Page 90 of Beautiful Mess

My chest squeezes, a lump forming in my throat. Hearing him say that, hearing the sincerity of his words, it brings tears to my eyes before I can stop them.

“My dad is really fucking in love with you, Grace,” Cole continues. “And my guess is, you’re in love with him too.”

“I am,” I blurt out, vision blurry. Thank god, I didn’t wear any make-up today. “I know it’s weird for you, but I love him so much.”

“It’s not that weird,” he murmurs. “Not now that I’ve sat with it and talked to you both. The way I reacted was selfish. Like you said, I’ve gotta get my shit together and work on me for a while. But I’m happy for you both. You have my blessing.”

My throat tightens as his words sink in. “You should tell your dad that,” I tell him. “It would mean a lot to him. And even though I wasn’t seeking your approval, hearing you say that means a lot to me too, Cole.”

“Just don’t expect me to call you mom.” Cole barks out a laugh, clearly cracking himself up.

“Oh, for fuck’s sake.” I can’t help but chuckle with him as I roll my eyes and stand up from my chair. “Alright, think that’s enough chatting for today. I’ve gotta get back to work.”

Once he’s gone, I replay the whole conversation, a sense of relief coursing through me. After our weekend in New York, I knew Conway and I were going to be together regardless, but knowing Cole is okay with it, that I don’t have to worry about Conway one day resenting me for his relationship with his son, feels good.

One down, three kids to go,I think to myself as I finish up with work and head out to my car. Cole’s timing is funny, and a little bit ironic, since Conway and I planned on sitting Willow and my kids down to tell them about us tonight. After I pick Beau and Blakely up from Gemma’s, I drive to my house, Conway’s truck already parked in my driveway. Pulling up beside him, I turn off the car as Blakely squeals and bursts out of the car, clearly excited to see her friend as if they didn’t just spend the whole day at school together. Climbing out, my gaze lifts to Conway as he rounds the front of his truck, a couple of pizza boxes in hand.

“Cole stopped by the bakery,” I murmur quietly so the kids don’t hear. Even behind his sunglasses, I see the furrow to his brow and the start of a scowl, so I hurry and add, “It went surprisingly well. I’ll tell you about it tonight once we’re done with this.”

Jaw tight, Conway nods.

“Ready to do this?” I ask, arching my eyebrow as my mouth twists into a smile.

“Sin, I was born ready for this,” he replies with a straight face and his chest puffed out, causing laughter to bubble out of me.

Once everyone is inside, I grab some plates and pass pizza out to the kids while Conway works on getting drinks for everyone. My dining room table isn’t quite big enough for everyone, but we squeeze together and make it work anyway. Conway and I went back and forth about having this conversation at his place instead, since his table is bigger, but I didn’t feel comfortable doing that with Cole there, given that, up until this afternoon, I was still unsure where he stood.

Sharing a look with Conway, my stomach twists with nerves. I’m sure the kids will be fine, but this is the first time I’ve ever introduced them to someone, and it’s a big deal. Not that I’mintroducingthem, per se, since they’ve known Conway for years, but telling them we’re dating feels scary.

As if Conway can sense my nerves, he clears his throat and takes the lead. “Hey, guys.” The kids all look over at him at the same time, waiting to hear what he has to say.Here goes nothing.“Grace and I have something we wanted to talk to y’all about, if that’s okay.”

Beau turns his head toward me, gaze curious. “Is everything okay, Mom?” he asks, and my heart squeezes at his concern.

“Everything is more than fine, babe.” Glancing over at Conway, I nod, silently telling him I’m putting on my big girl panties, before looking over at my son, then Blakely, and finally, Willow. “I know you guys are aware that Conway and I are paired together on the PTA, and that’s why we’ve been spending so much time at each other’s houses lately.” None of them say anything, just continue to stare at me, so I decide to keep going. “Well, things between us have shifted over time, and we’ve realized that we care for one another on a deeper level than friends.”

“What does that mean?” The question comes from Beau as he gawks at me, a half-eaten slice of pizza dangling from his hand.

“It means that your mom and I have decided to be together romantically, bud,” Conway cuts in, his eyes soft as they take in my son.

A quick look around the table to each of the kids, I know they’re lost, and I can’t help but chuckle at how he worded that. “What he means,” I start, all four sets of eyes shifting toward me, “is that we are boyfriend and girlfriend.”

My lip twitches at how juvenile the phrasing is, but I know it’s one they’ll understand. I see Conway smiling in my periphery, and I’m sure he’s thinking the same.

“You know how Gemma and Everett are together?” I ask, looking between Beau and Blakely as they nod.

“And how your mom is with Tad?” Conway adds, glancing at his daughter while she also nods. “Me and Grace are like both of those. Like she said, boyfriend and girlfriend.”

Crickets.None of the kids say anything, and after a moment, I start to get nervous.

“I know this is a lot to take in,” I offer. “I’m sure you guys have questions, and maybe even don’t know how you feel about it yet, and that’s okay. We’re both here to answer anything and be here for you three however we can.”

Willow and Blakely both glance at Beau, then at each other, something passing between the two girls that I can’t decipher before they both burst into laughter.

Brow furrowed and my heart in my throat, my gaze darts over to Conway at the other end of the table, noting he looks as confused as I feel. “Care to share what’s so funny, girls?” I ask.

The two of them giggle some more before Blakely looks over at me and says, “Bruh, that’s old news.”

My gaze flicks over to Conway again before going back to my daughter. “Okay, first, not your bruh.” That earns me a laugh from all three kids. “And second, what exactly do you mean, it’s old news?” Proving just how much she is, in fact, my daughter, Blakely rolls her eyes before looking at Willow again, both of them giggling.

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