Recipe for Temptation - Gina Gordon Page 0,70

feelings he did? Or was she trying to tell him she still wanted to keep her distance because of her career?

He searched her face for an answer, but she gave away nothing. With one last squeeze to his forearm, Penn left him standing in the corner and joined the group, bombarding Finn with questions and congratulations.

The C-section had been touch and go, but mom and baby were doing just fine.

A flurry of emotions washed over Cole like a wave. First relief. Then happiness. A strange feeling he was somehow getting used to.

Cole had bullied his way to the front of the line to see Veronica and the baby, using the fact that he’d brought Veronica to the hospital as ammunition.

He sprinted, along with Sterling, to the private room she’d been placed in. The baby was close enough to full term that she didn’t need to be put into an incubator. Although the delivery had been wrought with complications, the result was a perfectly healthy, seven-pound, eight-ounce little girl.

Sterling pushed ahead of him, squealing as she raced over to the bed. She immediately began cooing and mumbling indecipherable words.

When he walked in, Finn stood by the window, a wide smile on his face. He’d never seen his brother so proud. Veronica practically glowed, the complete opposite of what she’d looked like prior to delivery. It was like that tiny baby she held in her arms had given her new life.

He took his time approaching the bed, cautiously making his way. Unsure of what to do. What to say.

“Uncle Cole.” Veronica beamed up at him. “Come and meet your niece, Vivian.”

He stopped in his tracks, choking down a hard swallow.

Vivian. They couldn’t have picked a better name.

Sterling went back to squealing now that she knew the baby’s name.

When he reached the bed and peeked inside the pink blanket, all of his hesitation slipped away.

She was so tiny. So fidgety. So completely beautiful.

“This is a private room,” Neil’s voice boomed from the other side of the door. “We should be able to have as many visitors as we want.”

Carson walked in, shaking her head with a smile. Mark and Cal rushed into the room. Mark immediately embraced Veronica, kissing her on the forehead, relief taking over his face.

All of them turned when Neil walked into the room. He simply shrugged. “Like we’re going to play by the rules.”

Jack clapped him on the back, then closed the door.

Penn was nowhere to be seen.

He pushed aside his disappointment and embraced the feeling in the room. It was a buzz with high-pitched voices and soft sighs. With happiness. Excitement.

Cole gazed at the faces of his family. His unconventional family. Four men brought together by the kindness of one woman. There were no blood relationships. No childhood memories made together. But these people had brought him more happiness than he’d ever known.

He had romanticized the idea of a normal family. In Hawaii, he’d thought the Foster family symbolized just that—happy people sharing a perfect bond. But they were just as flawed and chaotic as anyone.

He’d been totally disillusioned.

Family wasn’t about blood. Or challenges. Or rivalries. Family was about the people who loved you no matter what. The circle of people who supported you.

And he had that, right here.

But there was one person missing, the most important person. He’d given up on her too quickly. Instead of accepting her, he’d pushed her away. He’d thought that would keep his heart from breaking.

But he’d been sorely mistaken.

To say he fucked up with her was the understatement of the century.

A warm hand clapped onto his shoulder. “I’m glad you were there for Veronica.” Finn squeezed his hand. “I’m glad you’re here for me.”

He turned to his brother, taking in the goofy smile he’d had since they were kids, then looked over at Veronica and the baby. At that moment, something inside him broke.

Despite the horrible ending to the trip, since Hawaii, Cole had never felt so settled. So content with himself. So…whole. He had battled his demons, that broken, humiliated little boy, and for the first time he’d won.

Telling Penn had been the difference. His family was supposed to love him no matter what had happened when he was a child. But Penn, she had just told him she’d be there for him despite his past.

It would always be there; it wouldn’t be healthy to pretend otherwise. But he was worth far more than what he’d believed. His past wasn’t his future.

It was Penn who had enabled him to see