Page 92 of Forever with the CEO

“How do you know that they didn’t just change their minds?” I challenged.

“Pfft.” She waved her hand. “Because men are stubborn. Usually they don’t see what they need even if it’s dancing naked in front of them.”

Or standing in front of them in pajamas with their hair in disarray and nipples peeking through their shirt. I was starting to get her point.

“She was successful with quite a few of my brothers,” I admitted. “But not all of them needed her involvement.”

“And she thinks you do?”

“I never know where I stand with Gran. But it’s safe to say she was happy yesterday.”

“I wonder what that means.”

I gave her a half smile. “So do I.”

Chapter Twenty-Five

Allison

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Being married to Nick Whitley was hands down one of the highlights of my life. Was it crazy? Yes. Was it also working better than I’d expected? Yes.

Was I also in danger of jumping his bones every single evening? Hell yes.

My fear now was that I actually was going to fall for him and that I’d be hurt when we separated later on. How crazy was that?

He brought his new couch that very same day. I liked it much more than my old one. It was super comfy.

One evening, a month after the wedding, I got the dreaded email from Bob and Sophie’s lawyer. They were informing me that they were taking me to court for custody.

I froze, reading the email several times. I’d been expecting it, of course. I’d actually been bracing myself for it, but seeing it in black-and-white was driving my anxiety to the max.

“Allison?” Nick said. I startled as I watched him come off the last stair. The twins were already sleeping. “What’s wrong? You look tense.”

In response, I simply turned the phone around. He walked to me with quick steps and glanced at it.

“We were expecting this.”

“I know,” I whispered. “I’m so stressed, though. What if they’re successful?”

“Allison,” Nick said in a gentle tone. He pushed my hair over my shoulder and then cupped my face with both hands. “We’ve got this. We’re together in this.” Hearing his words calmed myanxiety, but it started to make my pulse race for other reasons entirely. “Forward it to Hugo. He’ll take care of everything.”

“Will I have to face them in court?” I asked, and Nick frowned.

“He’ll tell us if it’s necessary.”

As I forwarded the email, asking Hugo what exactly this meant and what the next steps were, Nick’s phone beeped, and he answered right away.

“Hey, Spencer. Yeah, Allison’s here.” He took the phone away from his ear and put it on speakerphone.

“Perfect. We wanted to run an idea by the two of you. As you noticed, Ben, Jack, and Annie hit it off at the restaurant.”

“Yes, they did,” I said, grinning, and some of my worries melted away. “The twins are asking about Ben all the time.”

“That gave us an idea,” Penny said. “We’d be very happy to have them here for a sleepover, if that’s something you approve of.”

“Their first sleepover!” Excitement coursed through me. “Are you sure you can handle that many kids?”

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