This was who he’d be with our kids someday.
The thought came unbidden, and I nearly stumbled.Our kids.When had I started thinking in terms ofouranything?
“You good?” He glanced over his shoulder at me, Neva’s little hands gripping his hair.
“Yeah. Just tripped.”
But I wasn’t good. I was watching him with a two-year-old on his shoulders and imagining a future where we did this with our own children. Where I wasn’t justTíaSaffron but Mom. Where he was Dad and we had a house full of chaos and candy and little feet running everywhere.
The image was so vivid it hurt. Because none of it could happen if the wine didn’t work. If we lost the winery. If I failed.
When we returned to his house, where the kids were hyped on sugar and the adults exhausted, I sat on his couch with his arm around me. The house smelled like chocolate, and autumn leaves tracked in on small feet. Reagan had crashed on Addy’s lap. Neva was showing her butterfly wings to anyone who would look.
Alex appeared from the kitchen with two beers, handing one to me before dropping into the chair across from us. “So,” she said, her eyes sparkling with mischief. “You two are finally ready to admit you’re more than just friends?”
Heat flooded my face. “Alex?—”
“About damn time.” She grinned. “I’ve been watching you two dance around each other since high school. Thought I’d die of old age before you figured it out.”
Snapper laughed. “Nice, sis.”
“I’m just saying.” When he got up and disappeared into another room, Alex took a sip of her beer, then her expression softened. “He’s happy, Saff. Really happy. I haven’t seen him like this ever.” She paused, studying me. “You’re happy too, right? Because you deserve this.”
“I am,” I said quietly. “Happy, I mean.”
“Good.” She reached over and squeezed my knee. “Then, don’t mess it up by overthinking everything like you always do. Just let yourself have this.”
Snapper returned from wherever he’d gone and dropped beside me onto the couch, pulling me against his side. Alex winked at me before rejoining Maddox across the room.
I watched Snapper laugh at something Tryst said and listened to him tease his nieces with gentle affection.
What Alex had said echoed in my head.Don’t mess it up by overthinking everything. Just let yourself have this.
I wanted to. God, I wanted to. But letting myself have things had never come easily to me.
The call cameon a Thursday morning in early November. I was at the kitchen table, staring at bills we couldn’t pay, when my phone rang.
“Honey, the doctor is inducing labor today.” My mom sounded excited but equally anxious. “The baby is measuring big, and the doctor doesn’t want to wait any longer. They’re prepping Felicity now.”
I sat up straight. “I am on my way. I will get there as soon as I can.”
“Perfect. Text me when you know your arrival time.”
After we hung up, I texted Snapper.Mom just called. They are inducing labor today. I’m flying to Napa.
His response came immediately.Good. Your sister needs you. I’ll keep an eye on things here.
I went to the airline website and found a seat on the next available departure. Within an hour, I had clothes thrown in a bag and was driving to the airport. By early afternoon, I was on a plane heading north.
I took a car service from the airport straight to the hospital. My dad was in the waiting room, pacing and checking his phone. He wrapped me in a tight hug when he saw me.
“I am so glad you’re here.”
“Where’s Mom?”
“She is with Felicity and Wagner. They are only letting two people back at a time.”
The hours crawled by. While Dad paced, I sat and tried not to think about the wine fermenting four hundred miles away. There was nothing I could do about it anyway. Bit and Cru had it covered.
