Page 122 of My Infatuation with Isabella

19. Dylan

3 years later

The house is uncharacteristicallyquiet. We moved into a bigger place about two weeks ago because our family had outgrown the old one. Our little man...and all his junk took over our entire house. It turned into one big toy room. I’d had my reservations about having kids, but when the time came, I had no doubts. It was exactly what I wanted to do.

Bella and I had only been married a year when Katrina broke the news that she was going to give Neymar up for adoption. She was barely sixteen. My family tried to help her as much as we could by giving her a waitressing job and a place to stay, but she still struggled. The responsibility of looking after an eighteen-month-old child was overwhelming for her because she was a child herself and eventually, she decided that it would be best for her and Neymar if he was adopted by a loving family. She felt like she couldn’t give him what he needed.

That decision wrecked her, and it shocked us, but we respected her choice. The problem was at that point, with Katrina working and living with my family, Ney was a part of my everyday life. I was there, holding onto his tiny fingers when this little guy was learning how to walk. I was there when he started saying his first words.Icouldn’t give him up. We didn’t hesitate. All my reservations disappeared, and we got the ball rolling to legally adopt him. Katrina opted to stay away so we could bond as a family, and we were forced to respect that decision as well.

Our lives changed instantly. It was one wild ride after another. Bella and I had to sit down and shuffle our workdays to make it work. Spontaneity was replaced with scheduled bath times and Sunday afternoon naps were replaced with sleepless nights caused by separation anxiety. He didn’t understand why his mom was no longer there or why he was living in an unfamiliar place...again. But as a family, we persevered and things got better, then things got...great.

I’ll be the first to admit that I’m the most paranoid dad. I watch him like a hawk. I’m wary around strangers. But I have a wife that pushes me out of my comfort zone and forces me to truly embrace fatherhood. So, now I’m all about letting him venture through the park and playdates inpublicplaces. Most of the time I do these things with Pete.

In a very unexpected turn of events, Pete was actually the first one out of the three of us to have a kid. He had to grow up fast. He can still be a total douche sometimes but he’s an amazing dad. Watching him with his son allowed me to soften up to the idea of having children, so I think I was emotionally ready before Katrina broke the news to us. So, yeah, Pete and I are dads now. Scott is the only one who still has no responsibilities. So much drama unfolded before andatmy wedding between him and Cat, but that’s another story. I swear, someone could write a whole book about it. Scott got into it with Cat’s boyfriend, Jean Pierre. Fists were thrown. Hearts were broken. Tears were shed. It was a mess. But Cat had to do what she thought was best for her and we supported her decision. We’ve all moved past it. Life must go on.

I walk through the foyer to the living room (i.e. glorified toy room). It’s empty. No sign of my wife or my son. “Bella,” I call out and get no response.

I trip over a plastic truck as I make my way to the kitchen. It’s empty as well, but I find a note on the fridge.

Follow the corridor past the room that is blue.

At the end of the hall, there’s a surprise waiting for you.

I read it again because this riddle seems too easy. At the end of the hall is our bedroom. It’s that easy to solve. This is very out of character because this is the same woman who used a riddle adventure for our fricken honeymoon. She had me running through the airport, trying to figure out which flight I was supposed to take. I eventually decrypted the riddle and found myself on a plane to Molise, Italy. We spent two weeks there and finally got to see thevillashe bought. It was an incredible experience, and that added sense of mystery made it even more unforgettable. Last week’s one was attached to a water gun, and I had to find her and Ney before a timer ran out. The penalty for losing was getting blasted with water grenades. I won that challenge (as I always do), but my boy didn’t fully understand the rules, so I got soaked anyway. Considering the level of Bella’s riddles, it’s a little weird that this one is glaringly obvious. I walk down the corridor.

“This wasn’t even a challenge,” I say, opening the door.

I freeze as soon as I enter, instantly realizing why she didn’t want me to waste time looking for her. Bella’s naked in the middle of our bed, legs spread wide, and she’s sliding a dildo in and out of herself like this is just one of those normal things that happen at two in the afternoon. I can only stand there and stare at her with my mouth hanging open. This is not the first time I’ve come home to a sight like this, but my body always reacts as if I’ve never seen anything this hot before. My heart races. My throat runs dry. And my dick stiffens to the point where it’s almost painful.

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