He glanced at me, then smiled down at her next to him. “Yeah, I did.”
When he stepped back to me, I reached for his hand, lacing our fingers together, and he squeezed gently. Although I knew it was just a silentI love you, it was also a reminder that I didn’t have to be jealous.
I was part of this family now too and they’d really gone out of their way to include me. To make me feel welcome and like one of them. Relaxing into his side, I rested my head against his shoulder and once again thanked my lucky stars for sending me him.
No matter how bumpy things had gotten, Nate really was my soulmate in every single way, and I was so damn grateful that I had him. I was abruptly yanked out of my tender thoughts when the men started shouting again from inside.
Nate stiffened. “Oh, I have to go. The next game’s on.”
Charlotte groaned. “Unbelievable.”
Jane laughed. “They’re going to be like this all night.”
“They’re going to be like this forever,” Charlotte countered.
Nate smirked. “Probably.”
He dropped a quick kiss on top of my head and raced back in, like he was afraid that whatever team he would be rooting for now would lose outright if he missed so much as a minute, and I sank back down into my chair. The sun dipped lower over the lake, turning the water gold while the trees darkened at the edges as evening slowly crept in.
Behind me, the guys were already roaring again, Charlotte and Jane falling into another easy conversation by my side. I took a moment to just drink it all in, the fact that we were all here together, at the gorgeous lake house that was fast becoming one of my favorite places in the world.
I couldn’t wait to spend more holidays here, raising our kids with Jane and Alex’s, Charlotte and Trent’s, and all the others when the time came. Surrounded by family, chaos, and love, it felt like Nate and I had somehow made it to exactly where we were supposed to be.
Right where we belonged. Together.
***
