Page 97 of Every Now and Then
“Hey rugrats,” Hayes greets them. “Long time no see.”
“Wusty! I missed you.” Claire runs over for a hug, and he kneels to give her a proper one. He lays his head on hers, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath.
Good lord, will I ever get over watching Hayes fall in love with my girls?Probably not.
“I missed you too, baby girl.” Standing up, he smiles at Grace, ruffling her hair. I love how instinctive he is with the girls, offering Claire the physical affection she craves, while understanding that sometimes Grace needs a little more space. “Missed you too, Gertie. And I brought you some postcards from California, and a couple from New York.”
“Did the rest of the guys sign them, too?” Grace asks, her voice tinged with excitement.
“Sure did, Gertie,” he winks at her as he ushers the kids into the kitchen. “Now, c’mon. Grab your backpacks so I can take you to school. Hopefully, we’ll be on time this morning or else I’ll probably have to give Ms. Rogers front row tickets to get you out of yet another tardy.” I follow the trio, clutching my mug of coffee to my chest as my heart beats in a happy rhythm.
After they leave for school, I lean against the kitchen counter, sipping my coffee. Looking around, I see boxes piled up everywhere; some are already packed, and some sit empty, waiting to be filled. Items are scattered haphazardly across my countertops, and cabinet doors hang open, but despite the mess, I feel content and at peace.
Yes, I still have a ton of work left ahead of me, but it seems less daunting now than it did yesterday. And I know why.
Hayes.
I’ve come to depend on him, and with every turn in the road, he’s shown up and proven that he’s dependable.
Half an hour later, the front door slams and I hear Hayes holler, “I’m back!”
“In the kitchen,” I call out.
"We even made it on time today." Hayes tosses my car keys down on the counter, rubbing his hands together. “What’s on tap for today? More packing? Since the rest of the band is still in New York, I’m free to help however you need me.”
“Well, that works out great because I called work and took a personal day, so I could spend time with you.”
Hayes ambles over to the coffeemaker and pours himself a cup before throwing a glance my way. “Good. You need some downtime, Annabelle.”
I make note that he doesn’t use any sugar, just a touch of cream. Seems fair that I should know how he takes his coffee since he has my preferences memorized.
“I know. Laura’s been urging me to take a couple of days off from work so I can finish packing and look at more houses.” I twist my lips to one side, feeling a little awkward as I make my next request. “So, I’m supposed to go look at Dave's rental house today at lunchtime. Would you go with me?”
“Of course.”
Hayes has been adamant about moving into the condo, so his simple acceptance takes me by surprise. “Okay, thanks.”
He glances at the clock on the oven. “How do you want to spend the morning? Want to see if we can finish banging out the rest of the kitchen before we leave?”
If I have my way, we’ll be banging, but it won’t have anything to do with packing.
Striding up to him, I take the mug from his hand and place it on the counter. Then, I curve my finger around the belt loop of his jeans andpull him toward me. I don’t have to pull too hard because he comes willingly.
“I have a better idea of how to spend our morning.” I wrap my hands around his neck and kiss him, coaxing his lips open with my tongue.
Between kisses that grow increasingly hotter, Hayes mutters, “Damn, I like your idea. Much better than mine.”
Then we stumble from the kitchen to the bedroom, discarding items of clothing along the way.
33
Hayes
Now
After spending a very enjoyable morning in bed with Annabelle, we’re running late to meet Dave. So late, in fact, that Annabelle didn’t even have time to take a shower, so she still smells like me.
And the most primitive part of my brain fucking loves that she’s marked with my scent.
