Becca pulled her white Rav4 into the driveway and checked to see if her children were asleep.
"Okay kiddos, we're home," she called after spying her eight-year-old, Charlie, lost in an iPad and Brian, her two-year-old, staring blankly out the window. She grabbed a bag of groceries from the passenger seat, then unbuckled and hoisted Brian from his car seat.
"Is daddy home?" Charlie asked during their ascent to the front door?
"I don't know, sweetie."
Becca carried the little one on her ample left hip. A brunette ponytail wagged behind her white athletic top and twirled into a delicate half-curl near the small of her back. Black yoga pants hugged her posterior. Becca was 5'2" and, at 130 pounds, she had blossomed from an average young lady into a full-figured woman.
The trio crested the final steps and opened the front door. Leaning against the kitchen counter through the entryway was Becca's husband, Kyle. He looked up from a stack of junk mail and smiled at his family.
Kyle had just turned 37 years old and he wore his middle-age like a gentleman. His wavy black hair was neatly trimmed and, in places, speckled with greys and whites. Light stubble covered his strong jaw and surrounded his full lips. His lean build and 6'1" frame were complimented by a fitted red t-shirt and snug jeans. A dark complexion and brown eyes betrayed his Italian descent.
"DAAADDYYYY!" Brian cried out from behind his yellow pacifier. The toddler squirmed and lurched until Becca half dropped him on the floor. His little bare feet made soft thuds across the kitchen tile as he careened into his stooping father.
"Hello there, little monster," Kyle said, beaming at his son, "have you been nice to mommy today?"
Kyle flicked quick glances at Becca as he bounced the boy in the air. She had placed the bag of groceries on the counter and was stretching to place a can on the top shelf. As she stretched, a sliver of tanned stomach peeked out between her white top and black pants. Kyle's eyes found a faint seam of abdominal muscle and followed it down until it disappeared below her waistline.
Picking up on his coded question about Brian's behavior, Becca turned her head to conceal her grin. Some days, raising two kids full-time took all the fire out of Becca, no matter how hard Kyle fanned the flames. Luckily for them both, today wasn't one of those days.
"Don't worry, Daaaaddy," Becca said, mocking her son's voice, "your little monster took a monstrously long nap today."
Becca closed the cabinet and wheeled around to find Kyle's quick glances had become a hungry stare. His eyes danced upon her various parts and he seemed unaware that he was still holding a flailing child. The muscles in his forearms rippled as he shifted with the boy's thrashes. Feigning calm, she raised an eyebrow and smiled.
I'm going to go take a shower and change clothes. Maybe you can man the crew until I'm done?"
Before he could answer, Becca turned playfully and swished her wide hips out of the room, a mix of model strut and goofy teenage girl prance. She felt Kyle's eyes burning a hole in her pants and she began removing her top while rounding the hallway corner.
"Change into what?" Kyle asked, hopefully.
"Oh, I'm thinking something blue..." Becca's voice trailed off into the back of the house.
Kyle's face lit before he buried it into Brian's pudgy belly, his growls and gummed nibbles coaxing feverish kicks and giggles from the toddler.
For the half hour while Becca bathed, Kyle tried his best to keep the house from being destroyed. He followed the raucous pair from room to room, picking up nerf darts, replacing couch cushions and occasionally playing base for the two-year-old. When the mob would erupt toward the back of the house, Kyle could just detect the scent of Becca's special bath salts creeping from their master bath.
Their lives had become quite structured in the near-decade since becoming parents, a stark difference from their pre-children existence. They had become a volatile pair in the early years, their initial spark spreading quickly to a burning passion. They often found themselves insatiable at the most innocuous places, and Becca's ability to tease and postpone Kyle's advances were all that kept them from sprinting to the nearest public restroom or secluded ally. Despite her talents, there were still two restaurants in town they were too embarrassed to revisit.