After he rolls a condom on, he connects us as one, making us complete. Apart we are two people wandering around searching for that thing that makes the world go ‘round. Together…together we’re something neither of us could have imagined–whole, free.
We move together, bringing each other higher, and when we combust, it’s magic, an explosion like no other, binding us for life.
I meander through the full-size kitchen of the small house I’m looking at, marveling at the amount of space. The house is in a much nicer neighborhood than where I currently live and has two bedrooms and two bathrooms–way more than I need.
Tiny footsteps run through the house, and a smile tugs at my mouth as the sound gets louder and louder.
“Jade!” Chris shouts, crashing into my legs. “Is this gonna be your new house?”
I look around the kitchen, taking in the dishwasher and full-size refrigerator, something I haven’t had in a long time.
I run my hand through Chris’s hair. “I think it is.”
“Can I have my own room when we stay here?” he asks, looking up at me with bright, chocolate brown eyes.
“Chris, this isn’t our house,” Hudson says, strolling in the kitchen, shaking his head.
I wink at Chris. “It’ll be your room anytime you’re here.”
I wouldn’t have it any other way. I’ll fill the room with toys and chess boards if his face lights up the way it is now.
“Ha,” he says to Hudson.
Hudson rolls his eyes as my realtor, Cori, walks in the kitchen.
“What do you think?” Cori asks.
“I’ll take it,” I say, smiling, knowing Mom would be proud of me.
“Oh, wonderful. I’m going to step outside and wait for you guys.” She walks away and opens the front door. “Take as long as you need,” she adds before she slips out, closing the door behind her.
“Which room is gonna be mine? Can I have the bigger one?” Chris asks, grabbing my hand.
“Jade gets the bigger one. This is her house, Chris.” Hudson leans against the refrigerator, his hands in his pockets.
Chris sticks his tongue out at his dad, and I laugh as I take both of Chris’s hands in mine.
I move him around the empty kitchen and through the living room before he asks, “What are we doing?”
“Dancing,” I say, twirling around each empty room.
He giggles as Hudson joins us, grabbing each one of our hands, and all three of us dance through the empty house, smiling and laughing the whole time.
“You’re leaving me here with Monica?” Kristy shouts, banging her hand against the bar top.
My eyes to shift in Monica’s direction, praying she didn’t hear Kristy’s outburst.
I slam my hand over her mouth, keeping her quiet. “No, I’m just going to school. Don’t be so dramatic. I’ll still be here just not six days a week, more like four.” I remove my hand, dropping it at my waist.
“Two days with her is a lot,” she complains.
“You’ll be fine.”
She pouts, jutting out her lower lip. “Will I though?”
Oh, good grief. “Just get back to work before Monica scares everyone away.” I point to where Monica is cleaning up the beer she knocked over, half of it landing in a customer’s lap.
Kristy smirks. “I rest my case. I won’t survive without you.” She turns on her heel and stalks over to Monica, profusely apologizing to the guy with a wet lap.
I chuckle under my breath as I pop the cap of a beer. I place it at the end of the bar, knowing one of them will come back to replace the now empty bottle.
“My wife is hot,” Jason comments as he takes a seat across from me, ogling Kristy’s ass as she bends over the table. “I’m a lucky man.” He turns back to me with a dopey smile on his face as I place a beer in front of him. “I admire you, ya know?”
My eyes snap to his, confused. “What? Why?” How could anyone ever admire me?
“You’re strong. You’ve gone through a lot.” He fiddles with his blue Mohawk before taking a pull of his beer. “You’re destined for greatness, Jade Hart. Anyone who can still stand after what you’ve been through is a special person.”
“Thanks,” I say, not sure what to do with his compliment.
I’ve never been good at accepting praise, and I think that’s one thing that will never change.
Kristy takes a seat next to Jason, downing half of his beer.
“Have you gotten your man back yet?” he asks.
The front door opens, and I grin. “Yep.”
They both turn their heads in the direction of my gaze. Kristy looks back at me, wagging her eyebrows. “You’re a goner.”
“I am,” I whisper, barely loud enough for her to hear.
Hudson sits next to Jason and pats him on the back. “Congrats, guys.”
Kristy leans forward to look at Hudson. “Where’s my gift?”
I belt out a laugh as Jason wraps an arm around her. “Ignore her,” he says. “I’m working on reining her in.”
At that, I laugh even hard, a tear slipping from my eye as I cover my mouth with my hand.
Kristy watches me laughing like a hyena, shaking her head as she smiles at me. “No gift necessary.” She skirts her gaze to Hudson. “This is more than I could ask for.”
Hudson leans over the bar, pulling the back of my head until his mouth collides with mine, cutting off my laughter.
He draws away from my lips, moving his mouth to my ear. “You’re beautiful when you’re laughing.”
He sits back on his stool, looking at me like I’m the reason he’s breathing. But he’s wrong because he’s the one who dragged me to shore when I was struggling to swim.
“Can I get a water?” he asks, winking at me.
I’d give him all the water in the world just to see him this way–relaxed, content, blissful.
“That’ll be $5,” I say, the side of my mouth tugging up.
“See, I know this girl, and she always gives me free water,” he says, crossing his arms on the bar.
I bite my lip, lusting at the veins in his arms. I hope I never get tired of staring at the man across from me or tire of the butterflies that dance in my stomach when he’s around.
“I know that look,” Kristy says, reminding me she’s sitting at the bar. “That’s Jade’s ‘Hudson is so hot’ face.”
I gasp and throw my wet rag in her face. Her mouth falls open as she gawks at me.
“Do all girls get that look? Because you have the same one when you look at me,” Jason adds.
“Oh, shit,” I say, stomping my foot on the ground as I chuckle.
Kristy reaches over the counter, grabbing the hose next to me and sprays water on me. I shriek, throwing my hands up as a shield. She stops spraying me but moves on to Jason, soaking him from head to toe.
She puts the hose back in place and wipes her hands together. “Next time you two will think twice before mocking me.”
Jason’s gaze shifts to me then the hose, and I take the hint, picking it up and spraying Kristy.
“What the hell!” she shouts.
“Payback.” I see Hudson out of the corner of my eye, watching us with an amused smile.
I don’t want him to feel left out, so I shift the hose to him and spray him with water, too.
All four of us have water running down our faces, our clothes soaked through, as I put the hose back. We look at each other and break out in a fit of laughter all at once.
And I realize that I have turned into someone else.
I’m not Jade Hart, the girl with a chip on her shoulder.
I’m Jade Hart, the girl who can make it through anything–a girl who finally has a family.
SIX MONTHS LATER
I shift on the couch, getting comfortable with my laptop propped on my stomach, leaning against the top of my thighs. I type away on the keys, one sentence away from completing my English project.
The front door swings open, and Chris comes barre
ling through, throwing himself at my feet and bouncing up and down.
“Come on, Jade. Come on, come on, come on,” he shouts impatiently.
I smile, holding up a finger. “Hang on. Sixty seconds, I promise.”
He counts out loud, timing me as I type out the last few words and hitting save just as he says fifty-nine. “Done.” I close the lid of my laptop and place it on the glass coffee table.
“It’s about time,” he whines. He jumps off the couch and tugs at my hand. “Let’s go.”
Standing from the couch, I slip my feet in my shoes. “Wait for me.” I run after him, catching him at the waist and hauling him off the floor. “Ugh,” I groan. “When did you get so big?”
“Yesterday.” He laughs.
“All in one day, huh? I’m sorry I missed it.”
“I forgive you.” He shrugs it off as I place him back on his feet.
“Chris?” Hudson yells from the front door, and an immediate grin crosses my face. “Don’t run off like that, okay? Otherwise we won’t go to the park.”
Chris nods his head, bashful as he slips out the door, heading back to the car.
Hudson strolls up to me, wrapping his arms around me and dropping a sweet kiss on my lips. “Ready?”
“I think if I wasn’t, Chris wouldn’t like me anymore.”
“Impossible.” He drops his hands from my waist and twines our hands together. “He’s in love with you, but not as much as I am.” He winks, tugging my hand and dragging me out the front door.
“Such a charmer.”
“Only for you.”
We both hop in the car, and Hudson drives us to the park we went to all those months ago. It’s become our weekly activity to do with Chris. Every time we go, we take a few pieces of bread and feed the geese and chase Chris around until he’s ready to pass out. It’s simple, but it’s everything.
I wind my fingers with Hudson’s and glance in the backseat where Chris is singing off-key. I’ve come so far from being the girl who didn’t need anyone to the girl who wouldn’t know how to exist without these two guys in my life.
In my mom’s death, she taught me more than I thought possible. She reminded me of everything I was missing out on. I spent so much energy on her that I forgot what it felt like to be happy.
I miss Mom every day. Sometimes the pain is more than I can handle, but I pull myself through, knowing this is what she wanted. She wanted me to have the world.
I glimpse at Hudson from the corner of my eye and beam. I have the world; I found it in him.
And I owe it all to the woman who sacrificed her life for me.
THE END
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First, a big thank you for reading this book! I hope you enjoyed the whirlwind as much as I did. I know it was hard to like Jade in the beginning, but I loved seeing her grow, and I hope you did, too. I cannot say thank you enough for reading this story. Readers are the best!
To my madre, I pretty much wrote this book for you. You are my biggest inspiration and cheerleader. You gave up so much for me when I was younger, and still do. There aren’t enough words for me to tell you how much I love you and appreciate everything you do for me. Just know that I notice all the small things you do. Thank you for raising me. I love you, always.
To Heather, my amazing beta reader, I don’t know what I did before I met you. I’m so glad I had the opportunity to connect with you at RT in Atlanta. You have forever changed my writing. And again, please WRITE the book!! Thank you for everything, no matter how much I hated seeing the word container. And a shout out to your friend who helped with the details on Jade getting arrested!
To Chelsea, thank you for pointing out the huge holes in my story when you were editing. You made me realize I needed SO much more. I appreciate all your feedback and for answering my emails. You’re the best.
To Letitia, OMG this cover!! I hardcore love it. You have a way of making the jumbled words I send you come to life. This cover completely embodies the story. I love your creative talent, and I can’t wait to work with you again. I also loved being able to meet you at RT in Atlanta. You are way too sweet and dedicate so much time to your authors and work.
To Jovana, thank you for wrapping up my story in a pretty bow. I appreciate you always being so flexible with my date changing and adding me to your schedule. Thank you for being amazing.
Husband, thank you for putting up with me every day and for not letting me procrastinate. Love you bunches.
To Regina, thank you taking such beautiful photographs. I love all your work.
To you, the reader, THANK YOU! You make being an author possible.
OTHER BOOKS BY H.M. SHOLANDER
The Edge Series
Escaping the Edge (Edge 1)
Finding the Light (Edge 2)
H.M. Sholander has been an author since 2016. She has an amazing supportive husband and two lazy cats that she loves more than anything. She loves reading, writing, and traveling. She wants to see the world and explore new things.
She encourages everyone to pursue their dreams. Your dreams are the only thing that can make you happy. Take a leap and pursue anything that makes your heart sore.
The Truth About Falling Page 26