I unwrap my arms from her and take hold of her hands. My heart is squishing itself all over the place in my chest as I look at my sister with so much love. “This is why you won’t let us help?”
She swallows hard and nods, more tears sitting close. “It must be so hard to see me with a baby. I don’t want that for you.”
“Oh, honey.” I squeeze her hands as my own tears move on in. “No. It’s the most wonderful thing seeing you with Harper. You both make me so happy. And Henry too. I love you guys. If I had my way, I’d be here every day with you, Magan. Please don’t push me away because you think this is too hard for me.Thatwould be too hard for me.”
“I can’t even imagine going through what you did.”
“I’m glad you didn’t have to.”
“I’m sorry I wasn’t there for you as much as I should have been.”
“You were there exactly how I needed you.”
“No, I wasn’t. I was too busy focussing on myself.”
“Well, you were a teenager the first time we got pregnant. And only twenty-two the last time. And that was your first year teaching. Your focus was where it should have been.” Isqueeze her hands again. “I would have been more upset if my miscarriages had affected your studies and your life. Watching you find happiness helped get me through my darkest days.”
If only she knew just how much she helped me by living the life she wanted. I refused to let my pain and disappointment dictate the way I lived. I refused to drown in that pain, so I had to find reasons to get up every day. Griff, Magan, and my Storm family all gave me those reasons. Seeing my chosen family happy helped me find happiness.
When tears fall down her cheeks again, mine finally fall too. We pull each other close and hug our way through the feelings.
This is how Griff finds us. It’s his soft but gruff “Fuck” that draws our attention.
I lift my face and meet his gaze as Magan lets me go. There’s so much love and concern in his eyes as he watches us intently.
“I love you, Griff,” Magan says right before she throws her arms around him and hugs him like she might not ever let him go.
This is so unusual for her that it catches him by surprise. It does the same for me, and I can’t stop the laugh that bubbles up out of me as I watch him stumble his way through this hug and all these big feelings consuming Magan.
His arms go around her, and he returns her hug as she thanks him for everything he’s done for her today. His eyes are firmly on me, though, and I can practically see his brain processing everything he’s seeing and hearing. My husband’s priorities are me, Storm, and Magan. In that order. There’s not one thing he wouldn’t do for us, and I know that right now he’s figuring out what’s next on his list of things to do.
He allows Magan to carry on with her thanks and her hug for longer than he’d ever let anyone besides me hug him before pulling back and looking at her. “I’ll be back over tomorrow to do a couple of last things with the garden. Then, I’ll be back in twoweeks to mow again. And if you need anything before then, you pick up the phone and call me. I won’t be happy if I turn up here and find shit that needs doing that I could have done.”
His tone makes it clear he doesn’t intend on listening to any argument over this, and Magan reads him perfectly. Instead of fighting him, she says, “Thank you.”
With one last nod at her, he gives his attention to me. “You ready to go?”
I smile as I move towards him. “Take me home, handsome. I’m putting you in the bath and giving you a foot rub.”
The arch of his brows at that statement makes Magan and I laugh. I’ve spent a decade trying to get Griff in the bath, and I’m still trying. I never miss an opportunity but it’s one of the only things I want that he never gives me. My husband has his boundaries and while he’s allowed me to break many of them down, he stands firm on some.
Griff’s POV
9:00 p.m.
Madison
Willow’s broken arm might kill me. If I don’t make it to the clubhouse tomorrow for our meeting, you’ll know I’m dead.
Carla
Oh, man, is she struggling with it?
Velvet
The poor little poppet. Do you guys need any help, babe? I’ll send Nash over if you do.
Chelsea
