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This was the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life. It was so physically and emotionally draining that by the end, I was ready to give up. I didn’t think I had the strength to finish, and right as the panic threatened to overwhelm me, Gray pulled me out of my spiral with his all-encompassing belief in me.

He propped me up and reminded me that if I could push through the exhaustion, I’d get to see my Peanut at the end.

And now she’s here. I’ve never experienced a love like this. Falling in love with Gray was like a slow, winding river that eventually grew into a steady ocean. The second Reina was placed in my arms, it was like a lightning strike setting a field ablaze. It was fierce and wild and more powerful than anything I could ever describe.

My only problem now is that my giant water bottle is empty. Grayson is sleeping at an awkward angle in the chair across the room, which means I get to use the secret accessory I’d stashed in my hospital bag. Thanks to Caroline, everything we’d painstakingly packed was delivered yesterday. She gave me a long hug and told me she was so proud of me. I bawled like a baby, given what had happened just a few hours earlier with my mom.

Pulling it out of one of my bag’s many compartments, I aim and shoot at Gray’s chest. He startles awake, frowning down at the foam bullet in his lap. His sleepy, confused gaze finally meets my eyes. “Did you just shoot me with a Nerf gun?”

I grin. “Yep. I’m nap-trapped, and I need help.”

He slaps a hand over his mouth when a loud laugh escapes. Glancing down, I catch Reina’s eyebrows scrunching before she settles back into sleep. Whew. Close one.

When I look back up, Grayson is staring lovingly at both of us. It sends warmth through me as I soak up his expression. I am so freaking lucky that he took both of us on without a second thought.

He comes over to my hospital bed and presses a kiss to my forehead before palming Reina’s little head. He looks like a giant in comparison to our six-pound little wonder. “What did you need, Ladybug?”

“Can you fill up my water bottle, please?”

“Of course. You want something to eat while I’m out?”

“I wouldn’t say no to some snacks.”

He smirks. “You got it.”

While he’s gone, I scroll through the many notifications on my phone. Our friends blew up our group chat after Gray sent pictures of Peanut. He even snuck in one of Reina and me. I wanted to be mad, but it’s actually one of my favorite photos.

We’ve been in a quiet little bubble, resting and bonding with Peanut for the last few hours. Grayson’s parents are bringing London over a little later, and I can’t wait for her to meet her little sister.

Caroline said she’s been bouncing off the walls in excitement.

A text pops up on my phone that makes my stomach cramp.

Jacob

Hey, Sis. Give me a call when you’re up for it. I’ve got an update on the situation with Mom and the douche canoe.

I decide to do it now to get this conversation out of the way. I want this whole thing over and done with.

“Hey,” Jacob answers. “How are you doing? Peanut still doing good?”

“She’s as wonderful as ever, and I’m doing fine, considering I just pushed a baby out of a very small hole five hours ago.”

“Argh. Come on, Ky. Spare your brother the details, please.”

I laugh at his annoyance. “Big baby. Anyway, what’s going on with Chris?”

Grayson walks in as I say those words, and his eyebrows raise. I quickly put my phone on speaker so he can hear too, then I yank my water bottle out of his hand and take a long drink. He takes Reina out of my arms and sits on the side of the bed. I mouth a thank you as Jacob tells us what happened after we left for the hospital.

“I got there right as Mom was escorting Chris out of the house with a rag on the back of his head. She told me they were going to the ER because he needed stitches. I wasn’t about to let them go on their own, so I took her keys and drove them myself. He kept asking about you and if you were okay, which pissed me off. He wouldn’t have had to ask that question if he hadn’t gone crazy. He kept apologizing over and over, until I finally told him to shut up.”

“Was he drunk or something? He was seriously unhinged,” I ask.

“Not that I could tell. And after he got stitched up and we left the hospital, I finally asked him what the fuck was going on. He went into this long ramble about how the last few years have been hard at work, and the other lawyers were doing drugs to cope, so he started doing them too. Apparently things spiraled until you leaving woke him up to what he’d become.”

“Jesus,” I mutter, dropping my face into my hands. Gray gently strokes my thigh, providing more comfort than I could have asked for.

Jacob continues, “I guess when the divorce was moving forward despite his attempts to get you to drop it, he became desperate, and he contacted Mom. She stupidly took pity on him and set up the whole ploy to get you to talk to him. Now he’s staying at a motel outside of town until his concussion improves and he’s cleared to fly.”