“Come on,” Skylar said. “I’m not an amazing cook, but I can rustle us up some tea and a snack if you want.”
We entered the house and rounded the corner into the kitchen, but only to discover the adjoining solarium already occupied. A laptop computer was perched on a coffee table between the two oversized armchairs, playing some sort of Disney movie on low volume. The armchairs, however, were completely full of people, all fast asleep. Brandon and Matthew were slumped into the oversized cushions, legs splayed on the ottomans. Meanwhile, Jenny was splayed over her father’s big body, and my own daughter was curled under one of Matthew’s arms.
“What do you suppose happened here?” I murmured.
Skylar checked her watch. “Well, I can tell you this isn’t exactly out of the ordinary for the average Saturday afternoon. Luis is still napping, which means upstairs is off-limits. My guess is the girls wanted to watch a movie but also needed a snack, so everyone crammed here…and fell asleep to Frozen.” She nodded at the screen. “I don’t know about yours, but mine is obsessed with Anna.”
I blinked at the animated characters flitting across the small screen. I was ashamed to admit I had no idea whether or not Olivia liked this film. I honestly didn’t know anything about her current tastes.
At any rate, I was too entranced by the sight before me to answer. Matthew’s arm was wrapped protectively around Olivia’s shoulders, and my daughter was curled up like a shell into his side, nose buried into his strong chest. Her mouth was slightly open in a deep sleep, but it was really the way one hand still clenched a bit of his shirt that made my heart squeeze. I’d never seen her hold tight to anyone like that—not any of the nannies. Certainly not Calvin. And not me—not since she was a babe.
A small sigh escaped her lips, and Matthew stirred slightly. His eyes blinked open sleepily, then sharpened when he caught me watching. A crooked smile appeared.
“Hey, doll,” he mouthed silently.
I couldn’t help the blush. Or the smile.
“Nina, do you want that tea?” Skylar asked from where she was now rustling in the kitchen, back to us.
“Er, yes, please,” I said.
Matthew’s eyes flickered toward her, then back to me before he stretched his other hand over the side of the chair and snagged mine. He softly pressed his lips into my palm. I shivered through a silent sigh, fighting the urge to wrap my arms around them both. What other chance would I have to hold them both together?
My loves.
Then Olivia stirred. I pulled my hand back. Matthew’s eyes darkened, but he didn’t argue. Instead, he kept his arm wrapped securely around my daughter and held her close until she settled once more. My heart squeezed along with them.
From happiness. From love.
And yes, from sorrow.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
“Going somewhere, doll?”
At seven o’clock the next morning, I was unlocking the door to the Volvo, prepared to run my errands for the day. Jane had already assured me that she would watch Olivia while I was gone. The kids were only just waking up, but I wanted to get everything out of the way in one go. I only had a few more days left with my daughter before we had to bring her and the older kids to school.
I whirled around, nearly spilling the coffee Brandon had offered all over my crisp Yves St. Laurent blouse and pencil skirt.
“Matthew!” I cried, pressed a hand to my heart. “Oh, you scared me. What are you doing here?”
He looked a far sight from the polished, besuited lawyer I usually remembered, instead dressed in much more average weekend fare of worn jeans and a white t-shirt, over which his necklace bearing the cross and saint’s medallion gleamed. His sleek hair was pleasantly rumpled, and he had a night’s worth of black stubble shadowing the sharp lines of his jaw as he shuffled toward me, still barefoot.
I had seen him once before like this, when I had appeared at his house after John Carson’s death, beset with terror and need. He had answered the door in nearly the same uniform, smudged with grease and dirt after a day of working around his house. He looked, for lack of a better word, utterly common. And completely delicious.
I had wasted no time in tackling him right there on his doorstep, and right now, in the bright morning sunlight, I wanted to