Total pages in book: 88
Estimated words: 86126 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 431(@200wpm)___ 345(@250wpm)___ 287(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 86126 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 431(@200wpm)___ 345(@250wpm)___ 287(@300wpm)
“They’re insane,” I whispered, widening my eyes. “He thought of everything.”
“You’re surprised?” Otto whispered back in amusement.
“It’s a little overwhelming,” I replied, my eyes wandering over the large swaths of dark gray countertops surrounding us.
“He loves you,” Otto said matter-of-factly, crossing his arms.
“What?” My gaze snapped back to his.
“He’s always loved you, Noel,” Otto replied, looking at me like he couldn’t decide if I was stupid or just completely oblivious. “He wants you to be happy. Comfortable. Safe.”
“You’re telling me this now?” I hissed. My eyes felt like they were going to pop out of my head.
“He’s been at our house every fuckin’ day,” Otto reminded me. “You think he’s there to see me?”
My mouth opened and closed like a fish as I stared at my brother-in-law.
Otto shook his head.
“I got a red bed,” Ariel announced, racing back into the kitchen. “We’re gonna go see the playground!”
“Purple,” Diana announced, carried in on Titus’s arm. “Purple bed.”
“Lucky,” Heather exclaimed excitedly. “Do you like your room?”
“We don’t like it, we love it!” Ariel replied, sliding to a stop at the kitchen door. “Uncle Otto, you wanna come see the playground?”
“I gotta head home, honey,” Otto replied. “Auntie Esther’s probably wonderin’ where the heck I am. Show me next time?”
Ariel’s expression fell.
“I’ll come see it,” Cian blurted, rounding the island. “Come on, Bas.”
I stood there in the kitchen, dumbly watching Otto and then Heather saying goodbye to the girls. I barely noticed when she came over and gave me a hug. As soon as they were gone, Bas and Cian brought the girls outside, their squealing drowning everything else out.
“Hey,” Titus said quietly, hunching over a little to meet my eyes. “You alright?”
I’d known Titus cared about me. He’d made that perfectly clear every time I saw him. He asked how we were doing. He played with the girls. He helped out in any way he could. He’d even offered us a place in his house, even though he knew that I couldn’t pay him. I wasn’t an idiot, I knew that he’d made up the housekeeping job so that I would feel like I was contributing and not just mooching off his generosity. He’d showed up for us in hundreds of different ways.
But Otto had said Titus loved me and the way he’d said it left no room for doubt about exactly how he loved me. Once he’d said it, the truth of his words had settled deep in my bones. There was no turning away from it or pretending like I didn’t know.
“You love me,” I blurted. It wasn’t a question, it was a statement.
Titus jerked back in surprise. “What?”
“Otto said you love me,” I repeated. “Is that why you did all of this?” I gestured around me to the sparkling clean kitchen and the fully stocked pantry.
“Fuckin’ Otto,” Titus murmured, running a hand down his face.
“Is that why?” I asked again.
“Of course it is,” Titus said, grimacing. He braced his hands on his hips.
“I don’t know what—”
“You don’t have to say anythin’,” he cut me off that time. “It doesn’t change anythin’.”
“Yes, it does.”
“I’ve loved you since you were fifteen years old,” he countered. “I loved you when I picked your ass up from that run down trailer. I loved you when your piece of shit brother showed up. I loved you when I made breakfast for you and the kids, when I played magical horses with the girls, when I built that fuckin’ magnet tile mansion. Today isn’t any different from those days, alright?”
I stared at him.
“It doesn’t mean that I’m askin’ for anythin’, alright?” he burst out, throwing his hands up. “Nothin’ changes.”
“We live with you,” I murmured.
“Are you goin’ back on our deal?” he asked, all expression disappearing from his face.
My heart was pounding and the baby’s feet were jabbing my ribs from the inside and the kitchen felt like it was echoing when I spoke.
“No,” I replied quietly.
Titus’s hands dropped from his hips as he nodded. Before I knew what he was doing, his hands were cupping my face as he leaned in close. “If you haven’t figured it out by now, I’d do anythin’ for you. Havin’ you livin’ here is far from an inconvenience for me. If anythin’ it’s helpin’ me out. If you weren’t here, I’d still be goin’ over to Otto’s every night.”
Taking a shaky breath, I reached up and wrapped my hands around his wrists.
“I don’t know what to say,” I murmured back. My thoughts were swirling. I loved being around Titus and there was something incredibly heady about being the focus of his attention—but I was eight months pregnant, the mother of two toddlers, and my life was an absolute mess. I wasn’t sure what he was expecting, but I was almost positive that I wouldn’t be able to give it to him, and that made my heart flutter with panic.