Page 91 of Waiting for Redemption

“I think my mouth hung open for five minutes straight after that,” Leah adds.

“I slapped Max so hard he thought something was wrong with the baby… thathewas holding.”

“You slapped himwhilehe was holding Cece?” Taylor says in disbelief.

“Well, it’s not like I slappedher. He has big arms, she was fine.” Shane rolls her eyes, looking back over at me. “Seriously. You need to start spillingnow. I have been completely unstable today waiting for information.”

“We know,” Taylor sasses.

“What exactly is it you want to know?” I could assume they mean just what happened at Shane’s house, but there’s also a whole lot of shit that happened to get us to that point.

“I… I have no idea.” Shane’s face drops as she realizes she actually has no clue what information it is she wants.

“Let’s start with the fact that your husband is completely in love with you,” Lauren announces, sipping her margarita. Everyone turns to face me again, making my cheeks heat instantly.

I ended up telling the girls about the few times Tank and I kissed shortly after the night they guessed something was going on between us. They freaked out, of course, but after he and I didn’t talk for six months, it was like a silent understanding that we wouldn’t discuss it again. Until now. BecausenowI’m married and head over heels for him.

“What makes you assume that?” I ask the question jokingly, but her response is not one I’m prepared to hear.

“Well, you don’t send your soon-to-be wife’s best friend on a mission to pamper her or buy her the most gorgeous locket I’ve ever seen without being madly in love with her,” Lauren says, pulling the locket under her forefinger to bring attention to it.

“Wait,Tankwas responsible for all the pampering that day?” I don’t know why I sound surprised. Because it’s not the least bit surprising that he was behind it. I absentmindedly grab my necklace, feeling completely awful for not having thanked him properly for it yet.

“Hold on,best friend?Who gave you that title?” Taylor interrupts loudly. Lauren gives her an annoyed look before turning to face me again.

“He didn’t tell you?” she asks, looking genuinely confused.

“We uh, had other things to discuss. I honestly forgot I was wearing it.” I run my fingers along the blue stone in the middle, wondering why he wouldn’t have brought it up either.

“So you guys talked about things then? I mean, like why he was radio silent on you for so long and… everything else?” Leah asks as we all move to the couch in Lauren’s living room.

“Yeah… He actually wrote me a letter that I never read. If I had, I probably wouldn’t have lost so much time with him.” I shake my head, putting thoughts of the locket in the back of my mind.

“Oh my god, he wrote you aletter?What a fucking romantic.” Taylor fake cries into her margarita. Then she gasps dramatically, startling all of us. “OH MY GOD!”she screams, making Shane jolt in her seat and Leah almost spill her margarita.

“What?” we all ask in unison.

“We’re going to be sisters-in-law!” she squeals. I get weirdly emotional at the thought of having a sister. One that I actually adore and get along with too. Taylor is the funniest person I’ve ever met, she’s loyal to a fault, and much like myself, she doesn't take shit fromanyone.

“Oh my god, you’re right.” I laugh, letting the tears blur my vision as she squeezes me in a hug. “Hey, if your husband fucks as good as his brother then double congratulations to you.”

“TAYLOR.Decorum, please,” Leah says, shaking her head at her.

“Well, I’m not sure a soul on earth could out-fuck my husband. But double thanks,” I say, feeling my cheeks burn as the girls' faces all morph into pure shock and excitement.

“Tell us everything.” Taylor squeezed my arm.

“Um,no.” I remove her hand and place it back in her lap to reach for my drink.

“Buzzkill,” Lauren mumbles into her drink again.

“Pause.” Shane holds her hand up, trying to catch up to everything. “Ruby, do you love him? Like, actuallylovehim? Is all of this legit now?” I shake my head, trying to fight back the emotion creeping up my throat.

“I love him so much that it scares me,” I admit. “In one single night he healed parts of me I thought were damaged beyond repair. He never makes me question where we stand or how he feels about me. He makes me feel safe in ways I assumed were unattainable. I don’t know how else to describe it, but I can’t imagine having to live without him now.” They all stare at me with adoration on their faces. I can’t help but laugh at what a sap I sound like. “I’m insane. I’ve been married for two days and already I’m acting like a melodramatic wife who would die without her husband.” I roll my eyes at myself.

“And I think there’s something absolutely beautiful about that, babe,” Lauren says, bringing my attention to her. “Because when someone who’s been fighting her whole life to feel safe can put all her trust into someone who makes her feel that way so effortlessly, they’re meant to be. You guys may have had to fight like hell to get here, but you’remeantto be together. No doubt.”

I love my best friends so much.

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