Page 117 of A Hurt So Good

“I’m good. I was just thinking about things.”

“About what?”

“Life. You. Them,” I reply, nodding toward the guys.

“What about it?”

“Just how good it’s going to be. We’re all back under one roof now. Sasha is here. Everything is back to normal.”

“Or as normal as it can be, right?” she laughs.

“Yeah, as normal as it can be. I don’t think any of us thought that we’d be sharing the same girl for the rest of our lives.”

“Does it bother you?”

“I thought it might, but it doesn’t. You give us all something different we need, and we do the same with you. I’ve watched us all over the months, and I can see it clear as day.”

“You know I love you, right?”

“I know. I love you, too.”

“Come lay down with us?” How could I tell her no? There’s no way. I nod my head as she stands and grabs her pillow. She climbs over War and lays on the other side of him, patting the spot next to her. I pull my shirt over my head and watch as her eyes trace over my abs before she bites her lip between her teeth. I smirk at her as I lay down next to her.

“You keep looking at me like that, and I’m going to fuck you.”

“I wouldn’t mind.”

“I bet not, but we’d wake the guys up.” She sighs and lays her head on my chest, her hair tickling my skin. And after a few minutes, she falls back asleep.

Chapter 45

Arya

Time heals all wounds. What a bunch of shit, just like War said. Time doesn’t do anything to heal you. At least not for me. What’s healed me? Them. The people I surround myself with. The ones I chose to call family.

I never truly understood what family meant. Not after my dad did what he did to me. And my mom? She’s a breed all her own. Growing up alone was hard on me. It made me look at life differently. And the life I found for myself back then wasn’t the life I needed.

They say things happen for a reason, and lately, I’ve been thinking about that. I lost everything to an asshole. I moved here with my mom. Met the guys and Jarrod. Was it all some kind of plan the universe had for me?

At first, I thought a lot about my mom leaving. Although she was never really there, to begin with, it kind of stung when Jarrod made her leave. She may not have been the best mom, but she was still my mom. But the more I thought about it and looked back on my life with her, I realized just how much I didn’t need her.

I watch the guys and Sasha play in the pool together, and I can’t help but smile. They’ve brought so much joy and chaos to my life. I wouldn’t change a minute of it. Sometimes, love hurts so good. We’ve dealt with bad things happening, and we’ve had great times together, but in the end, we’re still here. Together.

Jarrod sits down next to me and looks out at the guys.

“I should thank you,” he says.

“Why? I didn’t do anything.”

“You have, though. Maybe you don’t see it, but I do.”

“What do you see?”

“How happy they are. How much they love you. How much they’ve grown since you’ve been around. Maybe I wasn’t always the best dad in the world. I always think I could have done more, been more to them. I’ve made my fair share of mistakes when I was younger, but they are the greatest things that came out of all that.”

“They love you.” He nods his head.

“I love them.”

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