Page 110 of Ridin' Free
Ben leaned over and pressed a kiss against my temple. “How’d it go?”
He always asked. Every time.
“Good,” I said on a sigh. “We’re going to stick with this schedule for a little while.”
He nodded and Kash squealed, pounding his fists against Ben’s chest as he rambled.
“I should probably take him inside soon. Feed him, give him a bath, let him calm down before I throw something together for dinner.”
“Don’t worry about me tonight. I’ll grab somethin’ quick. Got club business to see to. Shouldn’t be too late, but you go ahead and eat.”
“Oh,” I hummed, disappointed at such news. Even though it was only Tuesday, it was the end of my weekend, and I was hoping for some quality adult time with my old man.
Since Kash was born, Benson and I had managed to make our opposing shifts work in our favor. I cut back on my hours at the bar. Most nights, I was home by midnight. Kash was usually a pretty good sleeper, which meant I got to sleep, too. It was even better that Ben always took the morning shift, getting up with Kash before heading into work. In the late afternoons, when both of us needed to be away from home, Shep would come over and babysit for us.
He was, officially, the Stallion grandpa.
All that to say, even though we fell into the same bed every night, I didn’t always get my man the way I wanted.
“Everything alright?” I probed, wondering how much information he’d give me.
“Nothin’ for you to worry about, sparky.”
“Okay,” I replied easily, knowing better than to doubt him. I held my hands out for Kash, and he came willingly into my arms. All three of us headed inside—Ben to don his boots and his kutte—Kash to eat his dinner.
On his way out the door, Benson came to the kitchen to kiss both of us goodbye.
“Wait up for me, you hear?” he muttered against my lips.
I smiled, realizing he’d heard me loud in clear out in the yard, in spite of all I hadn’t said.
Fuck—but I loved him.
“Okay, daddy,” I whispered in return.
He smacked the side of my ass, tossed me a wink, then headed for his hog.
It was after ten,and I was in bed reading when I heard Kash begin to whine through the baby monitor. I glanced over at the video feed, saw his little restless body as he squirmed, and was quick to grab my bookmark. Hoping to sooth him before he became fully awake, I tiptoed across the hall and silently entered his nursery. The moment I reached down and rested my palm on his back, he began to relax. I rubbed slow strokes up and down his small spine, admiring him in the darkness, broken only by the night light plugged in by the door.
When I heard the garage open and close a few moments later, I smiled—marveling at the wonders of my man, who was thoughtful enough to cut the engine of his Hydra-Glide before he pulled into the garage, so as not to startle our sleeping toddler.
Remembering his unspoken promise from earlier, I slowly crept back out of the room, shutting the door softly behind me.
“He okay?” asked Ben softly upon his approach.
I glanced over at him, nodded, then waved him into our bedroom. He trailed after me, closing us in before immediately shedding off his kutte.
“Things all good on your end?” I asked, giving him a proper once over.
“Yeah, baby. All good.”
He hung his vest from the hook on the back of the door, then I got to watch as he crossed his arms and reached for the hem of his shirt, peeling it off his torso and over his head. I’d seen him do it countless times, and it never got old. Especially not after the addition of his last tattoo.
Inked down his side, over his ribs, was a gorgeous phoenix in full color.
She was me. She was a promise.
His promise that I was going to be a part of him forever.
