Page 79 of I Am Lioness

“Every time is better than the last.”

I hummed in agreement. “Spot on, baby, spot on.”

Knox nuzzled my stomach and crawled over me, dropping down on his side. He pulled me against him, curling his arm around me.

“I love you.”

My heart fluttered at the sound of those words tumbling from his lips.

I turned into him, placing a feather-light kiss to his chest. “I love you too.”

“It’s still surreal to have you here.” His voice was softer now.

“I know, like I’ll wake up and all of this would have just been some dream.”

“It’s no dream, baby. This,us”—he squeezed me—“it’s all real. You’re stuck with me now, you know that, right?”

“There’s no one on this earth I would rather be stuck with than you.” I mumbled, snuggling against him, my eyes falling shut. Slipping away into the peaceful depths of sleep in the comfort of my man’s arms, the last thing I remember before I succumbed completely was feeling his lips brush over mine and hearing him promise me forever.

KNOX

One month later…

It washectic day at the office after coming back from the holidays. Well, not really an actual office but you get where I'm going with this. I walked in through the front door of the apartment and kicked off my sneakers.

“Babe, I'm home!” I hollered, stalking into the living room.

“In the office!” She hollered back.

I made my way through the hallway and stopped at the threshold to find Hazel on the couch, staring at a piece of paper in her hands.

“Whatcha got there?” I asked, plopping down on the couch beside her.

She handed me the paper without a word and I recognized it as Bernie’s will. Why she was looking at this now I didn't understand. My eyes flickered to her face. She looked uneasy.

“She deserves to know.” She said simply.

“Who deserves to know what?”

Thoughtful brown eyes met my stare. “Maya.”

I froze. We hadn't spoken about Maya since Bernie passed mostly because Hazel didn't know what to do, much less where to start digging.

“Will she even care? I mean, she went what, five plus years without speaking to her father.”

Hazel nodded. “I know, I know, I just think she deserves to know. Those things belong to her, most of which were her mother's, and I know if the tables were turned, I would want someone to tell me.”

I sighed. She was right. I would want someone to tell me too.

Setting the paper down on the coffee table, I turned to Hazel. “I can call my sister tomorrow. See what she has to say.”

“You think she’ll help me?” She sounded hopeful.

I chuckled. “Baby, my sister will do anything for me. She knows all about you, has been dying to meet you. Of course, she's going to help in any way she can. One of the perks of being related to an attorney.”

Hazel smiled and climbed into my lap, throwing her arms around my neck. “I hope we can find her.”

“We will. Karley is good at this shit. Might take a while but I have faith she'll find her.”

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