Page 178 of Rule Breakers Fall Hardest

Chuckling, I set Sammy down. He’s walking now and toddles right over to her.

“Mama, pretty! Up!” He waves his arms dramatically. “Up, up, up.”

She scoops him into her arms and plasters his face with kisses while he giggles, tossing his head back. “I thinkuphas replacednoas his favorite word.”

“You might be right.”

I lean against the wall, loosening my tie. I’ll have to fix it before we leave here, but I might as well have a reprieve while I can.

Sammy presses his cheek against Rosie’s, pulling a smile from her. She doesn’t seem one bit concerned that he might mess up her makeup.

“Well,” she begins, eyeing me, “we’ve survived college and our first nine months of parenthood. Now you’ve made an honest woman out of me.” She wiggles the fingers of her left hand at me and winks. “What do we do now?”

I take her in, smiling at the possibilities our future holds, then pull her close to me, pressing Sammy between us. He’s the beating heart of our little family.

“Anything we want.”

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