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That I wanted reed fro a bath and reading a bedtiue with that level of enthusiasm even if I wanted to

I didn’t want to

"It’s nice to see you ser side

Inside the pool house wasroom were one in the same A small portion of the main room had been walled off to make a makeshift room for Sammy

Tanner ran the bath water and at first I stood there in the center of the bathroo what to do with ainst my face, I pulled it off and went over to the tub The second I kneeled down beside him it all fell into place I washed his hair and soaped him up as if I’d done it a thousand times before

Because I have done it a thousand times before

When bath time was over, I dressed Sammy in the PJ’s Tanner had laid out and he clamored up onto my lap as I read to him from Larry the Leopard Learns His Spots by Dr Nellenbach When he drifted off to sleep, his head on my shoulder, I walked him over to the other side of the rooround and had a guardrail along the side so he wouldn’t fall to the floor during the night I was just about to leave when Sammy’s little voice pulled me back into the roo beside his bed

"Mo with his thuht"

I openedhe was talking about, but the words of the song ca to hi

You are my sunshine, ray

you’ll never know dear, how much I love you,

please don’t takewas over Sales with me?" Sammy lifted his little blanket

It was an offer I couldn’t refuse I sat on his ainst the headboard and cradled hi his blanket down over both of us

And for a long ti the feel of his soft chubby fingers absently playing with ’s washed oversensation I’d ever experienced Like every single part of ed to him Like the very reason I was ever put on the Earth was to be hisinto my chest, "I wuv you much"

I covered my mouth with my hand to muffle the sound of the sob that came out of nowhere I brushed his curls from his eyes and leaned over to kiss him on his head "I love you too, baby So otten hi ti beca been asleep

I was careful not to wake hiled out from underneath him When my feet hit the floor, Sammy stirred and I stilled until he rolled over onto his stomach with his hands above his head

Deep in sleep

I kept ht into Tanner as standing in the doorway "Have you been here the whole ti aside to let uys Reading stories, bath tiain"

"It was…arinned and plopped down on the couch "His rooer, but after I built this for when he stays with iver" He patted the couch cushion next to hi him rotten these past few

"He was usually only here withon the cushion,for me to take a seat I sat, but on the opposite end of the couch, flush up against the arh