“Okay, let’s go.” He offers me his hand again, smiling, and I just stare, completely and utterly devoted before I take his hand and lead him inside.
I navigate us to the grave, and once we reach it, I kneel and brush off the debris before taking a deep breath. “Hi, darling,” I murmur softly. “Sorry it’s been a few weeks, but I’ve been super busy. I won’t let it happen again. There’s someone I want you to meet. Your parents gave me their blessing, and I love him, darling. I’m moving on like you wanted me to.” Turning, I hold out my hand.
Mackie kneels, smiling at the grave. “Hi, I’m Mackie. I want to thank you for loving Conan and making him such an amazing man.” He spares me a glassy-eyed look, and tears fill my eyes as I meet his gaze. “I promise to take care of him and love him for the rest of his life. I wanted you to know that, and that I will never replace you. He tells me about you all the time.” Laying the flowers down gently, hefocuses on my husband’s grave. “You’ll always be his love. I will never take that from you, and when he can’t visit, I will. I won’t let you be alone, okay? Everyone in our life will know about you. You’ll live on through us. I promise.”
My eyes burn as my lips tremble, and I try to bite back my tears as Mackie turns to me and takes my hand, brushing my tears away. “Thank you for letting me meet him. Thank you for letting me love you and for loving me as well.”
“How could I not?” I croak as I rest my head on his shoulder and look at the grave. My past and future collide, but I know my husband would be okay with it. He wouldn’t want me to suffer forever, and he’d like Mackie. I’ll always love him, but I’m realizing that doesn’t mean I can’t love Mackie too, and I shouldn’t feel guilty about it.
My once broken, forgotten heart has enough room for both of them.
We sit for a while, just talking and telling stories about our lives. Mackie stays with me, listening and asking questions, giving me a safe place to grieve and find myself again.
My perfect sunshine.
SIXTY-THREE
“Noah.” I gape at the empty restaurant. “Did you rent the entire place?”
“Of course, my team deserves it. Besides, what’s the point of being rich if I can’t spend all that money?” He grins as he tugs me farther in. We are the first to arrive.
Starfire banners and balloons are everywhere, and there is one giant table in the middle. Servers wait at the back, and despite it being one of the most exclusive restaurants in the entire city, it’s empty. Turning me in the middle, he looks around. “Do you think they’ll like it?”
“I think they’ll love it. You didn’t have to do all this,” I tell him.
“I did. They deserve to know how hard every single one of our team members, from drivers to mechanics, worked. It’s a win for all of us, and it should be celebrated.” He kisses my hand as he looks around. “It’s important to recognize our wins. The bonus wasn’t enough.”
“You’re crazy,” I mutter, but I love him for it. “They’ll be so happy.”
As if on cue, the door opens and Sky bounces in, Bones attached to his hip. “The party is here, bitches!” Skylar yells before looking around. “Or maybe it hasn’t started yet.”
“You’re the first to arrive,” I reply. “Hey, Bones.”
“Hey.” He whistles as he looks around. “Nice going. I’ve been trying to get in here for weeks. How did you do it?”
“Money.” Noah shrugs, making me grin as Alek pushes through the door, shoving Skylar out of the way. Evan is at his side, and Conan is behind him since they came from work.
“Move, idiot, I’m starving,” Alek grumbles.
“Maybe if you ate more than your boyfriend’s ass,” Skylar teases and then runs behind me as Alek goes to smack him. Rolling my eyes, I hold my hand out to Conan, who heads our way.
“Come on, let’s eat,” I suggest as the rest of our team turns up. We find seats and drinks, and amazing food follows closely behind. The once silent restaurant overflows with laughter and voices. As I look around at our family, I have the insane urge to cry.
I’m just so happy.
I dig into the food and drinks, since it’s so incredible, and Sky wiggles his eyebrows as I meet his gaze when Conan wipes my mouth for me.
“You guys are cute. I feel sorry for Mackie though.”
“Why?” Conan asks, his own vegetarian plate before him. The fact that Noah made sure he could eat something makes me happy.
“His poor ass,” Sky replies. “Two dudes both obsessed with him? You know he’s going to hurt all the time. Maybe we should get him an inflatable seat for his car for his birthday.”
“Skylar!” the others shout.
“And wrists.” Mackie nods while taking a bite, then Sky and Mackie fist bump.
When the meal is over, Noah doesn’t even let us mention heading home. He drags us all outside, and my mouth gapes as I stare, side by side, with Skylar.
