Chapter Thirty
TREY
Adeline’s been quieter than usual all evening.
Not the cold, locked-behind-a-door quiet she had last week. This is softer—like her mood’s gone gray around the edges and she doesn’t know how to pull herself back into color.
I lean against the doorway of the living room, watching her curled into the corner of the couch, knees tucked under her chin. She’s flipping channels without actually watching anything.
I clear my throat. “What do you think about hot cocoa night? Extra whipped cream. Marshmallows the size of baseballs. And maybe a Disney movie with a talking animal sidekick.”
Her mouth twitches at the corner. “Only if I get to pick the movie.”
“Done.”
That earns me the smallest of smiles. Good. I’ll take it.
In the kitchen, I pull out the cocoa ingredients that I’ve tried to memorize.
Milk, cocoa powder, nutmeg, cinnamon, sugar, and…
I try to remember the last one by memory, but it doesn't come to me. My hand hovers over the cabinet where I shoved a folded scrap of paper weeks ago. Vivi’s hot cocoa recipe.
She’d rattled it off like it was nothing—like it was just sugar and cream and cinnamon. But I know better.
I take a look at the list. Oh right…vanilla.
There's magic in the way Vivi does everything. It’s in the way she stirs without looking, the way she hums when she “eyeballs” the measurements, the way she always hands you the first mug like she’s been waiting all day to see your reaction. You can’t write that kind of magic down.
Still, I pull out the pot and set it on the stove.
I head to the fridge and grab the whipped cream and then the marshmallows out of the pantry.
Even the peppermint sticks Adeline loves.
I line them all up on the counter. Maybe some part of me is hoping—hell, needing—to be ready if Vivi ever walks back through that door.
I’m measuring out the cocoa when there’s a knock at the door.
It’s too early for the Chinese we ordered in, and I’m not expecting anyone. My stomach does something strange—tight and light at the same time.
I try not to get my hopes up. For all I know, it’s just a neighbor asking to borrow a cup of sugar.
When I open the door, my world tilts.
Vivi’s there.
Her hair is in a ponytail, catching the light from the porch, eyes bright but steady. She’s not dressed for a meeting or an event—just jeans…and my jacket.
She doesn’t ease into it. Doesn’t give me a chance to breathe before she speaks.
“I hope I’m not interrupting anything,” she says, nibbling down on her lower lip as if there is anything in this world she could interrupt.
“You’re not. Adeline and I were just about to start a movie, and we ordered food.”
“The engagement’s over,” she blurts out.
“Jameson is proposing to Natasha…or is going to try to? Or…” She shakes her head as if she’s getting off course.
It’s cute when she’s flustered. “I’m not actually sure what’s going on, but I don’t care.
Either way, what it means is that the wedding is off.
And I love you. I want to be here. With you.
With Adeline. No deals. No deadlines. Just… us, if you still want me.”
For a second, I just…stand there. The world’s narrowed to her voice and the cold air at my back.
She stands there, breathing like she ran a marathon searching my face. “Did I miss my chance?”
Finally, I step forward, my hand braced on the doorframe.
“Vivi, do you have any idea how long I’ve wanted you?
Since the first day my eyes locked on yours the night I met you at Oakley’s.
Hell, since the second you climbed into my SUV without knowing it was me, I’ve been in love with you, even if I didn't fully understand that yet. You’ve been it for me. But I thought you deserved better.”
“Better than you? What in this world is better than you?” she asks, her eyebrow stitching together as if there is no reasonable answer.
“I’ve been holding back because I didn’t think I was whole enough to give you what you deserve.
I’ve been broken for a long time. My childhood, growing up alone, losing John, abandoning Tommy…
life has a way of carving pieces out of you and not giving them back.
I thought the best thing I could do for you was keep my distance.
Let Jameson give you the life you were raised for. A life you deserve.”
I step closer, close enough that I can smell the faint hint of her perfume. A smell I’ve become completely addicted to.
“But I was wrong. I realize now I’m whole with you.
You carry the part of my soul I thought I’d lost for good.
You’re what makes this house a home. You’re the missing piece of our family.
Without you, it’s just me and Adeline surviving.
With you, we’re living. You complete us, Vivi. You’re my heart.”
Her eyes are shining now, tears balanced but not falling. “Trey…”
I cup her face, my thumbs brushing her cheeks. “I love you. I’m not letting you go again. If you’ll have me, I’ll spend every day making sure you never have to wonder where you belong.”
She smiles through the tears. “I already know that I belong with you.”
So I kiss her. Soft, at first—just the barest press of lips.
A test. A promise.
And when she melts into me, my hands slide to her back, and I pull her closer, deepening it until there’s nothing between us but the thud of my heart and the warmth of her mouth.
When I pull away, my forehead rests against hers. “You’re home now. That’s all that matters.”
A small voice cuts in. “Told you that you two were in love.”
We break apart to find Adeline leaning against the hallway wall, a smug grin on her face.
Vivi laughs, a wet little sound that makes my chest ache. “Hi, sweet girl.”
Adeline bounces on her toes. “Are you staying?”
Vivi glances at me, and I nod. “Yeah. She’s staying. This is her home now.”
I motion toward the kitchen. “I was about to make hot cocoa, but I realized even if I had your recipe written down perfectly, it wouldn’t taste the same without you. So how about the three of us make it together?”
Adeline lights up like it’s Christmas morning. “Yes.”
Vivi’s smile wobbles. “I’d like that.”
We spend the next half hour in the kitchen, shoulder to shoulder, the scent of cocoa and cinnamon wrapping around us. The empty Chinese food takeout containers we shared together litter the island as a reminder that this house is lived in with a family that loves each other.
Adeline is in charge of marshmallows—three for her mug, two for mine, and three plus an extra one for Vivi’s. Vivi stirs while I warm the milk, her hip brushing mine every so often like she’s reminding me she’s really here.
When the mugs are ready, we pile onto the couch, Adeline tucked between us under a blanket.
She picks the movie. Something animated and loud, but I barely register it.
I’m too busy memorizing the feel of Vivi’s knee against mine, the way her fingers curl around her mug, the sound of Adeline’s quiet giggle when Vivi adds more marshmallows to Adeline’s mug when they think I’m not watching.
Halfway through, Adeline leans into Vivi’s side, eyelids drooping. Vivi looks down at her, brushing hair off her face with the gentlest touch. My throat tightens because I know, without a doubt, this is what I want every night for the rest of my life to look like.
When the credits roll, I carry Adeline to bed. She mumbles something about extra marshmallows in the morning and is out before I can answer.
Back in the living room, Vivi’s still curled under the blanket, her mug empty, eyes on me.
“I meant what I said,” she whispers. “I love you. And I’m not going anywhere.”
I drop to one knee—not for a proposal, not yet—but because I need to be level with her. My hands wrap around hers, thumbs stroking the backs.
“I’ve been through battles, injuries, and the kind of loneliness that makes you think you’ll never feel whole again.
But tonight, with you and Adeline in this house…
I’ve never been more certain. You’re it for me, Vivi.
The life I want, the family I need, the home I never thought I’d have. You're all of that.”
Her eyes brim again, and this time the tears fall.
I kiss her hands, one by one. “Stay. Build this with me. I don’t care about the rest of it. The company, the past, the mess we started in. We’ll figure it all out. Just…stay.”
She nods, laughing softly through her tears. “I was hoping you’d say that.”
And when I pull her into my arms again, the world finally feels right.