Free Gideon's Redemption by Maddie Taylor

latest Diary of a Wimpy Kid. “He’ll entertain himself for a bit. He loves to read.”
    As they walked down the hall, Gideon showed off the other four guest rooms, then lead her up a half flight of stairs to the master bedroom. It was huge, more like a suite, with double doors leading to a cavernous room with dark planked floors covered by an open weave rug. The far wall was some kind of retractable glass that opened by remote control onto a large private balcony with yet another stunning view of the ocean. Just inside the glass doors was a sitting area with plush, comfortable-looking furniture and a fireplace.
    Gid remembered a time when they had talked about their dream house. Shannon had said she’d wanted a fireplace in the bedroom. He imagined them both curling up in front of the fire. His imagination took it one step further, picturing Shannon, warm and fragrant from a bath, snuggling up with him on the rug before the hearth, making love. That brought them to what Gid felt was the focal point of the room, his huge, four poster bed.
    “Your house is beautiful, Gid.”
    Moving up behind her, he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her close, her back against his chest. Speaking low into her ear, he murmured, “It’s our house now, Shannon. I want you to feel at home here, both of you.”
    He dipped his head and kissed her neck. Shannon smiled, angling her head to the side, giving him plenty of room for his lips to play along her neck and shoulder. She was always so responsive.
    “What do you think about our room? You can change anything you want. I’m not attached to anything in particular. I had a decorator do it all. You can make it your own, however you’d like. I am partial to the den and playroom, though, but just the electronics. The furniture, walls, all of that is up to you, just so it’s comfortable. I have a studio beyond the office that I’ll show you later. I do some recording here and work a lot from home, so that is pretty much set as well.”
    “I can’t imagine changing anything. It’s perfect. Maybe some pictures of Eli, but other than that…” Her voice faded off and she turned to look up at him. “About sharing your room…”
    “Don’t even think it, baby. I have to insist on this. I’ve been without you for too long already, and I refuse to spend another night alone.”
    “I’m worried about Eli.”
    “We have to tell him. He’s wondering already.”
    “I know.”
    “It’s probably better to just bite the bullet and get it over with. That way we can move forward and learn to live as a family. “
    “You’re right, I know, but I’m nervous.”
    “You think he’ll be upset?”
    “I’m afraid he’ll be angry at me for lying to him about his father being dead.”
    “We’ll tell him the truth and help him understand. Moving forward, we’re about honesty, remember?”
    Nodding, she agreed, although she was still afraid.
    “It’s going to be okay, Shannon.” Lifting her face to his, he sealed his lips over hers and kissed her breathless. “How about we tell him over dinner?”
    She buried her face against him and groaned.
    “Kind of like ripping off a Band-Aid, you’ve just got to rip it off and get it over with, yeah?”
    “Okay. Let’s do it.”

Chapter Eight
     
     
    Shannon watched them making homemade pizza together in Gideon’s fabulous, fully stocked kitchen. They had two ready-made pizza crusts and Eli was making his favorite pizza; pepperoni, ham, pineapple, and green pepper, while Gid made a pizza with the works sans pineapple. From a seat at the island where Gid had placed her with a full glass of red wine “to calm her nerves”, she watched their identical heads bowed at identical angles. Matching green eyes glinted with happiness as they worked together and chatted about manly stuff like football, video games, and comics. The same dimple appeared in their right cheek when they smiled. It was extraordinary, really.
    She noticed how Eli