Total pages in book: 74
Estimated words: 72944 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 365(@200wpm)___ 292(@250wpm)___ 243(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 72944 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 365(@200wpm)___ 292(@250wpm)___ 243(@300wpm)
Eventually.
With the way Ashton liked to bury his head in the sand and avoid issues that made him uncomfortable, I wasn’t sure how long that would take. But I’d learned it was okay to push, so I was going to remember that and not let his nervousness affect me.
I was a good caretaker and I was going to remember that.
Even if it made both of us squirm.
But for the time being, it seemed like he thought we had everything worked out because he scooped up bubbles and more toys and shoved a pile of both at me.
Sharing was important, huh?
“Do good boys share?” I almost laughed when he nodded. “I thought so. You’re very good.”
And I was going to have to start making notes about everything I’d promised him.
Chocolates and bathtub toys had been just the tip of the iceberg, so my first new rule as his Daddy was to start writing bribes down.
“You’ve shared and ate your dinner and colored and used your diaper.” Mentioning that one had him scrunching up his face but he nodded after a moment. “That made you a very good boy.”
Making sure he understood all of those activities put him in the good boy category seemed important. Ashton had had plenty of time to hide from what he was curious about, so it was time to help him get used to talking about them.
Or at least hearing me talk about them.
“My good boy.” Kissing his cheek put me in range of being bubbled and I ended up covered in them. “Hey.”
The ones on my head started sliding down making me feel like Santa with oversized sideburns. When they ended up trailing down my shirt, I groaned and got more giggles from Ashton. “I’m glad you’re having fun.”
Stripping off my damp shirt got more giggles from him and was probably a strategic error on my part because I ended up with bubbles on my chest too.
“I’m not sure I needed decorations.” My dry response had him snorting around his binkie and his shoulders shook with laughter. “Oh, it’s funny, huh?”
Reaching into the tub, I braced him with one arm and tickled him with my other hand. “I’ll show you funny.”
He’d already used his diaper so it wasn’t about pushing him, but he loved being tickled no matter the reason. He laughed so much, his binkie ended up in the tub. “Oopsie.”
Pausing tickle time as he sagged back into my arm and pouted, I went fishing. “I have more quiet toys. But we’ll find this one. It’s not the bottom of the ocean.”
Hmm.
Well, it wasn’t a binkie but it was a cute fish.
“Not the quiet toy but a cute fish.” Giving his fish a little wiggle, I pushed it up through the bubbles and found my prize. “Got it.”
Ashton’s giggles came back as he made gimmie fingers at his binkie. My expression probably didn’t help the situation. “No. You need a clean one.”
I wasn’t going to debate the logic of it considering where his mouth had been on a regular basis, but in my head it was insane. Ashton seemed to think it was the funniest thing he’d ever heard and just kept snickering as I rolled my eyes. “If you can be a good boy, I’ll go get a clean one.”
We probably had very different definitions of good boy, especially in the tub, but he looked fairly sincere as he nodded. Hoping that meant he’d be careful and wouldn’t drown, I got up and nearly sprinted to the shelf with his other little goodies on it.
“I’m coming. You’d better be good.” Or I’d do something…what I didn’t know. “Are you being a good boy?”
Maybe.
He was fishing.
And giggling.
And his fish was having a good time.
Well, I had promised a variety of rewards.
“You caught the fish.” His wicked snicker was quickly muffled by his new quiet toy, but that didn’t stop him from waving his fish at me. “It’s a big one.”
That was hilarious too and encouraged him to hold his fish tighter.
“I think your fish needs to be washed, though.” There were lots of bits that needed to be washed, but since it’d be the most fun, it seemed like the right place to start. “I get to wash since I’m in charge.”
He was happy to delegate that task and laid back in the tub, sending a tidal wave of water crashing through his tub animals’ ecosystem. “Tsunami. Be careful.”
Ashton’s giggles sent another dangerous wave through his world but it was saved as focusing on his fish became more important than being a world-destroying monster. “He’s a very happy fish.”
I was the funniest person Ashton had ever met.
I was also very generous with the soap and ended up with a wonderfully slippery hand to clean his fish. “You’re going to have a very happy and very clean fish.”