Ripped - Cassia Leo Page 0,55

the one that anchors all the rest, is a picture of her father, Jacob Harris.

Her hands tremble as she covers her mouth and turns her face into my shoulder. “I can’t believe you did this.”

I stroke her hair as I kiss the top of her head. “I promised you I was going to be here for the kids while you went to school, but talk is cheap.” I grab her head, tilting her face up to look her in the eye. “I wanted to show you that I mean it. This is your space from now on for you to do your business stuff, unless it’s time for the #2 mom to get a foot rub.” I wink at her and she laughs. “I never want to be without you again,” I murmur as I lean in and kiss the corner of her lips.

Her face is serious as I pull away. “I didn’t get you anything,” she says, staring at my chest.

I tilt her chin up. “Are you kidding me? You got me two humans for Christmas. I know I can’t outdo that, but I’m sure as hell gonna try.”

“Speaking of… we should probably name those two humans.”

I smile as I brush a tear off her jaw. “How about Jacob?”

She nods as she presses her lips together and tries not to cry. “I was thinking Myles,” she replies.

I nod as I start to get a bit teary-eyed myself. “I think Jacob and Myles sound like perfect names.”

She lets go of me and turns around to face the desk again. “Now we just have to do eenie-meenie-minie-mo to see which boy gets which name.”

I shrug as I follow her toward the desk. “It doesn’t matter. They won’t know their names for, like, two years, right? We can just call them Thing 1 and Thing 2 for now.”

She shakes her head as she traces her fingers along the shiny glass surface. “What’s with the red briefcase?” she asks.

I smile as I grab the case and set it down on the bed. “Open it.”

She looks a little apprehensive as she reaches for it. “This isn’t going to release one of Yuri’s farts, is it?”

“No, I couldn’t afford that.”

She smiles as she undoes the latch on the briefcase and lifts it open. Pulling the two tickets out, she gasps when she reads the words. “Bora Bora? For two weeks?”

“I think it’s about time we have a proper honeymoon. Plus, in three months you’ll be working. I thought we should do it before then.” I hold up my hand to stop her from speaking. “I made sure the resort was tick-free.”

She drops the tickets into the case and throws her arms around my neck. “You’re the number-one mom. Don’t let anyone tell you differently.”

I laugh as I wrap my arms around her waist, being careful not to squeeze too tightly. “I’ll expect a new apron for Christmas tomorrow.”

She buries her face in my neck. “I’ll give you anything you want tomorrow… and forever.”

I chuckle as I bring my lips to her ear and whisper, “I’ll take forever.”

Thank you!

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If you were to die right now, what is the one thing you would regret most? This is a question often heard on sputtering first dates, inane personality quizzes, and the exact moment before you die. Well, maybe you won’t actually hear it when you die, but you’ll think it. And when you peel the answer back to the smallest kernel of truth, the reply is simple and true and always the same: love.

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