Page 11 of The Rough Ride

“She’s good. Looks beautiful but says she feels like a beached manatee. I had to tie her shoes for her this morning. It’s hard to believe there’s four more weeks until the baby’s due. Doc thinks she might blow early.” Derek slung some duffel bags over his shoulder and grabbed a box of supplies. “You’re in a chatty mood. You see Liz last night?”

Nick purposely elbowed Derek in the ribs as he turned around. “Chatty? You’re an asswipe, D.”

Derek laughed. “I’m serious, man. You usually just grunt before noon. You’re forming whole sentences today. Did you get to see her?” He stepped out of the way so Nick could shut the door.

“As a matter of fact, we had dinner last night.”

“Cool. Did she see the pink shit on your dick?” Derek’s grin went from cheek to cheek.

Nick rolled his eyes. “Pink shit? More like red, and no, she didn’t. I’m taking it slow.”

Derek nodded. “Probably a good idea. I gotta tell you, man, I’m waiting for the right time to ask Maggie to put some of that red stuff on me. It’s not only funny—it’shot.”

Nick barked a laugh. “You’re unique, D.” He leaned closer. “I’m not sure if there’s a security system in place already. Cool it, in case they can see and hear us.” He rang the doorbell. They waited in quiet, professional silence until the door opened a fraction.

“Are you with SecureIT?” The female voice lilted a distinct Texas twang.

“Yes. Mrs. Richardson? I’m Nick Flannery, here with Derek Johnson to install your new security system.”

“Okay, hang on.” After a few seconds of chains dropping, the door flung open. “Hi, I’m Angie, Beau’s wife. This here is Precious.”

A black Doberman with white paws and a rhinestone collar stood as tall as Angie’s waist. It growled, revealed a full set of teeth, and growled again.

Derek took a half step forward and growled back, showed his teeth, and growled again.

The Doberman whimpered and took off into the house.

Angie’s eyes popped open as she stared at Derek. “You growled at my dog?”

“Yes, ma’am. Had to let it know who the alpha is.”

“You’ve gotthe attic and bedrooms done?” Nick looked up from the iPad he used to tweak the security system.

“Oh yeah. I installed the nanny cam and trained it right on the little guy’s crib like the missus requested. That nursery is loaded with toys. I can’t wait to play with my kid.” Derek grinned as he grabbed a bottle of water from their cooler.

Nick grunted. The time his father threw his Lego boats out the bathroom window because he’d left them in the tub crept uneasily through his thoughts. He’d copped a glance into the kid’s tub while securing the bathroom window. “Whatever floats your boat, dude. Personally, I can live without a shower filled with rubber duckies and plastic ships. There’s a freakin’ armada waiting to set sail in the hall bath. An adult would kill themselves trying to shower in there.”

“You’re a killjoy about little people, Nick. Igetthat’s howyou roll, but try to contain your excitement for my impending fatherhood.”

“I’m happy for you, man. You and Maggie wasted no time getting knocked up once you were stateside again, and you’ve both wanted this. You’ll be terrific parents.” He placed a few small components and boosters into a duffel bag. “Ready to do the main floor? Bring the cooler and the box.”

Nick took a few steps and stopped. Precious blocked the doorway with a half-snarl on her face. “Hey, D, where’d you put the dog treats?”

Derek looked up and chuckled. “They’re in the tool box, dude. You’d best make friends with that beast, in case you end up working here while I’m on family leave. Toss a tidbit across the room and she’ll leave the doorway to retrieve it. Stash a bunch of them in your pocket. You want her to think of you as a human treat jar.”

Nick lobbed a bone-shaped goodie toward the corner of the room as the two men headed down the stairs.

There was no way Nick would be filling in with the senator’s kids. Just the thought of it brought on a cold sweat. He’d already considered Derek’s family leave and had made arrangements. “Hey, D? Mason’s covering for you while you’re on leave, and he’s never sure when and if his National Guard unit could be activated. Take whatever time you and Maggie need, but if you can make it back before the six weeks is up, I’ll pay you time-and-a-half for the leave you don’t use.”

“Cool. We’ll see. Good thing we’ve got a few more weeks to get a routine going here.”

“Absolutely.” Nick turned on the dining room chandelier. “Let’s sync the main floor together. You install the readers, and I’ll get them online.”

“Roger that.” Derek felt for the pull-cord and swept open the dining room drapes.

A little giggle trickled across the big room.

Nick looked up, saw nothing, and refocused on the iPad.

---