Dad Bod Secret Santa (Dad Bod Christmas)

Chapter 6

CHAPTER 6

HANK

I settle in my chair at the long, well-worn table in Jax’s office at The Lodge, surrounded by Ace, Ethan, Jordan, Luke, and Damien—the guys I work with up here on Silver Pine Ridge. Jax sits at the head of the table, relaxed but sharp-eyed as always. Waylon is right beside him, his dark eyes intense, his energy radiating around the room. He taps his fingers thoughtfully against a manila folder.

“So,” Waylon begins, leaning forward, “I’ve been giving some thought to expanding what we do with Creek Ravine.”

A murmur goes up around the table. We only recently learned about Creek Ravine—most of us couldn’t identify the area on a map. When we discovered that a King had regained possession of the entire mountain, we weren’t sure what would happen with us here on Silver Pine Ridge. But so far, he’s mostly left us to continue living as we have been.

Jax strokes his beard and nods. “What do you have in mind?”

Waylon pauses a moment before answering, taking the time to look at each of us in turn. “My buddy, Jake, over at Ghost Security has been brainstorming with me. We’ve talked about adding a couple of small cabins around Silver Pine Ridge to serve as safe houses. They’ve had some clients recently who need extra protection, and I want to help provide that. I also respect that you all have been up here for a while, doing your own things. I’m here to talk about if you all would be on board with this and if you think it’s feasible with what else you have going on.”

Jax asks questions about funding for building the cabins and who will be responsible for them. After Waylon answers all his questions, Jax eventually nods. “That all sounds reasonable and doable to me. If you vouch for Jake and Ghost Security, that’s enough for me—if it’s enough for my men.”

We all nod in agreement.

Jax nods at Waylon. “Looks like we don’t have to discuss this further. Waylon, we’re in to help with this. You got a timeline for getting the cabins built and operational?”

Waylon sits back in his chair, clearly relieved we agreed. It’s his mountain, so he can do whatever he damn well pleases, but it speaks volumes that he includes us in decisions. “That’s exactly what I hoped to hear. Thank you, all of you. Jax,” he says, turning, “I’ll put you in contact with Jake, and we can work out all the logistics together. I don’t imagine it’ll take too long to build a couple of cabins once the weather warms up.”

I nod, satisfied that this is a project we’re going to handle. Protecting and helping people is the core of who I am as a man, same as everyone sitting at this table. We all served in the military—most of us in the Army, though Ace is an outlier and was a Navy SEAL—so protecting others is baked into the soul of who we are.

Jax fills Waylon in on how the Christmas tree farm is going and how it’s doing better than we projected, which pleases Waylon.

“Word got out that it was a fundraiser for Warrior Cares, and people have been coming from all over Heartland to get a tree and support the cause. We’ve been busy as hell,” Jax says, nodding toward me.

“That’s good work,” Waylon says. “Let’s plan on making this a yearly thing.”

The thud of darts hitting the board punctuates our conversation as we wind down from the meeting. Jordan’s winning, as usual. I take a pull from my beer, letting the familiar comfort of The Lodge wash over me.

“Your turn, Hank,” Ace calls, holding out a set of darts.

I push off from the bar and line up my shot. As I throw my dart, Cody clears his throat.

“So... that crush of yours still staying at your place?”

My dart hits the wall a good three inches from the board. “Goddamit! Really?”

Damien snickers and leans back in his chair.

“She has a name,” I mutter, retrieving the dart. “It’s Maggie.”

“Maggie,” Jordan echoes, drawing out the syllables. “The one whose power went out?”

“The one whose daughter is best friends with Vivian,” I correct, though I’m not sure why I’m engaging. I know all this bullshitting is par for the course, but it hits differently when it’s about someone you truly care for. It’s not like shooting the shit about the one-night stands some of these guys brag about. There are things you don’t say about women you want a shot at building a future with. “Maggie is not up for discussion.”

“Ooh, defensive.” Cody elbows Damien. “Must be serious.”

I line up another dart, trying to ignore them. It lands closer to the bullseye this time, but not by much.

“Have you made a move yet?” Jordan asks.

“We’re not in high school,” I say, but my mind flashes to the way Maggie looked this morning, sleep-rumpled and beautiful in my kitchen. Then I remember last night, the way we fooled around in the front seat of my truck. That felt a lot like high school—getting out of the house so you could have a few precious minutes with the woman who makes your heart race and your cock stand at attention.

“That’s a no,” Damien declares. “Come on, man. You’ve got a gorgeous woman staying in your house-”

“With her daughter,” I interrupt. “And my daughter.”

“Still.” Cody offers me a fresh beer, but I wave it away. “You’re not getting any younger, buddy.”

“Thanks for that.” I wince. It’s not like I’m geriatric, but time marches on. I’m not the man I was before I had Vivian. I’ve got lines on my face and a bit of a gut. There isn’t anything I would change, but I know some women would look right past me. Maggie hasn’t, and she’s the only woman who matters.

“He’s right,” Ace chimes in. “And she clearly likes you if she can put up with staying with your sorry ass.”

I whirl around. “Watch your mouth,” I snap. “You’re out of line.”

“Easy, easy,” Ace says, throwing up his hands. “Didn’t mean to offend your delicate sensibilities…”

“We care about your happiness, Hank,” Jax says smoothly, helping to defuse things.

“Yeah, well, care a little quieter,” I mutter, but I’m not really angry. These guys have had my back through everything—Karen leaving, learning to be a single dad, all of it. It dawns on me that perhaps they’re not the best bunch to talk about Maggie with. Maybe one day, they’ll all understand when they find the woman who takes your breath away with a single glance.

“At least tell us if you’re going to get serious about her,” Jordan prods. “We deserve at least that much.”

“Maybe,” I say noncommittally.

“Maybe?” Cody groans, rolling his eyes with a theatrical skill my daughter could appreciate. “That’s all we get?”

I take my last shot. This one hits the bullseye. “That’s all you get.”

Damien laughs. “Never thought I’d see the day.”

“Look,” I say, setting down the darts. “Maggie’s...special. I care about her. I don’t want to gossip about her.”

The men are all silent for a long moment, which is rare enough with them.

“Well, damn,” Ace says finally. “He’s got it bad.”

“Speaking of,” I say, grabbing my coat. “I’m calling it early tonight. I’ll catch you all tomorrow.”

“Going home to the missus?” Cody teases.

“Don’t make me fire you.”

“You can’t fire me. Only Jax can fire me.”

Jax raises his beer. “Don’t tempt me.”

I shrug into my coat and head out. I have another date with Leo’s workshop. I’m nearly done with my gift for Maggie.

“Hey,” Jax says quietly. “I get it, you know. Why you’re being careful.”

I pause, hand on the doorknob. “Yeah?”

“After Karen...I understand taking your time and being careful. Doing it right.” He squeezes my shoulder.

“Thanks, Jax.” I mean it.

“Now go on,” he says louder. “Get out of here before these idiots start planning your wedding.”

Behind us, someone—probably Ace—hums the wedding march. I flip them off without turning around, their laughter following me into the night.

I sit for a moment in my truck, letting the engine warm up. They mean well, I know that.

My phone buzzes. A text from Leo: Shop’s warm.

On my way. I’ll bring beer.