I laughed, leaning down to bring my lips to hers, almost kissing, lips brushing. “I could never be angry with you. What we have, it’s too perfect.”
“Kiss me, Mr. Judge.”
“Daddy?”
I look up from the burgers, jolted from the memory, to find Charlotte standing with a towel wrapped around her shoulders. Drake and Liam are still in the pool behind her, waging their boyish war over the inflatable.
“Hungry?” I ask, smiling.
Charlotte nods. “Starving. Please don’t make me wait any longer. I might faint.”
I chuckle at her ten year old – soon to be eleven – dramatic way of phrasing things.
“Not long now,” I say, flipping another burger. “In fact, do you want to help your old man out?”
Charlotte nods again, faster this time. She’s such a helpful, kind girl. She made Piper cry when she announced she’d started a litter-picking group in school.
“Ask everybody what they’d like, and how many, then let me know their answers. Sounds good?”
“Yeah, Daddy. I got this!”
Piper looks over at me, her lips widening into a smile.
I return it, my heart thumping in my chest under my wife’s gaze, so much love flowing through me I’m not sure I can take it sometimes. Like I’m going to burst.
“Hungry, boy?” I whisper, tearing loose a hunk of well cooked burger and cleaning it with a piece of kitchen towel, removing all the grease and oils.
That gets Bones to perk up.
I kneel down, stroking my hand up and down his body, as he takes the meat from my palm.
“Thank you, boy,” I say, leaning down and laying a kiss on the top of his head. “ For everything.”