Page 79 of Riding the Curve

She bites her little lip while pondering her response. Instead of answering, she gives me a thumbs up.

“I’m glad you like them, too. I don’t know about you, but I’m hungry. Let’s get to work so we can have some for snack.”

She smiles again, nodding instead of answering.

“Lyla, will you go grab your step stool out of the pantry?”

“Yes, awntie.” She smiles before disappearing to get her chair.

“Sorry, she still only talks to family. They’ve been trying to get her out and about more to see if that would help, but she stays silent unless she feels comfortable.”

“No worries at all. That just means I’ll have to spend more time with her, so she feels comfortable around me.”

Hen squeezes my forearm. “I’d love that, and so would she.”

Just as she turns to help Lyla and finish setting up, Tripp and Gracie Cole come down the stairs. “Emerson! I was wondering when you were finally going to make it back over here again.”

Gracie reaches out and pulls my head down toward her, planting a kiss on my cheek.

“Woman, you can’t go around kissing grown men,” Tripp bristles, sliding in front of his wife to shake my hand. Gracie rolls her eyes as Hen shields her laughter with her hand.

“Don’t worry, I have no ambition of becoming a cougar.” She waggles her brows as Tripp’s mouth flies wide open. Gracie tips it closed with her finger and pats him softly on the chest. “Plus, I’ve only ever had eyes for one man.”

Raising up on her toes, she kisses Tripp on the lips, and I watch him melt into her.

Yeah, Tripp. I know the feeling.

“Are you sure you’re going to be okay while we’re out at dinner? Ryleigh won’t be back from hauling the trailer until around eight-thirty.”

“We’ll be good, Mom. We’ve got lots of fun things planned, right, Lyla?”

“Wight!” she shouts in the most adorable voice.

Gracie leans in and whispers, “I’m glad to see things have been progressing over there on the Lane property. And I’m not just talking about Autumn’s project.” She gives me a knowing look, and I can feel my cheeks heat. “Watch after my girls, will you?” She winks, reaching out to give my arm a loving squeeze. Her eyes bouncing between Hen and me.

“Always.”

An hour later, we’re covered in flour after one epic food fight, and the scent of vanilla and chocolate is wafting through the house as the cookies bake in the oven. While the girls head upstairs to wash up, I clean the kitchen and order us a pizza.

I am just plating us each a couple of slices with a little scoop of salad that I had thrown together when Henley strolls into the kitchen carrying Lyla in her arms.

“Oh, thank goodness,” she sighs. “How did you know I was too tired to cook?”

Carrying our plates on my arms, I walk over to her and place a kiss on her temple. Lyla giggles and without even thinking I give her a kiss, too. Her eyes go wide for a moment, and I start to panic. Then she squishes my cheeks and plants a big, slobbery kiss on my nose.

“Wuv you!”

Henley’s breath audibly stalls in her throat and her eyes begin to glisten. And I’ll be damned if it doesn’t make tears well in my eyes, too. I blink a few times trying to conceal the evidence, stepping around them and into the living room.

Hen gets Lyla settled with her plate on the coffee table while I search for a Disney movie. Once I settle on one, Henley snuggles up beside me while we eat dinner. By the end of the second movie, both girls are passed out on top of me.

Somewhere in the middle of the last movie, Lyla had crawled onto my lap. A few minutes later, Henley’s soft little snores filled the air. As I comb my fingertips through her hair, I’ve never felt more at peace. For years, I’ve been trying to stop the bleed in my heart, and I think I’ve finally begun to heal the tear.

I’ve known I’d always wanted a family, but these past few years I had started to accept that maybe that just wasn’t in the cards for me. Looking down at the girls, my heart simmers with hope. For the first time, I allow myself to believe that it can be possible. Especially if it’s with the gorgeous soul beneath me.

A buzz vibrates from my back pocket, and I gently tilt my hips to retrieve my phone.

My breath stalls in my throat when I see the name that lights up the screen.