Total pages in book: 18
Estimated words: 17184 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 86(@200wpm)___ 69(@250wpm)___ 57(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 17184 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 86(@200wpm)___ 69(@250wpm)___ 57(@300wpm)
“Which is our cue to drift off,” Talon whispers in my ear.
“Drift off, you say?” I raise a brow.
“Yes, to about six months from now when we’re sitting on our patio, staring up at the beautiful night sky, with our little boy in our arms.” He leans in close, resting his head on my shoulder. “Two pups at our feet, the warm spring breeze carrying the smell of summer on its wings, and you and me, so deeply in love we want the whole damn world to stop for a while.” He tilts his face to the side, pecking me softly on the cheek. “Well, maybe that last part is true right now. And every time I look at you.”
“Talon,” I say his name in a whisper. “Stop, you’re gonna make me blush.”
“Then do it. Let them all see those rosy red cheeks that made me fall in love with you. It’s not my fault if they get jealous.” With a smirk, Talon brings his hand over my belly and rests it against our son’s kicking. He keeps it there, while we stare off into the wide-open fields surrounding the outdoor barbecue.
Life’s better than good. It’s fucking amazing.
And we’ve only just started.
EXTENDED EPILOGUE
TALON
Two Years Later
“There’s little pushback, but the Greenstone Corporation is starting to get nosy with their workers hopped up on our product,” Hush says in a deadpan voice, as if showing emotion about our business in front of Gracie or our son, Adam, nestled in my arms is going to make him appear weak.
“Isn’t this a conversation you should have with Knight?” I ask, swaying side to side to keep Adam sound asleep. My boy is at a very tender age, and he looks up at me as his protector. Those words have no meaning to him, sure, but he feels safest to drift to sleep when either Gracie or I hold him.
“I wanted to see if you had anything I could bring him.” Hush has one foot in my front door, the other still outside it. Gracie offered him a seat in the living room and a drink to boot, but he didn’t want it, saying he’d only be a minute.
That was twenty minutes ago, and we’re going around in circles.
“Haven’t put much thought into it. My family has needed me.” And they always take priority.
“You sure I can’t get you something to drink?” Gracie steps in behind me, snaking one hand under my arm and the other over my shoulder in a warm hug. God, I love the feeling of her body pressed to mine.
“No thanks.” Hush smiles. “I ought to get going, but if you wanna grab a drink with me to figure this thing out, I wouldn’t say no, Talon.”
“I’m gonna have to say no, my man.” I’d like to help, but this is a mundane task for Hush to figure out on his own. Nothing in this world could pull me away from the warmth and love of my wife’s arms surrounding me, while my own cradle my son.
Hush says his goodbyes, and I watch him from the doorway until his bike’s halfway down my street. Getting back inside, I ease myself into the sofa next to Gracie, who’s huddled under a thin blanket with a cup of tea in hand.
“You know I can hold down the fort if it’s important, right?” She pecks me on the cheek, copying the action over to Adam.
“I do.”
“And you know you can hang out with your friends whenever you want as well, right?”
Fuck. Does she feel bad about me staying in? If she does, it’s time to set that straight right now.
“Gracie, there’s nowhere I’d rather be than right here. With you. Our son. I waited too long to show you how I feel. Scared that I might make a fool of myself to the closest person in my life, and look where that got me.” I smile at her, slipping one hand away from Adam, and cupping her cheek. “I have everything I want and everything I need here. You at my side, my son in my arms, life is perfect. I’ve said it a thousand times, and I’ll say it a thousand more. I love you more than any damn thing in the world, and I never want to leave your side.”
Tears line her eyelids as I profess my feelings. But I don’t say them for any reaction. It’s the truth. Basking in the warmth and love my family brings me is what I need. All I’ll ever need.
And nothing will stop me from having it for the rest of my life.
The End