And right now, all of it is wrapped around me.
He pulls me closer, his nose brushing lightly against my hair as he inhales. It should feel ridiculous. Awkward, even. But it doesn’t.
It feels intimate. Grounding. Sensual in a way that has nothing to do with heat and everything to do with belonging.
I tighten my arms around his back and breathe him in right back, pressing my face against his chest. The steady rise and fall of it. The warmth. The familiarity.
For a few suspended seconds, nothing else exists.
No therapy.
No forgiveness.
No questions about whether we’ll make it.
Just this.
Just us.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Logan
Two minutes into driving River home while Jess takes Myles, I regret ever complaining about having to drive alone. The second we pull out of the parking garage, my youngest starts campaigning for a little sister like she’s a new toy he wants.
He wanted to go back and see baby Penny, but we said no. Simone and Darren are in that newborn bubble new parents are supposed to stay in when they get home. It’s what everyone did for us when our boys were born. They dropped off food and groceries and left them at the door, giving us time to bond and recover without having to entertain. Darren and Simone asked for the same.
River, however, has decided that if he can’t see his cousin, then he deserves a sister of his own. Which, don’t get me wrong, I love my kids. But that is never happening. Also because it physically can’t.
After River was born and Jess needed several stitches, she scheduled my vasectomy and told me I could either show up to the appointment or she’d handle it herself with a steak knife. I went. Technically, it can be reversed. Realistically, our family is complete.
River doesn’t seem to agree.
We make an impromptu ice cream stop on the way home, mostly to distract him from the sister demand. By the time we pull into the driveway, he’s sticky, sleepy, and still insisting he’ll “share his toys except the yellow truck.”
Jess and Myles are already home. The second River bursts through the door, he announces proudly that we’re getting a sister.
Thankfully Myles is already in bed, but Jess freezes mid-step and looks at me.
I mouthno, shaking my head.
She narrows her eyes like I’ve just lit a fuse and walked away.
We get River into pajamas, read half a book before he passes out mid-sentence, and quietly close his door.
The second we step into the hallway, Jess turns to me.
“West, if you think I’m pushing out another-”
I cut her off with a soft kiss.
Her lips freeze against mine for a split second, like her brain needs to catch up, and then they melt.
When I pull back, she looks slightly dazed. “What was that for?”
“I missed this,” I say, pecking her again because I can’t seem to stop myself. I went so long without being able to touch her that now I can’t stop.
“You missed me yelling at you?” she asks, brows lifting.
