I’m one of those parents. Calm and lenient.

I love parenting. I love everything about it. I play the peek-a-boo game and give Katie daily updates on the Itsy-Bitsy Spider. I live for her squealing laughter.

Ashleigh wraps her hands around my upper arm and leans into my neck. “I love you, Ford.”

“I love you too, Ash. More today than yesterday.”

“I’m so glad God sent you to save me.”

I smile at that. I thought she was talking about Tony, but she was talking about God. “Well, I have a confession about that day. When I told you he sent me to save you back at Tony’s grave, it was a lie.”

“No,” she whines.

“Yes,” I say back, looking down at her scowling face. I lean over and put my palm against her neck, feeling her life force rushing through her body. She thrills me. Everything about her thrills me. I kiss her forehead, then her nose, then her lips. We linger like that, and then both of my hands have her head and I hold her still so I can look directly into her soul as I tell her the truth.

“God never sent me to save you, Mrs. Aston. He sent you to save me.”

And then I kiss her thoroughly. With tongue and biting and a promise of very dirty things to come tonight.