Page 79 of Finding You

Flora was a girl on a mission, and by the time Kylen dropped to his ass, she had a blanket and half the toys spilling out in front of him. Audra looked happy about her situation. She babbled quietly, grinning when Flora pulled faces, and seemed thrilled when his daughter began a sort of half game of toss.

“Okay, that’s cute,” Dallas said as he walked in. He had one hand in the pocket of his sinfully tight jeans, the other ruffling his hair.

Kylen couldn’t help a grin. “She’s been asking for a sister forever.”

“Daddy can’t have babies in his tummy. He’s gots a penis.”

Dallas’s lip quirked to the side. “Yep. But even people who can’t carry babies in their tummies can have babies in other ways.”

“I know,” Flora said sagely. “Maybe she could be my sister. We could have her here, and you could come visit.”

“And we’re done with that,” Kylen said. “You get five minutes, and then it’s time for shower.”

Flora looked like she wanted to pitch a fit, then decided against it because her favorite teacher and the baby were there. “Fine.”

Kylen could have cried in relief. He shifted closer to Dallas, and as they watched Audra crawl around her toys and Flora follow her around, happier than she’d been in forever, Kylen felt bittersweet. It was everything he wanted without the promise he could keep it.

Dallas turned his head and took a deep breath against his temple. “I feel it too,” he murmured.

Kylen couldn’t ignore the small spark of hope flaring to life in his gut.

Chapter Twenty-Two

DALLAS

Kylen: Cabin confirmed. You sure you want to do this with me with everything you have going on?

It was a fair question. It was one Dallas might not have been able to answer so easily, but things were calm. The emergency custody hearing had gone better than he’d expected. Katie didn’t look at him, but she was calm. Her attorney read an apology on her behalf, and it said everything Adele had told him prior to the hearing: she’d panicked. She was afraid of losing her daughter.

Maybe that was her way of admitting she thought Dallas was a good enough parent to pose a threat should he ever go after full custody, and that was something. But what hurt him most was realizing she believed he’d do that to her. It was a profound, painful moment to face the fact that she’d never really bothered to know him.

In all the years they’d been together, in the short time during their marriage, it wasn’t just unhappiness on her part. It was also that she never understood who he was.

The judge appointed Katie’s mother and Lane as supervisors for handoff. Lane had volunteered since he was the one amongst them all with the most flexible schedule, and the judge hadn’t even questioned Dallas about whether or not it was logical for him to have more custody with the hours he worked.

That was also something, he supposed. The guys all promised to chip in for childcare until Bronx and Lucas arrived, and Dallas realized he was able to breathe easy again. He could go on the long weekend with Kylen and help him with his family now that he had help and now that Katie—for the moment—seemed to be rational.

He still had to speak to her about it, but he would do whatever it took to keep his promise to the man he was madly in love with.

Dallas: I’m a thousand percent sure. I already have plans to buy new hiking boots.

Kylen: Babe. We are not a hiking boot kind of family. It’s the woods, but it’s totally glamping. Just make sure you take off your shirt if you play volleyball, and kiss me a lot.

Dallas: Marking that down in my itinerary.

Kylen: Nerd. See you soon?

He would. Dallas was back at his place now, but Kylen and Flora had been coming over that week for dinner, and Dallas didn’t hate it. He would go so far as to say he really, really liked it. He was just trying not to push too far too fast. Both for his sake and for Kylen’s.

But Dallas was starting to feel the press of those three little words against the back of his tongue. A feeling he thought he’d once had with Katie, and now he was realizing it hadn’t been love at all. It had been something, back when they liked each other.

But it was never like this.

His heart never skipped beats whenever she walked into the room. He never craved her the way he craved Kylen. He never once closed his eyes and saw his distant future, standing close to her, arms wrapped around her tightly.

With Kylen, it was more than just a mental image. It was a certainty. A prophesy.

It simply was.

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