“All the more reason to let us come,” Olivia said. Jace rolled over and turned off the light before curling back into me.
“I love the hell out of you both,” I said. They both murmuredI love yousback as they snuggled into me and drifted off to sleep.
I lay awake for a while, my mind racing with anxious thoughts about tomorrow’s confrontation and my need to release the power my father still held over me. Eventually, I thought about Kaylee curled up in my lap at the restaurant and I fell asleep with a full heart and the knowledge that I may still be new at being a dad, but I was doing a hell of a lot better than mine ever did.
Chapter Forty-Five
Jace
Kayden and I wokeup early prepared to sneak out as usual. We both changed quietly back into our clothes from the night before while Olivia watched us from the bed with a smile on her face.
“Stay,” she said quietly.
“What?” Kayden asked. “Kaylee will be up any minute.”
Olivia’s throat worked as she swallowed. “Please. Let’s tell her the truth. She loves you both already and we’re telling everyone else. I want us to be a family now.”
The three of us looked between each other, waiting for someone to say something, when a small voice in the other room helped make the decision for us. “Mommy?” Kaylee called from her room.
“Please,” Liv said. She stood up and wrapped an arm around each of us. “Don’t leave.”
“Okay, sweetheart,” I said before looking at Kayden.
He nodded. “Of course we’ll stay.”
Olivia stepped out of her bedroom first and I took Kayden’s hand as we followed her. She went into Kaylee’s room while we sat on the couch. A few moments later Kaylee came running out in herPaw Patrolpajamas with Olivia trailing her.
“What are you doing here?” she asked with a giggle as she saw us sitting in the living room. I’d never done a walk of shame in front of a three-year-old before, so I was grateful she didn’t seem to register that we were in the same clothes from last night.
Olivia sat down in the chair next to us and pulled Kaylee onto her lap. “Do you remember when Grandma told you she was dating Carl? And then they moved in together?”
“Yeah,” Kaylee said. “And now Carl is my grandpa.”
Olivia smiled at her. “Right. Well, Mommy is dating Kayden and Jace.”
Kaylee looked at us quizzically. “Do they live here?”
I chuckled. “No, Peanut, but we might stay over sometimes so we can spend time with your mom—if that’s okay with you. And eventually we might all live together.”
“Both of you will stay?” she asked.
Kayden nodded. “We both really love your mom, honey.”
“Does this mean you’re really my dad now?”
Kayden’s hand gripped mine a little tighter. “I’ve always been your dad, Kaylee. I’m not going anywhere.”
“Same, Peanut,” I said. “I love you; you know that.”
“Cool.” She giggled and looked at her mom. “I’m hungry.”
Olivia kissed her head. “Of course you are. Do you have any questions for us?”
“Nope,” she said. She hopped down and walked to the kitchen.
The three of us hugged goodbye, the moment we’d all been worried about far less climactic than we had thought it would be. I supposed Kaylee knowing we were romantically involved didn’t look all that different from how she’d seen us over the last several weeks. Still, I was on a high after dropping Kayden off at his apartment and going back to my condo to get ready for work.
It was still early in the morning and the sound of my phone ringing as I got out of the shower startled me. I wondered if it was Liv telling me she was going to be late or if something had gone wrong with Kaylee after we’d left.
