Page 66 of What We Broke

“Really? The rejection doesn’t sting?” he asks.

“You haven’t rejected me once,” I say confidently. He bites the inside of his cheek as I add, “All I’ve been hearing is ‘not now.’”

“Sometimes I just want to rip that cocky look right off your face,” he says.

“And sometimes you want to kiss it.” I press my mouth to his quickly. “Same. Same.”

“Dad,” Raine calls out, interrupting us. “It’s almost time to watchSo You Think You Can Dance. Can we eat dinner soon?”

He drops a quick kiss on my lips and unwraps his arms from around my neck. I take his hand in mine, leading him to the kitchen. We catch Raine surreptitiously wiping a smear of chocolate off the corner of her mouth.

Leo turns to look at me quickly, his eyes full of humor as he tilts his head to Raine. We both do our best not to laugh.

“What’s for dinner?” Leo asks Raine.

“It’s one of my favorites,” she replies, completely oblivious to us catching her in the act. “Dad made cheeseburgers with homemade fries. And I helped with peeling the potatoes.”

“Do you help your dad cook all the time?”

“Only when it’s my favorite foods,” she retorts.

“Sounds like you’ve got it all figured out.” He turns his attention to me. “Need me to set the table?”

“Raine, do you want to show Leo how to set the table while I finish off the burgers?”

I only need to fry the patties, add the cheese, and toast the buns; I can do it with my eyes closed. While I move around the kitchen easily, I can’t help but watch the back-and-forth between Leo and Raine.

It’s easy, almost effortless.

He would try to argue with me and say it isn’t possible, but I’ve known Leo would be an important part of my life from the moment I laid eyes on him. There was no question of whether or not I would introduce him to Zara and Raine, just a matter of when.

Now, here they are, chatting like old friends as Raine shows him how to set the table. There’s no huge production, no fanfare. It’s just like it’s always been, likehe’salways been.

“Raine,” I call out.

“Yeah.”

“Ask Leo if he’ll marry me.”

She looks at me like I’ve grown two heads but turns to him anyway. “Will you marry my dad?”

“I told him he has to ask me a thousand times before I say yes.”

This has piqued her interest. “And how many times has he asked you?”

He bends down till his mouth is at her ear and uses his hand to shield his lips so I can’t read them. His voice is just above a whisper but even then, I can’t hear what he says to her. Her brown eyes dart to mine and she smiles at me conspiratorially before adding, “You need to keep asking, because you’re nowhere near one thousand.”

“Are you going to tell me how many more times I have to ask?”

“I can’t, Dad,” she says seriously. “That would be cheating.”

“Cheating,” I exclaim and glance at Leo. “No loyalty to her dad.”

Leo laughs at my statement and shrugs, enjoying the camaraderie they have so easily developed.

They’re going to be trouble together, and I’ve never been more excited.

“Okay, you two. Bring the plates up here and put these burgers together,” I announce. “I’m going to start deep frying the fries.”

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