Page 159 of Messy Strokes (Wrecked Roommates)

“Of course, I love him. I love him more than anything in the world. Other than Penny,” I clarify with a watery smile. “But you’re right. I bring him down.”

“Youbroughthim down. Past tense. Doesn’t mean you have to keep bringing him down. There’s a difference.”

“You make it sound so easy.”

“Love is never easy,” she murmurs. “Trust me.”

“He won’t let me talk to him.”

“He’s stubborn,” she admits.

“Yeah, he is.”

“But I think he’s worth fighting for, don’t you?”

“Of course, I do. I…” Pushing my hair away from my face, I bend down and pick Penny up. I need her to ground me. To calm me down. Hell, I need my rock, and the man who’s always held that particular position isn’t speaking to me, so…

“I don’t know how,” I admit. “Everyone says I should give him time––”

“Baloney. Time is the last thing he needs.”

“But––”

“He needs someone willing to fight for him. To go to bat for him. To get dragged through the dirt for him. He’s always the one fighting for others, sticking up for others. Protecting others. But right now, he needs you.”

He needs me.

I’d laugh if it weren’t for the earth-splitting pain inside me.

With Penny on my hip, I rock her back and forth, placing a kiss against her forehead as I mutter, “No one needs me. If anything, it’s the other way around. All I do is screw things up.”

“Bullshit. Look at you and Penny. I’ve been around you for five minutes, and I already know you’re an amazing mom.”

I shake my head.

“You are. You knew she needed a father, and when the perfect one fell into your lap, you grabbed onto him. It might not have been the right thing to do for his sake, but it was for her.” She lifts her chin toward Penny.

My eyes burn, but I blink away the tears and drop another kiss to Penny’s forehead, trying not to lose my shit in the middle of the waiting area, though Milo’s sister is making it pretty damn difficult.

“Milo needs you,” Reese repeats, her tone softer this time.

I bite the inside of my cheek and look up at her. “How do you know?”

“Because I know Milo. And I want to get to know my new baby niece,” she adds with a smile. “May I hold her?”

“Yes, of course. But technically––”

“So help me, Madelyn. If you tell me she might nottechnicallybe my niece, all the progress we’ve managed to make is going to go right down the drain. Except for Milo, blood has meant shit in my life,” she explains. “It doesn’t matter. You get to choose your family. And I have a feeling Milo will choose you and Penny, regardless of blood, if you can convince him you want the same thing.”

Her insinuation makes my breath hitch as she takes my baby girl from my arms and begins shifting her weight from one foot to the other. “You are the sweetest thing I’ve ever seen, Miss Penny. Yes, you are.” She kisses Penny’s button nose. “And those dimples? They’re gonna get you into trouble one day. Trust me. I would know.” With a wink in my direction, she smirks, showcasing said dimples, and runs her finger across Penny’s chunky little cheek.

“You know,” she adds. “I’m only here for the next day. If you want, I’d be happy to watch Penny while you go and win back my brother.”

“You flew in to simply come talk to me?”

“Sure did. I’m filming a movie right now, but when I explained it was a family emergency, they gave me forty-eight hours to check on my big bro. It doesn’t hurt I got to meet you and Penny while I was at it.” Again, she smiles and presses her cheek to my little Peanut’s, making them look like two peas in a pod.

“You sure you wouldn’t mind?” I ask.

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