Page 112 of Surrender

His eyes drop to my mouth. “Practice.”

EPILOGUE

The Next Morning…

Whitney

The morning after Jack brought my kids home safe to me, we snuggled in his bed.

All four of us.

Jack on the far side with Bennett curled against his chest, Lucy in the middle, and then me.

Beyond the blackout curtains, the sun shone. Not because I could see it but because I could tell we slept long into the morning.

The night before, after snuggling on the couch, we woke the babies around one in the morning, quickly washed away the smoke clinging to their skin, dressed them in fresh pajamas, and moved our little group into the bedroom.

Three of us promptly fell asleep while I knew in my heart Jack would keep watch over us until he felt content enough to let his own eyes close.

Now, he stares at me across the pillows above the sleepyheads between us.

Those gray eyes I love are warm, roving over my face with a contented laziness I could bask in for hours.

“Good morning,” he mouths quietly.

“Good morning,” I say back.

His gaze flits to my lips, watching as they curl around the vowels.

A crashing knock on the front door bursts our intimate bubble. Cooper barks a storm from the living room. His nails clack loudly on the hardwood as he bounces around.

Jack quickly deposits Bennett on the bed, and his long strides carry him from the room before I can even sit up.

My heart glides firmly in my throat at the intrusion. I throw on a sweatshirt from the floor and move Bennett to his portable crib in case he wakes from the noise.

Voices rise above Cooper’s alarming bark, and I rush from the room just in time to hear a screeching, “Where is she!”

My sock-clad feet slide around the corner of the hall as Jack rumbles, “If you take one more step into my fucking house, I’ll have to physically remove you.”

“Listen, handsome, I really love the whole protective vibe you have going on, but I need to see my best friend right now, and I will tear your arms off if you don’t get out of my way.”

Oh shit.

“Alice.”

Jack stands as an immovable wall between us. He twists his neck to me. “This is the sister?”

I nod and move to his side. He stops me from stepping forward by curling an arm protectively around my waist, positioning himself slightly in front of me.

“What are you doing here?” I ask, taking her in.

She looks terrible. Her black curls are twisted into a sloppy bun on her head. Purple rings blemish the skin beneath her eyes, standing out starkly against her pale skin.

The brittle smile on her face nearly cracks. “Seeing as you wound up on national news, the minute I heard what that asshole did, I got on the next flight here. Unfortunately, that flight wasn’t until three in the morning.”

“Oh, Alice.” Tears fill my eyes at seeing my best friend standing before me after all that’s transpired.

“I’m so sorry,” she bursts into tears. She slaps her palms over her eyes. “That motherfucker. I’m so sorry he did this to you.”

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