The Landlord

Chapter 60

Chapter 60

"Can we have the horns yet?"

"Yeah mom, can we?!"

"Not yet, I have to finish breakfast first," I said, flipping the large pancakes on the griddle.

Garrett and Connor huffed with impatience, storming back to their half-assembled tower of Legos in the living room. For it being 6:45, I couldn't believe how wide-awake they were. Then again, the thought of waking up Blake with party horns was understandably exciting to them.

Yes, it was Blake's birthday again. It was summer again. It was hard to believe that we've been together for eight months at this point. So much has changed in those eight months too. Hell, everything changed – and I'm proud to say for the better.

One of the more recent changes was moving into Blake's house. During the spring, I moved in, and it's been nothing but wonderful since. Plus, I didn't have to worry about my rent going up now. One of the perks of living with the landlord!

The kid's loved it here as much as Blake loved having them here. When he asked me to move in though, I made one thing clear: I would have to spruce it up. But Blake was more than happy with some redecorating. We painted the walls gray with white trim and had a teal accent wall. My painting of King Sherman was still hanging up along with a couple other additions.

Though I made the house more cozy, that didn't mean it was spotless. There was always a mess. The kids made sure of that. Blake almost encouraged it. He was constantly playing with the kids, finding new toys and activities for us to have fun with. Honestly, it made me feel comfortable living here. I wasn't intruding, he didn't mind the mess, my kids weren't a burden to him.... Blake openly welcomed us, wanted us, and made us feel like his house was now our home. Seeing how happy I made him, the kids made him, it made me smile constantly.

Today though, we were going to show him how happy he makes us. Today was all about him. We both took the day off, but he wasn't aware of just how much I had planned for today. And it was going to start with birthday breakfast.

Once the pancakes were done, I added them to the growing stack before cooking more. The whole time, I had to keep an eye on Sherman. He was perched on the counter a few feet away – and clearly wanted our breakfast more than his. His beady eyes kept zeroing in on the steady food.

Then, he even made a beeline for the pancakes, as if I wouldn't notice. "No, no, sorry buddy," I chuckled, blocking him. Letting him jump on my wrist, I returned him to his plate of seeds.

By the time I was finished cooking the pancakes and bacon, I felt as giddy with anticipation as the boys. I set the table, grabbed the three plastic party horns, and headed into the living room. I couldn't hide my smile – and neither could they when I handed them their horns.

"Okay, let's go wake him up now, but be sneaky."

"Blake's going to scream like a little sissy," Garrett grinned.

"Like a sissy," Connor snickered.

Heading upstairs, I gently opened the door, gesturing with a finger over my smiling lips to be quiet. Then, after counting down softly, we all surrounded and ambushed the sleeping man, simultaneously blowing our party horns!

Blake jolted upwards, arms reflexively flying. Blinking his sleepy eyes, his face was filled with surprise from the obnoxious sound.

"Happy birthday!" I cheered out with a laugh.

Connor and Garrett started jumping on the bed, blowing their horn over and over at him. Blake smiled – and immediately dragged both boys down to the bed, tickling them to stop the relentless noise. Their laughter filled the air as they squirmed and tried wrestling back. Eventually, Blake let them escape, and they ran out of the room with giddy laughter.