Page 138 of Unravel Me

My heart pounds a relentless beat, and I struggle against the tight grip on my throat, the emotion holding it hostage. Never in my life have I had this, this immediate love, this acceptance without question, without hesitation. It’s scary and beautiful and…incredible. It’s everything I’ve ever wanted.

“Thank you,” I whisper, and when my voice breaks, these four amazing women throw themselves at me, wrapping me in a hug that fills me all the way up.

And all four of us freeze at Carter’s shrill shriek from inside.

“Ollie! Come quick! It’s an emergency!”

We race inside, sagging with relief when we see the boys standing in the kitchen, piles of Fruit Roll-Up wrappers in front of them, half-eaten snacks clenched in their hands.

Carter holds his rainbow snack up, eyes alight with excitement. “It does tongue tattoos!”

“Jennie!” Garrett shouts excitedly, running over to her. He sticks his tongue out. “Wook at mine!”

Carter rushes over to Olivia, the whole Fruit Roll-Up hanging off his tongue. “Wook! Are you weady? Watch!” He pulls it off, proudly displaying the blue Yoda left behind. “It’s woda!”

My gaze slides to Adam, and pink blotches his sharp cheekbones as he smiles shyly at me. Slowly, he sticks his tongue out, showing me the unicorn tattooed there, and it’s so fucked up that the only thought in my head right now is how badly I want to take him into a bathroom and mount him.

* * *

“I want to ask you if you had fun, but you won’t stop smiling and you keep dancing down the street, so I think I know the answer.”

I spin around in the cool night air, then dance my way back to Adam, gripping his bicep as he tows a sleeping Connor and Bear along in the wagon. “I had the best time.”

“They didn’t scare you off?”

“Not even a bit.”

“Are you sure it’s not the alcohol talking?”

I giggle, inhaling the fresh, crisp air. “Don’t you love that smell? God, it makes me so happy, the smell of fresh air. Did you have a clothesline growing up? We did. In the spring and summer, my mom always put my bedsheets outside to dry, and climbing into them at night was the best feeling in the world.”

Adam pulls out his phone, tapping away at the screen.

“What are you doing?”

“Making a note to install a clothesline.”

“Why?”

“So you’ll be this happy every night when you crawl into our bed. Happy wife, happy life, and all that.”

I giggle-snort, and I’m so tipsy, I don’t even care. “You really think you’re gonna marry me one day?”

“Sure as shit do.”

“What if I say no?”

“You won’t.”

“Cocky,” I murmur as he opens his garage, picks Connor up out of the wagon, ushers Bear and me inside.

“No. Just sure about you and me.”

Beyond all the alcohol running rampant in my system, it’s a funny, wonderful thing to hear those words, to know someone is so certain about your place in their future, and the entire walk up the stairs, with him looking at me, I can’t stop the heat from rising to my cheeks.

“You’ll have to sleep here tonight,” he says, showing me to one of his spare rooms. “I took the bed out of Connor’s room.”

“Connor’s room?”

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