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He stared at her for a moment, as if he wanted her to see his response in his eyes before he spoke it. And she did. “I love you, too, songbird. Always have.”
“And what about my Evie? Can you love her, too?”
He reached up to wipe away some of her tears. “She’s all you. Smart, intuitive, beautiful,” he replied with a crooked smile. “How could I not?”
“I know it’s a lot—the two of us,” she admitted, fresh tears replacing the ones he’d wiped away. “I know this isn’t how we thought it would be when we were younger—”
“Stop, baby. Is this what you’ve been out here worryin’ about? Evelyn is not a hardship. We always said we’d have kids. And we will—we’ll have more. I’m just sorry I missed the first few years of this one.”
“You’re not just sayin’ that because you want this to work?” she hiccupped.
“I do want this to work.” His eyebrows knitted together, he stood so he could hold her face and look her straight in the eye. “Nora-Jean, I need you to trust this—trust me. I’m here. My eyes are wide open, and I’m not goin’ anywhere. I’m in this. You, me, Evelyn—she’s part of you, and I want all of you. You hear me?”
Nodding as much as his hold would allow, she reached for him as she whispered, “Yeah.” Following her lead, his mouth met hers in a kiss. “Yeah,” she repeated on a mumble, his lips still pressed against hers.
He kissed her again, then once more before he pulled away. “Not done kissin’ you, babe, but can we please take this inside?”
Smiling up at him, she wiped at her cheeks, suddenly feeling the cold anew. “Okay.”
He took her hand, holding her steady as she uncurled herself from her seat. When they were inside, Lawson escorted her to the couch. She set aside her empty coffee tumbler before following his tug, which left her tucked into his side, his arms wrapped around her.
“You’re cold. How long were you out there?”
“I don’t know. Maybe an hour.”
“You gonna tell me what had you out there worryin’?”
“A lot has happened in the last seventy-two hours. I’m still processin’ it.”
“Doubtin’ it?” he pressed.
Nora shook her head, resting a hand on the center of his chest as she clarified, “Not you so much as myself.”
Lawson didn’t speak a reply, but she could tell by the look in his eyes that he wanted more.
“I make decisions for Evie all the time. It’s my job. Most of the time I just do it; sometimes without even thinkin’. Every once in a while, it feels really hard.
“When I told Creed he couldn’t meet her, I wasreacting. Now I’ve thought about it, and I know it’s what I want. It’s a decision I’ll defend…even if she hates me for it one day.”
“She won’t,” stated Lawson resolutely. “If she’s as smart as I think she is, she won’t.”
“I hope you’re right,” Nora murmured.
“Baby, if one day she looks back on her life and doesn’t see the way you loved her, the way you put her first—then we did somethin’ wrong.”
Resting her head on his shoulder, Nora snuggled closer as she breathed, “Thanks for sayin’ that.”
“I mean it. And I know we’re still gettin’ to know each other, but I’d do just about anything to protect that little girl—including standin’ in the way of Nash. I don’t like him. Never will. He touched what was mine then threw you out like trash. He doesn’t deserve her, and he never deserved you.”
Nora didn’t speak right away, certain she’d cry if she did. Turning her head, she pressed a kiss against his chest and willed her emotions in check.
“I’m sorry,” she managed to whisper around the knot in her throat. “I’m sorry I didn’t wait for you to come back to me.”
“We’re past that, baby. We’re here now. Look at me.” He waited until she did as he asked then repeated, “We’re here now.”
Nora-Jean nodded before concluding their conversation with a kiss.
They sat in a comfortable silence for a few minutes, until Evie made her way into the room, rubbing at her eyes. The braids she’d requested the previous morning were a little worse for wear after sleep, and she was still in the t-shirt she’d fallen asleep in and the pajama bottoms Nora had managed to change her into the night before.
