Chapter 31
Chapter Thirty-One
It had been a long night, and an even longer day. More than anything, Andy wanted to take Kat back to her apartment, run a bubble bath, and soak away the stress of the last few days with a glass of wine.
The meeting hadn’t taken long. Michael Carlson’s estate was divided up very equitably among the children, with generous amounts going to charity and trusts set up for his grandchildren, both living and future.
Andy, as well as the other spouses and partners, excused themselves as soon as it made sense, to give the siblings a chance to finish things up with William and Steven. Instead of joining the others in the kitchen, Andy snuck out to the backyard to get some air.
Things were still tense with the family, and it wasn’t a situation Andy saw resolving itself anytime soon. He also had no plans to push the agenda. He’d meant what he said to Kat. He wasn’t going anywhere. If that meant that Craig, Asher, Chase, and any of the others were mad, that was on them. He loved Kat more than anything else in the world, and he was not going to put that aside just because they couldn’t seem to get over themselves.
“Hey. Can I interrupt?”
Andy looked over his shoulder to see Symon with baby Poppy in his arms.
“She just woke up from a nap, which means she is not to be contained.” Symon laughed and put the baby on the grass with a selection of toys.
Andy couldn’t help but smile at the baby girl. She truly was a spot of sunshine in all their lives.
Maybe one day, there’d be a little red-headed girl crawling around too?
The idea of having a baby with Kat made him smile. No matter how far off in the future it was, it was definitely in their future.
“Shouldn’t you be in Switzerland?”
“Just like you.” Symon chuckled. “I pushed it by a few days. I get it if you need a few more. The team will be fine.”
“I appreciate it.” Andy nodded and leaned back on the grass. “I’m sure I’ll be able to take off soon. I just couldn’t go while she was…”
“I get it, Andy.” Symon nodded. “I wouldn’t have left either.”
“What we do for love, right?”
“So you do love her?”
It was Craig who asked the question. Andy turned to see him standing behind them .
“Can I sit?”
Symon jumped up and grabbed Poppy, who squawked in protest. “I was just heading in.” He was gone with the baby before Andy could object.
A moment later, Craig took his place on the grass next to him.
They sat in silence for a minute before Andy answered his question. “More than life itself, Craig.” He didn’t face him as he spoke. “I think there’s always been some part of me that’s loved her, but over the last few years, it grew to the point where I couldn’t ignore it anymore.”
“And you really went up the mountain in the middle of the storm for her? Hell, we didn’t even know she was in danger.”
Andy nodded. “I’d die before I’d let anything happen to her.”
Next to him, Craig made a grunting noise. After another moment of silence, he said, “I know that feeling.” He spoke softly. “That’s how I feel about Lucy and Meri. I get it. I owe you, man.”
“You don’t.”
Finally, Andy glanced over at his friend. They locked eyes, and Craig nodded before looking down again.
“I’m sorry I punched you.”
“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you about us sooner. I should have told you how I felt about her. Hell, I should have told her sooner.”
Craig slapped him on the back. “You don’t owe me an apology. But I do need you to accept mine. I really am sorry, Andy. I was out of line. For a lot of reasons. You’re a damn good man. I just…I think I lost my head. When it comes to Kat, I’ve just always felt like I need to take care of her, ya know?”
“She doesn’t need you to take care of her.”
Both men looked up to see Kat standing over them, her arms outstretched.
“She doesn’t need anyone to take care of her. But she does need you all to love her.” She laughed, and the happiness on her face made Andy’s heart squeeze. “And she also needs to stop speaking in the third person.” She reached her arms out to both of them. “Now give me a hug. Both of you.”
Andy let Craig get up first. He waited while brother and sister embraced and exchanged apologies.
“Now, you two.” Kat tilted her head. “Hug it out.”
Andy made the first move. He pulled Craig into an awkward man hug and slapped his back.
But it was Craig who tightened his arms around him and squeezed. “I love you, man. Can we move on from this?”
“You know we can.”
Craig released him and took a step back. “You’ve always been like a brother to me, but I guess now…” He looked to Kat, who only laughed.
“One thing at a time,” she said. “We only just made our relationship public…I don’t think anyone is getting married anytime soon.”
“I don’t know about that, Kitty Kat.” Andy grabbed her hand and winked. “Don’t worry, I won’t propose right now. It’s been a big day. But make no mistake, I’m going to put a ring on this finger.” He kissed her hand. “I meant it when I said I can’t live without you.”
He couldn’t resist any longer. He pulled her in for a kiss, but it only lasted seconds before Craig began to protest.
“Okay, enough already.” He groaned. “I told you I was okay with it, but it’s still freakin’ weird. You can’t just spring this on me.”
“Or me,” Asher called out as he joined them in the yard, followed by Chase, who was right behind them.
“Super weird,” the eldest brother agreed. “But also, super awesome.” He held out a hand to Andy as a peace offering. “Really, I mean it. I know you took us off guard, but you’re a good man, Andy. There’s none better.”
They shared a hug before it was Asher’s turn. He, too, apologized and embraced Andy. “Sometimes we can act without thinking.”
“Sometimes?” Noa appeared by his side and rolled her eyes affectionately.
The rest of the family made their way out into the yard with bottles of bubbly and sparkling apple juice for the non-drinkers, and glasses that were passed around.
“I would like to propose a toast,” Chase said when they all had a glass in their hands.
“Wait.” Charli stopped him. “I think it’s only fitting if Kat makes the toast.”
There were murmurs of approval, and everyone turned to look at Kat. Andy took a half step to the side, giving her space.
They all watched as she dropped her head for a moment before looking up with tears in her eyes. “Damn,” she laughed, “I didn’t think I could cry anymore.”
Everyone chuckled.
“It’s been a ride,” Kat started. “And we’ve all been through it, haven’t we?” She smiled and continued. “But I wouldn’t change any of it. The last few years since Dad left us with our instructions have brought us together in ways we never could have imagined.” She looked to Chase, who raised his hand in recognition. “We’ve learned things about ourselves and each other that I don’t think we would have otherwise. And most importantly, we’ve all found love.” Kat looked straight at him. “And learned how to open up to that love.”
She blew him a kiss before continuing. “I don’t know if he intended for any of that to happen, or if he thought it would just be a fun parting gift for us all.” A few people laughed. “But whatever his reasons, I’m sure glad for it because I don’t know about the rest of you, but I love this big, happy, totally dysfunctional family.” She raised her glass high, and everyone followed suit. “To Dad.”
“To Dad,” everyone chorused.
“And to family,” Kat added. And then to herself, “Always.”
“Just when I thought this day couldn’t get any better.” Kat rolled over into Andy’s arms and snuggled into his chest. “You proved me wrong.”
“Was it the first orgasm? Or that last one?” He kissed her on the nose, making her laugh.
“All of them. I want them all.”
His arms wrapped around her, and he held her tight. “Kitty Kat, I’m happy to make you purr anytime. And you know the best part?”
She propped herself up on an elbow to look him in the eye. “Is that we get to do it again later?”
“Definitely that.” He wiggled his eyebrows. “But even better, we don’t have to hide from your family anymore.”
“Oh.” She pretended to look surprised. “I think maybe we should keep all the orgasms private still.”
“You know that’s not what I meant.”
She giggled and dodged him as he tried to tickle her.
But she knew exactly what he meant. Now that her family knew about them, she felt like she could finally take a deep breath. No more secrets. Especially not when it came to Andy. Never again would she try to push down her feelings for this man.
“I know exactly what you mean.” She settled herself back into his arms. “It feels good not to have secrets, doesn’t it?”
He trailed his finger down her bare arm. “It feels so good. You know what else feels good? This bed.”
She laughed. “Better than sleeping on the ground?”
“Much. ”
They fell silent and for a moment, Kat thought he might have fallen asleep. “Andy?”
“Uh-hmm.”
“You’re not really going to move into that studio, are you?”
He tensed a little. “I can sell it.”
“Or…”
“Or? Don’t tell me you’ve had time to think about what I’m going to do with my new apartment with everything you’ve had going on.”
“You’d be surprised what I think about.”
He laughed. “I know that’s true.” He nuzzled into the base of her neck and trailed kisses. “So, tell me your plan.”
“The rental market is pretty hot right now,” she said. “I bet we could rent it out without much trouble. And…maybe we could rent this place, too.”
“But then where would we live? Because, just in case it wasn’t clear earlier, you’re never getting rid of me now.”
She had no plans of getting rid of him. Not now. Not ever. “I was thinking that maybe it was time to get a real house.”
“A house?”
She smiled to herself and nodded against his chest. “A few bedrooms and a nice bright kitchen.” She bit her bottom lip. “Somewhere with a yard,” Kat continued.
“A yard?”
“Somewhere big enough for a swing set.” She held her breath.
“A swing—what? Kat. What? ”
She rolled away from him and turned on her side so she faced him.
“Are you saying you want kids? Because I do, too. One day I’d?—”
“When you say, one day …”
He narrowed his eyes. “Wait? What are you saying?”
“I’m not really saying anything except my period is late and?—”
“What? But how?”
“I think you know how.” She laughed. “But seriously, we did get a little lax with the birth control a few times.” She shrugged.
“Wow.” Andy sat up and the sheet fell in a pile around his waist. “You…we…”
“Nothing is a hundred percent.” Kat sat up and grabbed his hands. “And I don’t actually know anything for sure. I might not be.”
“But you might be.”
“I might be.” She smiled a little. “But I didn’t even do the math until after we got home from the hike. I’ve been so busy and more than a little preoccupied that I wasn’t really paying attention. And I need to tell you, I didn’t drink any of the bubbly tonight…I had apple juice.” She swallowed hard, the worry that had been playing at the back of her mind taking over. “But I did have a few sips of my dad’s whiskey the first night while I was camping under the stars and?—”
“Kat.” He held her hands in his and scooted so he sat closer to her. “It’s fine. If you are…” He blew out a breath an d shook his head. “That won’t matter. I promise. We’ll go see a doctor just to be sure, but it’s fine.”
She nodded. “And you and me?” she asked, suddenly uncertain. “Are you okay with?—”
“Oh my God, Kat.” The smile split his face. “Are you kidding? I’m shocked, yeah. But, wow. I couldn’t be happier, Kitty Kat. Remember what I said earlier about putting a ring on your finger?”
Oh, she remembered.
“I don’t plan on spending another day of my life without you as my partner. Forever. As long as we’re together, it doesn’t matter what life throws at us. Because we’ve got this. No matter what. You just keep on loving me, Kitty Kat, and I’ll keep on loving you. Deal?”
She’d never been happier or more content as she answered him. “Deal.”