Page 12 of Blade

“I’m Eloise.”

“Nice to meet you, I’m Tinsley.”

“I like your tutu.”

Tinsley looked down, flushing adorably. “Thank you. Do you wanna see my playroom until my Daddy gets here?”

“Oh. Yes, please. That sounds so fun.”

Well, three Little amigos were so sweet it made my teeth hurt. I watched as they all rushed off to the playroom, Eloise’s limp making me frown. I wondered how much pain she was truly in.

“Well, that was fucking adorable,” Tyler said.

I nodded in agreement.

“You know if the three of them team up, we’ll never be able to resist the cuteness.”

I nodded again. “That’s a scary thought.”

“Do you want a beer while we wait?”

“Yeah. Sounds good.”

“What do you want for dinner?” Tyler asked.

“Huh?”

“I’m assuming you’re going to be staying with us as well?”

“Uh, oh. I hadn’t really...” I trailed off.

“You hadn’t asked, but you had planned on it, right?”

“Yes,” I admitted, rubbing the back of my neck.

“Yeah, so I just saved us all some time. Now, I was planning on steak and potatoes with grilled asparagus. Does that work for you or should I plan something else?”

Laughing, I shook my head. “That’s fine, and thank you.”

“Sorry, I was gone so long, the lab took forever getting me the results of Eloise’s lab work back,” Elliot said, entering the kitchen and setting his bag down.

“Hey, baby,” he greeted Tyler, leaning in for a quick kiss.

“Hey, I didn’t even hear you come in,” Tyler said, turning and handing me a longneck bottle from the fridge.

“I came in from the basement. I wanted to make sure everything was good to go for our new patient.”

“I heard you were antagonizing my Little one,” Elliot said, turning to me.

“I was. Don’t I get a kiss too?” I asked, placing my hands behind my back and puckering my lips.

“I knew you were the troublemaker. I’ve always suspected you,” he teased, wagging his finger at me.

“Tinsley, Daddy’s home!” he yelled.

“Daddy!” Little girl shrieks came from the playroom before bare feet slapped on the hardwood floor as she ran to him. He lifted her and pressed a few kisses to her face. “Missed you!”

“I missed you too, Little one.”

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