Page 116 of Make It Without You

Emily finally gets out of her car with her bags hanging off her shoulder. “Are you okay, baby?”

I pull her to me and wrap my arms around her as I look over the face I’ve memorized and could draw from memory. “Yeah, baby. I’m okay.” I kiss her on the forehead and take her bags from her. And really, I am okay. Chelsea eradicating herself for good means I can move forward and not stress wondering if she’ll return.

Emily and I walk up the front steps and into the house. The TV blaring greets us and I knew I should have stipulated thatDylan could watch TV after he does his homework. We take our shoes off and line them along the wall and I drop her bags off at the foot of the stairs.

“Dyl, did you start your homework?” I call out as we walk down the hall towards the living room.

“Stern, Daddy,” Emily whispers and I smack her on the butt as I pass her.

I see Dylan scramble off the couch and head to the kitchen table. “What did I tell you? Homework first and then TV.”

“Sorry, Daddy,” he says and attempts to throw his puppy dog eyes at me. I lift an eyebrow to show I’m unaffected. His expression lifts when Emily pops out from behind me. “Ms. Emily,” he gushes and runs to her.

She meets his enthusiasm and pulls him into her arms. “I missed you, buddy.”

“Are you and Daddy, boyfriend and girlfriend again?”

“We are,” she claims.

“Good. Because Daddy was grouchy without you here.”

“Way to sell me out, dude,” I feign offense and move to tickle him.

“Hey, no tickling him,” Emily scolds me. She puts Dylan down and kisses the top of his head. “Go do your homework and let me know if you need help.”

I stand and watch their interaction with a full heart. How much Dylan loves Emily is a thing of beauty and I’m hopeful to see more interactions like this in the future.

“Plug your ears, Dylan,”I tell him. Okay, this movie was a bad choice for little ears. I look over and see Emily plug his ears. Yes, the little snake stole my woman. The smirk Em threw my waywhen Dylan cuddled up next to her made me want to ground him.

But this is good. Their getting along is what I was nervous about the most. It helped that we all had a summer together.

The movie nears the end and I look over at Dylan asleep in Emily’s arms. I roll off the couch and move towards her, bending down to pick him up and carry him upstairs. My steps are sure and Dylan doesn’t wake once. Luckily, I had him take a bath before we turned on the movie so I lay him down in his bed and tuck him in. With a kiss on his forehead, I back out of his room and shut the door.

I walk down the hallway with the intention of heading back downstairs. But I see the light peek from under my closed bedroom door and know my girl is in there. I open the door to my room and see Emily with her feet up on the couch in front of the window, scrolling on her phone.

“Move in with us,” I say as I sit down on the couch.

“Baby, I told you to ask me again in two months.”

I take her hands in mine and pull her up onto my lap as her legs go on either side of my hips. “What difference does two months make? Besides, now that Chelsea has given up, neither of us have that added stress or fear hanging over our heads.”

Her hands trail up my chest and I can’t stop the shiver that works its way through me. “Why are you really asking me? I mean I know I expected this to pop up maybe next year. But why now?”

“Because I want to make a life together,” I start and clarify when her eyebrows raise. “Not in the baby sense, although that too,” I say as I lock my hands around her waist. “I want this life with you. I want movie nights, date nights, long days at the ballpark with Dylan, and lazy days in bed. I want to watch from the kitchen as you serenade the world with your violin. You told me to find yourself that you needed to make it without me fora little while. And I’m glad that time worked for us. But, baby, I can’t make it without you. I don’t want to. So move in with us and make us a family.”

Emily leans forward and presses her lips to mine. Her tongue licks at my lips and I willingly open, moaning into her mouth as our tongues collide. “If you ask me to move in, you’re also asking for Biscuit to break your no-pet rule.”

“You two are a packaged deal. Wait, are you saying yes?”

She nods her head in quick succession. “Yes, I’ll move in with you.”

I capture her lips in mine and carry us over to the bed where neither of us comes up for air for the rest of the night.

Emily

Five Months Later

My phone dings with a text from Brandon. I open it and squeal when I see a picture of him and Angie with matching wedding bands. I exit my car and walk towards Adam’s restaurant.

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