Page 61 of Coast to Coast

I stumbled a bit when I saw him waiting for us, watching the doors, unsure of what direction we’d be coming from. Our eyes locked, goddamn, he was beautiful. The sharp lines of his jaw were softened by his kind, blue eyes, my heart squeezed, and the flutter of nervous excitement in my belly surprised me. He rushed towards us, still at least fifty yards away when Crew caught sight of him.

Once he saw his Dad, there was no holding him back. I put him down, and he took off in a sprint, slamming into Tom with a force that knocked his surefooted hockey-playing dad just a little bit off balance.

I arrived just as he was standing up with Crew in his arms.

“Hey Thor, you might want to work on your balance if you want to make the big time,” I joked.

“Get over here,” he said, making room for a group hug. I inhaled his scent and couldn’t ignore the word home as it continued to play in my mind. Was it a word? Or a feeling? Whatever it was, I’d never in my life felt I was exactly where I was supposed to be, and I did in this moment.

TOM

Fuck, she smelled good. Crew and Callie in my arms, how quickly I forgot the loneliness from when they were gone.

“Are you sniffing me?” I asked.

Callie looked up, her eyes watery and emotion written all over her face. “Yes, that okay with you?”

“Yeah,” I said, our eyes locking. Fuck, I wanted to kiss her, but I’d be damned if our first kiss was in a crowded airport with Crew between us. I pressed my lips to her forehead. She sighed and pulled away. I reached for her hand and interlaced our fingers together as we walked to the carousel to collect their luggage.

We switched off holding Crew, and I pushed the bags through the airport. We then headed to where I had parked. I tossed the bags in the bed of my truck while Callie strapped Crew into his seat.

When she slid into the passenger seat, I crooked my finger, sliding towards her; her eyes went wide when she realized what I planned to do, and she briefly looked towards the back seat where Crew was happily facing the opposite direction. I took her chin and rubbed my thumb across her plump bottom lip. Herlips parted, gaze dropping to my mouth, my heartbeat beating so loud, I’m sure she could hear it. I pressed my lips to hers, gently at first, her sharp intake of breath causing her lips to part and tongue to dart out tentatively. I groaned, our kiss deepening as her fingers threaded in my hair. Our kiss moved from gentle to frantic, forgetting where we were.

“Let’s go!” Crew yelled from the backseat, snapping us out of it. If only he knew.

I pulled away, unable to wipe the smile from my face. “Still worried about that chemistry?” I asked coyly.

“Go, let’s get home. We’re starving,” she said, letting her hand rest on the console, palm up, ready for me to hold it once I pulled out into traffic and had a free hand.

“Ice cream?” Crew asked from the backseat.

“No, not yet, buddy. Maybe after dinner,” I said to him and then turned my attention to Callie. “What did he eat today?”

“Oh, if you’re looking for me to tell you he’s had nutrients today, I can’t. I gave him anything he asked for to comply. Crackers, animal cookies, some fruit squeezes, that’s it.”

I nodded. Indulgence and airplane travel went hand in hand with a toddler. As much as I wanted consistency and order for him, I wasn’t rigid enough to put Callie in the position to enforce behavior with the travel stressors.

“I figured. Should we just say fuck it and bring him out for pizza?”

“Fuck it! Pizza!” Crew yelled, and Callie covered her mouth, attempting to cover up a giggle.

“Sure, it’s always funny when someone else’s kid swears,” I said, doing my best not to make a big deal out of the fact that Crew swore, hoping not to reinforce bad behavior.

“Well, I guess we’re having pizza for dinner. It might be the only way to distract him from the new vocabulary word you just taught him.”

“I guess I’ll have to warn Kelsey,” I said.

“Don’t worry, it’s not the first time today he said the word. The first time was after Kelsey jammed her finger in the car door. Granted, she tore her fingernail pretty badly, and it wasn’t in normal conversation. But no need to feel bad and apologize.”

Callie’s gaze rested on my face as she studied me. The tension in my jaw likely gave me away, but I constantly felt like a fuck-up. I mean, most of the time I spent battling with Crew to get him to eat basic foods, and then I go and swear in front of him.

“I guess I just need the reminder that I’m not surrounded by hockey players.”

My hand had gone back to the steering wheel, and I was gripping it tightly. Callie tugged at my arm, and when I relaxed and dropped my hand, she took it in hers, gently stroking the top of my hand with her thumb.

“Stop beating yourself up. No parent is perfect, and you just did something ninety-nine percent of parents do. You’re a good dad, Tom. Has anyone ever told you that?”

Fuck. No. I’ve never been told that not even by my mother. Hearing the words as Callie spoke, I only then recognized how much I needed them.

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