“Mom?” Cassie looked to Kellie for the okay. When Kellie nodded, Cassie squeezed my hand. I turned the doorknob and pushed open the door only for a high-pitched screech to almost deafen us all.
“Is this for me?” Cassie asked, her innocent voice filled with nerves.
“Yep, it’s all yours, princess. Do you like it?” I asked, holding my breath.
I hadn’t realized how much I was counting on Cassie loving it. How much I needed her approval.
“Mom! It has purple curtains,” Cassie whispered as she stepped into her new room and touched the comforter softly.
“I think she likes it,” Kellie murmured in my ear, the warmth of her breath tickling my neck. “You did good, Jake.”
For a few minutes, Kellie and I stood in the doorway, our hands laced together, watching as Cassie took it all in. And when I say took it all in, I mean, pulled every toy from the toy box and every book from the bookshelf. Then, all of a sudden, she stopped and looked over at us, a pained look on her face.
“Princess, what’s wrong?” I asked, wondering who I would have to kill and bury in the back paddock.
Her bottom lip trembled, and her wide eyes turned watery as she managed to choke out her question. “But where will Mom sleep?”
“Don’t worry about me, Cassie. Do you like your room?” Kellie asked, dropping her hold on my hand and squatting down beside Cassie, picking up an already forgotten doll.
“It’s pretty.”
“It sure is,” Kellie confirmed, and as much as I wanted to interrupt them and fix the problem, I let them have their moment. “Jake did all of this just for you. You’re a very lucky girl.”
Kellie looked up at me and smiled while Cassie still had a questioning look. One I knew wasn’t going anywhere.
“Well, Nash and Sawyer helped,” I admitted, rubbing the back of my neck.
Cassie reached for Kellie’s hand, and I could hear the blood roaring through my veins. “It’s okay, Mom. We can share my bed,” Cassie told her helpfully.
“Thank you, sweetheart,” Kellie replied, holding her arms out only for Cassie to scramble into them so quickly she knocked Kellie on her ass. Watching them embrace made my eyes water. I wasn’t an emotional guy, at least I never had been, but since Kellie’s re-entrance into my life, everything seemed to have changed. I wore my heart on my sleeve these days, and the weird thing was, I didn’t hate it.
“Or I could show you where Mom can sleep?” I suggested.
“Mom has a room too?”
“Cassie! Volume,” Kellie reminded her as she rubbed at her ear.
“She does. Do you want to see it?” I offered again.
“Come on, Mom! Dad’s going to show us your room,” Cassie demanded, taking my hand and attempting to drag me back out the door, but I was frozen where I stood.
She called me Dad.
Cassie just called me Dad for the first time.
She called me Dad.
I looked at Kellie. Surely, I wasn’t the only one who’d heard her say it.
Kellie looked as stunned as I was.
“Come on!” Cassie tried again, tugging at my arm, seemingly completely unaware that she’d just upended my world and smashed open my heart.
“Okay. Okay. I’m coming,” I replied, my voice croaky. “Let me just help your mom up,” I told her, reaching for Kellie’s hand. I needed her now. I needed her to anchor me in place and tell me what to do with this bombshell. So far, I’d let Kellie take the lead when it came to Cassie, but everything had just changed. And from the stunned look on Kellie’s face, she hadn’t been prepared for that little nugget of information to come out today, either.
I thought I’d been nervous about showing Cassie her room, but it was nothing compared to the sheer terror filling me as I stood outside my bedroom door. Even though I was hoping Cassie liked it, I was more worried what Kellie would think about sharing with me on a more permanent basis. Sure, we were fucking like bunnies every chance we got, but sharing a space together, sharing a room was a big step. It was one I was one hundred and ten percent sure I was ready for, but I didn’t know where Kellie’s head was at. Probably a conversation we should’ve had before I’d gone all out, but hell. I was building us our family home. I simply jumped the gun a little.
“Open it,” I told Cassie as she reached for the handle and threw open the door, letting it bang against the wall.
