Total pages in book: 54
Estimated words: 51210 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 256(@200wpm)___ 205(@250wpm)___ 171(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 51210 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 256(@200wpm)___ 205(@250wpm)___ 171(@300wpm)
This room would be her nursery. She scooted across the thick carpet to check out the next box. The picture showed a woman sitting on a man’s lap in a wooden rocker that matched the crib. A reminder in a bright red square said, “Don’t forget the padding for comfort.”
A bit of plastic bag showed behind the large box. Saylor peeked and found a clear package that contained cushions with a repeating pattern of adorable underwater creatures. Tracing the octopus, Saylor wiggled with happiness. Just wait until Tapper saw it!
Deciding she couldn’t wait, Saylor jumped to her feet and raced toward the door. A shimmer of silver stopped her. She backed up and looked carefully at the wall. Something was there. Moving closer, she scanned the paint for the faintest trace of pencil.
What was that? Max had drawn a figure. She shook her head as she solved the mystery when her gaze reached the bottom and spotted a tail—a mermaid. Smiling widely, Saylor scanned up the body. Now that she recognized what she was looking at, she could see the seashell bra, a crown, and what had to be a pearl necklace. Freezing, she stared at the face. It was her.
He’d captured a look of happiness on her features that illustrated how talented he was. The art teacher inside Saylor celebrated his skill and hoped she’d helped him at least a bit in her classes. Each week, she’d seen his talent grow. He absorbed every new bit of information she shared like a sponge. The type of student teachers dream of having in class.
The little girl inside her celebrated in an entirely different way. She ran for her phone and took a picture. Finding the right angle to capture the drawing was tricky. She’d almost given up when she snapped a good one.
Saylor sank to the carpet, staring at the artwork. He’d made her a mermaid for her nursery. Her nursery. He’d created this for her. Not for the little girl he hoped to meet someday. Max had waited until he’d found her to decide what to do in here.
Wanting to make this room part of him as well, Saylor scanned the space. She turned her back to the mermaid and decided on the wall space directly across from the mermaid. That spot was next to the closet. An idea popped into mind. Rising to her feet, Saylor dashed to grab a pencil from the box of art supplies she’d brought from her condo.
She worked feverishly to capture the way Max looked at her. When a shiver of delight ran down her spine, Saylor knew she couldn’t change a thing. The house was completely dark except for the overhead light in her nursery. She stood back to study her work. Max, the merman, leaned against the closet trim. His arms crossed over his broad, manly chest. Those thick, muscular thighs she delighted in sitting on formed a powerful tail.
Picturing it in her mind, Saylor knew immediately how she needed to paint Max. On a whim, she added one more figure to the wall. Tapper waved his tentacles to Saylor’s mermaid across the room as he whispered to her daddy. Together, the decorations would be absolutely enchanting. Saylor spun in a circle, dancing with happiness.
“Just what I hoped to find. My little girl feeling better.” Max’s deep voice wrapped around her as Saylor skidded to a stop.
“Daddy!” She ran toward him and leapt into his arms to scatter kisses all over him. About four kisses in, his body odor registered on her. Pinching her nose, she couldn’t stop the “Ewww!”
“Baby girl, I’m surprised you didn’t smell me when I got out of Hank’s truck in the driveway. Let’s go get me clean. These clothes need about four trips through the washing machine.” He set her feet gently down on the carpet. “I thought about hosing myself off in the yard, but I couldn’t wait to see you.”
“You’re okay, Daddy. I’m sorry.” She let go of her nose and immediately clamped it again as her eyes watered.
“You should have smelled six of us in the transport helicopter. The pilot threatened to drop us in the ocean.”
“He wouldn’t have!” Saylor protested, absolutely appalled.
“No, baby. He wouldn’t do that. He is probably still flying around with the doors open to air it out. Come with me.”
Max led her to the laundry room, and he stripped off his fatigues, T-shirt, and socks. Quickly, he poured a lot of soap into the machine and set it on the hottest, longest cycle. “Me, next.”
Walking into the shower, he turned on the water. When she pulled her shirt over her head, he instructed, “Stay out here for a minute, baby. I don’t want to splash you with dirty water. I’m sorry, I should have showered on base, but I wanted to get home to you.”