For the next month anyway.
Everything feels right.It’s like a puzzle piece falling into place.That’s always how things have felt between Daisy and me.
A sudden laugh bursts in the living room, high-pitched and bright.I smile before I even turn.
A small pair of feet thunder across the hardwood.
“Uncle Ledger!”
A dark-haired whirlwind barrels into me, giggling, arms wrapping around my leg.Leo, one of the twins.I scoop him up easily, tossing him into the air enough to make him shriek-laugh before settling him on my hip.
Koa’s boys think gravity is a mild suggestion.
Koa steps in behind him and shakes his head.“You’re making me look bad.Again.”
“You came that way,” I reply.
He snorts.
We meet eyes, sharing that same unspoken thread that’s always there: brotherhood, history, home.
“It’s good to have you back here,” he says as he claps my shoulder.
“Feels good,” I admit as Leo scampers off to play with his brother.
He smiles.“Lula says Daisy’s glowing.”
My gaze drifts toward the kitchen automatically.
She is.
Her hair is a little longer now, still dark, still curling, still escaping hair ties like it’s morally opposed to being tamed.Faint laugh lines decorate the corners of her eyes.Her curves are still the softest, most beautiful things I’ve ever seen.
She’s talking to Lula while stirring a pot of soup, waving the spoon for emphasis.Lula laughs, swats at it, then leans into her side like a sister.A smear of flour streaks Daisy’s cheek, and I smile at my little ball of chaos.
She’s still sunshine, just… steadier now.Grounded.Loved.
“I’m going to check on my girl,” Koa says, and I nod distractedly.
When she notices me watching, her mouth softens into that smile I’ll never stop wanting to earn.
She crosses the room like she belongs in my orbit, because she does, and rises onto her toes.I bend automatically, kissing her slowly.
“Hi,” she murmurs.
“Hi.”
Her hand slides into mine.It still fits.
“Everything okay?”she asks.
“Perfect,” I say honestly.
We finally finished renovating her Grandma’s house last year.Rebuilt the porch, replaced the roof, and fenced the garden so Bean can play king of the backyard.Daisy expanded the salon, hired another stylist, and still renames the plants.
And me?I’m balancing deployment orders, training, and spending time with my girl.
The back door bangs open, and Koa comes in with one of the twins on his hip and the other glued to his leg
