Chapter 32 – Morgan
Chapter Thirty-Two
Finally Home…
Morgan
My heart was still pounding.
I couldn’t believe what he’d done.
Holy shit.
All of this—just for me.
The last hour and a half had been a whirlwind.
Adele had been so excited, going on and on about how much she loved my designs, how gorgeous and inspired they were.
She couldn't wait to take me to London and probably Paris. I’d been so shocked, so stunned, that I’d barely been able to say anything at all.
Just nodding excitedly, caught in the rush.
Then I’d been swept up in the cars, headed back to Gwen and Atticus’s penthouse, where Gwen had put together a little party for me.
Devon was there with Greg, both looking happy and tanned. Some of my old friends from school were there, Amber included. She stuck with the design crowd, but she did give me a hug.
We were going to sort out our shit. Eventually.
We’d been texting.
But it wasn’t the same.
The nanny had Ava.
And Gwen and Atticus? They were beaming.
My brother-in-law approached me, probably wearing the widest grin I’d ever seen on his face.
"You know," Atticus mused, "when I realized I was going to have a little sister, I didn’t know I could feel this proud."
I smiled back at him. "Honestly? I didn’t do anything. Lance did all the hard work."
Atticus shook his head. "Don’t do that. Take your flowers. Those are your designs. Your creations. And they look magnificent."
I fought back tears and gave him a soft smile. "Thank you."
When he hugged me, he squeezed tight, and I let myself relax into his embrace.
But because I had to break the tension—because I couldn’t just let the emotions completely overwhelm me—I had to make a joke.
"I didn’t know robots could hug."
Atticus squeezed just a little tighter. "Hasn’t your sister told you? I’m the upgraded model. I hug. I also do other things."
I shuddered in his hold. "Ew. Why would you say that to me?"
His crack of laughter was unexpected. Atticus Price, with his head thrown back and laughing. I got it. This is what Gwen saw. A deep, belly-shaking, full-body guffaw kind of laugh.
I knew exactly why Gwen had fallen in love with him.
Sure, he was handsome in that cold, foreboding kind of way, and I knew he was a big softie where my sister was concerned.
The guys—Pierce, Rowan, and Gavin—found me next, offering their congratulations.
Of course, Pierce immediately went off to check security, even though things had been quiet lately.
Relaxed, even.
I wasn’t a fool. I knew there was danger. Someone had come for me and Lance a week ago and we still didn’t know why.
And there were no new leads. But my whole family had come to support me. And that meant the world. Nine months ago, I’d had just a couple of people in my corner. And now I had a huge boisterous family.
And most importantly, a husband. Who had bent over backwards to make this happen for me.
Lance.
He approached me, hands in his pockets.
“Hey, Spitfire.”
I stared at him. "Hey, yourself."
"You okay?"
"Yeah. My insane husband put on an enormous fashion show for me."
Lance shifted on his feet. “Well your husband was a bit of an ass. So he wanted to make up for it.”
I smirked. "No. Okay, yes. Somewhat of an ass. But he was scared. I get it. I’ve been there.
He was scared that I wouldn’t love him.
He was scared that I wouldn’t see him.
But I’d always him.
His jaw worked, and he tucked his hands deeper into his jeans. “Did you like it?”
I exhaled, my chest tight with emotion. "I've never been happier with anything in my life. That was a hell of a gift, Lance. I don’t even know how to say thank you enough."
"You don’t have to say anything. I wanted you to know," he murmured. "I wanted to show you how much I love you. How much you seeing me means to me. I’ve never had that before. The idea that anyone would see me is terrifying. Still terrifying. And I don’t know if that will ever get better.
But I won’t hide any part of myself anymore. Not from you.”
I blinked away tears. “How did you even do this?”
He shrugged, a small smile playing on his lips. “I’ve been working on getting those files for you since... well, since everything happened. It took a while. But I recovered every single one of them.” His voice was thick. "I just want you to be happy."
“And I am,” I whispered. "I don’t even know what I did to deserve you. But thank you.
I’m so happy.”
"Good. You should be happy."
His arms wrapped around me, pulling me tight, his face nuzzling into my hair.
“Thank you,” he murmured against my skin.
Then, softer—"Can you forgive me for being an ass?"
I pulled back slightly, just enough to look at him.
"There was nothing to forgive," I said, voice barely above a whisper. "I think I told you that."
"Yeah. But I hurt you," he admitted. "And… I’m not sure I can live with myself if you don’t forgive me."
I exhaled shakily. "I love you. I forgave you the moment you pushed me away."
His eyes darkened. "I don’t deserve you."
I grinned. "No, you don’t. I’m pretty fantastic."
Lance let out a low chuckle. "Yes. Yes, you are. And I would love to spend the rest of our lives reminding you of that."
I smiled, pressing my forehead against his.
"I’m here for that."
His hands tightened around me. "Thank you."
And then?—
“Oh my God, would you two get a room?”
I pulled back just enough to glare at Gwen. "Excuse me? Pot, meet kettle. I've had to pour bleach into my eyes before, thank you very much."
Gwen smirked. "You have a room. You can use it."
Then, as if realizing what she was saying, she made a small gagging noise and shook her head. "You know what? Never mind. Don’t do that."
Lance laughed. “Actually, since you suggested it. Let me go show my wife how much I love her.” Then he scooped me up over his shoulder and headed down the hall.