Page 162 of Beyond the Blue Horizon
Reminding me of this girl with white hair and a brand-new joy in her arctic blue eyes.
“Up!” Finn instructed, jumping high in front of me like he was going to reach the top.
I swooped him up and held him high so he could reach the top.
He placed it like a little pro, and I pulled him back down, keeping his back to my chest so we could all inspect our handiwork.
Piper eased up to our side.
For one second, she hesitated, emotion thick and soggy, before she wrapped her arm around my waist and leaned against me as we gazed up at the tree.
And fuck me.
I’d never felt anything more perfect in all my life.
THIRTY-TWO
PIPER
The evening had been…magical.
I really couldn’t describe it as anything else.
Theo and I were on the couch with Finn snuggled between us, while Nelly sat on the recliner that faced the television that hung on the mantel above the roaring fire.
The lights were dimmed asThe Polar Expressplayed out on the screen.
It felt like a whirlwind.
A dream.
Decorating the tree, sharing the delicious soup that Nelly had made, then curling up in the sanctuary of it all.
I’d changed into cozy pajamas, the same as Finn, and both of us had slippers on our feet.
Now, as the credits began to roll, my sleepy boy yawned from where he was tucked beneath a fuzzy blanket.
“I think it’s time we get you to bed,” I murmured into the hushed peace.
“I not tired.” Only he yawned again and rubbed a tiny fist in his eye, his blond hair sticking up all over the place.
A soft chuckle rolled out of Theo, his presence so thick I could taste him with every breath that I inhaled.
“You sure about that? If you stay up any later, you’re going to turn into a pumpkin.” Theo tapped a finger on the tip of his nose.
Finn scrunched it up with a giggle, wiggling his legs in front of him. “I not apunkin.”
Affection washed through Theo’s expression, though I didn’t miss the wave of wistfulness that came with it.
Nelly suddenly stood. “Well, I for one am spent after this exciting evening. I think I’ll take my little Finn here to sleep with me so I’m not lonely.”
There was no missing the gleam in Nelly’s eye as she pushed out of her chair and came shuffling our way.
“That’s not necessary.” It left me a wispy defense.
I wasn’t sure I could handle being alone with Theo right then.
Not when he had me feeling this way.
