Part 15 (1/2)

Ben kept ha.s.sling him about setting him up on a date. The banter back and forth between the two of them was comical. They were two men who always seemed to want to have the last word.

”I could set him up with Kimberly.” Ben chuckled when Reed threw a small piece of broken sheetrock toward him.

”What?” he threw his hands out to his sides. It was not recommended to say the name Kimberly in the same room as Reed.

”I could have said Josie was cleared for take-off. h.e.l.l, he could take her for a spin. I hear she has a thing for men who come through her checkout lane.” He hid his laughter by turning his back to me, attempting to appear busy.

”Okay, a.s.shole. Just leave me out of this. I got my girl, so there is no reason we should bring up past mistakes. We all make poor choices.”

I avoided saying anything more. Colt was here, and I had no desire to discuss Josie or any other woman. Well, except Maria, she was the only woman worth my time.

We spent the afternoon building, and around six we called it quits.

My phone rang from inside my pocket. I pulled it out and smiled.

”Hey, sweetheart,” I answered.

”Oh my G.o.d, is Reed still there with you?” Maria asked.

”Yeah, why?” I replied.

”Kori is at the hospital. Her water broke. We've been trying to call Reed. He needs to get to the hospital, like now.” She hung up before I could say anything further.

I turned around and found three guys staring at me with their eyebrows raised in question.

I pointed directly at Reed. ”You better have a d.a.m.n good excuse for not answering your phone.” He immediately reached for his pockets, coming up empty. ”Your wife is at the hospital, and you need to get your a.s.s moving. Unless you wanna miss the birth of your daughter.”

It was pure joy to watch him, as he began scrambling for his keys. I counted three times that he stumbled over something in his path.

Ben ran after him, chuckling. ”Give me your keys. You'll end up in the ER if I let you drive.” He followed behind Reed, and they both climbed up in his truck.

”You gonna head to the hospital?” Colt asked from behind me.

”Yeah, sometime soon. I figure we could finish cleaning up a bit before I take off,” I a.s.sured him.

We spent the next hour busting a.s.s to get the dust and tools gathered. It was nice to spend a little time one on one with Colt. After all, I hoped that one day we would be family.

”Isn't she beautiful?” Maria whispered, as she held baby Grace closely. ”She's perfect, Kori.”

I could see her unshed tears pooling in her eyes. It was one of those bittersweet moments. She was happy, I could see it. Yet she was saddened too.

I catch her crying often when she sees a mother with her children. h.e.l.l, even when commercials come on about diapers, she tears up.

I noticed Kori staring at Maria with a pained expression on her face.

”She already loves her Aunt Maria. She's looking forward to all those shopping sprees you've been promising.”

Maria laughed and wiped at her eyes. ”We will, too. We'll shop 'til we drop, little Grace.” She looked up and wrinkled her nose at Kori. ”We'll leave your momma at home, though. She's a huge whiney brat when it comes to shopping.”

Kori's smile matched Maria's, as they continued to inspect the little bundle in pink.

Reed brought Rhett in, and they piled up next to Kori. It was time for him to meet his little sister.

Maria and I stepped out, to give them privacy.

I wrapped her in my arms, holding her close. We stood silent for a moment, before I pulled back just enough to look her in the eyes.

”You do know that, one day, I'm gonna watch you grow with our child.” Her eyes moistened once again. ”We will be holding our child and memorizing every little feature. I promise you, baby.”

She buried her face in my chest, and I whispered into her ear. ”Our time will come,” I said.

She nodded her head against me, and I held her a little tighter.

Chapter Thirty-Two.

”This is all mine?” Mikey asked from the doorway of his new room, as his gaze roamed the room, in awe.

”It sure is. Every last thing,” Maria told him, and she placed his bag on the bed. ”I figured we could go shopping together for clothes, if that's all right.”

He looked back and forth between me and Maria, wrinkling his nose up in disgust. ”I really hate shopping,” he stated, and Maria looked like someone had just kicked her cat.

”It's all right, buddy, we'll work it all out later,” I a.s.sured him. Maria appeared as if she was about to argue, and I grinned, shaking my head no at her. I nudged my head toward the hallway, requesting that she follow me out.

We stepped from the room to allow Mikey to settle in privately.

”Did you honestly just shush me?” she asked, crossing her arms over her chest.

”I shook my head no at ya, so in a way I guess so.” I wanted to laugh, but I held it in. Maria was at times pretty d.a.m.n feisty.

I stepped forward and took her face in my hands. Kissing her, I attempted to alleviate her s.p.u.n.ky att.i.tude.

Leaving her winded and aroused, I walked away chuckling.

Mikey was here with us now, and it felt even more like a home. A year ago, if anyone had told me I would be living with a woman and adopting a son, h.e.l.l, I would have thought he was nothing but crazy.

But now I couldn't imagine being without either one of them. They both made me feel complete. Everything seemed better when they were with me.

The past was nothing but the rocky road that had led me to the two people who now held my heart in their hands. I would do anything for them.

I later found Maria sitting on the floor in Mikey's room wearing some sort of head device. She had that determined look on her face while staring at the TV. Mikey, on the other hand, sat on the floor next to her laughing so hard that he held his stomach.