’d be naming a baby after him,” she repeated. “If I was gonna name our baby after someone, I’d name him after you. Or Hunter or Cayson or Sawyer.”
I gripped her hands and forced out a slow breath. “I need you to get off me.”
Her eyes widened and a wounded sound left her. “Why?”
“Savannah, you’re undoing my pants and naming off my brothers.”
“You asked what I was thinking for the name,” she said as I gently eased her off me and got off the bed.
“I regret it,” I said with a rough laugh. “God, I regret it.” I turned to see her sitting on her knees at the side of the bed, eyes slightly narrowed as if I’d asked for it.
My crazy girl.
Closing the distance, I curled my hands around her cheeks and released another slow breath. “The first few months of your pregnancies are always a wild ride. And trust me when I say, I fucking love every single part of you and those rides.” I pressed a slow kiss to her mouth and then rested my forehead against hers. “I love you. You are my world. But I need a cold shower now. After that, I’d like to take you on a date.”