Danny's Main

Repeating the motion, Da

And when he did, she greedily swallowed what he gave her.

***

“THAT WAS…WOW.” Da

“It really was…wow.” Julie’s head rested on her hand, her elbow propped up on the bed, and her eyes found his. “I’m sorry, Da

Da

Sitting up, he planted his feet on the floor and left his bed and his woman behind as he walked from their bedroom to the basement door, completely naked. Downstairs, he went to the corner where he’d been hiding his project, a labor of love he’d been working on for months. With contributions from Max, Janie, Ashley, Ryan, Kyle, Cate, and Lyla, Da

Hefting the five-foot-by-three-foot paper-wrapped, framed canvas over his shoulder, Da

“Dan, what is that?”

Slowly, he unwrapped the art and turned to watch Julie’s eyes eat up the painting.

“Oh...Da

The way her lip trembled and her wide eyes filled with tears was all the reaction he could have ever asked for, but when his Julie nearly floated from the bed, reaching for the gift he’d created for her—his breath caught in his chest.

The textured painting was more than just a large tree. It was them. Their names and wedding date appeared carved in the thick, strong trunk. A tiny butterfly with bright pink wings floated next to their names. Da

Each leaf was painted on a separate piece of canvas and affixed to the large panel, giving the tree a layered, lively look. Hundreds of leaves in various shades of greens, each hand-cut (by Lyla or Cate) and hand-painted, though only a few had special designs. The kids had printed out pictures of what they wanted on their leaf so Da

“Sheila and Chris are on here. Da

“It’s okay, honey. You can touch it. The paint’s been sealed.”

Her long fingers once again reached out to the miniature O’Brian’s sign that hung on the leaf with Sheila and Chris’s name.

Just as in life, their kids’ leaves were paired off. Max’s had a tiny racecar and a checkered flag while Janie’s had an apple. Ashley’s leaf had a slanted crown sitting on a rainbow, and Ryan’s had a guitar. Kyle’s showed a broken brick wall with half of a face behind it. The eyes were smiling. Cate’s leaf had a hand holding a brick with a heart on it. Quite telling, no? While Lyla’s leaf, with a quill and a bottle of ink, was next to the rest of the kids, the one directly linked to hers was blank. Da

“Da

“A wise woman once told me that a family didn’t have to come with blood, it only had to come with love.” Julie’s eyes widened, but Da

“Thank God for that,” she replied.

Epilogue

FRESHLY SHOWERED, JULIE slid on a clean pair of yoga pants, sans panties, and a lacy pink bra.

“You’re just begging to get fucked again, aren’t you?” Da

They had made love—and yes, fucked—after the incredible sixty-nine experience just a few hours prior. The man had the turn-around time of a teenager and the stamina of a stud.

“Wouldn’t be opposed to it, handsome. But Max and Janie will be here any minute, and that might make for a weird conversation,” she teased.

Da

Ding-dong

“I’ll get it,” Julie called into the closet on her way to the front door. Before she could turn the handle, Da

“Hey,” Max said.

Janie smiled. “We’re here. Can we come in?”

Acknowledgments

PHEW – THIS BOOK…this book was one that was never supposed to be written. It wasn’t in my timeline, it wasn’t part of my plan, but as I started writing Cheers in Charistown (the next story, a novella, in the Charistown series), Da

That said, this book could have never been written without the help of several special people. While I’m just a storyteller, a person who dreams up tales and creates worlds in which my characters struggle, flail, and hopefully succeed, our world is filled with incredible people who spend their days, years even lives helping others find freedom, safety, health and happiness.

Combat veteran David Clark was an amazing resource to me while I was writing Da