Sweet Mischief’s Rollercoaster Romance

Anya's got a knack for picking things up on the fly. Ever since she discovered this little trick, whenever she indulges in a shopping spree, she teases Chad with a playful, "You know, you can just knock it off my dowry!"

Cooper Irvin strolled back home one brisk morning. He walked in, the chill of the outside air still clinging to him, kicked off his shoes, and made a mad dash upstairs. "Sweetie, your uncle's back, my little treasure," he called out. The living room, even with dad, mom, and brother-in-law sitting there, might as well have been empty to him as he headed straight for the stairs. He was moving so quickly that Madison blinked in surprise. "Honey, am I just missing our son so much that I'm seeing things?" she asked.

Aaron chuckled, watching his son bolt upstairs. "He came flying back without a word."

Cooper reached Mia's room and banged on the door. "Hey, sleepyhead, get up and come see my little gem."

Mia, groggy and face-planted in her pillow, wondered if she was still dreaming, thinking she heard a puppy barking. Cooper hollered from the hallway, "Hey, brother-in-law, come up here and give me a hand with my nephew!"

The door swung open, and Mia saw her brother standing there. "Oh my gosh, look who's here" she began, but Cooper nudged her aside with a quick, "Move," and rushed in, eyes locked on the half-asleep Henry in bed.

He pulled back the covers, and the uncle's affection poured out. Henry woke up to kisses from his uncle, trying to swat them away first from the left, then from the right, fully waking up and ending up in a tearful tantrum in the living room, still not fully rested. Cooper then put on a show of cradling and soothing the little one, wandering around aimlessly. "Weren't you supposed to be working?" someone asked.

Cooper replied, "Who says I can't take a day off?"

He'd discovered via a video call with his parents that his little nephew was visiting and his sister was home for the holidays. So, without missing a beat, he'd run to his professor's office to request some time off. Mia remarked, "You're always taking time off. Do you even care about your studies?"

"I'm still smarter than you without even trying," her brother shot back with a smirk. "Stop goofing around, or you'll flunk your exams this year."

Cooper, holding the little bundle of joy, couldn't resist giving him kisses every so often. Andre, his brother-in-law, was all too happy to have Cooper back, as he managed the little rascal for him.novelbin

In the afternoon, Cooper took his nephew out for a walk, and they almost didn't make it back. If Mia hadn't gone to the park to drag them back, Cooper might have taken his nephew on a roller coaster ride.

During holiday visits to relatives, Henry was mostly nestled in his uncle's arms, with his little legs peeking out because Cooper

focused on carrying him snugly, but

forgot to pull his socks doet

over

his leggings, which bunched up.

Mia hovered behind them, fussing over her son's clothes to keep them in place. At an uncle's house, where they often stayed during childhood and which was famous for ice-cream, the elders were thrilled to see Cooper. Everyone knew Henry belonged to the family and weren't surprised, just delightedly

commenting, "Henry's growing up to

be such a charming boy."

As they left, Henry had a couple of holiday envelopes tucked into his arms, which Mia discreetly moved to her purse, explaining, "Mom's not being greedy, just making sure you don't lose them."

Before they headed out, Mia also

tucked some envelopes into her mother's purse to pass along holiday money to the kids at the places they visited. Visiting distant relatives, Andre was known as the conversation stopper, everyone careful not to offend him.,

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Meanwhile, Mia lightened the mood, helping everyone see a different side of Andre.