Page 75 of Crashing the Altar
“And how am I supposed to explain that to anyone who sees me out and about?” She raised an eyebrow in challenge.
Both hands went to my head, and I tugged on the short strands of my hair. “I don’t fucking care. Make something up. Tell them you twisted your ankle.” Chest heaving, I yelled, “Are you trying to give me a damn heart attack, woman?”
“That was an awful lot of swearing that came out of your mouth in the past thirty seconds. Kid’s gonna need earmuffs.”
She was trying to deflect, but I wasn’t having it.
Jaw clenched, I gritted out, “I’m not kidding, Penny. You’re done on horseback until spring.”
“Spring? You can’t be serious!” she cried.
“Deadly, sweetheart. Don’t test me. I’ll tie you to the goddamn bed if I have to. I’ll do whatever it takes to keep you safe.”
Penny pursed her lips. “You’re annoying, you know that?”
“Call me whatever names you want. At least if you’re doing that, I’ll know it’s because I managed to keep you from getting yourself killed.”
She gave me an exaggerated eye roll. “Fine. But you’re gonna have to take Echo out. He shouldn’t be punished because you won’t let me ride.”
“I’ll make sure your boy gets plenty of exercise,” I promised.
Cocking her head, she assessed me for a full minute. “Not sure if I’m pissed off or turned on by the show of overbearing masculinity you just put on.”
My hearty laughter filled the air. Venturing closer, I pressed a kiss to her forehead before sliding off the mattress, pulling my dirty T-shirt over my head as I headed for the shower.
“Well, when you figure it out, you know where to find me.” I tossed her a wink as I kicked my boots away and shucked my jeans.
The faucet had barely been turned from cold to hot before she was on me.
Guess the answer to that question was: turned on.
A seven came up on the rolled dice, and most of us seated around the table groaned, ditching half the cards in our hands while Mac picked up the robber and silently deliberated on where to place it, effectively blocking someone’s resource.
“What?!” Penny yelled when he placed the piece atop the wheat where she alone had built a single settlement. “I’m not even close to winning! Why wouldn’t you go after someone who is a threat?”
Mac shrugged with a grin, unbothered by her outburst. “I live for the chaos.”
“But—but—but,” she stammered before huffing out a sigh and deflating in her chair.
Never let it be said that my wife wasn’t the most competitive person I knew.
“Here.” Aspen stood, cradling a freshly burped Reagan. “Baby cuddles make everything better.” My sister gently lowered our niece into Penny’s arms, and a brilliant smile lit up my wife’s beautiful face.
Seeing Penny with a baby was breathtaking. I could only imagine that when it was our own, the sight would be enough to bring me to my knees.
And because she knew exactly how to get back at Mac, she taunted him, “Was it worth it? Now I have your baby, and I don’t know if I’m ever going to give her back.”
His mouth dropped open, and he turned to his wife to complain about the injustice. “No fair, Aspen. You said I could hold her after she was done eating.”
Aspen waved her finger at Mac. “Tripp went to a lot of trouble to secure me a sister. I’m not gonna let you pick on her.” A wicked smirk teased onto her lips. “How about this: you share the baby now, and in return, you can be the one to get up with her every time she wakes up tonight?”
Mac perked up. “Deal!”
Damn, my sister was an evil genius who knew exactly how to play her husband.
Victorious, Mac turned to Penny. “And you thought you got the better bargain.”
Tucking her chin to her chest, Penny hid her smile under the guise of staring at the sweet baby she held. “Yep, you win.”
