Page 129 of One Little Kiss
A garbled cry bubbles in her throat, and I pull her into me. “Open it,” I command.
In slow motion, she reaches down between us and lifts the cover. I notice the second she sees the third hand in the poorly photoshopped picture. She flips to the next, and finally the last with trembling fingers. Her hands cover her mouth as tears cascade down her splotchy, but still beautiful, face.
“Y-You came for me.”
“For the both of you. I always will.”
“You stayed.” She sounds numb, and I’m second guessing my decision to have her open the folder.
I lean forward and lift her chin. “You’re worth staying for, Winnie. You own me, sweetheart.”
“But I didn’t trust you.” Her entire body quakes with her words and I can’t take the space between us for another second. Shifting Wes to my side, I drag Winnie over so I can cradle her between my legs.
Not wanting to be left out, Wes climbs forward and sits in Winnie’s lap. He’s the engine, Winnie’s the heart, and I’m the caboose. I’ll always pick up the slack. With Wes curled up on Winnie, she rests her back to my front, and I place my chin on her head with a contented sigh.
“No, you didn’t trust me. But you know what you did do, Winnie?” She shakes her head, and I feel her tears land on my hands around her waist. “You told me that trusting would be hard for you. You told me you’d make mistakes. I listened, so here I am. Calling you on your mistake. Proving to you that I’ll never leave, and also saying I’m sorry.”
“You’resorry? For what?” She turns her head to look at me, her ear resting on my chest, and I know she can hear my erratic heartbeat.
“For not forcing Ashton to do something about Macomb sooner. For putting myself in a position like that with Claire. For giving you any reason to doubt me.”
She shakes her head, ready to argue with me, but I silence her with a gentle kiss. Weston laughs, and claps like it’s the end of a Hallmark movie.
“I’ll always do better for you, Winnie. I’ll catch you when you fall. I’ll be the man worthy of spending the rest of my life with you. If you’ll have me.”
“What are you saying?”
“I’m saying, marry me, Winnie Darling. Tomorrow, as planned. Be my wife. Be my heart. Be my everything.”
“Just like that?” she hiccups. “You’re not mad at me? You don’t want to yell at me for not believing in you? In us?”
“Oh, I was mad, Winnie. But do you remember when we first met, and I told you that my family had a communication problem?”
“Yeah.” She furrows her eyebrows, and I kiss the V it causes between her eyes.
“Remember I told you that I overcompensate because of it?”
She’s nodding, but still not understanding.
“My family has taught me a lot of amazing things, but the most important thing is how to love, and what it means to love. We will have fights, sweetheart. We will want to throw things at each other sometimes. And sometimes, we’ll have to walk away before we kill each other. I don’t know if you’re aware, but I can be pretty annoying sometimes.” She laughs, and my chest begins to unknot itself. “But through all the fights, and miscommunications, there will always be love. I’ll fight for it every day. And on the days you question it, I’ll love you double. When I met you at the airport, I told you I wasn’t ready for my Wendy. But I was wrong, and I knew it the second I saw you. You were always meant to be mine, Winnie. I’m ready to leave Neverland.”
“You still love me?”
“Oh, baby. If you have to question it, I’m not doing a very good job of showing you. Yes, Winnie. I love you. I love you today, tomorrow, and next year. I’ll love you when you’re old and gray. I’ll love you until my last breath.”
“I love you so much, Colton. I’ve never felt pain like this before. Losing my mom was the hardest thing I’ve ever gone through, but losing you …”
“Shh.” Her sobs make it hard to understand her, but I don’t think I can handle a description of how much those assholes hurt her. Not when I’m so raw and vulnerable. So, instead, I shush her. I kiss her. I savor holding her until her breathing evens out, and Weston’s sleepy babbles create the soundtrack to my future. “Come on,” I say, lifting Weston into my arms and offering her a hand. “Let’s go home.”
“Lub Coto. My thupa thupa.”
Winnie leans in to kiss his chubby cheek. “Mine too, Wes. Mine too.”
CHAPTER41
ASHTON
