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Taeli
Mom and Sara-Beth stay long after Erin and Jena head home.
They raid my refrigerator and throw together a chicken Alfredo for dinner.
I’m too nervous to eat as I wait for Caleb to return home. I hope his time with his father isn’t spoiled by our drama. Hopefully, Damon is able to set our adult bullshit aside and focus on his son.
“You’re going to pace a hole in the newly refinished floor,” Mom says as she hands me a glass of wine.
I take a huge gulp and continue my path to the window and back.
Graham catches me as I turn again, and he wraps his arms around me.
I let him hold me and absorb his strength.
“Thank you for staying with me. I don’t think I could have handled Mom alone right now.”
He leans back and takes my face in his hands. “Where else would I be?” he asks.
My eyes fill with tears. He dips his head and kisses the corner of my left eye to catch one before it flows down my cheek.
“Calm down. Caleb is going to be fine,” he assures me.
I relax against him.
“There, that’s better,” he says.
“I’m sorry about Damon. I can’t believe he said all of that to you.”
“I can. He could see it, and it was killing him,” he says.
“See what?” I ask.
“How much you and Caleb mean to me and how much I mean to you guys.”
I go still.
“How much do we mean to you?” I ask. I regret the words as soon as they leave my lips.
“Everything,” he whispers, and I feel the depth of that one word in my soul.
“Graham.” His name is a plea on my lips.
He leans in and kisses me. It’s a long, deep, and claiming kiss.
A throat clears, and we break apart to see Mom and Sara-Beth at the door.
“We’re going to go. You can have Caleb call me to check in when he gets home,” Mom tells me.
“I will. Thanks for everything, Mom.”
“Oh, I should be thanking you, kiddo.”
“For what?”
“Bringing my family home.”
She blows me a kiss, and then they are gone, leaving Graham and me alone.
“What do we do now?” I ask.
“I can think of a few things that might distract you,” he growls.
“Don’t threaten me with a good time, mister,” I tease.
He starts walking us toward the bedroom when the front door swings open. Caleb finds me in Graham’s arms, and I don’t step away.
He looks at us and grins.
“Gross,” he says. “You two aren’t gonna walk around, kissing each other all the time now, are you?”
“Probably so, kiddo,” I admit.
“Try to keep it to a reasonable level, okay?” he requests.
“We can do that.” Then, I ask him, “How did things go with your dad?”
He shrugs.
“We ate burgers.”
Well, that’s a very male answer.
I roll my eyes.
“Anything else to report?” I prompt.
