AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Forgiveness from your sins does wonders for your confidence,” he replies matter-of-factly. “And it’s a lot easier to love someone else properly once you’re able to love yourself.”
“You do realize there’s a good chance Father Conrad won’t allow us to be godparents, right? I probably can’t even receive absolution, so long as Loren and I are living together.”
“Look, not that it’s any of my business?—”
“It’s not,” I cut him off, since I already know what he’s going to ask next. “But we’re not stupid enough to risk anything with her condition. Not that it’s even like that with us right now. We still sleep in separate rooms.”
“Then explain your situation. I’m not saying he won’t recommend or maybe even require a few lifestyle changes, but I think you’ll be surprised at how easy this could be.”
“Lifestyle changes? Wait, is that why you asked me to be a godfather?” I squint at him.
“Of course not.” His expression changes. “Tenley and I both love you, and we sincerely want you and Loren to be our baby’s godparents. We also love you enough to risk pissing you off by nudging you in a positive direction. Although at this point, we’re just supporting you as you continue down the path you’ve chosen on your own.”
I groan. “Fine. I guess we have to meet with him either way.”
“Perfect. I’ll set it up.”
I glance down at my watch before I stand. “I’ve gotta get back to work,” I start. “But I need you to keep a closer eye on Lo and make sure she doesn’t overdo it. She’s really not supposed to be working this much, and now she’s stressing over her maternity leave paperwork.”
“Hey, don’t tell me how to do my job, man,” he replies, sitting up straight and gesturing to the assistant principal sign on his desk.
“Coach JD, are you available? We have an altercation in the gym,” a voice crackles over the walkie-talkie he’s wearing on his hip.
“Yeah, I’m on my way,” he says into the radio. Then he sighs and steps out from behind his desk. “I guess that means I should get back to work too.”
I huff out a laugh. “Have fun, kid.”
“Have fun,boss,” he corrects me with a smirk before he darts down the hall.
CHAPTER 31
Blake
I shuffle into the kitchen,my bare feet sticking to the hardwood floors. Even though the AC thermostat displays sixty-eight degrees, the humidity in Louisiana at this time of year is unavoidable. And I’ve been tossing and turning for so long that I figure stretching my restless legs can’t hurt.
I yawn as I open a cabinet to retrieve a glass and set it beneath the tap in the fridge door. It beeps loudly when I push the fill button, and I cringe, hoping it doesn’t wake Loren. She’s gotten to the point where sleep seems to evade her every night, and the last thing I want is to wake that adorably grumpy bear.
Anddamnis she adorable. She’s also the funniest and cutest and smartest and prettiest and sexiest …
I take a seat at the kitchen island, sighing and resting my elbows on the cold quartz countertops. I glance around, noticing the small piles of books and junk littering nearly every surface, courtesy of Loren. And I smile to myself, because I’ve grown overly fond her clutter. Even the dirty laundry she leaves on the floor and the ridiculous amount of skincare products surrounding my bathroom sink have become endearing, because they’re all reminders of her.
I certainly don’t mind the lingering smell of her rose-scented shampoo around the house, either.
My brother was right—again. I’m definitely in love with Loren, have been for a while, and am ready to make some serious moves. It’s past time I start amending or even abolishing the ground rules we set months ago. I’m tired of pretending I don’t want a romantic relationship with her—a permanent one—even though I’m not sure what that might look like for us just yet.
I think back on my parents’ marriage for a minute. They were a little older than I am now by the time they had kids. My mom once told me they struggled to get pregnant for more than a decade before they had me and were pleasantly surprised when she found out she was expecting again, shortly after my first birthday. It must have made them more grateful to be parents, and although my dad and I often butted heads, I know I’m really lucky to have had them. My only grievance comes from losing both of my parents before I’d even turned thirty, my mom developing Alzheimer’s in her early sixties and lasting only a couple of years after her diagnosis, and my dad passing away from a heart attack not long after. I think he was happy to go, because I’ve never seen a shell of a man as sad as my father without my mother by his side. For all the size and big, booming voice that characterized Drake Bourgeois, he was equally gentle and loving, at least when it came to my mom. It’s no secret that JD inherited his borderline sickeningly sweet romantic tendencies. My dad looked at my mom with the same dumb, goofy expression I’ve been seeing on my brother’s face since Tenley came around.
Then Loren pops into my mind again, and I close my eyes and swallow hard. Because I think I might be just as love drunk as those two idiots.
What the hell am I going to do when I have two baby girls to dote on in addition to her?
I laugh incredulously at myself as I sit alone in the dark, thinking I might as well throw in the towel and take my lick now, because I’m never going to manage any semblance of my old self after this. And for the first time, the prospect of owning up to my softer side seems so much more enticing and rewarding than putting on that old, worn-out asshole mask.
The sound of the door creaking shakes me from my thoughts, and my heart begins beating faster, just from the anticipation of seeing Loren. She pads out of her room with her eyes closed and gropes her way into the kitchen. I smile, watching her carefully in her cropped T-shirt and sleep shorts, her belly obscuring the elastic waistband.
She scratches her left butt cheek as she reaches out for the counter on her right, seemingly oblivious to my presence. One of her eyes cracks open for a second, but the night light over the stove must be too bright, because she moans and shuts it quickly. Then she continues feeling her way around the island until her hands land on my biceps. Her face contorts, and she stops abruptly, squeezing my arm a second time.
I flex the muscles beneath her hand, and she lets out a frightened squeak. “Feel something you like, Agnes?” I quip.
