Page 127 of Sweet Thing

“And you saw it, too. I don’t think even my feminine wiles are powerful enough to get you to risk everything that means so much to you.” I bit my lip. “Are we actually justifying all our selfishness in the name of?—”

“Love,” he finished. “Yeah, we are. I love you, Adeline. And I’m sorry I told your dad before I told you.”

“You did?”

“Out there on the ice. After the fourth, or maybe fifth punch.”

“Looking for an escape route from the beatdown?”

He snorted. Another wince. “That’s what he said. But no, I needed him to know the truth. I needed him to know I wouldn’t have crossed this line, created this chaos, and risked my partnership with him if the prize wasn’t worth it. My sweet, lovely Adeline.”

I considered his words. “But, when I told you how I felt—how I truly felt—you rejected me.” That had hurt and I needed him to know it. “I thought once my mom told you she knew, it would start this snowball of reveals and you’d … pick me.”

He closed his eyes, opened them again, and the pain I saw there told me how much he regretted it.

“I made a mess of it. Never think that in that moment I was choosing Theo over you. Or the team over this amazing love I’d found. I truly thought I was giving you an out, a chance to start your life without the baggage of me. I thought I was choosing the best path for you.”

I sniffed. “The best path is the one I choose for myself. And I choose you.”

He touched his forehead to mine. “I should have known better than to second guess you. You’ve taught me so much, not just how to look after Mabel, or fight for what I want, but how to open my heart. Because you opened yours and showed me purity and love. And I’ve a feeling you have so much more to show me.”

He curled a hand around my jaw. “When Mabel arrived and I was in panic mode for that first hour, day, week, I thought my life was about to become smaller. Constricted and bound by my mistake. I was so wrong. Little did I know it was the start of my life becoming bigger, richer, brighter. Not just because of Mabel but because you came into it and showed me a new world. A love I couldn’t live without.”

Tears flowed freely down my cheeks now, and he caught them with his thumb.

“I’m not saying I deserve you, but Iwantto be the kind of man you deserve. The kind of dad Mabel deserves. The kind of friend your dad deserves. Mostly, I want to stop expecting everyone to let me down. To be like Sven. That’s not the blueprint I should set for my kid. For my life. For you and me.”

My lungs tightened. “I won’t let you down. I’m not going anywhere.”

“About that.” He rubbed a thumb along my bottom lip as I swiped at my wet cheeks. “I’ll wait for you.”

“Where am I going?”

“On another adventure. Maybe travel, school, a job somewhere. It could be here or there. What I’m trying to say is that you have the world at your feet. I’ve got maybe a couple more years in me at this game because there’s no way in hell I’ll be working as long as your dad. I’m hoping those years will be here, so Mabel can grow up singing silly songs with people who love her in the Rebels village, the best place I can imagine for her. I’m going to fight Vicki for full custody because that’s what’s best for my daughter. But I don’t want you to feel you have to be on hand, supporting us. You already did that for your mom and your family. This is your time. Spread your wings, fly into your future.”

I’d known I loved this man for weeks now, maybe years. But with those words of support, I knew I would love him for the weeks and years ahead.

“I love you so much, Lars. It might have started as a schoolgirl infatuation, but I’ve peeled back a lot of gruff man layers?—”

“And you’re still here?”

“I’m still here. I see you, Lars Nyquist.” I touched his chest with my fingertips, then spread my hand over his heart. “I see the heart and soul of you. The good dad, the great friend, the amazing lover, the better man. I’ve traveled the world, seen a few cool things, but I can’t think of any better adventure, any place I’d rather be, than right here with you and Mabel, my family and my music.”

He sucked in a breath and in his deep blue eyes, emotion shone back at me.

“How did I get so lucky?”

“You worked hard to be this lucky, Lars. You deserve good things.”

He leaned in. “Or maybe I deserve sweet things. Adeline, the sweetest thing of all.”

His lips brushed mine, and I fisted the front of his jersey and took whatIdeserved.

My Great Love Story.

Trademark.

Epilogue

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