Good for him.
Trey looks up at me with a nod before standing up. “Yeah. I need something to help pass my time before my mind goes crazy.” His voice lowers. “I don’t have a little sister to look after anymore, so it’s all I think about in my downtime.”
I’ve debated on reaching out to Trey after the funeral. I told them my door is open, so when they’re ready, I’m ready.
I give him a hopeful look. “I’m sorry, buddy. My door is always open if you want to talk or hang out,” I offer again.
He smiles and plays with the collar of his red work shirt. “I’m sorry for what I said when I eavesdropped on the conversation about your parents wanting custody of me. I was pissed. It was nothing against you.”
I smile. “Don’t worry about it.”
He kicks his feet against the ground. “But I’m down for whatever. I got a new number.”
He fishes his phone from his pocket. I grab mine, and we recite our numbers to each other.
“You know,” he starts with hesitation, “I’ve always wanted a big brother.”
I wink. “You have one now.”
He grins wider before pointing to my cart. “That’s a lot of food.”
“My parents are having a dinner on Christmas. You’re more than welcome to come with me if you’d like.”
“Maybe. Aunt Chloe is making dinner on Christmas.”
“That’s scary,” I joke.
He laughs. “I know, right? She wants us to have a traditional Christmas dinner.” He pauses, and all friendliness on his face has disappeared and is replaced with sadness. “I’m worried about her. Gloria and I always spent the day with her, and now …”
I nod in response. “You be there for her, okay?”
“I’m trying my hardest to.”
Trey texts me the next day.
He asked Chloe if it was okay for him to hang out with me, and she approved.
We go out for pizza, and I take him to the arcade. We have a blast. He says Melanie has been hanging out at the house to keep Chloe’s spirits up. He’s still worried about her, and he knows she’s hiding her sadness.
We brainstorm, coming up with ideas to help her through her pain.
32
Chloe
Christmas has never been exciting for me.
The holidays were never bright and cheery, growing up. When I was younger, I didn’t know how I always managed to be on the naughty list. No matter how good I acted, Santa never visited our house. I never received coal either, so it was a confusing time for me. I promised myself that Trey and Gloria would never doubt where they stood with Santa. I worked my ass off to give them a decent Christmas every year.
This year, I’ve made an entire Christmas dinner with more food than Trey and I could eat in a month.
“I wish she were here with us,” Trey mutters when I hand him his first gift. He frowns at the box, as if it’s wrong for him to open it.
My brows scrunch together when he drops the box and grabs his phone after it beeps with a text message.
“Oh, yeah,” he says. “I forgot to tell you that Mr. Garfield said they had extra pies at the market that are close to expiring, so they’re dropping them off.”
Trey brought up getting a job to me three days after Gloria’s funeral. He needed a hobby to take his mind off his mother going to prison and his sister’s death. I agreed and was surprised when he told me he’d been hired at Garfield’s Grocery.
I’m doing the same. I work as often as I can and considered looking into a second job—not for financial reasons, but to keep my mind off my problems as well. Melanie has made it her mission to be my sidekick at all times, and even though I act like it’s driving me crazy, I appreciate her company.
Then, there’s Kyle. I feel terrible for not thanking him for talking to his mother. It’s a bitch move on my part, but I’m terrified. He hasn’t reached out since the night he consoled me and then disappeared, which I don’t blame him for.
I sigh. Tomorrow, I’m going to his house and apologizing for my outburst, for kicking him out of my house, for not telling him everything about his father, and for not giving him a hug for saving me from the heartache of losing Trey.
I uncross my legs and stand up from the floor. “Aw, that’s nice of them.”
He pulls on his boots. “Can you give me a hand? They’re old and it’s snowing, so we should probably help them.”
“Of course.”
I put my shoes on and throw on a coat. “Are they not here yet?” I ask, shivering when we walk outside.
Trey is typing on his phone. “Hold on. They’re texting me now.”
I raise a brow in confusion. “The Garfields know how to text?”
He doesn’t answer me, and seconds later, the abrupt sound of his voice cuts through the morning air. The deep voice brims with an overflow of emotions.
“Merry Christmas to the girl I love!”
My attention sweeps over to Kyle’s porch to find him standing there, shirtless, wearing only his gray sweatpants, looking the same as he did every day before we started our relationship. A Santa hat is on his head, and I can’t hold back my burst of laughter—my first loud, belly-aching laughter I’ve had in months.
“You’re going to get hypothermia!” I yell back in exchange for, Fuck off.
He hops down the stairs, and Trey is beaming from the sidelines. Their setup is playing out smoothly.
“If I get hypothermia,” he says when he reaches me, “I’m blaming you, babe.”
I press my hand against my chest. “On me? It’s not my fault you enjoy flaunting your naked self around in the freezing cold.”
I can see his breath releasing into the cold. “Please be honest with me, Chloe. That’s all I want for Christmas, and your honesty will provide me the energy to make my way back inside. Otherwise, I’ll probably freeze outside and die.”
I shake my head, still laughing. “I can’t believe I’m even entertaining this.”
He grabs me by my waist, and his chest is freezing. “Tell me how you feel about me, Chloe. No bullshit. Look at me and tell me you don’t care about me the way I care about you.”
I gulp, and my heart races so hard that I’m waiting for it to fall out of my chest. “I … I don’t care about you, Kyle.”
His face falls.
“I mean … I do … but I more than care about you.”
A smile takes over his face. “Say it.”
I cover my face with my hands. “Oh my God. I can’t believe I’m about to declare my love to a half-naked man sporting a Santa hat, who looks like he should be featured in an X-rated Christmas calendar.”
He takes my hand and kisses the top. “I’m more than happy to get you a calendar with my pictures in them.”
A tear falls down my cheek, and his finger is cold when he wipes it away.
“I love you,” I say with no hesitation, regret, or unease.
He stares down at me, his white teeth showing as he grins wildly. “And, damn, do I love you.”
He tilts his head down and kisses me. He pulls away and inspects me, and then his lips hit mine again.
I glance back at Trey while smiling. “I take it, there are no pies?”
Trey shrugs. “They must have forgotten to stop on their way home.”
“Did you say pie?” Kyle chimes in. “Weird, I have plenty of them in my house.” He snags my hand in his and leads me toward his porch while calling out for Trey to come on.
“Did your mom make the pies?” I ask when we make it inside.
Kyle grins. “Would you think any different? I told you, I want to always impress you, not give you food poisoning.”
“I got you something,” Kyle says.
After we devoured the sweets Kyle had brought home from his family Christmas dinner, we went to the living room to watch Christmas movies.
He hops off the couch and walks barefoot to his bedroom while Trey snores in the background.
“You … you didn’t ha
ve to do that,” I say when he hands me a small box.
“I know I didn’t. I wanted to.”
I stare at it, moving the box around and inspecting it, before undoing the bow. I gulp, unsure of why I’m so nervous about opening a present. It’s a jewelry box. My heart races when I pop it open.
Nestled inside is a necklace.
I pull it out, playing with the thin string, and inspect it. I cover my mouth to conceal my whimper, and tears flood my cheeks. On the necklace hangs a heart pendent that says Mother and inscribed are Trey’s and Gloria’s names.
“It’s beautiful. Thank you,” I whisper.
Kyle’s face is filled with pride, and he nods toward Trey. “He helped me pick it out. He said he’s always seen you as his mother, not anyone else, and we knew nothing better would suit you.”
I frown, and he uses his thumb to gently rid me of my tears. “I didn’t buy you a gift.”
He tips his head down to kiss my lips. “Don’t worry,” he says against them in a low tone. “You can give me mine later.”
The thought of him touching me, of being in his bed, of us together again, sparks happiness inside me. If Trey wasn’t sleeping on the other side of the sectional, I’d be straddling Kyle right now.
I blush. “You can’t joke around about that even if he is asleep.”
He draws back with a grin. “Huh? I want a night full of you repeating you love me over and over again. That’s what I want as my gift.”
I chuckle. “This conversation is mirroring one of those Hallmark movies we just watched.”
“I’ll take it because Hallmark movies always end up with a happily ever after.”
33
Chloe
Two Months Later
Even though today is Trey’s birthday, you’d think, with the excitement beaming from me, it was mine.
“It’s official,” Trey says. “You’re my mother.”
Tears fall from my eyes.
When we finally opened gifts on Christmas, Trey slipped me a letter, asking me to adopt him. Kyle talked to his parents, and Michael agreed to sign over custody to me. Trey still wants to get to know his family, but he wanted to make sure he was always my son. I’d been reluctant on adopting him for years in hopes that Claudia would change, but Trey deserves a good mother who loves and appreciates him.
I shut my eyes as a tear slips down my face. I wish I could’ve done the same for Gloria, wish I’d done it years ago. It’s bittersweet, celebrating being Trey’s parent while also wishing you could’ve done the same with his sister.
Kyle wraps his arm around my shoulders and walks with us. “You know, since we’re in the county building, we can go upstairs and get married.”
I throw my head back and laugh. “You always make jokes.”
He squeezes my side. “No joking. You say the word, and I’m throwing you over my shoulder and making you my wife. Absolutely no fucking joke about that.”
“I’m nervous,” Trey says from the backseat of Kyle’s Jeep. “I’m meeting a brother and sisters I never knew I had.”
“Hey, you met me before,” Kyle says in an attempt to lighten his nervousness.
“Yes, but you were super cool when we first met.”
Kyle elbows me from the driver’s side while I’m in the passenger seat. “Listen to that. He knows I’m super cool.”
I shake my head. “He’s calling you super cool because you got him out of a shoplifting charge.”
Kyle’s grin drops. “Ah, man, and here I thought, we were best friends.”
Trey smacks his shoulder. “Trust me, dude; we are best friends. Any other cop would’ve arrested me with no questions asked. You never made me feel like anything but a normal kid.”
Happiness radiates through my chest—the opposite of how I thought it’d be when we got here. I’m going inside, facing Nancy and Michael while we share a dinner. Michael and Nancy reached out, and before we threw Trey into the mix, we had a meeting at Kyle’s house. Michael apologized. I accepted but will never forgive him for the pain he’d caused my family. Trey needs a father, and he’s working on accepting Michael not being there for him before.
We’re taking chances in our lives.
Losing Gloria convinced me to take a step back and realize what I wanted in life—to stop being scared and be happy.
We count to three before getting out of the Jeep, and Trey looks around in awe at the home.
We see Sierra first when we walk in. She’s skipping down the stairs with her boyfriend trailing behind her.
“I don’t understand why you keep hanging out with Maliki,” he mutters behind her. “You close the bar with him every night, and it’s not even your job.”
“He’s my friend. Get over it,” she snaps.
Her boyfriend snorts. “I bet you wouldn’t be okay with me having a friend who was a girl.”
Their conversation ends when they notice us.
“What’s up, big and little brother?” she greets.
I cover my face to stop the joyful tears. She’s treating Trey as if he’s one of them and not creating any awkwardness.
“I’m Sierra, the best sister in the world,” she adds.
“Hell yes!” Rex comes roaring through next. “I’m your big bro, Rex. If you think Kyle is cool, prepared to be shocked by the increased coolness factor of me!”
I glance at Trey, expecting him to be nervous, but he’s smiling from ear to ear.
Dinner goes by smoothly. I don’t share words with Michael, but he acknowledges Trey and isn’t acting like an asshole, like the first time I had dinner here. Kyle said he’s changed since news of his affair broke out. Nancy was done, her children supporting her when she called a divorce lawyer, and it opened Michael’s eyes.
By the time we’re loading back into the Jeep, Trey and Rex have plans to go to the arcade tomorrow.
Kyle slides into bed next to me after we finish brushing our teeth. We’re shoulder-to-shoulder as we lean back against the headboard.
He stares ahead when he speaks. “I know you just adopted Trey, but you told me you wanted another child as well. Children, if I’m certain.”
My attention shoots straight to him, and my eyes meet his green ones. I clutch my stomach and swallow without saying a word.
He doesn’t stop for my reply. “I did some research and got in touch with organizations I know through the force.” He turns, opens the nightstand on his side, and eases a folder from inside it. “Here’s a list of babies in need of adoption. There are other options, Chloe, so many other options, and I will be by your side on any path you go on.”
I cover my mouth, my hands shaking as I open the green folder, and tears glisten in my eyes. “You did all this … for me?”
“Yes, because I love you more than I’ve loved anyone in my life. You own every part of me, and I’d love nothing more than to create a family with you, a life with you, with us turning old and gray together. I want us to live together, so I can always say my good mornings from our bed.”
The tears fall, landing on the paperwork on the folder, and I set it aside to curl into his arms. “Thank you, Kyle. You are everything to me. I never believed in love, never thought I’d have it, until you barreled through my insecurities.”
He kisses the top of my head, my nose, before tilting my chin up to kiss me on the lips. “Also, let me know when you’re ready to be my wife.” He winks. “They say it makes it much easier to adopt when you’re married.”
I grin and shuffle through the folder. “Get me a folder with a marriage license to sign, and I’m game.”
Other Books by Charity
Bad For You
Beneath Our Faults
Pop Rock
Pretty and Reckless
Revive Me
Wild Thoughts
Blue Beech Series:
Just Her Bodyguard
Just One Night
Just Exes
Risky Series:
Risky
Worth Th
e Risk
Acknowledgments
My Other Half: Without your support and everything you do, I wouldn’t be able to write as much as I do. So, thank you for everything—accepting that home cook meals are a rare occurrence in our lives, when I tell you we’re stuck in the house because I’m meeting deadlines, and telling more people about my books than I do.
To the Readers, Bloggers, and Book Community: You’re the real MVP. Thank you times infinity. Everything you do seriously means the world to me. You take so much time helping authors, promoting them, reading, and reviewing.
Jill: I can get a little … okay, a lot of anxiety not only when I’m writing but with the behind the scenes business. You’ve helped me with Just Neighbors so much with everything from plotting, beta reading, dealing with my doubts, and going out of your way to help me. I’m so glad Dallas brought us together and now you’re stuck with me forever.
Jovana: Best. Editor. Ever. You do so much magic on my books, and I’m grateful that even when I ask last minute or am running behind, you work with me.
Virginia: Thank you for taking me in last minute with the proofreading.
Paris and Zoe: Forever my BFFs.
Ivy: For setting goals with me that are rarely met.
xoxo,
Charity
The Evolution of Us
Copyright © 2017 D. Kelly
Editing by – Tiffany Fox, Beyond DEF
Cover design by – Kassi Snider of KassiJean Formatting and Design
Formatting by – Brenda Wright, Formatting Done Wright
This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real places are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and events are products of the author’s imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or places or persons living or dead is entirely coincidental.
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