"Oh…" She grinned at him, nodded, and then hugged him, hard, soaking his T-shirt.
He looked over and Slayde had his sunglasses on, a goofy smile on the man's face. He rolled his eyes, but he couldn't stop his own big dumb smile at the hug. He was definitely winning her over. He really was.
Then she was gone, running over to tear through the sprinklers again. He chuckled, this strange, almost heartburn feeling in his chest. Why hadn't he made a bigger effort to come see the kids before? He knew why -- he had a life, a place, and Mindy… Well, it was hard to see her, after Jerry had been killed. Maybe he'd needed a few more years under his belt to appreciate the kids like he did now.
He shrugged. It didn't matter. He was here now and he was a free agent, so when Mindy came back, he could find a job closer to her and the kids.
"You not getting wet along with them?" he asked Slayde, cursing himself when that immediately brought images of the man half-naked and wet to mind.
"I'm a little tall for the sprinkler."
He chuckled. "You're hot, though. I mean…" Shit. He hadn't meant that at all how it had come out.
Slayde snorted, then started laughing, hard enough that the lounge chair shook under him.
"Sh-" He cut himself off before he could finish the cuss and be stuck doing another bunch of push-ups. "You know what I meant." Hell, he thought maybe he had meant it both ways.
"I do." Slayde chuckled anyway. Little shit. "You should get some banana bread before naptime. I'll need help with baths."
"What happens during naptime today?"
"Hmm? Hopefully everyone sleeps and I can actually watch something on the DVR that isn't kid-appropriate."
"Can I have my banana bread while we watch whatever you come up with on the DVR?"
Sitting with Slayde and watching TV probably wasn't a good idea, but he imagined he was going to do it anyway.
"Absolutely."
Jenny started screaming, the sound crazy, and Slayde was up before he even registered the sound, running toward her where she'd crawled. Drake followed without even really thinking, the noise like a knife going right through him.
"Drake! Get me the hose!" Slayde was brushing, almost slapping at the baby, who was howling.
He had no fucking clue what Slayde was up to, but he shifted left immediately to get the hose. He tore it off the sprinkler, the sound of Jenny screaming more chilling the longer it went on.
"Spray her down. Get the fire ants off her." Those baby legs were already swelling, the bites all over one foot. "Now, Drake. Then get the other two out of here."
"Shit." He sprayed Jenny down, the little red ants flying off her. That sound she was making made him want to kill something.
When he thought the job was done, he handed over the hose, and then grabbed up Maggie, took Christian's hand and hightailed it back inside. "Come on, guys. We're gonna start that movie early."
Slayde brought the baby in, pushing some kind of medicine into her mouth. "We're going to bathe."
"She doesn't need emergency?"
"If the Benadryl and the apple cider vinegar bath doesn't help, yeah. You cool with them? It's going to be a long evening."
"Yeah, yeah, we're good." He could even handle supper now. "We're gonna watch Misfit Pirates and play the popcorn game." He gave Slayde a tight smile, his eyes lingering on sweet baby Jenny. Christ, he was supposed to be good in an emergency; this was different, though. He wasn't trained in helping his baby niece recover from fucking fire ants.
He told himself to buck the fuck up. His job was to keep Maggie and Christian from freaking out or getting in Slayde's way. "Okay, who's gonna help me make the popcorn?"
The kids looked at him, quiet, and they took his hands. "Is the baby going to be okay?" Maggie looked at him as Christian spoke.
He crouched down to their level and nodded. "Slayde knows exactly what to do to help. She'll be just fine." And he was going to call in an exterminator and make sure those fucking ants couldn't hurt any of them again. He wished they were big enough to shoot.
Maggie pushed into his arms, holding him tight, and he realized the kids were still in their swimsuits.
He gave her a big hug, holding on tight. "I'm gonna go get some clothes for you guys to change into. How about your pajamas?"
Christopher looked at him, wide-eyed. "During the day? Is it a slubber party?"
Maggie gasped. "A slubber party? Wow."
He pressed his lips tightly together. A slubber party. Oh God. How adorable. He hugged them both tight. "Yes. Yes, it is."
"Oh. Oh, okay. Maggie. Come on! We have to get jammies and blankets and pillows and our bears for the living room!" They ran off, hand-in-hand.
Damn. That was the most adorable thing ever. Ever. He went to find the popcorn and grapes or something to munch on.
He was grabbing the colander when it hit him. He was putting together healthy snacks for his niece and nephew and they were going to have a "slubber" party and it wasn't fazing him in the least. Shit, he was going to need more beer if he started making his own bread and tomato sauces.
Still. It felt good. If he could just figure out why he couldn't stop thinking about Slayde and how the man looked and felt and smelled, he'd be golden.
***
Slayde called Drake from the hospital where he was rocking Jenny, her poor baby body swollen and hot. He'd taken her in yesterday and they'd had a long, sleepless night.
"Hey, how did it go last night?" he asked when Drake picked up.
"Good. We had a slubber party and slept in the living room under a hand-made tent. How's the baby?"
"Pissed off. They think I'll be able to bring her home today. She's got to lose the
