Chapter 46
—Reed—
I tenderly kissed Kasey’s shoulder, then got to my feet. She smiled up at me like I’d hung the moon as she accepted my offered hands. Fingers linked, I led her down the hallway toward my bedroom and faltered a little when we passed the nursery. The realization struck as if it was new news: oh yeah, we had a daughter now. One who was tucked in her crib with no idea her momma was in the house.
“You don’t have to take me into your room if you don’t want to…”
Kasey’s soft voice snapped my attention back to her, and I shook my head. “It’s not that. I just forgot about Posie for a moment.”
Saying it aloud was a sucker punch to the chest. Guilt and remorse crept in, telling me I wasn’t fit to be a father because a decent one wouldn’t forget about his kid.
Much to my surprise, Kase raised her hand and cupped my jaw, immediately soothing some of my worries. “She’s safe, Reed. I’m sure she’s okay, but please check on her if you want to.”
I swallowed, feeling myself falling harder for Kasey. “I’ll check on her soon. Let’s get cleaned up first.”
Entering the en suite, I flicked on the shower and caught her frown when I turned. I took her hand and rubbed my thumb over her knuckles.
“What’s the frown for, darlin’?”
Concern bunched my brows harder as she formed her thoughts into words. I waited patiently, knowing she’d eventually voice her worries.
As predicted, her chocolate irises lifted to search mine. “What if I don’t remember anything else other than you flipping me off?”
I smiled and kissed her palm. “Then, that’s better than nothing, right?”
She hummed, though couldn’t disguise the deep-set worry in her tone. “I guess so.”
“Shower’s ready, babe.”
She stepped in while I set out fresh towels and plucked one of her many hair ties from the middle bathroom drawer. With it on my wrist, I joined Kase in the shower and started to gather up her long hair.
Kasey startled and whipped her head in my direction. “What are you doing?”
I raised my hands. “Uhhh, sorry?”
She eyed the hair tie. “Is that mine?”
“Yep. You’ve left countless of these around my house over the last year, so I just collect them all and store them in the vanity. Just in case you need them.”
Her eyes grew round. “You do?”
“Yeah.” It really wasn’t a big deal.
“And you usually tie my hair up in the shower?” she asked in an incredulous tone.
“Well, not always, but this time I thought I would…”
“Oh, okay.” Kasey faced the shower spray again and let me wrangle her half-wet hair into a semi-acceptable nest on the top of her head.
I scrutinized my effort and grimaced. “Not my best work, but it will do.”
Kasey gave her hair a squeeze, then thanked me. I offered her the apricot body wash I kept just for her and smiled when more questions danced in her pretty eyes.
“You were a massive part of my life, Kase,” I murmured as I squeezed some onto her loofah.
“It appears so.”
We washed in silence, and I kissed the curve of her shoulder one last time before turning off the water. Both wrapped in towels, I jogged to the living area to gather our clothes while Kasey dried in my bedroom.
On my return journey, I quickly ducked into Posie’s room to ensure she was still sound asleep, plus satisfy the niggling worry that she’d woken.
With my mind at ease, I silently pulled the nursery door almost closed, then knocked on my bedroom door before entering.
I stopped dead when I clapped eyes on Kasey: her long hair hung over one shoulder as she tried to finger-comb the knots out, but it was the sight of her wearing a pair of my boxers and T-shirt that turned my mouth dry.
Her fingers stopped combing. “Um, is this okay? I didn’t want to put my pants back on—they were rubbing on my scar a little bit.”
Our gathered clothes fell from my hand, and I crossed the room before she drew her next breath. Her cheeks warmed under my palms, and her mouth willingly tipped up to meet mine.
“It’s forever okay,” I whispered before landing a firm kiss to seal my words. “And you’ve got a toothbrush and hairbrush already in your designated drawer.”
“I have a drawer?”
Snickering, I linked our fingers and led her back into the en suite, then opened said drawer. It housed a wide range of Kasey paraphernalia, from hair accessories and products to tampons, silicone nipple covers, makeup, and fake eyelashes.
Kase dug through the products then laughed. “Wow, I really did make myself at home.”
Pride inflated my chest. “Like I said, babe, you were moving in with me.”
The humor slid from her expression. “And I ruined it.”
“No—the universe altered the plan. It’ll still happen; we’re just on a side-road at the moment.”
She smiled, though it didn’t reach her eyes. I followed her into my room, dug out some track pants, then tossed my towel aside to pull them on.
“Can I stay a while longer?” she asked, watching me adjust the waistband on my hips.
My heart lumbered with happiness. “I’d like that.”
She was trying. I could see it in the way she stood with her arms nervously hugging her stomach and her toes angled together. So fucking cute. Piece by piece, she was letting me in, opening not only her mind but her heart, while slowly becoming more acclimatized to Posie. I didn’t ask a damn thing from her other than she didn’t give up on us. And through the hardest of times, even when I thought I’d lost her, it appeared that she’d clung onto the same tiny glimmer of hope as I did.
Her eyes narrowed as I stared. “What?”
I smirked and tossed her the TV remote. “Private thoughts, darlin’. Get into bed and choose a movie.”
She paused with one knee on the mattress. “Where are you going?”
“To get snacks,” I declared from the doorway.
Despite being dead-beat tired, I wasn’t going to waste snuggling in bed for the first time in months. Especially with the woman I thought I’d lost for good.