Page 184 of Scarred

“Scarlett asked for you last night,” he says, breaking the silence.

“She did?”

He nods his head, his hand softly moving down my back.

“She wanted you to read her bedtime story.”

“The ballerina one?”

“That’s the one,” he chuckles.

“She told me in her sleep that Mommy sent us the moon,” he says quietly.

My breath catches as I meet his eyes.

“My three-year-old daughter made me realize what I was too afraid to admit.”

“And what’s that?” I ask, my throat thick with emotion.

“That you belong with us. That we’re a family.” He swipes away a tear with his thumb as I try to contain all the love I feel right now.

“I want that more than anything.”

“I do too,” he smiles before his eyes search mine. “Yesterday wasn’t about forgetting her.”

“Then what was it about?”

“It was realizing that I had smiled all morning before remembering what day it was.” I watch his throat bob as he swallows, emotions flitting across his face. “I felt guilty that I was happy…that I was betraying her somehow.” He runs a hand through his hair and stares out the window at the rain coming down. “But I realized it’s never been about choosing one love over the other. It’s always been about choosing to live.”

My tear falls on his chest as I stare at the man I love, as his green eyes find mine.

“That’s why I came here tonight,” he smiles, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear.

“This is me choosing to live.”

FIFTY-FOUR

CAYDEN

“This isn’t the way to my parents’ house,” Luna says, looking out the window. “The turn off was back there.” She looks at me, and a smile plays on my lips.

We are on our way home from dinner and picking up Scarlett from her parents’ house. They have all their grandkids over for a pizza night and invited Scarlett, so we decided to sneak away for a date, or at least that’s the story we all decided to tell Luna.

“I know. There’s something I want to show you first.”

“What is it?” Her brows furrow in confusion, and I shake my head.

“It’s a surprise.”

Her demeanor changes instantly as my favorite dimple appears as she tries to hide a smile.

“Do I get a hint?”

“No, you don’t,” I chuckle, taking her hand in mine and interlocking our fingers. “You’ll just have to wait patiently.”

Her lips form a cute little pout, and I want to kiss it right off her beautiful face.

“Fine,” she mumbles, but I can tell by the way her eyes are shining that she’s brimming with excitement underneath as she glances out the window to try and figure out where I’m taking her.