Love In Contract | Taekook

Chapter 20

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JUNGKOOK'S POV

The first few days living with Taehyung aren’t as awkward as I
thought they’d be. With his busy hockey schedule, we don’t see each other around the house too much, and when we do, Harin serves as a good buffer. She certainly keeps things interesting. It’s amazing how many questions her brain can conjure up.
Who was the first person to create pancakes? How does electricity work? What happened to the dinosaurs?
What would happen if a cat and dog had a baby? Which of course led
to the inevitable, Where do babies come from? It was fun watching Taehyung field that question. But raising Harin is a constant job—one I admire Taehyung for.

He never complains, and always does as much as he can on his own without having to ask Annie to help. Being a professional hockey player and a
single parent is demanding on their own, yet he somehow finds a balance. It makes me wonder how much pressure he feels underneath the surface of his calm façade that he doesn’t talk about. And it makes me want to help out as much as I can.
Which is why I let Harin sneak into my room at 1AM when she tells
me she’s scared.

“Can I sleep with you?” she whispers, tiptoeing to the side of my bed.
I dig the heel of my hand into my eye as I stifle a yawn. “What’s wrong, kid” “I had a nightmare and now I can’t fall back to sleep.” I switch on the lamp on my nightstand before patting my comforter. “Come on up.”
Harin climbs onto the bed and scoots herself underneath the covers, glued to my side. “I had a dream that I was lost. It was really dark, and I couldn’t see anything. I kept calling out for Daddy, but I couldn’t see him.”
“That does sound scary.”
The parenting websites I’ve been on say to validate the child’s feelings
instead of telling them something logical, like, There’s nothing to be scared of.

“I used to be scared of the dark when I was little too.”
Her eyebrows shoot up. “Really?”
I nod. “I slept with a flashlight until I was twelve-years-old.”
“Wow. That’s old.”
I smile.“And I didn’t have a big, strong dad like you do to protect you. It was just me and my mom, and half the time she wasn’t home because she
had to work late hours.”
“So, what did you do when you were scared?”
“I’d draw. I had a sketchbook filled with the things that made me feel
happy, so I could take my mind off the scary things in my head.”
“What did you draw?”
“Flowers, kittens, the beach.” I shrug. “Whatever I could think of.”
“Are you still afraid of the dark now?” I shake my head."Nope, not anymore."
“What are you afraid of?” I pull a sleeping loki onto my lap so harin can pet him. “Nothing really.”

Taehyung’s voice has both of our shoulders jumping. “Ah, come on.
Everyone’s afraid of something.”

Dear God, the man is shirtless. Smooth Tan skin. Broad shoulders and chest. Perfectly sculpted abs. Muscle upon muscle. His body is the result of endless hours of training and an athlete’s diet. And fuck if I’m not going to stare and appreciate all the hard work he’s put into it. But my mouth drops open when I spot the glint of a silver barbell poking through one of his nipples, and black ink on the left side of his ribcage.

Damn. A motorcycle, a nipple piercing, and a tattoo? Call me
surprised. And turned on.

Wearing a pair of low-slung basketball shorts and nothing else, he strides into the room. His hair is disheveled, smushed up on one side, and he rubs at his tired eyes.
Thank God there’s a child in the bed, otherwise I don’t think I’d be able
to control myself.

Harin pats the bed like I did for her. “Come sit with us, Daddy.”
“Why are you up, little one?” He lowers himself onto the edge of the
mattress, shooting me an apologetic glance. “I had a nightmare and I didn’t want to wake you up because I know you have to get on the plane early in the morning.”