“Fuck. My bad. Let’s go.”
~
I’m not sure I showed Bri my apartment at all. We’ve been like Velcro since the second I saw her. Hugging, kissing, and now cuddling onthe couch under a blanket, downloading about what has happened since we last spoke. It’s been too long.
She tells me about her new job, getting a promotion straight out of the gate, the apartment she almost got before she found out about the office here. I couldn’t be more proud of her. Not only for getting her dream job but for not compromising until she found one that appreciates her natural talent and doesn’t shame her for her pain.
I tell her about my grandma, about Vaughn, realizing how monumental both were to my life, how greatly they made me cherish what Bri and I have together. A life lost and a life created.
A quiet settles between us. “Be completely honest,” she says.
“With you? Always.”
“Do you have any feelings for Natalie now that you have Vaughn?”
A valid question. “No. Not at all,” I answer truthfully. While contempt is a feeling, I’m learning to let that go. “I’m here to be a good dad, not to be with her.”
She nods, choosing to believe me even if the worry remains. The shadows of our past returned to do the opposite of before, David ending his attempts to get back with her, Natalie unintentionally forcing me to stay.
“Are you sure you’re okay with everything? I have a kid. With my ex. That’s heavy.”
“It is,” she agrees. “But this isn’t the same as what I went through before. You didn’t know me when you made him, and the moment you found out, you stepped up. That’s not a betrayal, that’s . . . life. And as we’ve learned time and time again, life is never going to stop life-ing.” Bri is always right. “I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t want to be part of your life, perfect or not.”
“You don’t want kids, though.”
“I don’t want tohavekids. My choice is to put myself first whenit comes to my health, not be in pain and go through hell for achanceto get pregnant, especially when I’m not a person who believes blood is thicker than water,” she reminds me.
The family we choose.Thelovewe choose. “You’re sure?”
She nods. “This wasn’t your choice and this wasn’t our plan. But my dream—the life I want for myself—isn’t complete without you. If we have to make new plans, new dreams to chase . . . I want to do that here. Together. If that’s what you want too.”
I love her so much it hurts. “I do. More than anything.”
“Good.” She presses her lips to mine. “And who knows? I love being an auntie. Maybe I’ll love being a stepmom too.”
She wants to marry me?She’s joking, but not really.
“Maybe there’s not a way to make it work, but I want to try. You’re worth it.”
I’mworth it.
I grip the hand she lays against my chest. “So, you’ll stay?”
She nods, her smile fighting against her tears. “I’m staying.”
Relief rushes from me. No longer will our paths clash or will we deny what we want. The start of a new chapter, no outline to follow, both of us on the same page. “Fucking finally.”
Our lips meet, and her sunlight fills me, burning into my chest, pulling me toward her like gravity. I kiss her again, deeper this time, more passionately than before. She welcomes me, matching my energy, humming her enjoyment against my lips.
“Come closer,” she breathes, tugging at me. We’re already pressed against each other.Closercan only mean one thing.
I roll her to her back, taking my place on top of her. She widens her legs, letting me in. The fire between us burns hotter, begging for our clothes to come off.
Then her stomach growls loudly, interrupting the moment. Our lips part with a laugh.
“Will you cook for me?” she asks.
There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for her. “Always.”
