Page 109 of Verdict

He snaked an arm around my waist and pulled me into him. He brushed my hair behind my shoulder. "Plus, if we got a pool, that means I can see you in one of those tiny little bikinis anytime I want."

I wrapped my arms around his neck. "Oh, is that why you want a pool?"

"One of the reasons."

I laughed. "Well, I do like to tan topless." I patted him on the chest as I scooped Ellie up and walked out the back doors onto the patio.

Cohen clenched his fist to his chest on a groan. "Fuck, Trouble. You're killing me. How fast can they put a pool in?" He followed me out the back door.

I walked over to the area with the largest expanse of empty flat land. It was off to the left of the house. I placed Ellie on the grass, and she immediately started pulling grass into her tiny fists, cooing in excitement.

Cohen draped an arm over my shoulder. "What are you thinking?"

I wrapped an arm around his waist. "What this space could potentially be."

"That space is already spoken for."

I glanced up at him. "For what?"

"For the barn that's being put in." He said it so casually. Like he was ordering a cup of coffee at PrimCup. Like he hadn’t just made another one of my dreams come true in one sentence.

I was speechless. I didn't really know how to react. Sensing my shock, he continued. "I need a place to put your horse."

My throat went dry, my heart raced. My horse? What the fuck was he talking about? Yet, I still couldn't seem to form any words. I just blinked.

He looked down at me, a smug look on his handsome face. "I bought Bentley."

I doubled over, bracing myself, and I was pretty sure I made a cough-choking sound. "Cohen. You what?!"

Cohen patted my back, holding me up because my legs no longer functioned. He had the biggest grin on his face. "I bought Bentley. And now I'm building a barn for him and an arena so you can ride. I talked to Addison about finding a small pony for Ellie. But also, that way Bentley has a friend."

It was like he was speaking a different language. For the life of me, I couldn't process a single word coming out of his mouth. This man not only chose me when he didn't even know if I would choose him back, but he chose my town, my family, my life.

I looked out across the stretch of open land again. The wind rustled through the tall grass, and the oak branches overhead creaked softly in the breeze. Ellie squealed beside us as she discovered another clump of grass, completely content in her tiny little world.

This place. This life, that was now somehow mine. It felt surreal.

A month ago, I’d been convinced Cohen was leaving. I had already started preparing myself for it. For long-distance parenting. For quiet nights in Austin without him. For pretending it didn’t hurt when he walked away to chase the better opportunity. Because that was what people always did eventually. They left.

But Cohen didn’t. He stayed.

He turned down Boston and chose the Aviators. He chose my family and Primrose Hill.

He chose me.

And he did it without hesitation, without asking me to change who I was or where I came from. He simply stepped into my life and built a future inside of it. My chest tightened as I looked up at him again. This stubborn, ridiculous man, who thought soft-close drawers were the coolest invention in the world, and thought building me a barn and buying me my dream horse was a completely normal surprise.

I had spent so much of my life bracing for the moment someone realized I wasn’t worth staying for. Waiting for them to find something better.

And then entered Cohen.

When I finally got myself under control, I looked up at him. I held his face in my hands and placed a soft kiss against his mouth.

"Cohen—" My eyes searched his; he was still smiling. "Thank you for not listening to my brother all those years ago. And thank you for staying. I'm so incredibly lucky that you chose me."

He shook his head. "Ava. Baby. We chose each other."

Epilogue