He scrubs his face and I notice the fading of the cuts on his knuckles. I assume it’s from that night and my stomach turns. In a flash, he has me in his arms and he crashes his lips against mine. The second our tongues collide I let out a soft moan. He sinks his fingers into my hair and deepens the kiss. It’s all-consuming and I melt into him.
When he pulls away, he wipes the tears that run down my cheeks. “I’m sorry I reacted the way I did. I should’ve given you a chance to explain everything. I heard you lied, and I couldn’t handle it. I wanted you to say it wasn’t true and when you didn’t, I lost it. But I got my ass handed to me by everyone and it was clear that I was in the wrong. If I had given you a chance, you would’ve told me the truth and I’m fucking sorry I didn’t do that. I’ve been miserable without you. The girls keep asking for you.”
“You won?” I interrupt.
“Yeah baby, I won. But I also lost because you left. Come back, McKinley. Move in with me and the girls,” he says, searching my eyes.
“Really?”
He smiles and places his hands on my cheeks. “I want to go to sleep with you every night. I want to wake up to you every morning. I want to love you for the rest of my life.” He kisses my lips and sighs. “I love you, McKinley. Please, come home.”
I jump into his arms and wrap myself around him. Tears of relief swim in my eyes as I bury my face into his neck. “Take me home, Braden.”
Life is so unexpected. You can hope for something and find something else completely that changes your world. Braden did that for me and I will spend the rest of my life doing it for him.
Epilogue
One Year Later
Braden
“Girls, we’re gonna be late if you don’t hurry up,” I yell.
Tiffany comes running down the hallway, smiling with excitement. “I’m ready.”
“Where’s your sister?”
She shrugs her little shoulders and I sigh. Both girls have really gotten close to McKinley. They are just as miserable as me when she’s not around. But Dawn idolizes her. Which also means that she is now constantly trying to do her hair and makeup so that she looks more like McKinley.
I was a little annoyed, but McKinley explained that all little girls do this. They want to grow up and be a part of the adult fun. That didn’t help at all. I’m not ready for my girls to grow up and definitely not ready for any kind of adult fun. After laughing, she assured me that everything will be fine. She’s been helping Dawn by putting on small amounts of makeup, explaining that less is more. I like that approach.
Unfortunately, McKinley isn’t home. She’s been gone for almost a week on a shoot. It’s tough on all of us when she’s gone. She’s the heart of our home. She keeps us all going. But she’s coming home tonight, and I’ve got a surprise. Which is exactly why I need Dawn to hurry up.
I walk into her bedroom and she’s sitting in front of the mirror. “Hey baby girl, you almost ready? We need to get over to Blake’s.”
She sighs and looks at me through the mirror. “I can’t do my hair like McKinley does it.”
I know it should be a sad moment, but my heart fills with joy. They love McKinley as much as I do.
“I think it looks great. You look beautiful,” I say, smiling.
“You always say that Dad,” she says, trying to hide her smile.
I cross my arms and lean against her doorway. “I say it because it’s true.”
She looks at herself one more time and stands up. “Alright, I’m ready.”
I kiss the top of her head as she walks by and she fixes her hair. I don’t know how the hell I’m going to handle the teenage years.
When we finally get to Blake’s, the girls rush off and I head around back. Blake is sitting there staring at the pool, smoking a cigarette. He looks lost in thought.
“Hey, you alright?” I ask, sitting down next to him.
He doesn’t look at me, just continues staring out at the pool. “When Jax proposed to Kallie, did you have some kind of big brother talk with him?”
I fight back my smile and cross my arms. “I didn’t need to. It’s clear the love Jax has for Kallie. I knew that he was the right guy for her.”
He nods his head, still not looking at me. “I was an only child until two years ago. I was always envious of you and Kallie and Jax and Brody. I mean I have Jax, he’s my brother no matter what, but still, I was envious. Now, I have this sister. This amazing, smart, funny, talented, sister.” He looks over at me and smiles. “And I couldn’t have fucking picked a better guy for her.”
“You’re a dick,” I say, laughing.
“Did you think I was gonna kick your ass or something?” he asks.
I stand up as he smashes out his smoke. “No, I thought you were gonna cry.”
“Fuck off, Braden. That was some kickass acting on my part.”
The backdoor opens and London comes out with my girls. She looks between us and laughs. “Did he give you, his speech?”
“Oh, this was something practiced?” I ask, laughing.
Blake gets up and wraps his arms around London. “Come on baby, don’t blow up my spot like that.”
“I think it’s sweet,” she says, kissing him.
“Uncle Blake, are you gonna ask London to marry you too?” Dawn asks.
His eyes widen as he looks around. “Uncle Blake likes shit the way it is, sweetheart.”
“Blake,” I warn.
“Shit, sorry. I always forget about the cursing, but
