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Her lip trembles, tears gathering in her eyes, before she’s launching her small body against mine, her face pressed to my stomach. I close my eyes and wrap my arms tight around her shoulders.
When she pulls back and looks up at me, I wipe away her tears.
“Thank you, JW. I’m glad I have a big brother.”
I clear my throat and hope like hell I don’t start crying like a fucking baby.
“I’ll always be here to protect you,” I promise her.
She doesn’t know what I did to our parents and she won’t know for many years to come. I won’t keep it from her forever, she has a right to know, but only when I think she’s ready.
When I took her all those months ago and brought her back to Malus, I did some digging. Apparently, Mom and Trey stayed true to Sweet Haven form and never registered her. Through my contacts in San Antonio, I was able to obtain a birth certificate for her, along with starting the adoption process. As of three weeks ago, Eden and I are officially her parents. That day was very emotional for the three of us. Eden and Thea have become very close since she came to live with us in Malus.
When the song ends, I escort her off the dance floor. Brittney, another eleven-year old, is waiting for her to go get another piece of cake. Within a week of Thea arriving, they were friends. Brittney’s been handed her own shitty hand in life. I think because of that, they’ve formed a sort of bond.
As I watch the two girls walk off, fingers lace themselves between mine. I turn and look down at my wife, putting our laced hands behind her back and tugging her close.
“Hey, wife,” I whisper.
“Hello, husband,” she whispers back with a smile.
“Or should I say, hey, Mama?”
She laughs and the sound goes straight to my heart, just like it always does.
“How’s your mom holding up? I saw your dad trying to take away her wine glass.”
It’s usually the father you have to worry about threatening the groom during the speeches. Not Eden’s though. It was her mom who threatened to chop off my nuts and wear them as earrings if I ever dared to hurt her daughter. Of course, she did this stiltedly with the amount of wine she’d consumed. Eden was embarrassed while I barely choked back my laughter. Melanie Delmont loves her daughter fiercely and without reservation. I can’t fault the woman for looking out for her only child.
“She’s fine, but she’ll be regretting it tomorrow. Dad just left to take her home.”
Laughter has both of our heads turning. Thea, Brittney, and Hannah are sitting at one of the tables, their heads down as they look at something on Hannah’s phone. Eden’s friend, Millie, surprised Eden by showing up for the wedding with the two kids they watched over from the shelter they volunteered at. Apparently, the children’s mother was caught trying to sell her kids for an eight ball of cocaine. When Millie found out the kids would be put in foster care, she spoke with her husband and they decided to apply for an adoption. It’s not official, but their lawyer said there’s no reason they would be denied. Eden was ecstatic when Millie gave her the news.
I look back at Eden. “Do you have any idea how happy you make me?”
“Hopefully as happy as you make me,” she answers and slides her hands up over my shoulders.
I tighten my arms around her waist and pull her until our stomachs meet. I can’t wait to feel hers once it starts to grow with our child tucked inside.
“More.”
The soft tendrils of loose hair sways when she shakes her head. “Impossible.”
I smile and lean down to press my lips against hers. “We’ll have to agree to disagree.”
Even though we’re not on the dance floor, I begin to move us to the rhythm of the soft music.
“I love you, JW,” she says, staring up at me with love shining in her eyes.
“I love you too, Gypsy. More than you’ll ever know.”
This woman is my life. She completes me in a way I never knew I needed, but I know I won’t ever be able to live without.
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TURN THE PAGE FOR THE FIRST TWO CHAPTERS IN JUDGE OF HELL, BOOK THREE IN THE HELL NIGHT SERIES
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