Chapter 27
Penny
I’ve gone crazy. That’s the only excuse I have for my behavior.
Declan and I had two different flights leaving Las Vegas, and when we parted at the airport, I started freaking out and haven’t stopped.
We managed to have a conversation about what the plan was when we got back to Daybreak, and I told him that I didn’t want to tell anyone yet because I needed to tread lightly with Autumn, so we’re supposed to act like normal once we get back, like the friends we’ve been for the past few months.
I flag down Jordan as she turns into the arrivals lane and quickly gets in the Jeep that her boyfriend lets her drive. She looks like a badass driving it, and I’m a little jealous.
Once she pulls out onto the road, I rip the band-aid off. “I got married.”
The jeep jerks to a stop, and it’s a good thing that we’re still on the airport roads because we probably would have caused an accident. “What the fuck, Pen. You can’t just say something like that while I’m driving!” she shouts and looks at me with crazy eyes.
I would laugh if the situation were funny, but it’s not.
“I’m sorry, just drive,” I point to the road. People are honking around us, and I’m starting to get anxious.
She looks at me for a beat before stepping on the gas. “Start from the beginning. And please tell me you didn’t get married to some nerdy coffee guy. That would be disappointing.”
“I got married to Declan.”
She looks over at me, confusion etching her brows. “Okay. So, I thought I just heard you say that you got married to Declan? But that can’t be right because Declan was in Daybreak.”
I shake my head. “No. Declan went to a tattoo convention in Las Vegas that just so happened to be on the same weekend as the coffee trade show.”
“And you just… decided to get married?” Her voice is rising, and I don’t blame her. I would be shocked as fuck too.
“It just… happened,” I tell her and look out the passenger window.
“No. Don’t downplay it like that. I know you, Penny. You wouldn’t do something like that if you didn’t want to. Drunk or not.”
She’s right. I’m pretty level-headed. I have to be because I’m a mom. I wouldn’t ever do something so rash if I thought it were a terrible idea. “We were having fun and one thing led to another and we ended up at a chapel at midnight,” I explain.
“Okay. But that doesn’t explain why.”
“Because I love him,” I whisper so low I hope she doesn’t hear and lets it go.
Her eyes catch mine for a moment before looking back to the road, and I can see her features soften.
She sighs. “I could have told you that, Pen. I could have told you that months and months ago. But after the whole thing on Christmas, I didn’t want to rub it in your face that I thought you were in love with a man who didn’t want kids. ”
Am I really that transparent?
“Yes, you are,” Jordan says. I guess I just said that out loud. “My only questions are, does he love you back, and does he accept that kids are in his future?”
“That’s what he told me.” I nod.
Her eyes go wide, and she beams. “He said he loved you?”
I nod my head. “Yeah. He did.”
The squeal that leaves her mouth rivals one of Autumn’s, and I can’t help but chuckle.
But reality comes crashing back in full force when I tell her, “We’re not telling anybody, though.
We need some time to process what we just did and how to navigate it with Autumn.
Plus, my parents are going to flip the fuck out. ”
“Hey. You have time. You know me. I can keep a secret like nobody’s business.”
And she can. She kept her whole life a secret from me for a year and a half, so I implicitly trust Jordan with this.
“Am I crazy?” I ask with vulnerability in my voice.
She looks at me and doesn’t hesitate. “Oh girl, you’re nuts. One hundred percent.”
I bark out a laugh, and she doubles over, too.
When we both get control of ourselves, I ask, “This isn’t going to steal your thunder, right? Jeez, you just got engaged, and I completely railroaded it with a shotgun wedding. I clearly wasn’t thinking this weekend.” I throw my head back against the seat.
“Are you kidding?” She looks over at me and gives me a smirk. “I love this for the both of us. You didn’t railroad anything. I’m fully team Mr. and Mrs. Declan Young,” she says with a smile on her face.
Jordan really is the best friend a girl could ask for. She started off much like Declan: grumpy and cold. But when her walls came down, she proved to be the kindest person I know; my ride or die.
“So, it doesn’t bother you that I also got a tattoo?” I add.
Her eyebrows meet her forehead, and she shrieks, “What?! Where? What is it? Show me.”
I let out a light chuckle and pull the sleeve of my sweater up to show her my forearm.
“Did Declan do that? The sunflower matches the one on his neck.”
I study the bouquet, and my mind starts reeling. She’s right. The sunflower is an exact match for the one on Declan.
So, not only did he come inside me unprotected, but he married me and gave us matching tattoos.
If you had told me a week ago that Declan would brand me like this, I would have told you you were nuts.
But here we are. One little weekend in Vegas changed everything in the blink of an eye, and it’s really starting to sink in what we did, that he’s serious about us.
When Jordan drops me off in front of my apartment, I take a deep breath before heading up. Declan is already back, and I can see the light on in his living room. My mom texted me and told me they were on their way with Autumn, so I only have a few minutes to myself.
As I’m climbing the apartment stairs, I hear Declan’s door swing open.
As soon as I make it to the landing, he’s already in my space, reaching for my face to slant his mouth over mine.
Our tongues tangle, and I moan out loud.
It’s only been a few hours, and I already miss him.
That just goes to show you how I feel about this man.
When he pulls back, he asks, “When does Autumn get here?”
A knock sounds on the staircase door, and it swings open a moment later. “Now.”
We take a step back from each other, and Autumn ascends the stairs, screaming, “Mommy!”
My face instantly lights up with a smile, and I crouch down to pick her up. “I’ve missed you, baby girl.”
“I missed you, too.”
“Did you have fun with grandma and papa?”
“I did!” she exclaims. “Declan,” she screeches a second later.
He bends down and picks her up, squeezing her in a tight hug.
My mom and dad are both here, and I give each of them a hug. “Thank you for taking care of her,” I tell them.
“How was the trade show? Learn anything useful?” my dad asks.
Shit. I can feel myself blushing because I didn’t go to the show today like I was supposed to. At least I paid attention yesterday. “A little bit. I’ll have to tell you guys about it later.”
My eyes wander to Declan, who is now holding Autumn on one hip like she’s a little toddler and not a five-year-old.
My heart skips a beat because they look like two peas in a pod.
When I think back to all our moments together, the three of us, I can see it clear as day that Declan has been fatherly towards Autumn.
And I think I’ve been looking the other way for fear of misinterpreting his love for her.
But I can’t unsee it now. Every moment we’ve spent together, he makes sure Autumn is safe and protected, and most importantly, loved.
I thought he was just trying to make up for Christmas, but even then, he’s been showing his love for her in a way that I don’t think he even knew at the time.
Fuck. If I didn’t know I was in love with him before, I sure as hell do now.
“Penny,” my dad says, snapping me out of my thoughts. I look from Declan to him. “Why don’t we head out, and we’ll talk to you tomorrow?”
I nod my head. “Right. Yeah. That works.”
My mom and dad look from me to Declan and back again, and I can see the wheels turning in their heads. I ignore it for now, though.
We tell them goodbye, and Declan brings Autumn into the apartment. She’s like a monkey attached to him, and part of me is a little jealous that she’s not more like that with me right now.
I am her mom.
Autumn heads to her room to put her stuff away, and I let out a breath. “How are we going to do this, Declan?” I ask, stressed as fuck now.
He wraps me in a hug. “One day at a time,” he tells me with ease. “I ordered some dinner and was thinking that maybe it’s a good start to have dinner together from now on. We can figure the rest out as we go.”
That’s not a terrible idea. Autumn won’t suspect a thing, and it will get her used to him being around more often. Although he’s pretty much around every day as it is, so it’s not actually that much different.
“One day at a time,” I repeat.
He leans down and kisses me briefly and then pulls away. “I’ll be right back.”
When he goes to his apartment to grab the food, I sigh out loud. This is going to be hard, not telling anybody.
But I can do this.
We can do this.
One day at a time.