Wiping tears from her face, Julia said, "I'm ashamed I didn't try harder, Kinsley. Please forgive me."
Kinsley crossed her arms over her chest, and I stood behind her with my hands on her shoulders. "Did Dad send you? Are you hoping to fulfill his threat to find something to use against us? Because I have to tell you, I'm not the girl you knew. I won't allow anyone to wreck what we've worked so hard to build."
"No, Kinsley, I'm not doing Tom's bidding. He's embarrassed because his daughter married a criminal." She glanced at my face, which was set in stone with a raised eyebrow. "Alleged criminal."
"What do you hope to gain from coming here, Mrs. Hawthorne?" I demanded.
Glancing at me again, Julia cleared her throat. "I want to get to know Finn, and I miss Kinsley."
"Is that all?" I intentionally sounded stern and domineering, using it to my advantage in case she was lying. Still, I didn't expect her to stammer over her answer.
"Please, I-I just want to stay—to visit—I mean—well—I want to be in your lives!"
"Whose, Mom?"
"Yours, your husband's, my grandson's, and whatever children you might have in the future. I never wanted this separation."
"I tried to keep in touch the best I could." Kinsley was bitter, and I didn’t blame her after the way her parents had treated her.
"I didn't know half of what you did, but even so, I didn't try. I'm sorry."
I felt Kinsley's shoulder muscles loosen. "We're having Finn's first birthday party right now. Would you like to join us?"
Julia covered her mouth with her hands. "Really?"
"Yes."
"But I don't have a present."
Reaching out, Kinsley touched her mother's hand. "He has a big stack already. No one will notice the difference."
"Oh, thank you, Kinsley." Julia threw her arms around Kinsley once more, forcing me to take a step back.
"The only condition is that you are here on a trial basis. He can't get attached to you and then you disappear, do you hear me?"
"I hear you. I can be a family friend until you trust me again. Please, let me earn your trust."
"Just remember," I said sternly. "Kinsley is worthy all on her own. She's not yours to boss around, and you won't make her feel bad if she does things differently than you."
"I promise." Julia hiccuped around her waning tears. "I'll try much harder."
The three of us joined the party, and if anyone was surprised to see Kinsley's estranged mother, they pretended otherwise. As we finished our cake and ice cream, I gathered everyone's attention.
"Caden and Maddie have an announcement to make."
Maddie passed Finn to Kinsley, her grin big enough to split her face. "I'm pregnant!"
Cheers went up throughout the room, hugs and kisses and congratulations circulated, and I knew genuine joy and satisfaction with my life. Kinsley was content, Julia would make an effort to be in our lives, and my cousin was starting a family. Logan was a little melancholy, but I knew it would take more time for him to move on from Anna's betrayal. He'd loved her for such a long time, but it turned out he'd never really known who she was deep down. Still, he was satisfied with what he had in life for now; he'd told me as much.
When everyone was gone and it was just Kinsley, me, and Finn in the house—if one didn't count the numerous guards on patrol—we put our child to sleep and headed to our bedroom to fulfill a promise.
The minute the door closed behind us, I lifted Kinsley's dress, not interested in wasting a minute of time. I stripped her bare, standing behind her and running my tongue up the side of her throat.
"I know I often hide behind the ease of using Irish, but I love you in English, too." Molding my hands to her breasts, I listened to her breathing change, the way it became heavy and uneven the more I twisted her nipples. "And I can't wait to make you mine again, to promise in front of God and everyone to love you and cherish you for the rest of time."
She hummed, trailing her hands behind my head and lifting her breasts in the process. She ground her ass against my cock, and I spun her to claim her mouth. While I bit and sucked her lips, she worked feverishly to remove my tie and jacket. Stepping out of my shoes, I maneuvered her to the bed and fell onto it, trapping her beneath me. Nimble fingers unfastened my pants and began to unbutton my shirt as I left open-mouthed kisses on her tits, working my way down her stomach. When she could no longer reach my shirt, Kinsley gripped the sheets instead. Kisses landed on her thighs, the underside of her knees, and back up to her navel. Shivering, she bucked her hips and wordlessly begged me to give her what she needed.
"Do you want me to eat this sweet pussy, love?"
