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I threw myself at him, grateful he spent so many hours working out to make him strong enough to catch me.

“I’m all sweaty and smelly.” Cody laughed as he spun me in a circle, my feet not touching the ground.

“Don’t care,” I murmured against his lips before kissing him with everything I had.

That seemed to be all the encouragement Cody needed. His huge hands palmed my ass, and I wrapped my legs around his waist.

It wasn’t until I heard a distinctive “Ew!” from behind me that I remembered we weren’t alone.

Cody set me back down on my feet before kissing me quickly and spinning me around, but he didn’t let go. When he held me close against him, I felt the reason stabbing into my leg, and I knew why he wasn’t letting go.

“Why are you always kissing?” River groaned, and I hid my face behind my hands.

Cody’s chuckle reverberated through my body. “Did you have a good day?” Cody asked, redirecting the conversation.

“It was the best! Did you see my hit? I got all the way to third. They couldn’t catch me!” River bragged, and I felt a sense of happiness I hadn’t felt in a long time. For a moment, nothing else mattered besides the people in this room. I didn’t have to worry about paying the bills or the pile of laundry waiting for me. Nothing mattered more than this moment.

“I did! You did so well. You changed your stance,” Cody commented.

“Just like you told me,” River announced proudly.

“And it worked.”

“It did. Can you show me some more?” River practically begged.

I glanced over my shoulder at Cody. His eyes were watery, but it was the smile on his face that knocked down the last of my walls.

“Of course,” Cody choked out.

“Now?” River pushed.

“Maybe tomorrow,” I cut him off. “Right now, both of you need a shower.”

“Oh, but, Mom …”

“Nope. No, but Moms. Both of you stink. Go get cleaned up.”

River stomped his foot, and I shot him a look that dared him to do it again. Instead of answering, he turned and headed for the stairs.

“Guess I should go shower, too. I don’t want to get the cranky Mom look,” Cody teased as he placed an open-mouth kiss on my neck, making me shiver.

It took a minute to unscramble my brain before I could form actual words. “You probably should.”

Cody nibbled on the shell of my ear. “Join me?”

I don’t know whether it was the warmth of his breath on my skin, the suggestion in his tone, or the scent of his skin, but frankly, this man could’ve asked me to take him to the moon, and I’d be trying to find a way to make it happen.

He didn’t wait for my answer. Instead, he swept me up in his arms with a squeal and carried me toward the bathroom.

I nuzzled against him. “I love you,” I told him. The need to tell him was almost paralyzing. “I’m so in love with you, Cody. You’re everything I wasn’t looking for and everything I never expected to come into my life.”

“Tillie …” My name melted from his lips.

“Please just let me get this out. When I lost Sean, I thought I was done. I thought he was it for me. I told myself over and over and over again that River was enough. And he was. He was the light in my darkness. He was my reason for everything. Then you showed up. I wasn’t looking for anyone, but there you were. And you wouldn’t take no for an answer …”

“I’m stubborn like that,” Cody interrupted.

“Well, I’m grateful you are. ’Cause if you’d given up on me, we wouldn’t be here. Thank you, Cody. For chasing me until I was ready to be caught.”