Chapter 18
eighteen
RYLEE
Rylee stepped out of the en suite, then quickly reentered to switch off the lights.
She’d only been in the house for few days and was still learning the little things, like how the light switch was to her right and not her left like in the brownstone.
Two months after giving birth to her third child, Rylee was officially in Greene Gardens, in the home Xander bought for their family.
Though she and Xander arranged for a moving company to relocate most of the things from the brownstone to Greene Gardens, a bulk of it remained in Brooklyn.
Xander insisted they leave it there and purchase new furniture. The plan was to keep the brownstone furnished for whenever they wanted to spend time in Brooklyn.
Rylee was grateful she didn’t have to sell the brownstone. Grateful it hadn’t even been a thought for Xander.
“Of course you don’t have to sell, Snoop,” he’d said, caressing her cheek one night in bed.
The topic came up when she mentioned what she’d been thinking about doing with the brownstone once they moved into the house in Greene Gardens.
“This brownstone is yours, baby,” he added. “The house in Greene Gardens is ours. There’s no need to get rid of anything.”
Rylee smiled with relief, the tension she’d been carrying in her shoulders finally settling.
“This place.” He glanced around them, “This brownstone is where the kids grew up. It wouldn’t be fair to uproot them and get rid of their childhood home. That wouldn’t be right.”
And though she loved the idea of still having the brownstone, Rylee was making a home in Greene Gardens.
She’d taken a few walks with the baby since they arrived, familiarizing herself with the new neighborhood and the main strip of the village.
She even linked up with Ivy Pressman, one of her grief support group members who now called Greene Gardens home.
“It’s cute, right?” Ivy asked, adjusting the stroller her adopted son Levi slept in to make room for café patrons walking by. “This place is like a staple in my day.”
Rylee didn’t waste time reconnecting with Ivy. She’d just moved into the house officially a few days prior but wanted Ivy to show her around.
So she left the kids with Xander—who insisted she go—and met up with Ivy, who had just returned to Greene Gardens from the city after a mommy-and-me meet-up with Levi.
They settled on a quaint coffee shop on the main strip in Greene Gardens. The terrace overlooked the water. It was cold outside, so the terrace had heated lamps in every corner, making it feel warmer than it actually was.
“I like it.” Rylee nodded, her eyes moving around them. “I really like it here.”
“You haven’t seen anything yet.” Ivy winked. “But you know I got you.”
“It’s just so new.” Rylee sighed. “All I know is Brooklyn.”
“Girl,” Ivy said, nodding in agreement. “Same. When I found out I’d have to make this place my new home, I swore I thought I’d die from boredom. When I moved out here, cafés like this weren’t even built yet. But now? I don’t go any further than here. No need to.”
“Yeah.” Rylee smiled. A smile that came so easy. “I think I’m starting to feel the same way.”
At home, Rylee made her way to the side of the bed and lowered herself onto the carpet. On the floor were combs, hair ties, and a spray bottle filled with water.
With the children winding down for bed and Junior asleep in the bassinet she kept in her and Xander’s room—coincidentally in the exact spot where her water had broken—Rylee decided it was time to finally tackle the one thing she’d been putting off.
Taking down her braids.
Her mother was set to arrive tomorrow to wash and style Rylee’s hair.
Though she would’ve loved for her mother to install a new set of braids, Rylee already knew she wouldn’t. Claudia would tell her to let her hair breathe between braided styles.
Claudia had promised to drive out to Greene Gardens once a week once the braids were down, to wash and restyle Rylee’s hair in between. Anything to help her as a new mom of three.
Everyone was pitching in that way. In their own way.
That night, the room was quiet. The house was quiet. Soft light from the street lamp filtered in from outside. The neighborhood was quiet too, a sharp contrast to life in Brooklyn.
A lot of things were different here—something Rylee realized on her second night in Greene Gardens, sitting outside in the backyard.
Her eyes traveled the sparse grass in the yard. It was after ten at night. The children, including the baby, were asleep, giving her time to herself.
Xander had just finished cleaning the kitchen when he stepped out to the backyard to join her.
“You like this part of the house the most, huh?”
Xander’s voice behind her pulled Rylee out of her daze.
“This is your second night escaping out here.”
Rylee snickered.
She’d been caught up in thought, imagining all the things she wanted to set up back there. A swing set. A trampoline.
His voice cutting through her vision pulled her back to now.
She turned toward him.
“I’m just making sure I enjoy my surprise purchase to the fullest. It’s not every day a girl gets surprised with a whole house.”
He parted his lips, then closed them, shaking his head as he relaxed into the chaise beside her.
“I bought a house without speaking to you first.”
She smirked. “You bought a big ass house without speaking to me first.”
He smiled coyly, the expression on his face making Rylee want to lean in and press a kiss to his lips.
Xander ran his hand over his locs and turned more to face her, taking her hands and holding them in his for a moment.
“I know we never really talked about how I went about buying the house… but I want to explain why I did it in that way.”
“Xander—”
“Nah, please,” he interjected, lifting her hands to kiss one at a time. “Let me. You deserve that.”
Rylee fixed her eyes onto him.
“Because I don’t want you thinking that your objections or feelings weren’t considered, because they were.”
Xander sighed, scooting to the edge of his seat.
“I went through the whole buying process in secret not because I’m a secretive person,” he explained. “I was just worried you’d talk yourself out of wanting more when you deserved it.”
Rylee blinked in response.
“You’re my life now, Snoop,” he told her, attention completely on her. “And I thought if I didn’t just get the process started and get it done, it might never happen. Buying the house was my way of showing you what I saw in our future.”
And somehow, even though she hadn’t seen it then, she saw it now… clearly. In every wall, every room, and every quiet moment like this.
“I know,” Rylee said, nodding. “I know that now. And I think my therapist Liz knew it too somehow, because she insisted I see the house… to see what you saw. Granted, she told my ass to wait until after Junior arrived, but you know… seems me and our baby boy being a little impulsive is something we have in common, I guess.”
Rylee winked and Xander laughed, lowering his voice when his humor echoed around them.
“I just…” Xander ran his thumb over the back of Rylee’s hand.
“I want you to know that buying the house and only telling you after wasn’t just about surprising you.
It wasn’t about replacing what you had, either.
But you know, I also wanted to build something new for us too… and not just ask you to.”
Rylee lifted her hand to caress the side of Xander’s face. “Aww, baby.”
Xander turned his head to press a kiss to her palm, taking her hand in his again.
“But look, I promise to run everything by you before I go through with it, moving forward. Promise.”
Rylee shook her head. “Xander, that’s not necessary—”
“It is,” he cut in. “It so is, because although I’m so grateful you’re here… that we’re here… I want you to know your voice matters. Your feelings matter, and I’m always listening.”
Xander had been true to his word. What he didn’t know is that Rylee had fallen so deeply in love with the house, she could not remember not wanting to be there.
Especially with Junior sleeping soundly just a few feet away in his bassinet… peaceful, safe.
His nursery was the most put-together room in the house, but like Nova and LJ before him, Rylee kept him close in these early months.
Some routines never change, even when everything else does.
She once heard that every pregnancy was different, and things were definitely different. From the birth to how much calmer Junior was compared to Nova and LJ.
Rylee felt more supported now than ever, having Xander around, making it a priority for her not to carry all the weight on her own.
Rylee settled into her seat on the carpet and got to work, singling out one of her braids and undoing it.
She smiled as she slid her fingers down the plait, feeling it unravel beneath her touch.
Her braids were the usual feel against her hand, but life was different now… and it was starting to feel so real. Like it finally belonged to her.
She honestly couldn’t believe how hesitant she’d been about starting a life in Greene Gardens. Especially with how beautiful it was. How peaceful it was in the village.
There was something healing in moving there. Something she couldn’t deny.
She smiled at the faint sound of Nova and LJ in the other room. Their chorus of laughter wasn’t too loud, but audible enough to hear in her bedroom.
While the old her would’ve been worried about them waking the baby, she totally understood what her mother meant years ago when she told Rylee a baby should be able to sleep through an earthquake.
Xander stepped into the room, closing the door behind him.
“Got them to settle down with a few super slams.”
Xander made a flipping gesture with his arms, then held one arm up in a flex. “They knocked out for the night.”
Rylee snorted to herself.
Xander had gotten the kids into wrestling, watching old videos from the 90s when WWE was still WWF. Nova was the most obsessed and loved reenacting wrestling matches in her very spacious bedroom.