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“I don’t doubt anything,” I tell Dad, and he nods, choking back a few tears that surprise me.
“Good. That’s good but still, we want you to have this choice.”
He hands me the folder, and I open it before pulling out a stack of papers from a lawyer. I quickly read through it before snapping my head up to look at him.
“What?”
He smiles, tears rimming his eyes, and he’s not doing anything to hide them anymore. “You’re our son, and your last name won’t change that but if you want, we would love it if you were Trey Harrington.”
I look back down at the papers for my name change and think about all the things Moe told me yesterday. These people, my family, were always taking care of me and loving me any way they could – way better than my birth parents – and it would be an honor to have their last name.
“Yeah, of course,” I say, my voice thick with emotion, and Dad laughs as he wipes his eyes and stands up, pulling me into a hug. A deep sense of belonging settles over me like never before, and I know that I’ll never again doubt my place in this family.
When Dad releases me, I’m passed off to Mom who squeezes me tight and whispers, “My boy.”
Tears sting my eyes as I hug her, and thank God for putting this woman into my life. Things could have gone so different for me if it hadn’t been for her, and I know I’ll never be able to repay that.
Next up is Emma, who’s crying like a baby with Nix looking on behind her as she pulls me into her arms, and I laugh. “Geez, baby girl, get a grip.”
“Shut up,” she laughs, playfully swatting my chest before stepping away. Tucker comes up to me and slaps my back, nodding. He doesn’t need to say anything because I know. I stand back and look at my whole family but I can’t help but notice the one person missing. Without Addy here, this picture just isn’t quite complete, and I won’t stop fighting for her. Ever.
* * * *
“Yeah, those ones,” I say, pointing to the bouquet in the display, and the salesgirl smiles at me.
“Wow, lucky lady.”
No, I’ll be the lucky one if she forgives me. I smile at her, trying my best to be polite but my nerves are frayed. She’s gotta give me another chance, right? I haven’t been imagining the past few months, and this thing between us is real. I know it is.
“You want a card?” she asks, and I look up before nodding. She hands me the card and a pen before going to wrap the bouquet. I stare down at the card in front of me, racking my brain for the right thing to say but I’m coming up blank. I want to say something profound and poetic, something that will make her feel every ounce of my love for her. Words that will take her breath away and bring tears to her eyes because they make her heart jump. Staring at the card, I decide to go with the one thing I’ve never said to her.
Addy,
I’m so sorry for being an asshole. I don’t
have any excuses for you, only an apology.
I love you with every piece of my heart and soul
and I always will.
Trey.
Nodding, I tuck the card into the envelope and hand it back to the salesgirl, who has just finished wrapping the flowers. She sticks it into a stand and slides it into the flowers before handing them to me. I quickly pay and rush out of the store, anxious to get to her. It’s been two days since I’ve seen her or held her, and I feel like I’ve been dragged through hell.
I sprint through the pouring rain to get to my car and set the flowers in the passenger seat before firing it up and racing off toward her house. The entire way I’m rehearsing my speech in my head. Nothing sounds strong enough though. The words are inadequate to describe how much I love her, how she consumes me, and makes me whole all at the same time.
How do you tell someone that literally every little thing they do hits you right in the chest? When her eyes light up at the sight of me and she flashes that special smile that she only gives me, the one that lets me know she’s fallen just as hard as I have, I can’t breathe for a moment – too enchanted with her and the fact that she’s mine. How do I put into words that before her, I was floating around aimlessly in an ocean of pain and regret and then, there she was – reaching a hand out to save me?
Even that feels weak in comparison to the rush of emotion I get every time I even think about her.
I pull up in front of her apartment and look up at her window, smiling when I see the light on and giving myself a little pep talk. This is Addy and she knows we belong together just as much as I do. Just as I turn to get out of the car, I notice movement behind me through the veil of water and look in my rearview mirror as a car pulls up behind me and parks. Kyle steps out, a large, obnoxious bouquet of roses in his hand, and starts walking up the sidewalk to her building.
Holy fuck.
My blood boils, and I’m reaching for the handle of the car to jump out and beat his ass into the ground when the thought hits me that maybe she wants him to be here. No, she wouldn’t do that. Right? Crap.
Why the hell did I wait two days to come talk to her? Why did I even start this stupid fucking fight in the first place? I need her, and I think I just lost her for good.
