Page 139 of Wild Side
“Hello, sweet girl,” I murmur, lifting her up and holding her like a baby. She purrs instantly, nuzzling against me. And I don’t even pretend I don’t enjoy it. I carry her out onto the back patio. Tabitha is there, under the heater I bought her, waiting for me.
“I thought I was your sweet girl?” Tabitha asks from where she’s seated with crossed arms and one quirked brow.
I chuckle and place Cleo on one of the chairs before striding straight to the love seat and lifting Tabitha onto my lap. My hands fall to her hips as she straddles me and grips my shirt. I kiss her soundly, sighing the moment her tongue tangles with mine.
Home.
I pull away only to tease her. “No. My Tabby Cat isn’t sweet. She’s spicy. Sometimes even salty.”
Her arms wrap around my neck, and she sticks her bottom lip out dramatically. “The only thing I’m salty about is that Cleo loves you so much more than me when you”—her fingers lift in air quotes—“hate cats.”
I shift to look over Tabitha’s shoulder. “Don’t listen to her, Cleo. Ilovecats.”
I hear Tabitha let out an amused scoff, but something on the table catches my eye. Milo’s monitor sits dead center, along with a legal-size manila envelope beside it.
“What’s in the envelope?” I ask, leaning back to meet her gaze.
Her head joggles as though she’s searching for an explanation. “An idea.”
My forehead scrunches as I hug her close and reach forward for it, curiosity getting the best of me.
She doesn’t stop me when I open the envelope right between us and reach inside.
“If you don’t like the idea, that’s okay.”
All I feel is paper.
“Like, I don’t want to offend you in any way. I just…”
She rambles on as I pull the sheets out. Her voice fades away as I soak up the words on the page. Terms likelegal name changeandname of a spousepop out.
“What is this?” My hands shake.
“I thought maybe you’d want to be a Garrison. You, me, and Milo?Sopresumptuous of me. I just hate knowing you don’t like your last name. Feeling like we’re all together might be nice? I don’t know. Maybe I’m out to lunch. If you don’t want?—”
Rhys Garrison.
I don’t let her say anything more. With the papers crinkling between us, I lean forward and kiss her, my hand at the back of her head. It’s firm and desperate. It ends with our foreheads resting together and my whispered words lingering between us.
“Yes, please.”
CHAPTER 49
TABITHA
The rosebushes are buddingin my favorite spot, and that summer feeling in the mountains makes everything feel warm and hazy. The sun beats down on my skin, and Milo’s laughter as he and Rhys run down the hill is music to my ears.
I watch as Rhys scoops him up and twirls him, rubbing his beard against the side of his neck until the little boy squeals. His movements are sure and powerful, his recovery nothing short of a miracle.
He’s back in the ring, doing what he loves. He comes home often, also to do what he loves. Which is being with us.
Everything between us is so… easy. That uphill climb has made the flat land stroll an absolute dream. We walk hand in hand, knowing that there isn’t much life can throw our way that we won’t be able to tackle together.
I’ve never felt more secure in my life than I do knowing that Rhys is here now, and that even when he’s not, he’ll always come back.
I’m propped on my hands, legs outstretched before me, the old sleeping bag laid flat beneath me as I admire them.
My sister’s urn is at my side.
