Page 51 of New Hope

“Wait, what are you girls talking about?” River demanded.

They turned to us, wearing matching grins. “I told Ellie I thought you were boyfriends because of the way you kept looking at each other,” Hannah explained.

“And how have we been looking at each other?”

“You know, like this.” The girls turned to face each other on the couch and started making big moony eyes at each other, puckering their lips, and making kissy sounds in the air. They even threw in a few dramatic phrases like, “Oh, River, you look so handsome,” and “Ford, you make the best spaghetti,” followed by even more kissy noises. By the time they were finished, they’d both dissolved into a fit of giggles.

River and I looked at each other, shocked amusement registering on each of our faces. I was overwhelmed with relief that Ellie was handling all of this so well, but I had to be sure. “So, you guys are all right with this? With us being together?”

Ellie and Hannah stared back at me with identical expressions of confusion. “Why wouldn’t we be? You smile more when you’re with Hannah’s daddy,” Ellie answered simply.

“Yeah, and if you guys are spending time together, that gives me and Ellie more time to play together,” Hannah added. Neither one of them had used the word ‘Duh,’ but I could hear it all the same. All of a sudden, I felt like an idiot for worrying so much. Our girls had the biggest hearts of any children I knew. I should have known that they’d be happy if we were happy, just like Mike had said.

River was grinning as he stood up. “Who’s hungry? I’m suddenly in the mood for pancakes.”

“I do! Meeee!” the girls shouted in unison. They scrambled off the couch and went to wash their hands so they could help make breakfast.

River turned to me and held out a hand. I took it, letting him pull me up and into his arms. I sagged against him and blew out a relieved breath. He chuckled. “Feel better now?”

I tilted my head back so I could see him. “I feel like I can breathe for the first time in years, like there’s nothing left to hold me back from getting what I want.”

“And what is it you want?” he whispered, still smiling because he already knew the answer.

“I want you. I want us.”

“I want that too.” The two of us kissed, relief and pure joy swirling all around us.

“There they go again,” Ellie said as she wandered back through and continued on to the kitchen.

“We might as well get used to it. That’s what boys do when they’re in loooooove,” Hannah added in a sing-song voice. All four of us were laughing as we went to the kitchen and began pulling the ingredients out for breakfast. For the first time in my life, I knew what true happiness was.

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