Travis came to stand at my side, his arm wrapping around my waist. His fingers curled into my skin, pressing almost to the point of pain, betraying the tension running through him.
“We didn’t realize you had a girlfriend,” she chirped.
“No, you wouldn’t,” he replied simply.
She shot a confused look at her husband. “Well, we certainly didn’t expect to be so unwelcome,” she huffed. “You get a girlfriend and suddenly you don’t have time for your own mother? And since when do you like dogs?”
Travis let go of my waist, and I sighed in relief, sensing my tender skin wouldn’t be able to withstand what came next.
“I’ve wanted a dog since the first grade when Pete Abrams down the street got a puppy. I asked you for one every birthday and every Christmas, you just never listened,” he ground out. “As for Emerly, don’t you dare blame her for the fact you have no relationship with your children. That’s all on you. The only reason I even tolerated you up until now is to hold on to some semblance of family.” His gaze turned to me, love glittering so brightly in those dark depths that I nearly lost my breath. “But she’s given me the only family I’ll ever need. Her and Sam, and her son, who you’ve never even met,” he snarled as his gaze returned to her. “So let me make it clear—from this point on, I have no interest in having you in my life. I certainly don’t want your indifference near the woman who will be my wife and the mother of our children. So, get your shit and get out.”
The silence that followed was so charged it was as though it had a roar all its own.
Stools scraped back, his parents grumbled and huffed, but otherwise left abruptly, put in their rightful place after so many years.
I turned to Travis as soon as the door slammed shut behind them. “You okay?” I murmured.
“Only reason I’m not is that I’m here”—he pointed to the space in front of him— “and you’re there.”
I smiled and stepped into his space, relishing the feel of his strong arms as they wrapped around me. His chin rested on the crown of my head and he sighed. “Yeah, babe. I’m good. Great, actually. That was long overdue.”
For a few moments, we just held each other, swaying slightly to a silent beat. “I do think part of me felt like I needed them,” he admitted after a time. “Family is such a powerful thing—but I realized it’s the concept of it, not the people itself. Sam and I, we never had a family with them. She found that with Sid. And….” — he paused, pulling me closer still— “I found that with you.”
I looked up at him, grinning like the lovesick fool that I was. I knew exactly what he meant. “That’s why I didn’t need you to track my folks down,” I explained quietly. “I don’t need them. I don’t need to know why they left. I have everything I need and more right here.”
He lowered his head, taking my mouth in a kiss that held more promises than words could ever convey.
“Let’s go upstairs and practice the more part,” he murmured against my lips.
“Practice makes perfect.” I smiled.
“I was always a perfectionist,” he mused, pulling me up the stairs.
In the end, it was all that plus more—as it was every day with him.
