“I’m not leaving your stuff out in the open where you can run.” He laughs. “Just be happy I’m not cuffing you to the bed.” The door closes behind him, and I sit on the bed to wait for him to get out of the shower. He walks out with a towel around his waist and shirtless, and I don’t even think I can stick by my no sex with Ethan in the house. “Your turn,” he says, and I get up, but he stops me and kisses me. My hand goes to his tattoo of Gabriel’s footprint. I lean forward and kiss the scab. “Love you, Kallie,” he says, and I just nod at him, then go to the shower.

When I finally finish in the bathroom, I’m expecting to find him in bed waiting for me, but what I find is him in bed snoring softly. I walk to the bed and turn off the light, sliding in with him. He must feel me get into the bed because his hands reach out and pull me to him. “Night, baby,” he mumbles, and even though I want to hold out, I follow him into sleep.

It’s crazy how easy we get into a routine of waking up at six with a soft alarm, and even though I held out the first day with no sex, it’s a losing battle the next day when he wakes me with his mouth between my legs. I cover my mouth when I come on his face, and when he flips me over and slides into me from behind, I bury my face into the pillow. By the time the seven o’clock alarm rings for Ethan, we are showered and sitting at the island while I drink coffee, and he reads his emails. I help Jacob prepare lunch for Ethan and clean up, getting into the car at the same time. I make dinner for us while he does homework with Ethan.

“Kallie.” Ethan calls my name while I’m frying chicken steak.

“Yeah, buddy?” I look over at him.

“Will you be at my game tomorrow?” he asks. I know he has a game because it’s all he was talking about.

“Of course she’s going to be there,” Jacob says from beside me now.

“Cool. Maybe we can all go for ice cream after,” he says and looks down at his homework.

“Um,” Jacob says from beside me, and I shake my head, not wanting Ethan to sense anything.

Dinner is normal, but my nerves are setting in. When I get up to clean up in the middle of dinner, Jacob looks up at me and continues to eat, and luckily, Ethan doesn’t sense anything.