Eliza bursts into laughter.“Both!”
I lean against the edge of the counter and soak them in—my mate and our four-year-old daughter.She has his dark hair and my green eyes, and she already bosses him around like a seasoned general.Not that he minds.Jensen adores her.He adores both of our girls.
“You’re early.Couldn’t wait to see us?”I tease, walking over to kiss his cheek.
He tugs me close for a proper one, sliding an arm around my waist.“Always.Finished my shift early.Harris took over the last hour.I wanted to see my girls and steal a few more minutes with my mate.”
“You’re smooth,” I murmur, smiling against his lips.
“I try.”He lowers his voice.“You should see what I have planned for tonight.”
“Gross,” Mabel calls from the storeroom.“I don’t want to hear about your matey shenanigans while I’m trying to count clay.”
Jensen chuckles as Eliza wiggles in his arms.“What about June?Is she ready?”
“She’s in the back room playing with Luke.Miles dropped him off this morning.”I pause.“Brace yourself.She found the glitter again.”
He winces.“That’s going to end up in my truck again, isn’t it?”
“Probably.”
Jensen heads for the kids’ area, and I turn back to the counter, where Mabel is emerging with a clipboard and a frustrated sigh.
“We’re low on watercolor pads and that weird biodegradable glitter,” she says, wrinkling her nose.“Why are we selling glitter that disintegrates when wet?”
“Because parents begged us to after Luke dumped regular glitter in the toilet, and it looked like a unicorn crime scene,” I remind her.
She snorts.“That’s right.Miles still swears there’s glitter in his tool bag.”
“There probably is.”I grin, glancing around the shop as I make a note on the restock list.
Howl & Hueis everything we dreamed of and more.We teach art classes, host after-school programs, and sell supplies to locals and tourists.The front of the store is filled with sunlight and color, with art hanging from every surface.The back is our workshop and studio.And it’s right down the street from our houses.
When Mabel and I pitched the idea of converting the old bakery into an art store, the pack rallied around us.Ryker offered the building for next to nothing, Griffin and the other members helped us renovate it, and our mates… Well, they insisted on doing all the heavy lifting.Not that we complained.
“Ready, squirt?”Jensen asks as he reemerges holding a paint-smeared toddler with my fiery red curls and his blue eyes.June clings to a purple dragon plushie and beams at me.
“Bye, Mama!Love you!”
“Love you, too, baby,” I call after her.
Mabel steps around the counter and kisses the top of Luke’s head.“Be good for Daddy.”
Jensen grins.“See you both later.”
“Can’t wait!”I shout as they head out.
He winks, then leans close to whisper, “I’ll have them back in two hours.Then you and I have a date in the woods.”
My breath catches.He’s been planning a surprise for our anniversary all week, and I have no idea what it is.I just know it involves a blanket, a picnic, and no tiny humans.
“Don’t be late,” I whisper.
He nods, then disappears out the front with the girls in his arms.
The door closes behind them, and the shop feels quieter.Calmer.
Mabel exhales next to me.“Is it weird that I still get butterflies when Miles comes to pick up Luke?”
