“Then it’s settled. I’m moving in.” I pull her closer, nuzzling against her neck.
She laughs through her tears, and I hold her while the knot slowly releases and our three little pups shift and kick, waiting for their names.
This is it. This is everything I’ve ever wanted. My mate, in my bed, in my home, carrying my children.
Whatever comes next, whatever battles we have to fight with Richard or the courts or anyone else, we’ll face them as a family.
Chapter 35
Julia
The karaoke bar is decked out for the holidays. Multicolored lights drape across the ceiling and twin fake trees glow in the back corners of the stage. Someone has hung glittery snowflakes from the bottom of the neon sign that says “SING YOUR HEART OUT,” and the effect is both tacky and wonderful, like festive little disco balls.
“I can’t believe you’ve never done holiday karaoke,” I tell Ian as we push throughthe door.
“I didn’t even know it was a thing.” He holds the door for Heidi, who already has her nose in the signup app on her phone.
I love that he gets along with my friends. “Maybe we should make it our new tradition.”
Heidi lifts her head and grins. “Especially if you’re going to pay for drinks every year.”
Taking my friends out tonight is my way of saying thank you to Heidi and Nicole for helping me pack up my life into boxes and letting me crash in their TV room for weeks. For holding me while I cried and feeding me when I forgot to eat. I wanted to do something special now that I’m officially moved in with Ian and Nicole has her football sanctuary back.
“Pitcher of the Grinch, with extra cherries,” Ian tells the bartender, naming the non-alcoholic holiday special. The bartender, a young naiad with webbed fingers wearing reindeer antlers, pushes three glasses across the bar.
“Five,” I interject. “We’re expecting two more.” In addition to Heidi and Nicole, I impulsively invited Ashleigh, because tonight is also about celebrating my last day at work before the babies are born.
She’s been great lately. Not warm, exactly, but she encourages me to take extra breaks when my ankles start to swell, and she found a stool for me to use at the register so I’m not on my feet all day. She also got the story time budget increasedso we don’t have to buy the stickers and other prizes out of our own pockets.
We grab the glasses and snag a table near the stage. Ian slides into the seat next to me, his thigh warm against mine. Someone is murdering “Jingle Bell Rock” while a group of orcs in ugly Christmas sweaters cheers them on like they’re watching a championship beastball game.
Ashleigh shows up just as the bartender brings our pitcher of green, non-alcoholic concoction with dozens of red cherries floating in it. We all pour a glass and pick songs while we wait for Nicole.
Something’s off from the moment the door swings open to admit her. Her jaw is set and her forehead is furrowed, and she barely acknowledges the bartender’s greeting as she makes a beeline for our table.
“Nic?” Heidi’s already half out of her seat, arms open for a hug. “What’s wrong?”
Nicole squeezes her and then drops into a chair, signaling frantically for one of the glasses. “I need a drink.”
“Baby, talk to me,” Heidi says, filling one from the side of the pitcher so it gets plenty of ice and cherries along with the sweet, fruitcake-themed drink.
Nicole runs her hands through her short black hair so it sticks up, making her look even more frazzled. “My landlord emailed me today to let meknow he’s not renewing my lease. I have to be out when it expires at the end of the year.”
My stomach tightens. Nicole has had her martial arts studio in the same location for well over a decade. She’s built her whole business there. “What?! Why? That’s such short notice!”
“We’ve always been casual about the paperwork, so I didn’t think anything of it when I didn’t get the renewal contract earlier. Anyway, in the email, he said he’s got other plans for the space, which is bullshit,” Nicole says flatly. “That building has been half-empty for years. If he needs space, he already has it.”
Heidi hands her the glass, and Nicole downs half of it.
“That’s so weird,” Heidi says. “You’ve always had a good relationship with him.”
“I know. So I drove over to his office so we could talk in person. Asked what the hell was going on.” Nicole stares into her glass, tapping her nails against it anxiously. “He wouldn’t look at me. Kept shuffling papers, making excuses. Finally, I told him I wasn’t leaving until he gave me a straight answer.”
“Did it work?” Ashleigh asks, sitting forward in her seat.
“Someone threatened him if he renewed it.” Nicole looks up, meeting my eyes. Ian’s hand finds mine under the table. I grip it tightly,already knowing what’s coming. “I finally got it out of him that it was Richard and some other guy.”
The words hit me like a physical blow. Ian growls low in his chest, a sound that makes the orcs at the next table glance over nervously.
