Page 106 of Seven of Hearts

“You gave me a rare one for my collection.” Her brows knitted together. “But these are different.”

“You were fourteen weeks the day I found out.” I linked our hands together and moved her fingers over the plastic protectors to point at the stamp that had a peach on it.

She let out a little gasp when realization hit.

“I went back and found stamps for all the early weeks, but from that week on, I’d hunt down a stamp that had whatever size fruit or vegetable or flower the baby was.”

“Logan,” she whispered.

“Before I came back here for good, I knew I had to do something so you’d know I was thinking about you. I didn’t know what would happen to us. If we’d ever be anything. But you two were always on my mind.”

The book slid off her belly and crashed on the bed as she turned and threw her arms around me.

Out of the corner of my eye, the screen on my phone lit up. It was a collect call from the prison.

I ignored it this time. My parents had made their choices. It was about damn time that I made mine.

“I love you,” she said with a sniff. “But I’ve been so scared to admit how much I want you. How much I’ve always wanted you. Back when we were teenagers. When you’d come home from college and visit. I don’t know how I got this lucky.”

It’s funny how luck comes in different forms. I used to think getting lucky meant being dealt a good hand. Just sitting and waiting for the cards to come to you. But maybe that wasn’t it at all. Maybe luck is figuring out how to play the hand you’re dealt.

Kristin’s housewas teeming with excitement as my totally grown siblings jockeyed for the best position on the couch for present opening. True to tradition, Kristin and Will had made a breakfast feast, then sat back while the rest of us cleaned up.

Bryan, Hunter, and I tackled the dishes while Kylie and Zoey put away the leftovers and wiped down the counters and table. Leah had pouted from her spot in Will’s recliner during the clean-up, but I didn’t miss the way she eyed the tree.

I settled onto the corner of the couch closest to Leah, and reached down to push the lever on the side of the recliner and raise the footrest.

The whole chair tipped back, and Leah screeched. “What the hell?”

“You need to keep your feet up,” I said as I grabbed the throw blanket Kristin had on the back of the couch and draped it over Leah’s legs.

She grunted as she elbowed her way up. “I’m about to open presents, not take a nap, you idiot.”

Kylie snorted as she dropped down onto the couch beside me. “Overbearing much?”

Leah craned around me to see her. “Oh my god. It’s only gotten worse the last few weeks. He woke me up the other night just to see if I was sleeping all right.”

“Hey now,” I said as I rested my palm on top of her belly. “You’re mine. You can’t team up with my sister to gang up on me.”

“She was mine before she was yours,” Kylie countered. “Remember that.”

Will picked up the Santa hat and threw it at me from across the room. “Get to work.”

Hunter, Bryan, and I tackled the pile of presents under the tree, doling them out to the girls first before grabbing our own.

Kristin waited until everyone was settled before giving the signal to start tearing into them. It was a little more restrained now that we were grown, but not by much. We were still a festively feral bunch.

The doorbell rang as I stuck a t-shirt that read “World’s Best Dad” back into the bag that Zoey had given me. “I’ll get it,” I said as I stood and waded through the sea of red and green wrapping paper. Everyone was too engrossed in the fun to notice.

Maybe it was Luca or Maddie coming over from next door. They usually dropped in when everyone was over. Gio probably wanted to see Leah.

I jogged to the door and yanked it open. “Mom.”

That single syllable was a gunshot through the house. The rustle of tissue paper came to a screeching halt, and everything fell silent.

“Well, don’t look too excited,” she said as she stood on Kristin and Will’s porch in a sweatshirt and jeans. “Aren’t you going to invite me in?”

“And why would I do that?” I clipped.

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