I gave her hand a squeeze just outside Kelly and Liam’s apartment door. “Thank you,” I said and then kissed her full lips.
“For what?” she asked with a slow growing smile.
“For letting me drag you to my brother’s ten days after you birthed a tiny human.”
She laughed and the sound of it made my heart sprint. “I figured if I said no, everyone would’ve come to our place, and as much as Liam loves that apartment over Avenues, this family is outgrowing it.”
I let my mouth fall into a flat line, hiding the smile that threatened to give away the one surprise I had for her today. “Let’s not argue about the apartment again, okay?”
Her smile wavered and she nodded as I knocked on the door.
Ava had passed through four sets of hands before she found her way back into her father’s lap. If she wasn’t eating, she was in his arms. He was all smiles when it came to his little girl. He looked incredibly sexy with his heart on his sleeve. Ava was the perfect blend of both of us. Kieran’s blue eyes matched hers for now, while her dark black curls matched mine, and the girl had a better tan than anyone in my family, that was for sure. Liam had joked that Kieran needed to buy a gun for her teenage years, and Declan had made the comment that her cousin, Royal, would always have her back. The O’Connell family had taken me in as one of their own, and as I sank into the soft gray couch in Kelly’s living room, I let myself breathe in the moment.
“Ava is such a pretty name,” Paige said as she sat down onto the floor by the Christmas tree where the twins were playing with their new toys. Declan slid off the recliner and sat next to her.
“It was Mel’s idea.” Kieran beamed at me from across the couch. He’d bundled our daughter in his arms and my lips turned up into a broad smile.
Kelly rubbed her belly from where she sat on the loveseat with Liam as she asked, “Is it a family name?”
“No,” I answered with a smile. “She was conceived in the spring, and the Spanish word for spring is primavera. I obviously couldn’t name her that... so I played with the letters.”
“I love it,” Kelly said and threaded her fingers through Liam’s.
“I can’t believe my baby brother had a kid before me,” Liam grumbled as usual, but I’d never forget the smile on his face when Kieran announced we were pregnant. I thought for sure he was going to be full of lectures, but he’d just clapped his brother on the shoulder and pulled him into the biggest hug I’d ever seen Liam give.
“All of our kids will be close, though,” Kieran said and nodded his chin toward Kelly’s stomach.
“It’s crazy how much things change in such a short time.” Liam’s tone was so gentle I almost didn’t recognize it. Perhaps becoming a father had turned him into a softy after all.
“And it will keep changing,” Kieran said as he stood.
He handed Ava off to Liam, and I was so distracted by how her uncle had pressed a sweet kiss to the top of her head, that I hadn’t noticed right away that Kieran had knelt down in front of me. It wasn’t until he cleared his throat that he grabbed my full attention.
“I have something for you,” he said and his light eyes twinkled with the lights on the tree.
My gaze darted around the room, but everyone was busy in their own conversations. Liam and Kelly were cooing and babbling with Ava and, as always, Declan and his family were doing their own thing.
“What are you doing?” I whispered and he chuckled.
“Oh, don’t worry about them, they already know what I’m about to do. They’re just pretending to ignore us.” Kieran’s smile reached past his eyes as he pulled a black velvet box from his pocket. He set it in my lap. “Open it.”
I lifted my eyes to the room, and he was right, everyone was studiously ignoring us. I looked at the engagement ring on my finger and then back at the box. I didn’t need a diamond, or some crazy-fancy-ass ring and he knew it.
“Kieran…”
He rolled his eyes. “Just open it.”
He mumbled something about stubborn women under his breath, and I shoved his chest.
“Oh, my God, open it,” Kelly practically shrieked and the room erupted into laughter.
“Open it.” Kieran nudged the box with his finger and his eyes locked on mine.
I swallowed hard and with nervous fingers I opened the box.
“Everything came at us all at once, and we’re both still trying to find our footing in this new life. But, Mel, you’ve given me all I’ve ever wanted, and I know living above Avenues, that apartment, isn’t a place to raise a family, so I put a down payment on a house.”
I stared at the silver key that sat inside the box. The breath I’d tried to take had trapped itself inside my throat. It was probably the hormones, or maybe it was that my crazy fiancé bought a house, but I couldn’t stop the tears from falling over my lashes. It wasn’t just a house, though. This key represented more than walls, and bricks, and paint. It was a place I could be proud of, a place to raise our child, to have JoJo come and play. A place for Sunday dinners, and after school homework. Kieran, without really knowing it, had gifted me something I haven’t had in a very, very long time… he’d given me, given us, a home.
I blinked once, and then again before Kieran said, “It’s small, and in my old neighborhood, but it’s a start and—”
“I love you,” I blurted past the rushed breath I’d finally been able to take.
I flung my arms around his neck, almost knocking us both to the ground, and the room roared with raucous laughter. My nose was buried in the crook of his neck, steeped in the heady scent of him. He leaned back and appraised me warily. His eyes scanned my face and cupped my cheek. His thumb brushed away a few tears and he smiled.
“When can I see it?” I asked.
“I figured we’d drive by after dinner.”
I exhaled a shaky breath. “This is nuts.”
“Merry Christmas, Mel.”
I kissed him greedily in front of his entire family.
“Merry Christmas,” I said and dusted another kiss across his cheek.
He brought his lips to my ear and the tickle of his breath sent goose bumps down my spine as he whispered, “And she lived happily ever after.”
THE END
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I wanted to send a HUGE thank you as always to my beta and editing teams. Without you lovely ladies, my work would be a hot mess.
Thank you so much to the readers, bloggers, and everyone who champions my work on a daily basis.
This community is a blessed home, and I’m grateful to be a part of it.
Thank you to my PR team at Foreword for always making sure I have the best cheer squad.
Thank you so much to Hayley Stumbo for putting together gorgeous poems for my chapter headers. You held true to the story, and I’m so grateful and honored to have your words be a part of Poet. You are an amazing soul and talent and the world should know your name.
Thank you to Alfa for letting me use her amazing, talented, and inspiring words in the epigraph. I am excited that we reached out to one another. It is a rare find, generosity and genuine, so I am blessed to say I “know” you.
Last and never least. Thank you to my friends and family. My cos-play crazy hubby and kiddos, you keep my smile bright even when the chatter inside my head won’t cease. I love you guys for all time and am lucky to walk the earth next to you every day.
Until next time,
Much love,
Amanda~
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Amanda lives in Utah with her family where she moonlights as a nurse on the weekends. If she�
��s not busy with her three munchkins, you’ll find her buried in a book or behind the keyboard where she explores the human experience through the written word. She’s obsessed with all things Austen and Oreos, and loves to connect with readers! Stay up to date by signing up for her newsletter here: http://bit.ly/AMJNewsletter
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