Page 28 of At His Wife's Behest

“Not too late. The exploring of Kellan can happen later tonight.”

“Em—”

“What?”she asked, almost thrumming with joy from the other end.

“Don’t think I don’t see through you.”

“Meaning?”

Kellan sat on the edge of the bed, stretching his tired legs. “You’re trying to push me into coming out.”

“Not even,” Emma said. “I simply wanted to show you what you’re denying yourself. What you do with that information is up to you.”

“But you want me to come out,” Kellan replied.

“Kel, if you don’t want to, so be it. I won’t make you do anything—but—you needed reminding that you aren’t simply Abigail’s father. You’re a man with needs. Needs weallhave. Needs I know aren’t being met.”

Kellan closed his eyes.

“I can’t be that person for you… so I found a person and a place to allow you a glimpse of who you could be.”

“Are you even putting the villa up for sale?”

“Maybe. Not this week or even this month. I just needed to get you as far from Texas as I could without you guessing what I was doing.”

Kellan grunted. “Can I talk to our daughter?”

“Sure.Ifyou tell me how attractive he is and if you’ve tapped that ass yet.”

“No tapping,” Kellan answered.

“Kel! Get with it.”

Kellan laid back on the bed, starring up at the ceiling, a grin on his face. “There might’ve been a kiss.”

Emma let out a whoop. “Who kissed who?”

“He did. Last night.”

“And you didn’t immediately jump into bed with him?”

“I did not.”

“What a waste!” Emma scoffed. “You’ve ignored my other question, Kel.”

“Hmm?” Sure, he’d ignored it. He didn’t want to out their daughter’s teacher, even if he knew Emma would be accepting.

“Is he attractive?”

“Veryattractive,” he finally answered, knowing Emma wouldn’t let up until she got some kind of answer.

“Well, alright, alright, alright,”she slurred in her best Matthew McConaughey voice.

He heard Abigail babbling away and he smiled. “Now let me talk to Abby.”

“Fine,” Emma said. The next voice he heard lifted his spirits.

“Daddy! Are you having fun in Italy?”

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