Always Us (The Jade Series #8)

by Everhart, Allie

Everyone left last week, except for Lilly. She’s living with us this summer. She used to come for just a couple weeks, but last year she stayed with us for most of the summer, so we invited her to stay with us again this summer. She’s 13 now, almost 14. I think Garret secretly wants her here so he can keep an eye on her. Keep her away from boys. She’s growing up and she’s really pretty and boys are noticing. She’s tall for her age and thin, but developing on top to the point that Garret keeps buying her baggy t-shirts and sweatshirts to hide her growing breasts. It’s too funny.

  This week, Sean and Harper are visiting. They only live an hour away but they come stay with us for a week or two every summer. They just had baby number three. Another boy. I’m starting to think Harper’s going to keep having babies until she finally has a girl. Not that she doesn’t love her boys. She totally loves them, but she’d still like a girl. Probably because she loves my girls so much.

  Garret and I had another baby girl. We hadn’t planned on having another baby so soon, but we felt like Abigail needed a little brother or sister and we didn’t want to wait. It’s funny, because for years I was so afraid to have just one child, but then I had Abigail and couldn’t wait to have another.

  It took me some time to get the hang of taking care of a baby. There’s so much to learn. But Garret helped and Grace did, too, and eventually I figured it out. Now I feel like an expert taking care of Hannah. That’s her name. Hannah Julia Kensington. Her middle name is in honor of my mom. She wasn’t a good mom, but that wasn’t her fault, and I know from that letter she wrote me that she never wanted to treat me the way she did. And now that I’m a mom, I feel even more sorry for my own mom and what happened to her. Royce took away her chance to be the mom she wanted to be. He drugged her to the point that she didn’t even know I was her daughter. She missed out on all those moments that I now cherish with my own daughters.

  “Jade, can you grab my bag?” Harper’s sitting next to me on one of the lounge chairs on the back patio. We’re in a shaded area near the pool, watching the guys play with her two boys out on the lawn. Harper’s holding her new baby, who just spit up a little.

  I hand her the bag. “You need some help?”

  “Nope, I got it.” She reaches in the bag and takes out a towel.

  Hannah’s next to me in her baby sleeper. It’s like her own little lounge chair. She’s sound asleep, the breeze blowing her wispy brown hair. Abigail’s coloring at the patio table, still in her swimsuit from swimming with Garret earlier. She’s only two and she’s already a really good swimmer. Garret had her in the water when she was just a baby. And she loves it. She could live in the water.

  Lilly’s beside her at the table, working on a charcoal sketch. She draws and paints all the time and she’s getting really good at it.

  “Aunt Lilly!” Abigail shows off her picture. “Look!”

  “Wow! That’s really good,” Lilly says. “I’m thirsty. You want to go with me to get a drink?”

  Abigail nods and climbs off her chair, then takes Lilly’s hand and they go inside.

  “Lilly is so pretty,” Harper says. “And so tall. She could easily be a model.”

  “I know. She gets prettier every time I see her. She already has boys asking her out, but don’t tell Garret that. He doesn’t even want to think about her dating.”

  “Does Pearce have an approved dating age for her?”

  “Yeah, she has to be 16, but Garret’s trying to get him to up it to 30.”

  Harper laughs. “What is he going to do when Abigail and Hannah start dating?”

  “If he has his way, they never will. They’d live as old maids in our house for the rest of their lives.”

  We both laugh.

  “So you think you’re going to try for a girl?” I ask.

  “Yeah. Probably in a year or so.”

  “Are you serious? I was kidding! You really want four kids?”

  She shrugs. “Sure. Why not? I’ve already got three. What’s one more?”

  “Four kids? That’s a lot. And they’re all so close in age.”

  “So are yours. And I think it’s good. My sisters and I are close in age. When we were little, my mom said we never got bored because we always played together and kept ourselves entertained.”

  “But what if you have another boy?”

  She laughs. “I’m sure I will.” She looks down at her baby. “But that’s okay. I wouldn’t mind another boy. When I’m in one of my girly moods, I always have your girls to spoil.”

  “Are you done after four?”

  “Probably.” She smiles. “But you never know. If we keep going, Sean and I will have our own sports team.” She looks out at the back yard where Sean and Garret are tossing a kid football to Charlie and Tanner. “I hope they don’t want to play for real someday. It’s so dangerous. Those high school guys always get concussions playing football. That can cause permanent damage.”

  “You and Sean are huge sports fans. I’m sure your boys will want to play football.”

  “Yeah, I know. And baseball. And soccer. And basketball.”

  “They can’t play every sport.”

  “Garret played all those sports in high school. And Sean played football and baseball.”

  “Then I guess in a few years, you and Sean will be spending all your time at games.”

  “We’re actually looking forward to that. I can’t wait to see them play. Any sport but football.”

  Her oldest son catches the ball just as she says it, then runs for a touchdown.

  “I think Charlie’s going to play football, Harper.”

  She sighs. “Then I’m getting him a double-reinforced helmet and wrapping his head in bubble wrap.”

  As I watch Garret playing with Harper’s boys, it makes me wonder if he wishes we had a boy. I told him we were done after two kids, but I know he’d like one more. He always wanted three kids.

  Lilly comes back out with Abigail, who goes over to Hannah and kisses her cheek. She does this all the time. It’s too cute.

  “Come see your Aunt Harper,” Harper says to her.

  Abigail toddles over and kisses Harper on the cheek. She loves to give kisses.

  “You want to sit on my lap?” Harper shifts the baby to her other arm and sets Abigail on her lap.

  Abigail leans over and kisses the baby a little too hard. He wakes up and fusses, which scares her.

  “It’s okay,” Harper tells her. “His big brothers knock him around all the time.”

  Harper is such a relaxed mom. Her boys are always running around, getting hurt, and she just fixes them up and sends them back out to play. She doesn’t overreact to stuff. Sean’s laid back, too, so they work well together. I used to overreact all the time with Abigail. If she got a tiny scrape or the slightest fever I wanted to take her to the doctor. I’m way better now. Part of that is because of Garret, who is laid back like Sean. But also watching Harper has helped me calm down and enjoy being a mom instead of worrying about every little thing.

  “Look what Uncle Garret gave me!” Charlie runs up to Harper with a plastic baseball and bat.

  Harper’s kids use the aunt and uncle titles for us since Abigail uses them for her and Sean.

  “In case he gets bored with football,” Garret says.

  Sean’s right behind him, and says to me, “I told him if Charlie breaks a window, you guys are paying for it.”

  Harper laughs and playfully hits Sean’s shin with her foot. “Stop it. We would never do that.”

  “I’m just kidding.” Sean picks up Tanner. “I’m going to get the grill going. These guys are hungry and so am I.”

  “I’ll get the meat.” I get up from my chair.

  Lilly takes my spot. “I’ll watch Hannah for you.”

  Lilly’s a huge help with the girls. She loves taking care of them and playing with them. And the girls both love their Aunt Lilly.

  Garret follows me into the kitchen, grabbing me around the waist and kissing my bare shoulder as I open th
e fridge.

  I laugh. “Hey, I’m trying to get dinner ready.”

  “And I’m helping.” He spins me around and shuts the fridge door, then gives me one of his kisses that still causes that hot, tingly feeling inside.

  “We probably shouldn’t make out in the kitchen with everyone just outside.”

  “Then you shouldn’t walk around looking so damn hot. I mean, come on, Jade. You’re wearing a sundress. You know what that does to me.” He kisses my neck, then my shoulder.

  “I wore it because it’s hot outside.”

  “You still know what it does to me.” He kisses my lips, his hand cupping my butt and pulling me into him.

  He’s got me so turned on I have to force myself to pull away. “We need to stop. But we’re definitely continuing this later.”

  “I’m going to hold you to that.” He kisses me once more and pats my butt.

  Even with two kids, Garret and I still have an active sex life. Not like when we were in college, but as a married couple with kids, I’d say we do it a lot. I never want that to change. I love Garret and I love being with him that way, so I flirt with him and kiss him when he’s not expecting it. And I wear sundresses. Yeah, I kind of lied about the hot weather. I wore the dress because I knew it’d turn him on and it’s been days since we’ve done it and I want him. Just not right now while I’m trying to get dinner ready.

  I open the fridge again. “So when did you get the ball and bat?”

  “When I was at the grocery store yesterday. They had a big display of them. It was only five dollars. Sean said they already have a baseball set at home, but since they’re here for a week I thought they might want one to play with. I didn’t think the boys would want to play with the girls’ dolls.” He smiles at me as he gets the plates out.

  I laugh. “Yeah, probably not.” I set the platter of steaks and burgers on the counter, ready for Sean to grill.

  “You ever wish we had a boy?” I ask Garret as I go around him to grab some napkins.

  He catches my waist and pulls me into him, smiling. “Where’d that come from?”

  I shrug. “I just wondered.”

  “I love my girls, so I don’t think about it.”

  “I know you love the girls, but I think you’d like a boy, too.”

  “What are you saying?” He leans down and kisses me. “You want to make one tonight?”

  “No.” I smile. “Not tonight, but…” I kiss him.

  He pulls back. “But what?”

  “Maybe in a year or two, we should try for another.”

  “Are you serious?”

  “Yeah.” I try to go around him, but he’s got me locked in his arms.

  “But after Hannah was born you said we were done.”

  “That was the pain of childbirth talking. And that was months ago. In a year, I’ll have forgotten all about it.”

  “But you always say three is too many and that we can’t let the kids outnumber us.”

  I laugh. “Yeah, I do say that. But we’re bigger than them so I think we could handle one more.”

  “When did you decide this?”

  “I’ve been thinking about it for a while. And whenever I see you with Harper’s boys, I always think it’d be nice to have a boy. Not just for you, but for me, too. For our family. I think the girls would like having a baby brother. And if they ended up with another sister, they’d be happy with that, too. Would you be okay with us having another girl?”

  He smiles. “I’d be happy with whatever you give me.”

  “So we’re going to try for a third? Not now, but in a year or two?”

  “I would love for us to have another baby.” He kisses me, then talks against my lips. “And we’re going to practice making one tonight.”

  He’s causing that hot, tingly feeling again, so I push him away before I end up taking him to the bedroom.

  “Oh, I forgot to tell you, your dad called earlier. They’re coming back to stay with us.”

  “Already?” He smiles. “They were just here. So when are they coming?”

  “For the Fourth of July. I told them to stay for the whole week, or longer if they want.”

  Sean walks in. “You got the meat ready?”

  “Right here.” I hand him the platter and he takes off again. He insists on cooking whenever he comes here. He says it’s his payment for letting them stay with us, but I know it’s because he has to cook. He can’t go a day without cooking.

  “Daddy!” Abigail runs up to Garret with a drawing in her hand. “Look!”

  Garret picks her up and kisses her cheek. It reminds me of when he used to do the same thing with Lilly. He checks out the drawing. It’s a picture of the two of them in the pool. It’s really good. Lilly obviously drew it and Abigail just ran some crayons over it.

  “Thank you,” he says to her. “I’ll add it to my collection.”

  Garret has her drawings all over the wall in his office. He rents out part of a building in town where he has an office and a conference room for meetings.

  “Where’s your sister?” He sets the drawing on the counter.

  “I’ve got her.” Lilly walks in holding Hannah, who’s awake now. “She needs to be changed.”

  “I’ll do it.” Garret sets Abigail down and takes Hannah. Lilly whips her phone out and smiles at whatever text she got. Garret notices, and from the look on his face I know he assumes it’s from a boy. “Lilly, come with me.”

  “Why?” She follows him down the hall.

  “I’ll show you how to change a diaper.”

  “I already know how.”

  “Then you can help me.”

  He’s just trying to distract Lilly from her phone. I agree she shouldn’t be dating at 13 but he can’t really stop boys from texting her. And he’s not her father so he shouldn’t be interfering, but he can’t help himself. He’s an overprotective big brother, just like Ryan used to be with me.

  “I’m not dating him, Garret,” I hear Lilly say. “We’re just friends.”

  So it was definitely a boy texting her. No wonder she smiled.

  Just friends. That’s the worst thing she could say to him. Garret and I used the ‘just friends’ line for months, even though we were definitely more than that.

  I don’t think Garret’s going to survive the teen years with Abigail and Hannah.

  GARRET

  I swear, these girls are going to give me a heart attack before I turn 40. Lilly already has guys calling and texting her, and before I know it, Abigail and Hannah will, too.

  I already worry about their safety, but now I have to add boys to my worry list.

  I didn’t expect boys to be interested in Lilly this soon, but I guess I should’ve been prepared for it because she’s gorgeous and developing in places I didn’t think she’d develop until she was at least 16. She’s only 13, but she turns 14 in a couple months. I was kissing girls when I was 12, so yeah, I’m freaking out that boys are calling and texting her.

  My dad is pretty strict with her, though, and keeps a close eye on her. He won’t let her date until she’s at least 16. When she reaches that age, I don’t know if she’ll be able to pick who she dates, or if guys will be chosen for her. My dad wants her to be able to choose, but Katherine doesn’t. This past year, Katherine has taken an interest in Lilly again. I think she sees Lilly as her ticket back into high society. Katherine assumes her social standing will be elevated if her daughter is seen with the right people at the right events, and that includes dating the right guy.

  “Hey.” I nudge Lilly and wait for her to look at me. “You know I’m just looking out for you, right?”

  “Yeah, but I swear I’m not dating anyone. And when I do start dating, I already know about sex and condoms and—”

  “Okay, stop.” My little sister did not just say ‘sex’ and ‘condoms,’ did she? How does she know about sex? “You’re 13, Lilly. You shouldn’t even be thinking about that stuff.”

  “I’m almost 14. Everyone my a
ge thinks about that stuff.”

  “Yeah, well, you’re not everyone so stop thinking about it.”

  I’m only 26 and yet I sound like some old-man dad telling his kid not to have sex. But shit, Lilly’s way too young to be talking about condoms and sex. I know I had sex when I was 15 but that was a mistake. I should’ve waited longer.

  “After dinner, will you race me in the pool?” Lilly asks.

  I look over and suddenly she’s a little girl again. Just like that, she switches. She’s in that in-between stage where she’s not sure if she wants to be a kid or a grown-up. Despite her excitement over a text from a boy, I think she wants to stay on the kid side a little longer.

  “Yeah, we’ll race.” I hug her into my side. “But you know I’ll beat you.”

  “You’re old, Garret. I’ll easily beat you.”

  “Hey! I’m not old!”

  She laughs and walks out of the room, but I hear her talking. “Once you’re a dad, you’re officially old.”

  I pick up Hannah, holding her in front of me. “Do you think I’m old?”

  She just giggles, drool dripping down her chin.

  I kiss her cheek. “Promise me you’ll never talk about sex or condoms when you’re 13. Or 15. Or ever.”

  She giggles again, then stuffs her fingers in her mouth. I take her back to the kitchen. It’s empty, so I walk to the patio door and see that everyone’s outside. Harper and Jade are talking. Lilly is at the table, working on another one of her drawings. Grace is across from her, holding Abigail. And Sean is tossing the baseball to his boys.

  I never thought this would be my life, at least not before I met Jade. Before that night in the parking lot when I first saw my future wife, I was lost and angry at the world. I was just going through the motions with no real purpose. I drank too much. I slept around. I went along with the fake life that was given to me.

  Back then, I never thought I’d have a wife or a family. Or true happiness. I thought my life would be spent working, running a company. When I think about that, I almost sound like my dad. I never wanted to be like him, but the future I’d planned for myself was exactly his life. I just didn’t realize it at the time.

  But then that beautiful girl with the big green eyes who was just as lost as I was, came into my life and saved me from myself. And I saved her. Now we both have this life that’s better than either one of us ever imagined.