Leah looked between them, then cut her eyes to the house. “Does it work? Because I don’t remember you trying it.”
“Of course it works.”
“Duh, Mom.”
“Look.” Briley sighed. “Last week Evan and I arranged to meet in the middle of the night and we tried it.” She waited for the reprimand to come but it never did.
Leah smiled at her. “I know.”
“How?”
“I got up with Griffin and noticed the lights. You and Evan were standing in the front yard, huddled together, talking. I didn’t want to disturb you two. It looked like an intense conversation.”
“We’re so winning.” Briley smiled.
Leah pulled out her phone and took a few pictures of them both posing and making funny faces. “Let’s head in. I have hot chocolate and cookies.” Evan didn’t need to be told twice and took off for the house. Leah motioned Kat to join them and she nodded.
Briley touched Leah’s arm, causing her to stop, then slipped her arms around her waist and pulled her close against her before dropping a kiss on the tip of her nose. “I love you.”
“I love you, too.”
Briley would never tire of hearing that one phrase. “Hmmm. There is something I’ve been meaning to talk to you about.” She sighed and bunched her hands in Leah’s coat to gather her nerve.
“You know you can talk to me about anything.” Leah pushed the hair out of Briley’s eyes and pressed closer against her.
“Yes. This is different, though. Okay. These past months have been amazing and I…”
“Just spit it out.”
“Will you and the kids move in with me?” Briley started to doubt her decision when the seconds passed without an answer from Leah. “I mean…”
Leah shut her up with a kiss. “Yes.” She tangled her fingers around Briley’s neck.
God, that was easier than she expected. “Yes. Good. But, we don’t have to move into my house. I mean yours has the awesome kitchen and basement, and the kids are used to it. I just don’t want to miss out on anything with all of you and even though I only live next door and spend most of my free time with you all, it’s not enough anymore.”
Shivers raced down Briley’s spine when Leah kissed the spot right below her ear. “God, I love you so much. I didn’t think this type of love was possible, but here we are.”
“You bet, and I don’t plan on going anywhere. I’m afraid you’re stuck with me.”
Leah teased. “Careful, Briley, that almost sounded like a proposal.”
“It wasn’t, but for the record, when I do propose, there won’t be any doubt what I’m asking.” Briley kissed the tip of Leah’s nose.
“Well, at least you haven’t lost your charm.” She laughed and pulled Briley toward the front door.
“You bring it out in me.” Once in the house, Briley had to sidestep Jackson, who was yapping around her feet, and accepted the mug Evan handed her. After a sip of the hot chocolate littered with marshmallows, Briley plopped down on a chair on the other side of Evan. “Let’s get this party started.”
Fifteen minutes later, Kat pushed through the back door. She set Griffin on the floor, who ran to Leah to unbundle her. Once she was finished, she set her in her booster seat at the table.
Kat cut quite the figure with her Santa hat askew on her head, cheeks rosy, and her hands planted on her hips. “You couldn’t wait for us. I see how it is.”
“Kat, you know how it is when this one gets an idea in her head.” Evan let the words hang in the air as he pointed at Briley.
Briley pouted. “The cookies were lonely.”
“Well, we can’t have that.” Kat plopped down next to her and accepted the cup of hot chocolate with marshmallows. “Nice.”
“Briley insisted on the marshmallows.” Leah rested her arm across Briley’s shoulders and made a face.
“Well,” Kat said. “Hot chocolate isn’t hot chocolate without marshmallows.”
Briley was pulled out of her thoughts when Leah took her hand, led her into the living room, and stopped under the mistletoe. It wasn’t the first time she’d found herself under the mistletoe with Leah. After the third time it happened, she realized Leah was doing it on purpose. Leah had placed sprigs all over her house and Briley’s.
Leah wrapped her arms around Briley’s neck, and Briley held her close. “Did you ever think we would get here? I feel we’ve hit our stride. It’s nice to know where we started to where we are now.”
“Ye, of little faith. Of course I did.” She nipped Leah’s ear.
“You’re such a goofball.”
“But, I’m your goofball.” Briley’s eyes caught on a photograph over Leah’s shoulder taken this past Halloween. It didn’t take much to convince everyone to dress as The Incredibles. With them all working non-stop, they were able to make the costumes in record time. They were a hit with the town and won first place in the family costume competition. Evan won second place in the individual placing. It left a lump in her throat just thinking about it. They were a family.
“Wait right here.” Leah stepped toward the tree and picked up a small box that lay in its branches. She handed it to Briley. “It seemed we were on the same page.” She brushed her fingers along Briley’s cheek. “You have been our rock these past few months. I love you, darling. We all talked and this is what we want. Open it.”
Briley slid the ribbon off the box and lifted the lid. Nestled inside was a shiny key.
“I know you already asked, but we were also planning on asking you to move in with us. You’re right; my house would better suited for our needs. Will you move in with us, Briley?”
“Yes.” Briley hugged her tight.
They were knocked out of their bubble when Evan hollered from the kitchen. “Mom, we can see you guys and these cookies aren’t going to decorate themselves.”
“They have spoken,” Leah whispered in her ear, before nibbling on it.
“Now, now. Don’t start something you can’t finish.” Leah giggled when Briley picked her up and carried her back to the kitchen. “Lady Griffin, Sir Evan, and Peasant Kat. Lady Leah as requested.”
Briley placed Leah back on her feet, and Leah curtsied. “My hero.”
“Peasant, really?” Kat threw an M&M at Briley, where it bounced off her forehead and back onto the table.
Leah planted her hands on her hips and arched her brow. “We don’t throw things, Peasant.”
Kat chuckled and held her hands up. “Yes, my Lady.”
“So, Briley, when are you going to move in?” Evan asked.
“Nice, Briley.” Kat shot her a wink.
“It is. It really is,” Briley said. “As soon as possible, Evan.”
Briley sat down beside Leah, who laced their fingers together on Briley’s thigh even as she lifted a squirming Griffin onto her lap. Leah was the woman that held her body and soul and she wanted to spend the rest of her life with her. The kids had weaseled their way into her heart and she couldn’t imagine life without them in it. Madison, Bryan, and their kids were set to arrive the next day.
Briley kissed Griffin on the head even as Kat and Evan were busy throwing M&Ms into each other’s mouths, mindful of Jackson underneath the table, who no doubt was watching their every move. Briley relaxed when Leah kissed her on the cheek, then slid several cookies in front of her to decorate.
It was these moments she lived for and couldn’t wait to see what the future held. Life didn’t get any sweeter than this.
About the Author
Born near Chicago, but raised in Southern Illinois, where she still lives, Shannon spends her free time writing. When she isn’t writing, she enjoys binge watching fantasy, science fiction, or true crime shows.
You can contact Shannon at -
Website: smhfiction.com
Email: [email protected]
Facebook: facebook.com/smharrisauthor
Twitter: @smhfiction
Check out Shannon’s other books
&n
bsp; Adearian Chronicles - Book One - The Oath – ISBN – 978-1-943353-17-0
Ex-mercenary, Lanis Welsh, is finally at a place in her life where she is content with what and who she is; High Priestess Anya’s Protector and Lover. After an unexpected request, she has no choice but to leave Anya’s protection in the hands of someone else and travel back to the one place that holds nothing but bad memories. When she is manipulated into signing an oath she has no desire to fulfill, she questions the very truths she has built her life on. As strangers become friends and enemies become allies, Lanis must face the demons from her past. It doesn’t take her long to realize there is more going on than anyone could have ever foreseen and nothing and no one can be trusted.
Adearian Chronicles - Book 2 – Revelations – ISBN - 978-1-943353-33-0
What would you do if you were faced with finding and saving the one person who held your heart, but you only had two weeks to do it?
When the unexpected happens and Lanis’s world is turned upside down, her and Elson have no choice but to align themselves with two people from a strange land. With new enemies at play, and a Goddess that seems to have forsaken them, Lanis relies on the only people she can; her friends. To fight the demons that plague her daily, she has to separate her love for Anya, from the task she must perform. On top of the unknowns, she is gifted with a small black book that changes the way she sees everything and everyone around her. As her world starts to crumble, Lanis must face her fears and the nightmares that invade her dreams. With the hours ticking away, she must come to terms with the fact that she might already be too late.
The DragonWitch Tales: An Unexpected Beginning – ISBN – 978-1-943353-43-9
Death ignited her powers. Love binds them.
Paisley’s normal, boring life is shattered one evening when a strange, but sexy woman appears out of thin air in her living room and claims Paisley as her wife. Things spiral out of control when Paisley is informed by her mother that she is a witch that comes from a long line of witches, that other realms exist, and that the strange woman really is her wife.
As her choices slip from her grasp, Paisley must learn to navigate her new life, a new world, and a new wife. As if that wasn’t enough, Paisley must deal with a growing attraction for a new woman in her life. Throw in a dragon egg, an angry queen, a traitor, and Paisley realizes she’s going to have to learn to watch every move she makes.
As the push and pull between two women and her powers reach a standoff, Paisley makes a choice that will change the course of her life and the future of the world she calls home even if that means destroying her own happiness in the process.
The Details in the Design – ISBN – 978-1-943353-79-8
Every stitch tells a story.
Avery Michaels has longed to work in the fashion industry since she was six years old. Now at thirty-two she’s fed up with her job as a food critic and signs up with an employment agency that promises to find anyone their dream job.
She is thrilled when she gets an interview with the fashion house of her choice, Catherine Davenport Designs. There’s only one problem. For the past six years, Avery has had a massive crush on Catherine, one of the hottest fashion designers of the past two decades.
In the midst of a new job, nosey friends, Catherine’s meddling daughters, difficult co-workers, and a dachshund named Polly, Avery also has to contend with a new woman that enters Catherine’s life.
From the start, Avery knows winning Catherine’s heart will be no easy feat. When curve ball after curve ball is thrown her way, does she scrap her design or make it work?
Other book’s by Sapphire Authors
Razor’s Edge (American Yakuza) – ISBN – 978-1-943353-81-1
Luce Potter lives by a code of honor. Push her and she shoves back, harder. There’s only one problem: Luce has just found out that revenge is a knife that cuts both ways. Now that her lover Brooke has survived the attack on her life, Luce has only one thing on her mind, and his name is Frank. Unfortunately, someone walks into her life that she didn’t see coming.
Brooke Erickson has survived an attack so brutal it’s left a permanent scar on her soul. All she wants to do now is go home and finish recuperating with her lover, Luce Potter, by her side. An unexpected event puts Brooke at the head of the Yakuza family. Can she command the respect necessary to lead it through the crisis?
Luce and Brooke’s worlds are upending. Can each do what’s necessary to survive and return to a new normal?
Lavender Dreams - ISBN - 978-1-943353-59-0
When Sarah Chase got on the ferry to Bainbridge Island, she left her lover, her job, and her past behind. She didn’t know that in the course of one day she would meet a woman who might be the girl of her dreams, change her career path, create a new family, and find herself in a fairytale mansion with two of the quirkiest little old ladies imaginable.
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