For The Win (Gamer Girls, #6) - Auryn Hadley Page 0,167

deal with it."

"What is it?" Rhaven asked.

Amy just pushed the pages into her hand. "It's good news, Rhaven."

The first one was the legal approval of her name change from Ethan James Moore to Rhaven Katelyn Moore. The next was the judgment to have her birth certificate updated to show female as well as the new name. And the last authorized her to be assigned a new Social Security Number reflecting the changes.

"They did it," she breathed, turning to show Braden the papers.

"And I told Chance that you both will be taking care of that today," Amy said. "Braden, go get her a new driver's license and social? Apply for the birth certificate too, and we'll update the records here when you get them. Congratulations, Rhaven."

"I feel like people keep saying that to me after KoG tries to ruin my life," Rhaven laughed. "But thank you."

Unfortunately, finalizing her great news was amazingly tedious. The pair stood in line for the Social Security Administration and the Bureau of Motor Vehicles - which wasn't a "department" in Ohio, it seemed. It took all day, but Braden didn't complain once. A few times, he pulled out his phone and sent off messages, but she knew that was work.

And then it happened. The woman at the BMV passed her a temporary paper license, smiled awkwardly, and called for the next in line, completely unaware of how big of a deal this really was. Braden wrapped his arm around Rhaven's shoulders and steered her outside, but she couldn't pull her eyes away from the stupid little piece of paper. There, near the top, was her legal name: Rhaven. And in the next column, where it said gender, the letter was an F.

She was legally a woman.

Just like that, and it was done. Rhaven pressed her hand to her mouth, the other holding her dream-come-true where she could still see it, and she tried so hard not to cry. She also failed. By the time they made it to Braden's car, the tears were leaking down her cheeks, but she wasn't sobbing. These were happy tears. Maybe it was stupid, but this? It felt like an affirmation. Like proof that she was real, and that all of her struggles had been for something. For this.

"Baby?" Braden asked as he opened the passenger door.

She looked up and then wiped at her face. "I'm a girl."

"You've always been a girl," he said. "That just proves it."

"But it's..." Her voice cracked and she had to push out the last word around the tension. "...real."

He pulled her up against his chest, smothering her face into his body, and hugged her tightly. "Yeah it is."

"I'm sorry I'm crying," she mumbled against him.

He just laughed. "No, I think you've earned it. Rhaven, I'm so happy for you. I hate that this is what it took to get that, but I'm so happy that you can finally feel this way."

She leaned back to look up at him. "Yeah?"

"Oh yeah," he promised, reaching up to wipe away the newest tears. "How do you manage to look so beautiful when you cry? Isn't there supposed to be snot or something?"

She laughed, thumping him with her hand. "No! I'm supposed to be stunning and so gorgeous that you can't keep your hands off me."

The arm around her back moved a little lower and his expression turned playful. "I'm so down for that. Right here. I mean, the back seat's a little cramped, but we could make it work."

"Braden!" But she couldn't stop laughing.

He just guided her into the passenger seat. "Then I guess you gotta wait a little longer to celebrate. We're taking the rest of the day off."

"Not much day left," she pointed out as he closed her door.

Braden waited until he dropped behind the wheel to answer that. "True, but I half expected you to demand that we go back to the warehouse. Text Andy and let him know that we'll be back tomorrow."

While he drove, she handled that. Andy sent back a barrage of emojis, then told her she deserved it. He promised they'd hold down the fort, and then ended with an eggplant and a water burst. Rhaven giggled. Clearly, the definition of "work appropriate" was not the same at a gaming company as it was anywhere else.

They made it back to the apartment, and Rhaven hopped out of the car. Braden wasn't as fast, but he met her in only a few steps and dropped his arm over her shoulder again, and