Chapter 48 #2
He nods, caressing my cheek with his callused thumb. “More than okay. I want us to be a family, and he wants that, too.”
“You talked to him?”
“Yeah.”
“And he’s okay with it?” I ask.
He nods again. “You and Maverick are part of what makes him happy.”
I swallow past the emotion sitting heavy in my throat. “You know I care about him, right?”
Tears shine in his own eyes. “I know, and I love you for that.” His lips press to mine in the softest of kisses. “I care about Maverick, too,” he adds.
“I know,” I say. A few more tears slowly roll down my cheeks. We stand there staring into each other’s eyes, a feeling of peace washing over my senses.
He kisses my temple, then turns me to face Linc. My grumpy, quiet nerd is still leaning against the wall, looking so unbothered.
He might put on a front like none of this is affecting him, but I know better. Linc feels things deeply, even if he doesn’t show it. If you know him well enough, you can see the signs.
The tightness in his muscles. The intensity in his stare. The rapid rate of his breathing.
He uncrosses his legs, giving me room to step between them. “Hey,” I say quietly.
“Hey,” he says, loosely wrapping his arms around my shoulders.
“Why did you guys bring me here to tell me all of this?” I ask, looking around to try to figure out what this brick building actually is.
A sidewalk in a town we don’t even live in seems like a random place for a love confession, but who am I to judge? I did it in the storage closet of an old bar.
“These two kind of got distracted, but there’s more,” he says.
“More what?” I ask, snuggling in a little closer to him.
“More to our plan.”
“Mmm,” I hum, pressing a kiss to his jaw.
“We wanted to ask you to marry us.”
My head snaps back to look at him. “What?” My voice is so loud that it makes him flinch a little.
“Will you marry us?” Linc asks.
“Are you serious?” I ask. My eyes must be as wide as dinner plates at this point.
“That’s not really the answer we were hoping for,” Wyatt says, stepping a little closer.
“Are you really asking me this right now?” I ask, feeling like the world is spinning around me.
“More serious than we’ve ever been,” Kane says.
“And that’s saying something because Linc is always serious as fuck,” Wyatt says.
Even through his sunglasses, Linc rolls his eyes.
I giggle.
“So, will you?” Linc asks. “Will you marry us?”
“Yes,” I breathe out as more tears start to fall.
“Good, because I love you,” Linc says. Something inside of me clicks into place, knowing all three of my men love me.
I go to tell him I love him, too, but his lips on mine silence me. This kiss is surprisingly gentle, like he doesn’t want to break the simplicity of this moment with anything harsh.
He kisses the tips of my nose before spinning me around in his arms, keeping my back pressed against his front.
“You guys kind of missed a big part of this whole thing,” I say, ginning at them.
“What’s that?” Wyatt asks, genuinely confused.
“A ring,” I say, pointing to my empty left hand.
“That’s why we’re here,” Linc says, pointing to the building behind him.
“It’s a tattoo parlor,” Kane says.
The light bulb goes off in my brain, and I can’t keep the smile from my face.
Kane holds up his phone. “First, I think there are a couple of boys who would like to know what your answer was.”
More tears immediately spring to my eyes. “Mav knows?”
Kane nods. “We couldn’t do this without talking to him first.”
The tears start rolling down my cheeks. Kane clicks around on his phone, then holds the screen out to me. Cole’s name is at the top of the screen as the video call tries to connect.
Mav’s face comes into view, and I start crying even more. The smile he had falls. “Mom, what’s wrong?” He looks confused. “Did you say no? I thought you’d say yes.”
I shake my head, trying to rein in my emotions. “These are happy tears, bud.” I pull in a deep breath. “I said yes.”
His smile grows until it takes over his whole face. “Really?”
I nod, swiping the moisture from my face. “Really. Are you sure you’re okay with this?”
“Of course I am,” he says. He turns the camera a little to the left. He’s sitting on the couch in Cole’s living room, and he slings his arm over Oliver’s shoulders. “We’re both happy about it.”
Oliver doesn’t say anything, but he nods and smiles. My heart squeezes in my chest.
“Hey, Oliver,” I say, feeling more moisture pooling in my eyes that I fight to keep at bay.
“Hey,” he says quietly.
Mav beams at his friend, who I guess is going to be his brother. I think they knew they were going to be a special part of each other’s lives before any of us adults figured it out.
“Are we going to be a family?” Mav asks.
My eyes dart to all three of my guys, who are staring at me. I motion for them to come gather around. Wyatt grabs the phone from my hands so he can hold it far enough away for all of us to be in the frame.
“Yeah, we’re going to be a family,” I say. Kane leans down, kissing my forehead.
Mav thrusts his fist in the air, letting out a yelp. Both boys fall into a fit of giggles.
Cole steps in behind the couch, grabbing the phone from Mav’s shaking hand. Cole’s face takes up the screen as he shakes his head.
His eyes soften as they connect with mine. “I’m happy for you, Abs.”
“Thanks,” I breathe out, trying not to cry yet again.
“We’ll take care of these two goofballs. You enjoy the rest of your special day,” he says with a wink.
“Thanks, Cole. I love you.”
“Love you, too,” he says before the screen goes black.
I hand the phone back to Kane. “Thank you,” I say to all of them.
“We love him, too,” Linc says, and my heart feels like it’s going to explode out of my chest.
I blink a few times. Needing a break from the heavy emotions, I smile up at them. “So… tattoos?”