Page 66 of Reconcile
“I’m not going anywhere. I promise you that. If you want me to be your dad, I’ll never leave. If you tell me to go away, I’ll just quietly stalk you from the bushes.”
Audrey giggles at that, and I hear Piper’s laugh, making me look at her. She has a pretty smile on her face as she shakes her head and then says to Audrey, “We won’t make him do that, will we?”
Audrey giggles again. “No. I like Swearer.”
Piper smiles and pulls Audrey into a side hug. “Me too.”
Fuck, if that doesn’t make my heart soar. “Can I call you ‘Dad’?”
Well, that’s it, I’m never getting my heart back. Not after this moment with Audrey’s big eyes looking at me. “Yes. Forever.”
“Can I call you ‘Swearer’ too?”
Fucking Baz. I laugh at that and pull her into a hug. “Yeah. You can call me that too.”
She laughs and then pushes me back so she can run back to her toys, going back to her day, as usual, even though mine has been changed forever.
Fuck, I love that kid.
Piper grabs my hand and pulls me toward her room. I go willingly, taking one last glimpse at Audrey before we leave. “Thank you.”
She smiles sweetly at me as she takes a seat on the bed. “Thank you. You earned that. You could have forced me into court and done all kinds of horrible things, but you let me have time.”
“I kind of blackmailed you into moving in.”
She laughs, “Well, you’re still an ass.” She grins at me as I walk closer to her. “But I’m glad you did.”
“Me too.” I lean into her, my lips brushing against hers, wanting to kiss her so fucking badly but not wanting to push her.
Sure enough, her hands move to my chest as she holds me back. “Sawyer...”
“I want her as my kid. I want to be her dad. But Piper, I want you too. I want us.”
She gasps at my words, somehow still surprised that I want to be with her. How? I’m not sure. Anytime she’s been in my presence even when we were kids, I couldn’t stand being away from her. “I can’t.”
“You can. We aren’t the same people, Piper.”
“What happened between us...” Her eyes fill with unshed tears, and I take a step back, allowing her some space, but refusing to leave. “It broke me.”
“Then let me fix what I destroyed. Let me try. I can’t live without you anymore, Piper. I’ve been a fucking zombie, walking through life in a daze, trying to convince myself I did the right thing when I knew the entire time that I’d fucked up. I knew it the second I saw you standing in the doorway at that party. When I saw that devastated look on your face, I knew I hurt my favorite person in the world.”
“I can’t do this, Sawyer. You did hurt me. Badly. Even if it was just to hurt Spence. Or you thought you were protecting me. A part of me broke that day. I haven’t trusted anyone since.”
I sit next to her on the bed, grabbing her hand and placing it over my rapidly beating heart. “Let me earn your trust back. You let me do it with Audrey. Let me do that same thing with you. I’ll fight for it for the rest of my life if you’ll let me.”
She lets out a choked sob. “Do you know how hard it was, to see her face, her eyes, and think of you every single time? To miss you and hate you at the same time for six years?”
“Why did you do it all alone, Piper? Why? Did your parents cut you off?”
“Not exactly.” She pushes her hair behind her ear, and I momentarily get lost in how beautiful she is before continuing the conversation we need to have.
“What do you mean?”
She sighs and turns her body to face me more fully. “When I told them at first, they were, of course, pissed.”
Not a shocker. “Especially when you told them who the father was?”
She shakes her head, which surprises me. Maybe she didn’t tell them I’m the father. That would make sense. “They were ecstatic. Well, at least my mother was, my dad wasn’t thrilled, but you know... A Ross and a Ward child. That’s a blessing.” Her voice goes deeper as she tries her best at an impersonation of her father.
