She is watching me carefully like she can read my mind. “Paisley’s not like you, Gracie. She always knew what her place was in the world, and how much she was loved. The choices she made were born from selfishness, not anything else.” Raewyn shrugs. “I think she saw the life her mother had and decided if it was good enough for Esther…”
“And there’s Braxton,” I realize. “A good-looking firefighter who once had feelings for her.”
“Exactly. Why not follow in her mother’s footsteps? But I don’t think Braxton was ever what she truly wanted.”
Stephen and Braxtoncome inside just as we’re setting dinner out on the table. Stephen sits down at the head of the table, and I move to take a seat further down when Braxton catches my arm.
“You sit here,” he murmurs, directing me to the seat on Stephen’s left, across from Raewyn. It’s where he would normally sit, but he just smiles, nudging me forward.
I take the seat, and Braxton sits beside me, inching his chair as close as he can get, our elbows knocking every time one of us moves. I roll my eyes, but don’t put space between us.
Stephen carves up the roast as the vegetables get passed around the table, and I sink into the moment, enjoying the conversation that flows around me. It’s a moment filled with warmth and love, even with Analise missing, and one I missed during the months that I was gone.
We’re just finishing up plates of homemade chocolate mousse when Stephen clears his throat, looking at his wife.
“Now, our anniversary isn’t for another month, but it turns out Gracie is terrible at keeping secrets”—he winks at me when I make a noise of offense—“and so I’ve decided to give you your present early.”
Raewyn claps her hands with a bright grin. “I love presents! Gimme!”
Stephen scowls. “You could at least pretend to play hard to get.”
“How does that get me my present faster?” Raewyn wrinkles her nose, but her green eyes are dancing. Stephen shakes his head, standing up and heading for the mudroom, coming back seconds later with a cardboard box.
“Now, if you don’t like it,” he starts gruffly, “you’re not to say anything because it was all Gracie’s idea, and you might hurt her feelings.”
Braxton wraps an arm around my shoulders, tuggingme against him. “You been getting some new skills, Rumpel?” he murmurs teasingly. “Am I going to start finding dissected appliances around your house?” His voice dips slightly when he saysyour, but he doesn’t pull away.
Before I can answer, Stephen sets the box down in front of Raewyn with a flourish. “Here, my love.” He leans down and presses a lingering kiss to her lips, much to Braxton’s loud displeasure. “Thirty-one years together, and not nearly long enough.”
“Oh, honey…” She stares up at him, her eyes glimmering brightly. My heart surges into my throat. I’ve never seen love like what these two hold for each other; bone-deep and time-tested. They have no doubts that they’re exactly where they need to be, and with the person who makes them the best version of themselves.
I swallow roughly, sliding a glance toward Braxton. He’s watching his parents, his own eyes suspiciously bright and a smile on his lips. Gratitude fills me at the fact that I still have a place in this house and this family. I don’t know what the future holds for me and Braxton, but right now, I wouldn’t give this up for anything.
I reach out, laying my hand against his denim-clad thigh, and Braxton looks down at it before glancing at me. I don’t know what he sees in my face, but his expression softens as he presses his free hand against the back of mine, holding me there.
Across from us, Raewyn is impatiently yanking open the box, pulling out a tarnished black metal tree. It’s large, the spindly branches spreading outward. There are matching leaves soldered onto several branches, and the metal jangles softly as Raewyn lifts the tree.
Stephen bends over her shoulder. “I’ve made more leaves for whoever you would like to add,” he tells her quietly, pointing at each leaf. “But here you and I are.There’s Annie and Braxton.” He shifts his finger slightly. “And our Gracie.”
Neither of them notices as I go still, Stephen reading out every other name he added to the tree. My eyes are burning, and I realize I haven’t blinked or breathed in several seconds, my chest aching with the need for oxygen.
“Gracie?” Braxton leans so close that his breath coasts over the shell of my ear. “What’s wrong?”
I turn to look at him, the tips of our noses brushing, his mossy green eyes taking up all of my vision. “I’m on the tree,” I say in a hushed whisper. “I wasn’t on the tree, but now I am.”
Braxton’s smile is crooked. “Of course you’re on the tree,” he says cockily. “You’re family. And you know what? I fuck up again, they’re definitely picking you.”
“Too right,” Stephen booms, clearly having overheard. “You’re ours, Gracie, and there’s no getting away from us now.”
My mouth trembles, and I sink my teeth into my bottom lip, refusing to make this moment about me. “You’re sneaky,” I tell Stephen. “When did you make that leaf? It wasn’t there the other day.”
Stephen smiles. “I didn’t make it.” He shrugs. “I just toldhimto make it.” He jerks his head at Braxton, who shakes his head with a laugh.
“That’s not how it happened, and you know it, old man,” he counters. He turns to look at me, but I keep my attention on Raewyn and Stephen, knowing I’ll break if I focus on Braxton right now. I’m teetering on the edge of a cliff, and I don’t want to dive headfirst over.Not now. Not here.
“Dad asked for help with some last-minute touches,” Braxton explains to me and Raewyn, his fingers pulsing against my arm. “I suggested that he make a leaf for you,and Dad told me that he was already ahead of me, and he was just waiting for me to put the name on it.”
I do look at Braxton then, finding his stare locked on my face, filled with warmth and understanding as they search my eyes.
