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Daddy's Danger Delight
By Whiskey McNaughton
Copyright 2011 by Whiskey McNaughton
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Published by Crescent Suns eBooks on Smashwords
Formatted by ebooksmade4you@gmail.com
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All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are either the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners.
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Daddy’s Danger Delight
Chapter one
“Okay, baby, last time and you go to sleep. Patty-cake, patty-cake, baker’s men…” Ellie repeated the silly words of the nursery rhyme as she tickled her fingers over the face and shoulders of her son, watching him giggle as she ended up with pinching the tip of his nose, then kissing him on the tip of his nose and tucking him into bed.
“Night buster-boy,” she said to him, standing and crossing over to the light switch near the door. She was so glad that at eleven years old he hadn’t grown out of their nightly ritual as she tucked him into bed. She knew one night he would and that would be so sad, though she would also be happy her little boy was growing up.
“Night mom,” Jimmy said, smiling at her as she flicked the switch and the lights went out. She closed the door softly after her and sighed.
In the kitchen her husband, Lee, was just finishing up the dishes. Ellie walked in and wrapped her arms about his waist, hugging her body to his. “I love it when you do the dishes and I don’t have to.”
“Hey, we’re in this together, right?” Lee rinsed his hands, grabbed the dish towel rumpled up by the dishes in the drainer and dried his hands. Then he turned around and wrapped his arms around Ellie’s body so they joined in with their hugging. They stood that way for a minute when suddenly Ellie pulled back, her face no longer happy. She looked up into her husband’s face.
“You’re going out, aren’t you?” Her voice was hard, but not angry; flat, emotionless. Her arms grew stiff and she dropped them to her sides.
“Babe, it’s work. You know I have to go.” He tried to take hold of her and resume their hugging, but she pushed him away. He stared blankly at her as she walked into the living room and sat down on one end of the sofa, her hands folded between her legs as she stared blankly at nothing.
“I won’t be gone long,” he sat beside her, placing one of his hands on top of hers. She didn’t pull away this time. What was the use? She couldn’t change his mind.
“You don’t know that,” she barely said, her lips hardly moving.
“It’s local. How long can it take?” He tried to sound upbeat, but he knew she wasn’t buying it. Lee sighed, kissed the top of her head and walked over to the hall closet. He withdrew his light-weight jacket, since the weather was cool, but not cold this early in the year. Soon the rain would start, but not yet.
“I’ll be back shortly,” he said as he walked out and pulled the door closed behind him. For long minutes Ellie sat staring into empty space until tears began leaking from the corners of her eyes and slowly ran along her cheeks. She stood and went to bed. No sense in waiting up. He might be home late. He might not be home at all.
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