by K. A. Linde
We’d gone through the wringer. A roller coaster that had left us both dizzy. But, at the end, when it had come to a stop, there was only me and him. And that was how I wanted it.
This wasn’t over. We still had a lot to talk about. There would be more ups and downs, but I knew that, if we stayed on the same page, then we could get through it together.
David kissed me one more time before leading me back into the reception. Now that he was here and the dark cloud had lifted from over my head, I felt suddenly like me again.
Not the Sutton before Maverick’s death.
Or the Sutton after Maverick’s death.
But a whole new me.
Sutton with David.
Finally, it felt like my wings had opened, and I was here at last.
We’d only just stepped inside when Linda and Ray appeared before us. I tensed. I didn’t want to have this confrontation. Especially not in front of David. I’d been purposely avoiding them through this entire wedding. I didn’t want a fight.
“Sutton, can we speak to you?” Ray asked, nudging his wife forward.
“You can go on ahead,” I said to David.
But he stood his ground.
“Go on, honey,” Ray said to Linda.
She took a deep breath and then glanced between us. “I’m sorry for what I said to you the other day. I was upset. After spending the whole weekend with Jason and then again all day during the week, he just reminded me so much of Maverick. It made it even harder to watch him go.”
“I understand that, but that doesn’t mean you can threaten me,” I told her.
“You’re absolutely right. I never should have done that. I swear, I don’t know what came over me. Of course, I’m not going to try to take your son from you. You’re a great mother, Sutton. I just miss my son so much, and no one seems to miss him like I do.”
“I do miss him. Constantly. But dating David doesn’t diminish what I had with Maverick, and it doesn’t mean that I’m replacing him. It’s a new part of my life.”
“Ray helped me see that. I get blinded by my grief sometimes.”
“I know all about that,” I said, glancing at David.
“I don’t know if we’ve been officially introduced.” Ray held his hand out. “I’m Ray, and this is my wife, Linda. Figure you’re going to be in Sutton’s and Jason’s lives, so we should be on speaking terms.”
“I’m David, and it’s a pleasure to meet you. Both of you,” David said sincerely.
Linda held her hand out next. “Nice to meet you.”
“I know I said that you couldn’t be in Jason’s life, but I don’t want that. I want him to grow up with his grandparents. I want him to have as many people as possible nearby to help him know his dad. But I want us to work as a team. And, if you need to grieve, don’t take it out on me…let me be a part of it. Believe me, I have days where it needs to all come out, too.”
“That sounds like a deal,” Linda said. She had tears in her eyes. “Jason means so much to us. Thank you for forgiving me and letting us see him.”
“Thank you for understanding,” I said.
Then, I pulled Linda in for a hug.
Ray chuckled over our heads. “All right, dear. Let’s get out on the dance floor. I know a jitterbug that you might enjoy.”
Linda hugged me one more time before taking her husband’s hand and following him out onto the dance floor. To my sheer amazement, they certainly did know how to jitterbug.
I laughed. “Wow, they’re really good. Who knew?”
David kissed my forehead. “I’m glad that went well. I knew it was weighing on you.”
“Thank God you were here when it happened, or I might have blown up on them.”
“Then, it all worked out in the end.”
“I accept that.”
I was trying to steal another kiss when I heard, “Mommy!”
Then, Jason collided with my legs, nearly taking me out entirely. David reached for my arm to steady me, or we both would have toppled over.
“Hey, buddy,” I said, ruffling his hair.
“David!” Jason said with a dimpled grin.
“Hey, Jason. How’s the party?”
He grinned and pointed at the dance floor.
“I think that’s an invitation,” I said to David with a raised eyebrow.
“You’re okay with this?” he asked.
“More than okay.” I took Jason’s hand, and David took the other. “If I’m going to have you in every part of my life, just as I am in every part of your life, then it only seems natural that includes Jason. He loves you, and I love you.”
“And I love you both, too.”
Then, we swung Jason out onto the dance floor.
And, as a family, we danced the night away.
Epilogue
David
Three Years Later
“Stop wringing your hands,” I said.
“I can’t help it,” Sutton murmured.
I reached out and grabbed Sutton’s hand in mine. A diamond ring glinted on her left hand. In May, just a few months before Jason had started kindergarten, we’d tied the knot in a small private ceremony on a beach in California. With our collective friends and family around us, it had been magical and beyond my wildest dreams.
“He’s going to be excited.”
“Am I more worried that he hated kindergarten or loved it? Because maybe, if he hated it, we could keep him out another year. Or better yet, homeschool,” she suggested.
“You are not homeschooling him. He loves other kids. It would be a travesty.”
“I know,” she groaned. “But I miss him even though I work all day, and I know he needs this.”
“I was pretty proud that you only cried for ten minutes after he left today.”
“Fifteen,” she said, a tear coming to her eye. “My little boy is already turning into a man.”
I looked skyward. We’d had this discussion already. “He’s five, Sut.”
“Only thirteen more years at home, and then he’ll be going to college.”
I put my hand on her expanding belly. “We’ll still have this one at home though. And, anyway…that’s really far in the future.”
“Don’t argue with me. I’m pregnant.”
I laughed and shook my head at my outrageous wife.
Our honeymoon had been wonderful, and a few weeks later, we’d found out that we were expecting a baby girl in January. Our baby girl. We were still thinking about names. Neither of us could agree on anything.
“Oh, there he is!” She raised her hand to wave, and I pulled it down.
“Don’t wave. Wait until he sees us.”
“Fine, fine.”
We both waited, and to our delight, Jason waved at us and rushed over.
He was turning out to look just like his father. It pained Sutton on occasion to see Maverick shining out of her son, but it also brought her joy. Jason understood as much as he could about what had happened with his dad, but we knew he’d appreciate the information more when he was older.
“Mom! Dad!” Jason called. He pulled us both into hugs. “Kindergarten was awesome! Can I go back, Mom? Can I?”
My heart still expanded every time he called me dad.
Sutton choked back her tears and smiled brilliantly. “Of course you can go back! Tell me everything. What did you do? What did you learn?”
Jason recounted his day, giving us a play-by-play of everything he could remember about his first day of kindergarten. Including all of his friends and, of course, that he saw Bethany at recess, who was in another class in the same grade.
I drove us out of the school parking lot and back to our house in the Subaru I’d compromised on. I still had a sports car, but the SUV was way more useful when toting around a kid. Sutton and Jason had moved in with me, and I’d let her redecorate the whole place. It had been really hard for her to sell that place, but it had been her idea since she’d shared that house with Maverick.
“Are
we still going to the bakery?” Jason asked.
He handed his backpack to Sutton and followed me inside.
“Yep. We’re still going to Mom’s work.”
Sutton had spent the last three years in culinary school, working on getting a degree as a pastry chef. At first, she’d thought it would be a waste since she worked at Kimber’s full-time. But I had known she’d truly love it, and she’d brought new life to the bakery that she was now a co-owner in.
“But, first, we have another surprise for you.”
“Did you pick a name for my new sister?”
I laughed. “Not yet.”
“I like Addison.”
Sutton shook her head. “Remember when you were a quiet kid?”
“No,” he mumbled.
“Well, this surprise is in the living room. Let’s go.”
“Is it a puppy?” he gasped. Then, he sprinted into the living room. “Please let it be a puppy.”
I glanced at Sutton with raised eyebrows. “Told you we should have gotten a puppy.”
She swatted at me. “This is better.”
“The best. What I’ve always wanted actually.”
She kissed me and then walked into the living room.
“There’s no puppy.”
“Nope. No puppy,” I said. Sutton and I took a seat. “It’s something else.”
“Remember how we told you all of those stories about your dad?” I asked.
“My dad who went to heaven?” he asked slowly.
“That’s right,” Sutton said. “He was a great man, and we all miss him very much.”
Jason looked between us, confused. “But I have a new dad.”
“You do. David is your dad, too. And, today…” Sutton said, sniffling as emotions hit her.
“Jason, I want to adopt you,” I told him.
“Adopt me?” Jason scrunched his brows up.
“That’s right. I want us to be a real family.”
“You were adopted, right, Dad?”
“Yep,” I said. “I was adopted by your grandma Celeste. And she’s pretty great, isn’t she?”
Jason nodded his head. “We go on an airplane to see Grandma.”
“Well, just like Grandma Celeste adopted your dad, your dad wants to adopt you. He wants it so that everyone knows you’re his son. Would you like that?”
“Yeah! I want everyone to know he’s my dad.”
“Well, if you are okay with it, then your dad will sign this paperwork, and everyone will know.”
“Yes,” Jason said with a big smile, “I want to be adopted.”
Sutton started crying and pulled Jason in for a hug. I opened the folder on the table and removed the adoption paperwork. We’d had it drafted weeks ago but wanted to make sure it was the right time. I signed with a flourish.
And, suddenly, it all felt official.
Here I was with my pregnant wife and our son.
Jason was finally mine, too.
The End
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Acknowledgments
The Wright books have been such a journey. This might not be the official end to them, but for now, we have to say good-bye to this family that has brought us so far. I learned so much from writing these books and can’t thank all the fans enough for following along. I pushed boundaries and walked out of my comfort zone for so many of these books while also staying true to the kind of books I love and that you expect from me. I always want to be writing angsty, suited-up heroes with their spunky, driven heroines. And I hope that you come on the next ride with me, too.
So, thank you to every person who has touched not only this book, but also the series. There are so many of you, and I feel blessed to have every one of you in my life.
But, especially to my husband, Joel, who plots all my books with me and has to listen to all the crazy ideas that come out of my head. But you can blame him, too, for some of the hard parts in this one! It’s his fault…I swear.
About the Author
K.A. Linde is the USA Today bestselling author of the Avoiding Series and more than twenty other novels. She grew up as a military brat and attended the University of Georgia where she obtained a Master’s in political science. She works full-time as an author and loves dancing, binge-watching Supernatural, and traveling in her spare time.
She currently lives in Lubbock, Texas, with her husband and two super-adorable puppies.
Visit her online at www.kalinde.com and on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram @authorkalinde.
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