Page 120 of The Games We Play

Clutch laughs, and I elbow him in the ribs. “You’re right. I did. I’m sorry.” I hand her the chips. “Make sure you share them. Tell Archer I got some green beans just for him.” The kid still hates the V-word. Wait ’til later when he sees what I got him.

“When is your missus supposed to be getting here?” Clutch asks.

I glance down at the time on my phone. “Any minute. Takes time to get your hair cut when you have curls like hers apparently.”

“How d’you go from being a badass vet with medals and tours of duty to knowing about how hard your girl’s haircut is?”

I glance over at him. “You’re telling me you don’t know random shit about Gwen?”

He tips back the rest of his beer. “Fair. I know she prefers gel nails to acrylics.”

“Fuck me,” Vex says from his seat to the right of where we are standing. “You two have become the most insufferably boring brothers.”

“Insufferableis a big fucking word, Vex,” Clutch says.

Iris and her best friend, Kasey, choose that moment to turn the corner into the lot, and her kids go fucking wild. Screaming and jumping and waving and shit.

I take a deep breath; Clutch makes a show of straightening my cut, so I punch him in the shoulder. Then I walk towards her. “You look real fucking pretty,” I say, as I pull her close and kiss her. The cool, pale-blue cotton of her dress bunches beneath my hands.

Her kids make all kinds of groans and squeals.

“Mr. Spark just kissed Miss O’Connor,” someone shouts, and it’s followed by giggles.

I can’t help but grin against Iris’s lips.

“What is all this?” Iris asks. Her eyes are wide with joy, and what I really want to do is take her inside my room and fuck her all afternoon.

“A surprise for you. I got something for your class.”

King and Switch bring the table out with my present.

“Cuts. For your club.”

She runs her fingers over one of the small cuts I had made for her class. Then she lifts one and looks at the back. “Miss O’Connor’s Club?” she asks.

“Your club. And after talking to all the kids’ parents, and combining that with what I know of them, I gave them all road names.”

“You did not,” she declares, flipping the cut so she can see. “Veggies?”

I turn to the kids. “Archer, come here.”

He steps up, and I tip my chin to Iris. “Miss O’Connor has something for you,” I say.

Iris looks at me like I just gave her the world on a plate for the cost of a few pieces of leather. Then she gives the cut to Archer, who grins, then runs to stand next to me.

“Now I’m like you, Mr. Spark,” he says, and my heart bursts. I stroke the kid’s hair while Iris lifts the next one.

“Brains,” she says. “That must be Thema.”

“I got Brains, Momma,” she yells as she runs to Iris and throws her arms around her. “Thank you, Miss O’Connor.

“Well, it’s true,” Iris whispers, touching the little girl’s cheek. “You’re the smartest kid I’ve ever taught.”

Thema blushes but comes to stand the other side of me, slipping her hand into mine. And, yeah, I hold onto that sweet little thing.

“What did I get?” yells Jadyn.

I wink at him. “You’re just going to have to wait your turn.”