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Chelsea narrows her eyes at me, the corners of her lips tight as she says, sternly, “You need to drop that. You guys have worked that out. You can’t keep going back to the same hurt if you’ve accepted he’s changed.”
She’s right. It has to be enough. It has to be enough that he knew that night was different, even if he couldn’t remember it completely.
“Did you tell him yet?”
Her question brings me back to the present and my heart races as I respond, “No. I can’t. Not yet. Something else is going on with him. I can see it. It’s the same feeling as when he found out about Tom and Cash. He’s taking something on himself and telling him right now may push him over the edge.”
“Or it may bring him from it,” she retorts impatiently. “Adley, he loves you. He’s so in love with you. For years! He’s also not who he used to be.”
I clench my jaw, wanting to agree with her, but unable to get the words out, and when I remain quiet, she continues. “I think it’s normal to worry about someone who once had a huge problem, but my worry now is that you’re letting a fear of ‘what if’ consume you. Just like he turned it around, you need to, too. You’re allowed to recover as well, Adley.”
Tears pool in my eyes as I stare at her and I swallow painfully as she adds, “He’s going to be a great dad. Don’t you remember his talk with Dom that day? You were snooping on him in the camera.”
Laughing, I wave her off. “It’s not snooping. I was watching Dom.”
She raises a brow and snorts. “Mmhmm. Well, it’s forever burned in my head. Billy said Dom was a big miracle in a small body. That’s exactly what your baby is, too.”
We sit and rock quietly, each lost in our own thoughts when the front door opens, and Chelsea glances at the monitor. “It’s just Adam. He’s home early.”
Soft footfalls move closer until he appears in the doorway, smiling at Chelsea as he says, “Hi, Peaches.”
He doesn’t even notice me, and it makes me smile.
“Hey honey. Why are you home early?”
“I needed to see you.”
I giggle and he gives me a sideways look. “Adley.”
“Adam.”
He smirks because he knows I just caught him trying to mess with my sister. Again.
“Where’s Dom?”
“At the park with your brother.”
He saunters in, giving me a look. “That’s why he cut out early? Guess I can’t be mad.”
“Like you two didn’t have that planned. I know you all work in tandem. Covering for one another.”
He drops to his knees beside her chair, giving her a kiss on the way down, and then kisses her belly twice. He speaks in a low tone. “Hi babies. I hope you’re not giving your momma a hard time today.”
He rubs small circles on her belly and looks at my sister lovingly. I feel like I’m intruding on their moment, but it’s also the sweetest thing ever, and my mind runs wild as I wonder if this could be Billy and me.
“They were moving before, but right now they’re quiet. We’ve just been rocking. I probably lulled them to sleep.”
He kisses her belly again. “I hope they’re face up and I’m not kissing their ass.”
She chuckles. “If it’s two girls again, you’ll be kissing their ass for the next eighteen years.”
His lips stay on her belly as he slips his hand under her shirt, rubbing her side, and her head falls back. “That feels good. My skin is so tight, and they’ve been leaning to one side. I felt like I was walking sideways.”
Adam moves the foot stool and kneels in front of her, between her legs, placing both hands on each side, still nuzzling her belly.
“Want me to run a bath? Then I’ll rub lotion on you.”
She runs her hands through his hair, her eyes soft as she looks down at him and I clear my throat then laugh. “Jesus, you two! This is why you keep ending up in this position!”
