I really can’t help that I’m making her late. It’s not often that we have someone watching Benji during the day. We both had the day off today, so Marta volunteered to watch Benji for us. Then one thing led to another, and we ended up in bed the whole morning. She just remembered she promised to go with Lark to the tattoo shop.

I grin at her, but I get up to start getting dressed. “Did you tell me why we’re going? Or did I miss that part when you were stripping my clothes off?”

She shakes her head. “I didn’t tell you. It’s not my secret to tell. It’s Lark’s.”

Okay, now I’m really curious. “But–”

She points her cute little finger at me. “If you’re not dressed in two minutes, I’m kicking you in the nuts.”

I laugh, but now I know she’s serious, so I finish getting dressed and brush my teeth and hair. I try to tame my cowlick, but Finny doesn’t seem to mind it. I vaguely remember her holding on tightly to that lock of hair this morning while I ate her out. She has a thing for pulling my hair. I don’t mind, because I have a thing for smacking her ass.

She also has a thing for loving me, and I don’t mind that either.

I don’t know where I’d be right now if I hadn’t met her. I was pretty lost when I came to town a few months ago, and I fell right into her bed, and she fell into my heart and into my mind. She burrowed right down in my soul and I don’t want to ever let her up for air.

Last night, I woke up to find her side of the bed empty. I went to look for her to be sure she was okay, and I found her standing beside Benji’s crib, watching him sleep. She had her hand on his back and she was counting the number of times his chest went up and down.

I walked up behind her and wrapped my arms around her. She leaned into me the way she always does, and rested the back of her head on my chest. “This is what falling feels like,” she said to me. Then she turned in my arms and kissed me, and I agreed with her. It’s like falling over and over, every single day.

For Finny, falling has turned into a good memory, and we make a new one each day. Every time I see her, I fall over and over. If anyone had told me I’d choose to fall on purpose, I’d have called him crazy.

Finny has become a mother to my son. She’s agreed to be my wife, although we still haven’t set a date yet. She’s my everything. With her and Benji, I can do anything.

I’ve been working for the Reeds managing their apartment building, and we moved into an apartment there a couple of months ago. We have our own space, and we love having other people with kids nearby. There’s always one or another of the Reeds around, or their offspring, or their wives. Life around here isn’t boring, that’s for sure.

I walk into the living room, and find Finny standing with the front door open and she’s waving me forward. “Your nuts are in so much trouble,” she mutters at me as I walk by her.

I grab her and pull her against me. “You know you wouldn’t do anything to hurt me,” I say. I kiss her and she melts against me.

Her hand inches down to my waistband, and then I feel her grab my balls. I freeze. She squeezes a little too hard for comfort. “Finny,” I warn.

“I do love you, but I hate to be late,” she says, her lips still touching mine. Her grip turns to a caress, and I pull back as soon as she sets me free. One, because I’m getting hard again. And two, because she’s in a mood.

She turns to walk in front of me, so I slap her ass hard enough to make her yelp. “Teach you to fake harming my family jewels,” I mutter at her. I adjust my junk and get in the elevator with her. She glares at me from the opposite wall, but there’s a smile behind her eyes. And heat. And love. Always love.

“Did you talk to Julia last night?” she asks as we step out onto the street.

I nod. “I did.”

“And?”

“And what?” I jam my hands into my pockets.

“And you had better tell me what she had to say,” she snaps at me.

I grin. “She said she’s coming over this weekend. She wants to take him to the park.”

Julia called us when Benji was about two months old. She wanted to see him, and I was completely against it. But Finny talked to her, and she felt like Julia was sincere in her desire to be a part of Benji’s life. She doesn’t want custody, and she doesn’t want to even take him for a night here and there, but she does want to see photos and she wants to visit him whenever we’ll allow her to. This weekend, she’s going to take him to the park for a few hours.

Finny rubs my arm. “He’ll be fine,” she says. “Kids need their parents’ love.” She looks sad all of a sudden. “Trust me.”

She hasn’t seen her own mother in a month. Every time she visited, the violence escalated. It wasn’t just against her; it was against everyone. They’re trying new meds, and it’s helping somewhat, but Finny isn’t going back until she can do so safely. Or at least I hope she’s not. I’d love for her mother to get better, just for Finny’s sake, but I’m not sure it’s going to happen.

Finny did decide to go to counseling, though, and she’s dealing with the memories of her mother, and the future with her mother, the best way she knows how.

Lark is standing on the sidewalk glaring at us when we come around the corner. “You’re late,” she says.

Finny jerks a thumb in my direction. “Blame Tag. He’s insatiable.”