“You know he loves you too, right?” He dipped down to press a kiss to my forehead.
Holy moly.
“I do now,” I whispered.
“Jaaaaakkeeeeeeeyyyyyy,” Addie bellowed from upstairs. “It’s time for the Little People!”
“You’re being summoned,” I said with a laugh.
He brushed his lips across mine. “Ivy?”
“Yeah?”
“Is it okay if I stay tonight?” He asked as he moved toward the staircase.
“Counting on it,” I said. “Meet me in my room when story time is over?” I asked, pulling him back to me and planting a wet kiss on his lips.
Taking a step back, he groaned. “What’s the likelihood that I can get Addie to sleep after a five-minute story?”
I pretended to shake something in both hands. “Hmm, my Magic 8 Ball says outlook not so good.”
I moved ahead to go up the stairs ahead of him. He squeezed my butt as we got to the top and whispered in my ear. “We’ll see about that.”
An hour later I was leaning against Addie’s door, watching Jake as he lay next to her in her small bed, his head against the headboard. I could barely hear his voice as he wrapped up what had to be the fifth Little People story of the night.
“And they were snug, cozy, and safe in their tiny beds behind the brick in the wall of their home…” He looked at Addie’s eyes, which remained closed as he leaned down and pressed a light kiss to her temple as he smoothed her blond curls. Even quieter, I heard him whisper, “Thank the goddess you are safe, peanut.”
And the tears began flowing. This man.
All I’d wanted since the moment I knew I was going to have a baby was to have a child who was healthy and knew she was loved. For so long, I’d felt like it was Addie and me on our own, adrift in this world. Now, the people of Highland Falls had taken us in first. Then Jake and his crazy family. Now Noah was waking up and realizing what he’d been missing. There were so many people who loved us it felt like the goddess was giving with both hands.
We were beyond blessed.
I moved back into my bedroom, sliding between the covers in my tank and underwear. I could just shed them both, but I didn’t want to be presumptuous.
Minutes later, the door creaked open and Jake stuck his head in the room, his eyes finding mine. “Mind if I come in?” he asked with a wink.
“Waiting for you.” I made a show of checking my phone on the bedside table. “Looks like your five minutes was more like sixty.”
He laughed as he kicked off his shoes and dropped his jeans and flannel on the floor, sliding between the covers in a T-shirt and boxer briefs. “Yeah, Addie had lots of questions about Chief. She’s decided she needs to visit each day to walk with him around the yard and keep him company until he can run again.”
My eyes teared up. Dang, my girl had a good heart.
Jake brushed away a tear that spilled over. “Ivy, you okay?”
I rolled to my side to take him in. “Are we really okay, Jake? I mean, I’m so sorry I hadn’t texted you a heads-up that Noah was picking Addie up ahead of time. I just thought you knew they were hanging out when he could. I’d never mean to hurt you.”
He slid down in the bed until we were front to front. “We’re okay, babe.” His arm snaked out to grab my hip, pulling it to him. “I’m sorry I was so afraid, waiting for you to leave me like Rachel did.”
“I won’t,” I whispered against his mouth.
His lips brush mine. “Ever?”
I pulled back, scanning his face. His blue eyes stared into mine. His hair was curling a bit over his ears. The part that stuck up in front was a little long. I could see that there was a hint of a shadow under his eyes, like he was tired. But the lines in his face that I saw earlier today were smoothed out.
I felt like he was asking something big here. “Do you mean will I stay with you forever?” I asked, my heart suddenly taking up residence in my throat.
The corner of his mouth turned up. “I’m not proposing now, Ivy. I won’t do that until I have a ring. But fair warning, it will be soon.”
