Turning on her side, Stephanie tucked both hands beneath her cheek and stared at the man she shared a bed and so much more with.

A smile quivered on her lips. Calder Dane was a hot piece of ass. He single-handedly gave new meaning to the term sexy senior. Just to mess with her, he flashed an AARP card when they went to Applebee’s in Sedona, insisting that the senior citizen’s discount was simply a smart financial move.

Her quivering smile bloomed into a wide grin.

First of all, the damn card wasn’t even his! She didn’t know why he was running around with Cristián’s card, but that was beside the point.

Second, they had the baby with them. Pulling a senior citizen stunt meant people assumed Wolfie was their grandbaby!

And last, but by no means least, of all the things they concerned themselves with, financial issues barely made the list. She still remembered Tori saying Calder had deep pockets and possibly owned an island—that was back when matchmaking was the comedy du jour. The island was a fantasy, but the deep pockets? Not so much.

He turned the occasion into a tour de force that had her cracking up and scolding him at the same time. And then he took her home, fed the baby, put Wolfie to bed, and then spoiled her rotten by taking it upon himself to redefine sex after fifty.

She sighed happily. Being Mrs. Calder Dane did not suck.

Her sexy man shifted. His morning voice gave her the tingles.

“Do I pass inspection, Mrs. Dane?”

“Exceeds expectations, Mr. Dane.”

His sleepy smile made her weak at the knees. He turned and mirrored her position with both hands beneath his cheek.

They simultaneously blurted out, “I love you,” and then chuckled softly.

“Are you excited for our weekend?” The Dane grin, the one she saw every day on her baby’s face, was the backdrop for this question. Calder’s delight was plainly obvious. So was his new father uncertainty.

She found it funny that everyone expected her to be reluctant to leave Wolfie, but the truth of the matter was quite different. Having already raised a child, Stephanie knew they weren’t abandoning their son for the weekend. Calder, however, was the one with separation anxiety.

If he got any cuter, why, she didn’t know what she’d do!

“With Carmen and her cold spewing germs everywhere, thank goodness Tori stepped up. She is on cloud nine about having her brother spend a few days with her and the boys. It will be a party, I’m sure.” She sniggered while snuggling closer. “Brody has the dogs all set up with deluxe accommodations, and Bella has promised to oversee the stable while I’m gone.”

Her husband’s deep snort of laughter warmed Stephanie’s heart.

“So yes, Moondoggie, I’m looking forward to a couple of days alone with your sexy butt in a five-star hotel.”

She thoroughly enjoyed the warm, manly leg that slid between her thighs and wiggled around until the placement was perfect. From her perspective as an accomplished rider and winner of a drawer full of rodeo buckles, there was a lot to recommend about morning bronco antics.

“He’ll be fine,” she murmured against his ear. “His sister will take care of him.” Feathering her fingers through his thick hair, Stephanie placed a soft, gentle kiss on his lips.

“I know.” His big hand mapping her bare ass accompanied the assurance. “We need time alone, and it’ll be good for him to have his own adventures.”

“Aw, shugah. I’m so tickled to hear you put it that way! I want our son’s whole life to be an adventure. Sleepovers and away camps, maybe even a trip to the stars.”

“It’s just weird,” he grumbled. “I like the parenting thing.”

“You are a wonderful father. Wonderful.”

They kissed because that was what they always did. Kissing was their thing, and she could see herself forgetting about almost everything while her husband’s lips devoured hers.

Things were going really great. Wolf was healthy, happy, and growing like a weed. Becca was working out to be a genius find. The woman was a smart, capable, and competent assistant. Despite the ongoing security situation, Family Justice was thriving. Their weekend getaway came just days before they were jetting off to Colorado for a few weeks. Lacey and Cam had purchased a vacation cabin not far from theirs, so a week or so later, all of them would be together enjoying autumn in the mountains. Calder wisely realized that before the craziness of traveling, followed by the start of the holiday season, Angie’s due date, and the Jensen New Year’s wedding, they needed some alone time.

“I have to drop by the Villa later. There are some issues with moving Alex’s previous security systems off his plate and into the new setup.”

She knew what he was talking about. Victoria had explained that the elaborate, individualized systems Alex had developed for an astronomical sum were great and all, but as time went on, he felt trapped by the technology. Instead of the installation being the end of it, upgrades, hardware issues, and everything else under the sun kept drawing him back. He’d been grumbling about being a glorified IT guy and took offense at the perception that he had nothing better to do than maintain shit long after his responsibility ended.

“A Justice nerd crew?” she asked with a playful snicker.

Calder smirked. “Yep, pretty much. A band of geeks spread around the country to troubleshoot Justice installations. Your daughter insisted there be diversity in the crew, so we put together a team that looks like an ad for the United Nations.”

“What’s your involvement?”

With a heavy sigh, he replied, “I’d wipe Alex’s ass if it meant he could do nothing but concentrate on the bigger picture.”

Snuggling into her husband’s body, Stephanie responded by offering whatever comfort she could, and murmured, “I don’t know how much more everyone can take.”

“I know. Something has to give soon.”

“Will we have security in Scottsdale?”

Calder’s arms tightened. “Yes. It’s all arranged.”

The heaviness in her gut was all the reminder she needed that shit was off the hook.

And speaking of her gut, a gnawing hunger was making her uncomfortable. Her mind traipsed through the fridge and concluded that last night’s leftover Thai food would make a yummy breakfast. Two seconds later, she gagged at the thought and switched to Cheerios and a banana.

A snuffling cry told them that Wolfie was awake and starting his day with a complaint. Her son absolutely hated being wet. The number of diapers they went through was staggering and earned the Dane household the Junior Justice badge of dryness.

“My turn,” her hunky hubs drawled. Calder kissed her shoulder and bit her earlobe. “Daddy has diaper duty. I want you to plant your sweet ass in the kitchen and eat something. Got it?”

What the hell? Had he heard her stomach rumble? How did he always know when she was uncomfortable no matter what the reason?

Stephanie didn’t bother to push back. What was the point? He was right. She needed some food in her stomach—stat.

On the hunt for Alex, Meghan pulled the elastic from her messy ponytail and finger fluffed her hair as she searched all the usual spots only to come up empty.

With the family wing of the house in utter turmoil as Caleb and his team finished up the redesign, they were constantly being shooed from one area to the next. She’d be damn glad when it was over, and she could get back control of her home.

Her home. She sighed and remembered where she was. The Villa de Valleja-Marquez. And she was the lady who held the keys.

The faint sound of baby giggles drew her toward Alex’s study. The once mind-numbingly boring man space was going through a transformation since the twin’s arrival. After letting her husband make a total shitshow mess of the room after deciding to make it a second office, she’d put a stop to his absent-minded madness, and in the span of four days, she’d pulled off an HGTV-style makeover. Now the warm, cozy space was efficient for when he was doing Justice stuff, had a nook for his crazy projects, and a cute little comfort zone with a swivel recliner for her big, hunky husband to relax in.

The things they managed to do in that recliner had the power to make her blush, and that was saying a lot, considering the level of naughty kink in their marriage. She wasn’t complaining. Far from it. Being mated to a ferociously sexual man with a wicked inner beast was simply everything. The rest of it—the house, the kids—were all a result of their powerful intimate bond. Without the first, there wouldn’t be seconds, thirds, or anything. At the center of everything, it was just them.

Quietly peeking around the corner and into the study, she gave a short gasp, bit her lip, covered her mouth, and felt the, “Aww,” that she didn’t say.

Alex was sitting on the coffee table in the comfort zone. At his feet, Aiden and Stevie rolled around on the carpet as they shrieked and giggled—to their father’s delight.

He noticed her right away. His sexy smile melted her bones. With a finger to his lips and a slight motion with one hand, he told her to be still and watch. Studying the twins was practically their favorite activity. They were endlessly fascinating.

Stevie was wearing a pink onesie with ruffles around her chubby thighs and on her butt. Her feet were bare, and her daddy was holding the stretchy headband she’d had on earlier.

Aiden was Aiden. His onesie was from an ever-growing selection of Harry Potter baby clothes that her husband kept buying. Today’s outfit said “Future Gryffindor” and featured the Gryffindor lion.

A twin ballet unfolded as she watched. Aiden would gurgle and grunt. His little feet smacked the floor and occasionally, his sister. Stevie turned red with giggles.

Then they’d wiggle around a bit, and it was her daughter’s turn to gurgle and squeak as though telling a hilarious story. Only when Stevie kicked her feet, she really kicked, giving her brother a jolt that moved his whole body and got him howling with laughter.

Alex looked at her and smirked.

The giggling had barely died down while they rolled around, bumped, giggled, and rolled around some more. At one point, Aiden gnawed on his sister’s arm, and all she did was laugh hysterically.

When they were side by side and looking at each other, the real communication began. Aiden sucked his thumb while Stevie squeaked and made all the sounds in her baby arsenal. Her brother laughed around his thumb.

After a bit, Aiden abandoned his thumb and smacked both hands on his sister. A pouty wobble made Stevie’s mouth quiver, but she didn’t cry. Aiden had the floor, so she listened with rapt attention. His style was more cave boy. He had an adorable grunt that signaled both delight and annoyance. Luckily, he saved his Tarzan yell for real emergencies, like poopy diapers and anytime Stevie was in a snit.

They went back and forth in this charming conversation. It was so cute that tears swam in her eyes. Looking at her husband, she could see he was equally affected.

And then, in the blink of an eye, Miss Stevie was done with her brother and kicked the ever-loving shit out of his legs. After that ensued a foot kick duel as they rolled and chased each other around the carpet. They were becoming increasingly mobile and could cover a large space in a short time.

Hmm, she thought. Maybe soccer was in her daughter’s future. The girl had a wicked foot.

Her son, however, let all of them know what he thought of his sister’s Beckham qualities when he managed to capture her foot and proceeded to chomp down on her toes. Aiden was exceedingly oral—like his daddy.

Meghan enjoyed the show and entered the room with some mild applause and a big smile. Both babies whipped their heads in her direction when she made her presence known.

“Nicely done, Aiden,” she quipped.

Alex looked at her and grinned. “Madam”—he smirked—“our daughter is no lady.”

She burst out laughing and bent to kiss him as the babies cooed and gurgled. Perfect moments like this required kissing. Lots of it.

“What’s on your agenda today?” she asked.

“More of the same. Although there’s a band meeting this afternoon. Delilah finally ponied up the battle rules, and Finn has ’em. We’re gonna smoke those fucking Chixie Dicks.”

“Did you know Pete’s had five hundred wristbands printed? That’s a lot of people.” She shook her head, amazed that so many folks gave a shit about a bunch of grown men engaging in a battle of the bands.

“Yup and it’s causing a massive security headache for Duke. Thankfully, Finn’s new outdoor pavilion and the event tent for the concert will be secured. Metal detectors, the whole deal. It’ll rival anything the Secret Service has done.”

“Oh, you know what? That reminds me,” she blurted out. “I almost forgot. I’m organizing the holiday card list. One for family and another for Justice business. Group photo, by the way, right after Halloween. I’ll send you the details. Anyway, I was wondering about Berger. Which list does he go on?”

Alex looked at her and blinked. “Who?”

Her laughter at a joke that would never get old mingled with her husband’s amused snorts. The twins joined in, and together, they created the Marquez family giggle choir.