Finding Faith (15 page)

Remembering the thickness of his cock rubbing at her center as they kissed, she felt her body start to respond to the memory of how good it felt. So powerful and strong, she gasped again as she remembered how he picked her up as if she weighed nothing. There was such power
in his body, but he kept it hidden behind the facade of a carefree dad, who just so happened to wear a suit every day. If she had anything to say about it, she would have that man in her bed soon. And once there, she would be damned if he would leave.
 

This was her moment. It would finally be her chance to find happiness, and she couldn’t wait.
 

Picking up the sounds of movement in the other room, she refocused on the task at hand. Making breakfast for the man she loved and the little girl that had stolen her heart.
 

 

“Daddy, Daddy! You had a sleepover with me and Ms. Faith!”
 

Cooper’s eyes came open just as his daughter launched herself onto his chest. “Oomph!” Wincing a little in pain as she landed on top of him, “Morning, princess.”
 

“We made pancakes and bacon and cheesy eggs. Ms. Faith said that cheesy eggs are the best, so I’m going to have a whole bunch,” her chatter continued even as Cooper lifted up from lying prone on the couch.
 

Damn, his back hurt like a motherfucker. Clearly he had gotten soft after being out of the military for so long. There were nights that he and his team had slept on the hard ground with little more than their rucksack as a pillow. He stretched his neck and twisted his back to loosen up the kinks. “Okay, honey, where’s Ms. Faith?”
 

“She’s in the kitchen. She told me to come wake you up, so I did,” she seemed proud that she could contribute. “Come on, Daddy. You have five minutes. Ms. Faith said.”
 

“Okay, I’m getting up now. I’ll be there in two minutes. How does that sound?”
 

“I’ll go tell her,” she said as she turned tail and ran back to the kitchen.
 

Lifting up from the couch, he stretched and walked to the guest bathroom. Thank goodness Faith was a smart girl. He was lucky that she had some of his clothes over here from their many visits and outings. Plus, she kept a cadre of toothbrushes for guests to use. Oh yeah, that woman of his was the real deal.
 

His woman? Yeah, she was. That became true the moment he laid eyes on her. It just took his brain and heart time to catch up.
 

As he walked into the kitchen, he heard their voices raised in song, singing one of those catchy tunes playing on the radio lately. Smiling at their antics as they set the table and as Faith brought over the hot food on platters. Next came the orange juice and coffee for them, and strawberry milk for Madison.
 

Faith was the first one to see him, “Good morning, Cooper. Hungry?”
 

“Starving,” he said while eyeing her, instead of the food on the table. Grinning at her like a wolf eyeing a tasty treat, he watched her eyes widen as she picked up on what he was saying. Mouthing, “soon baby,” in her direction, he turned to the table and saw Madison standing there looking so proud. “Everything looks really good. Did you help make this, munchkin?”
 

“I sure did, Daddy. I helped with the pancakes. Can you tell?”
 

Looking intently at the fluffy blueberry filled flapjacks, he exclaimed, “I sure can! Great job, honey.”
 

All of them sat down, with Faith saying grace. That done, they all dug into the food. Faith made Madison’s plate, only giving her a silver dollar size pancake, a small scoop of cheesy eggs, and one slice of bacon.
 

“How did you sleep,” he asked her once they had settled in to eat.
 

“It was wonderful, actually,” she responded after taking a drink of juice. “I woke up before both of you and started getting everything ready.” She eyed Madison and he picked up the hint that his little girl had not seen them lying together on the couch wrapped in each other’s arms.
 

“Ah, well, then I’m glad. So, what’s on tap for the day?”
 

“I have a little bit of work to do and some laundry,” Faith responded.
 

“Actually, I need to make a trip to see Heather’s parents. I forgot that I promised them that Madison and I would see them today.” Once he finished, he looked up at Faith’s face. He hadn’t forgotten their conversation last night and he was hoping she would understand that there was a difference in thinking of himself as married to someone who had passed, and keeping his daughter connected to both sides of her family. Maintaining balance for Madison was important.
 

“Faith—,” he began.
 

“No, it’s fine Cooper. I really do understand. This is important, for both you and Madison.” Her tentative smile reminded him that she had not forgotten their conversation, either. “Really. I understand. Don’t worry about it.”
 

“Ms. Faith, do you want to come with me to see my Mimi and Papi?” Out of the mouths of babes, Cooper almost cringed at the implications of taking Faith to his in-laws house.
 

“No, sweetie, not this time. I think this is a special day for you and your daddy.” Faith turned to him and gave a slight smile. “But I’ll be here when you get back, okay?”
 

“Okay.”
 

Cooper released a breath he didn’t realize he was holding. He definitely needed to deal with this. If he were ready to move on with life, his in-laws—no, his daughter’s grandparents, would just have to understand.
 

Damn, he was tired. His shoulders were tight and sore, the muscles screaming for relief. Stress was bearing down on him from all levels and there seemed to be no escape. His days were long and they weren't getting any easier. Plus, after his visit to his in-laws on Sunday, they had been calling him nonstop. Before he had a chance to explain to them about how things were changing with Faith, Madison had opened the floodgates.
 

“Mimi, me and daddy had a sleepover with Ms. Faith. And then we cooked breakfast and daddy said he could tell which ones I made and which ones Ms. Faith made,” she said innocently, unknowingly broaching a subject he hadn’t been sure he was ready to have at that moment, Madison went back to playing with her blocks.
 

Heather’s parents had stared at him in shock. His father-in-law looked at him for a few seconds, then glanced over at Heather’s mother and shook his head no. When Cooper looked at his mother-in-law, her lips were pursed in anger and her eyes had filled with tears.
 

What an uncomfortable conversation that had been. While Madison was outside playing with her grandfather on her swing set in their backyard, his mother-in-law had cornered him in the kitchen.
 

“Really, Cooper! What were you thinking? You slept with another woman with my granddaughter in the house?” Blinking back tears, she continued, “What would Heather think?”
 

That’s what hurt him the most. Not sure what Heather would think, he was simply trying to do what was best. For him and Madison. After all the years they had been together, he knew his wife and he was positive that she could find no fault in what he had done. Not once had he disrespected her, or her memory. If anything, his actions had kept her memory alive and well, probably to his own detriment.
 

Suffice it to say, that had not been a pleasant visit. While he explained the situation, which he didn’t really have to do in the first place, he knew that they still wondered if by moving on with Faith, he would forget about Heather. How could he? For the rest of his life, he would see her reflected in the eyes of his daughter.
 

Opening the back door of the vehicle, he unbuckled his little angel from her booster seat and helped her exit the truck. Once he placed her on the ground, he reached in for her pink, princess themed backpack. Turning back to his daughter, a smile graced his face as he watched her twirl around, her dress ballooning in the air, “Alright, Madison, let’s head in. Do you want spaghetti or meatloaf tonight?”
 

Pausing in place, she put her hands on her hips and tilted her head as if in deep thought, “Um, meatloaf, Daddy.” Answer given, she reached her arms up for him to lift her. Smiling down at the miniature image of his wife, he knew that she trusted that he would always be there for her and heaven help him, he hoped she never had to learn otherwise.
 

“Okay, honey. You got it. How was school today?” Making idle chatter as he held his little girl in his arms, he closed the car door with his foot, and walked to the front door. Walking up the front steps, he placed his daughter on the ground.
 

Fumbling in his pocket, he pulled out his keys so that he could unlock the door. All the while, his daughter had kept up her running commentary about her friends. It was amazing that someone so small could talk so much.
 

Thank goodness he had some vacation planned in the next few days. He needed a break from the craziness of this week. Four days of relaxation and hanging out with his daughter seemed like the right answer. Things were becoming even more hectic at work lately and being the head of finance at a medium sized marketing firm in Northern Virginia brought its own level of strain. This weekend, it would be all about him and his daughter, having fun.
 

Hearing Faith’s car pull into her driveway, he paused for a moment. Slowing down his efforts to enter his home before she stepped out of her car, he turned his body so that he was facing the direction of her home. It wasn’t very often that they both arrived home at the same time and he was somewhat surprised to see her. But now that she was here, his night was looking much better.
 

Madison's loud yelling pulled him away from his internal thoughts.
 

“Daddy! It’s Ms. Faith! I want to go see her.”
 

Looking down at his little girl pulling at his suit jacket, he smiled. “Yes, honey. Okay, let me get the door open and put our stuff down. Then we can go say hi to Faith. Okay?”
 

Looking across the yard, he watched his woman step out of her car and pull her briefcase out. It seemed as if she were in a world of her own and hadn’t even seen them. Just as she was closing the door and about to make her way into the house, Madison yelled out to her, “Ms. Faith! Come here!”
 

Laughing slightly at her demanding tone, Cooper tried to rein in his four-year old spitfire. “Honey, you know that’s not how you talk to Ms. Faith. You have to ask her nicely.”
 

“But why, Daddy? I want to see her.” She began jumping up down in excitement. Looking across the yard, he noticed that Faith had stopped to look at them as well. A huge smile split her face as she took in the sight of his daughter anxiously waiting to see her.
 

Placing her briefcase on the hood of her car, she slung her purse over her shoulder and began taking steps toward them. At the same time, Madison took off like a bolt of lightning across the grassy expanse between their two houses.
 

As soon as she was close enough, Madison launched herself toward Faith, arms spread wide and a grin bigger than the moon in the sky. Luckily, Faith had anticipated this and was able to bend down and position her body and open her arms, ready to catch the little girl as she flew into her arms.
 

Faith kissed the little girl's cheeks as she greeted her, “Hey there, princess. How was school today?”
 

Catching her gaze as she listened to his daughter talk a mile a minute, he noticed that Faith looked a bit more tired today than usual. Instantly, he became concerned. Seeing that look
on her face was not something he enjoyed. Not at all. Giving her a questioning look as their eyes met over his daughter’s head, he mouthed the words, “Everything okay?”
 

Faith began nodding her head slowly up-and-down, as if to say that she was fine. But then she changed motions and began shaking her head back and forth, letting him know that his instincts had been right. Something was definitely wrong. Almost stepping in to remove his daughter from her arms, she mouthed back to him, “I’m fine.”
 

She then turned her attention back to his daughter as they stood in the yard in between the two homes, the sun setting in the background and a light breeze flowing through the air. At that moment, Cooper knew that things had changed forever. That he was ready to let go. That building a life with the woman standing across from him was what he wanted most in this world.
 

His hands itched to reach out and touch her, to give her comfort. Suddenly, he had the feeling that he wanted to make love to her tonight. Feeling her move underneath him, above him, or even beside was all he could think about.