Kiss by Kiss (Riggins Brothers #3) - Kaylee Ryan Page 0,57

to love, and he did a damn good job,” Sawyer declares.

“I love him,” I say, wiping at my tears. “So much, and it wasn’t supposed to happen. I told myself that I’d never let a man have my heart, not after what I went through, but with Grant, there wasn’t really a choice. He swooped in, and I fell hard.”

“That’s a good thing. You can’t let your ex win, Aurora,” Layla says gently. “Don’t let him steal your happiness. He wasn’t there for you when you needed him, and he stole those years from you. Don’t let him have any more control. Trust in yourself and your heart. I promise you Grant is one of the good ones.”

“I second that,” Sawyer agrees. “It’s scary, I get that, but nothing in life worth having is easy. Just let go, have fun, love, and be loved.”

“You sound like a greeting card,” Layla teases, and the three of us crack up laughing. That’s how Grant, Owen, Royce, Marshall, and Conrad find us a few minutes later. Eyes puffy and red from tears and laughter filling the room.

Royce, Owen, and Grant make a beeline for us while Conrad and Marshall stand stock still in the doorway. “Um, whose ass do we need to kick?” Marshall asks.

“No one’s,” Layla tells him. He studies her to make sure she’s telling him the truth. “We’re just some girls sharing stories and talking about life.”

“The baby?” Conrad asks.

“We’re all fine,” Sawyer assures him.

“Aurora?” Conrad asks.

“All good.” I smile, wiping my cheeks. At this point, I’m not sure if the laughter is from the pain of my past or the happiness of my present. “I have cake,” I tell him. “This one—” I point to Layla “can’t decide. She’s going to need your help.”

“I’m in,” Conrad and Marshall say together as they step further into the room, taking the two remaining chairs.

“You good, babe?” Grant asks.

I turn to face him, placing my hands on his cheeks. “I’m better than good.” Leaning in, I kiss him softly. “I missed you.”

“You feeling okay?” he asks.

“I’m fine. Now, I need to serve up some cake.” I kiss him once more before standing and making my way toward the kitchen to slice up some cake.

“Hey.” He comes up behind me, caging me in. “What happened out there?”

“Therapy,” I tell him, glancing over my shoulder.

“You kissed me. First. In front of the entire room.”

“I did.”

“I liked it,” he says, moving my hair and nipping at my neck.

“Enough of that. She’ll never get the cake cut and served,” Sawyer says. “Go, let us take care of this.”

“Love you, Rory,” Grant whispers before pulling away and walking back toward the living room.

“I love you too.” I don’t lower my voice. He stops and turns to look over his shoulder, a smile pulling at his lips.

“I don’t know what happened here today, but keep that shit up.” He points at Sawyer and back to me with a wink, and then he’s gone.

“Told you,” Sawyer says, bumping her hip into mine.

“I’m still scared, but talking to the two of you helped me. He was already working me out of my shell. I think it was hearing Layla’s story. She lived through so much, and she’s not willing to let it keep her from living her life. It’s not keeping her from loving and being loved. What she went through, it makes my ex look like a little old lady.”

“Welcome to the family, Aurora.” She smiles.

“Not yet,” I tell her.

“Oh, it’s going to happen. Mark my words. These guys don’t toss out I love yous unless it’s something they feel deep. That’s fine. I’ll get to say I told you so.”

“I hope you do,” I admit. “Now, we’ve got to serve up this cake.” We get to work making up eight plates of all six samples and carrying them into the living room before passing them out. “Now, each flavor is a different color. I need you to taste each of them and tell me which colors are your favorite.” That’s all the encouragement they need. Everyone dives in, including Layla and me for the second time.

Over the next hour, we debate on the best flavor, and we’re still not any closer to deciding. “This is all your fault.” Owen points at me. “If you weren’t so damn good at your job.” He smiles, shaking his head.

“How about this? I change the cake from three small tiers to four, and then I surround it with cupcakes of the remaining