Joni blinked. “What?”
Darcy pointed to the cupcake. “I’ve never seen that in my entire life.”
“Seriously?” Joni took a bite, chewed, and swallowed. “It’s the only way to eat a cupcake. Right, Brooklyn?”
I shook my head. “I’m as amazed as Darcy. I had no idea you were supposed to do it that way.” I opened the bottle of ibuprofen. “Here, Slash. Let me get you a glass of water.”
“I don’t need it,” he protested.
“Show me your hand,” I commanded.
He pulled off the ice pack.
“It’s insanely swollen already, and it’s only been a couple of minutes,” I commented. “You’ll take the medicine.”
“Fine. But I need to wash it down with a cupcake,” he groused, returning the ice pack to his palm.
“Ah, look at you guys,” Mia quipped. “Already acting like an old married couple.”
“You’re one to talk,” Joni said as she finished the last bite of her cupcake. “You were like insta-twitterpaited with Colt.”
Mia’s gaze went all dreamy. “Yeah. That was fun.” Scarlett, who was strapped to Mia’s chest, let out a huge belch worthy of a trucker. Mia sniggered. “This is pretty fun, too.”
Lily ran into the kitchen. “Mama, we’re waiting on our cupcakes!”
“Hey, check the attitude,” Darcy said. “I’ll be right there.”
Lily’s gaze darted to Slash, and she immediately came over to inspect his hand. “What happened?”
“A wasp almost stung Brooklyn,” he said. “I stopped it from happening.”
“And it stung you?” she asked.
“Yep.”
“Does it hurt?”
“Yep.”
Very carefully, Lily removed the ice pack and set it on the table. She took his hand and lifted it to her lips. She gave his rough palm a kiss. “Better?”
“Better,” he said gruffly.
She shot him a toothy grin and then ran off to join her friends.
Slash looked in the direction Lily had gone, his eyes warm with affection. “Cute fucking kid.”
“The cutest,” I agreed.
Chapter34
“I’m fucking exhausted,”Slash muttered as we got home later that evening.
“That would be the sugar crash,” I informed him. “You did have five cupcakes.”
“They were small,” he defended. “And it’s not the sugar. It’s little girls. Little girls and tutus and glitter, and Lily demanding I Tarzan call all afternoon.”
“You didn’t have to keep doing it.” I grinned.