“Really, it’s coming from Denise,” I answer as calmly as I can. “Did you know it takes her an extra twenty hours a week to navigate all her commutes with her kid? Isn’t that insane?”
“Well maybe she should have thought of that before she had that kid,” he shrugs, sucking his teeth. “How is that my problem?”
Four. Five. Six.
“It doesn’t have to be your problem,” I answer brightly. “It can be your… Our opportunity, you know? It’s an opportunity, Ronnie. We could make something really cool using both of our skills.”
I don’t even have to hear the TV change. I know instantly that the game is back on when his focus snaps six feet behind my head.
“Yeah, okay… I’ll think about it,” he murmurs distractedly.
“Sure, I’ll just get you another beer,” I say as I slide off his lap and get up from the couch.
“Thanks, Chels,” he answers as I leave the room, heading for the bedroom and closing the door.
Full disclosure: I never intended to get him another beer. But I don’t think he heard me anyway.
After kicking off my shoes and peeling this coffee-scented polo shirt off my body, I slide into bed, positioning myself as far on my side as possible without actually falling off. Eventually I’ll fall asleep, and tomorrow I’ll do it all over again.
Chapter 3
Chance
The driver rolls the car right up to the small jet right after we have landed. One of the nice things about using private airfields is easy access to the car. It’s not O’Hare. I have to get Starbucks on the way. But it is pretty damn convenient.
The pilot raises his hand to me as I deplane, and the single flight attendant turns away like she doesn’t see me. It’s a bummer, but I explained to her that Maddie has to come first. I can’t really expect her to give Jack and me the kind of attention that we require if we aren’t going to give her an equivalent amount of effort, right? But unfortunately, Lorraine the flight attendant thought our frequent junkets between Lake Geneva and Detroit would be something other than they are going to be.
Great. Now I have to find a new flight attendant too. But she pulls herself up straight and I can see the professionalism hazing her eyes, taking her over. Li
ke a robot, she goes from flirty almost-girlfriend to professional air host in just a few seconds. Impressive.
The driver seems to catch a whiff of lady drama over my shoulder as I climb into the back seat.
“Everything all right, Chance?” he asks with just a hint of smirk in his voice.
Rather than answer, I just concentrate on my cell phone. Now that we are on the ground, I’ve got a couple dozen text messages rolling in, plus news and stock alerts.
Still, I am looking forward to getting home. Maddie is a remarkable beauty. Nearly six feet tall with the strength and agility of a volleyball player. She’s definitely been game for whatever Jack and I could ask of her. And she has that detached coolness, a sort of robotic ice in her veins that will ensure she doesn’t get too attached.
That plus a generous salary as our live-in nanny makes this whole situation just perfect. Her small request to keep our trio exclusive seems like a small price to pay. At least for the time being, until we wear her out or whatever. It’s just a very adult relationship, with everybody getting exactly what they want.
The rolling hills around Lake Geneva are beautiful, and more importantly, private. There are a lot of tech guys hiding out in log cabins around here, and you would never know it. Lots of older people in quaint retirement developments on the shores, too. That means we have decent shopping when we need something. And of course Chicago and Detroit are only an hour away in the jet. So it might seem a little under the radar, but it’s perfect for us.
Somehow after we sold our first app, we both managed to find ourselves with pregnant girlfriends. Just another way that our lives are totally in sync, I guess. And by some miraculous coincidence, we both found ourselves trying to manage the single dad gig. Right away, we knew that the solution was obvious. We needed a place where Ned and Matthew, who are going on two years old now, would be able to grow up as close as brothers. And we would be able to get our work done, carve out a life on our own terms.
With Maddie in the picture, everything seems to be falling together. The house is great, the location is great, but without a woman around it can get a little lonely.
As a matter of fact, the closer I get to home, the more I’m thinking about her. I’m rock hard already, ready to plunge into that sweet, soft pussy.
But as the driver pulls close to the house, I can see the light in the front window, see shadows moving across it. Something about the speed and outline makes me think something must be going on inside.
“Wow, you have some terrible luck with women today,” the driver remarks.
Looks like I’m going to need a new driver too.
But as soon as I cross the threshold into the wide, stone-tiled atrium, I can feel that he’s right. Maddie’s voice comes hurling down the hallway like a comet, sizzling with venom.
“I can’t take it anymore! It’s just too much!” I hear her say.