“What’s that song?” I turn the dial to make it a little louder.
Jake chuckles. “I downloaded some mood music.”
“That’s an oldie.”
“Yep.” He pushes the armrest up, leans back, and rests his arm along the back of the seat. “I think you should come and sit over here.”
I laugh out loud.
Jake waggles his brows at me. “Come here,” he says seductively.
“I should check on Hank.” I unbuckle my seat belt and get up on my knees to look over the seat.
Jake hooks an arm around my waist and tugs me over close to him. “He’s asleep,” he says.
“How do you know that?” I give up and lean against him.
“I can see him in the little mirror I installed back there.” He turns around and points. “See? I can see him sleeping from my rearview mirror.”
“You installed a mirror for my baby.”
“Well, yeah,” he
says shyly.
“Thank you, Jake,” I say softly, and I lay my head on his shoulder. He puts his arm around me and holds me close. The cooling night air wraps around us and goose bumps erupt on my arms.
“Are you cold?” Jake asks.
“No. This is perfect.”
He looks over the back of the seat. “Do you think Hank’s cold?”
“It’s ninety degrees, Jake. I sincerely doubt he’s cold.”
“Should we check?”
“He’s fine.” I bracket Jake’s face with my hands and force him to look at me. “Thank you for dinner. Thank you for taking care of us. Thank you for making me feel special. Thank you for being you. Thank you for being my boyfriend.”
He finally grins. “Does this boyfriend gig come with any perks?”
“Sure does, if you mean like dirty diapers and blue raccoons that keep you up at night. I think you already got a bunch of those kinds of perks.” I snuggle in closer to him.
He shakes his head and speaks softly. “The perks are when Trixie climbs in my lap and asks me to read her a story. Or when Gabby asks me if I can teach her to do a three-point turn, which is not very easy to do in my truck. Or when Alex wants to throw the football back and forth until my arm is ready to fall off. Or when Hank grabs my finger and holds it tight. Those are my perks. I love those moments. And eventually, we will get to have sex. Lots of sex.”
“The job comes with plenty of shitty moments, too. Just wait until all four of them get a stomach bug at the same time. Or when they all have a snow day from school and you have to keep them from killing one another. It’s not all joy and roses.”
“Roses have thorns, Katie, so I’d say it’s pretty much the same. You can’t appreciate the good without the bad.” Jake presses a lingering kiss to my forehead. “Are you trying to change my mind about being your boyfriend? You already made the offer. No take-backs.”
I laugh. “No take-backs. I promise.”
It’s all a little too wonderful to be believed.
Jake fiddles with his phone until a new song starts. “Oh, I remember this one,” I cry. I lean over and turn it up some. Jake starts to sing along.
“You sang this to me while we danced by the campfire. Do you remember that night?” I turn to face him more fully.
He brushes a lock of hair behind my ear with tender fingers. “Yep. Why do you think I downloaded it?” He sits quietly for a moment. “What was playing the first time you danced with your husband?”