Page 44 of Twenty Years Later

I smiled, realizing it must be Audrey.

Crap, what time was it? Had Jayda's parents already come and gone while I was up here lazing in bed?

Reaching for my phone, I saw it was almost eight-thirty. Wow. I hadn't set an alarm because I figured Gabby would wake me up at her usual time. But I hadn't counted on her being so exhausted that she'd sleep this late.

Now I wasn't sure what to do. Wake her up so she didn't get too much rest and have trouble napping? Or let her sleep?

But she made the decision for me when she opened her eyes and smiled at me, helping all my frustrations disappear. Thank God she slept so well. A well-rested Gabby meant a better day for us all.

After we were both ready for the day, we headed downstairs to finally let these girls meet in person. They had "talked" to each other over video a few times, but of course it was nothing like hanging out in real life. And I couldn't wait to see how they got along.

Before we could even make it all the way down the stairs, Audrey ran over to the gate, Jayda not far behind.

"Gabby!" Audrey shouted, holding out her arms like she wanted me to hand her over.

"Hi, Audrey," I said as Jayda undid the latch.

But she completely ignored me as all her focus was on Gabby, making me feel like I held a little rock star in my arms. While Jayda laughed, I put Gabby down, and she toddled right up to Audrey who grabbed her hand.

"Come here, Gabby. I want to show you..."

Her words were lost as the two girls disappeared around the corner. I glanced at Jayda who laughed once more, shrugging those beautiful shoulders. God, just seeing her this morning took my breath away.

"She's been begging me for a little sister for the last year since her best friend—" Jayda's cheeks flushed that adorable shade of pink. "I mean, not that... well, you know, of course Gabby's not her little sister. Just... well..."

I decided to rescue her. "I know what you mean, sweetheart."

She flashed me a grateful smile as she took a deep breath, her spectacular breasts rising and falling. I forced my eyes away from her chest and back to her face.

"So," she breathed, glancing up at me. "Did you sleep okay?"

I nodded. "Slept great actually. Sorry we were so late. Gabby usually wakes me up before seven."

"Oh, no problem. She was probably exhausted from all the excitement yesterday."

"Exactly. But I'm bummed I missed meeting your parents when they dropped Audrey off. Think I'll get another chance?" I asked, trying to remember if that was something Jayda had mentioned last night during dinner.

"Um, I'm not sure actually. They're exhausted. I guess Audrey kept them up late and then woke up super early."

"Oof, that's brutal."

Jayda started twisting her wedding band. "Yep. And plus, they have this idea that they don't want to intrude on us this weekend. Or something like that. That's what my mom said anyway."

That was thoughtful of them, but I wasn't surprised since they were the ones who had raised such a kind soul in Jayda.

We paused and listened to the girls playing in the other room, Audrey clearly taking charge.

I couldn't resist the moment of being somewhat alone, and I reached out to pull Jayda to me, not exactly sure how she'd respond. But she seemed more than willing to meet me halfway and melted into me, her arms going around my back, her chest crushed against me.

Maybe this was all we needed... a moment of physical closeness to bring us back together, to squash that weird feeling I was having.

I kissed the top of her head. "I've really missed holding you."

She let out a sigh. "Me too."

I rubbed her back, and she leaned backward a bit to look up at me. "I've just really missedyou.I mean, talking every day was wonderful. But there's just something about... well, just something about seeing you in person, you know?"

"I know. Believe me, I know."

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