Page 123 of Charlie
I opened my mouth, but before I could object, she made an elegant dive into the water.
Damian sat with his eyes on Lumi and chuckled. “That lass is too clever for her own good.”
As if she had heard him, she swam a few strokes, turned on her back, and called out to him. “Wanna play, Damian?”
I saw the small frown on his face and then he looked to me and Kit. I didn’t confirm that I’d heard the flirting undertone in Lumi’s voice or that it wasn’t the first time I sensed Lumi goading Damian either. I could understand a teenage girl’s fascination with him. Damian was tall, strong, fit, and playful, but he was also almost ten years her senior. To my relief, he knew better than to feed into her teen infatuation.
“Maybe later. I still need to show Nathan who’s the better football player.” He chucked down another glass of lemonade and headed back to the boys.
Kit must have caught on to the situation as well because she began talking about Damian’s newest girlfriend using a voice loud enough to guarantee that Lumi couldn’t avoid hearing it. “Megan is so pretty with big doe eyes and she can cook too. The other day she made us mushroom soup and homemade bread. It was delicious! I told Damian he should hurry up and marry her before she finds out what a tool he really is.”
“I heard that,” he shouted at her.
“I meant it in a lovin’ way.” Kit grinned and then she lit up when River came running around the house with Charles walking behind her.
“I saw Damian’s car out front.” River was smiling from ear to ear when she ran to give Kit a hug.
“Didn’t I tell ye to stop growin’?” Kit hugged River and moved her around to stand back to back. “Liv, tell me that I’m still the tallest.”
I got up to measure. “It’s a tie.”
Kit rose up on her toes and River followed until Kit turned around and pressed her palm down on top of River’s head.
The blonde girl laughed. “Next time you see me, I’ll be taller than you for sure.”
Kit gave up, waved a hand, and took her place on the sunbed again. “We’ll never know, ’cause it’s the last time I’m letting anyone measure the two of us.”
“Charles says that Nathan and I are growing like weeds.”
I kissed River’s cheek when she came to hug me. “River sweetie, go get your swimwear and jump in the pool with Lumi. It’s so nice today.”
She was quick to comply and disappeared into the house.
“Oh, that lass is such a charmer. If ye get tired of her, I’ll take her.” Kit turned her sun hat a little.
“Can you take all of them for a week?” Charles sat down next to me and pushed my long brown hair away to kiss my shoulder. “I could use a little alone time with my wife.”
I melted like I always did when he kissed me.
“No problem. Damian and I are happy to help.”
“I’d like that.” I wiggled my finger at Kit. “But I’m warning you. Our kids may look idyllic, but they come with a lot of issues.”
“Are ye talking about the nightmares?”
“Uh-huh. River and Nathan have them the most, but those are just some of the things that we’re working on.”
Charles moved to sit behind me and I leaned back against his chest as the three of us sat in silence watching the others in the garden for a moment.
“I wish I could peek ten or fifteen years into the future and see where the children are in life,” he said and massaged my shoulders.
“Me too,” I sighed.
“Me three.” With Kit’s accent making her not pronounce the h, it always made me smile.
“I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.”
“Aye, and if Atlas finds the answer to what makes people follow lyin’ psychopaths, I for one would like to know. It’s scary!” Taking her sun hat off and waving it in front of her, Kit got up from the sunbed and called out to Lumi. “Wanna watch me make a bomb?”
