Not willing to let it end there, the reporter presses, “What do you want to say to those who are worried that your focus has shifted since you found out you had a daughter in Minnesota?”
The room erupts in gasps and shouted questions aimed at Griff.
He lifts his arms at the podium to quiet the room.
“I keep my loved ones close to my chest. We’d like to provide as much privacy for our daughter as we can. That being said, my girlfriend is a badass on the volleyball court and has managed to not only raise our daughter but also maintain the highest grade point average on her team, as well as win a National Championship this year. So, to those who doubt my drive and focus, I’d say that I have the best example of how to raise our daughter, and succeed, sleeping beside me every night. If anything, I’ll just try to absorb her tenacity through osmosis.” He winks and walks away from the podium as if he didn’t just metaphorically drop the mic with that closing statement.
My heart rate quickens, the sounds of the reporters fading to background noise as my brain repeats what he just said.
My girlfriend.
Did he just stake his claim by telling the entire world that we’re together? Why does that make my chest tighten with longing and comfort instead of maddening frustration?
I mean, we are together. We’re in a relationship. So technically, Iamhis girlfriend. But we’ve avoided making things public knowledge to avoid unnecessary media attention. Cadence’s privacy has always been my number one concern.
There’s also the fact that I haven’t confessed the depth of my feelings to him yet. It’s not that I don’t think he reciprocates them. It’s just that saying them out loud makes things so much more real. And I guess up until yesterday, that scared me because I wasn’t sure what our future would look like. I was riddled with questions. Would we be able to make long-distance work this time? Should I try to transfer to a college in Colorado? Would he be able to re-sign with the Summits? Or would we be moving again once his rookie contract was up?
I walk over to where Griff is speaking to the team’s head of PR.
“Can I borrow him for a minute?”
I don’t wait for a response as I drag Griffin into a random office down the hall and shut the door behind me before turning on him. I walk toward him and push him back against the wall, resting my hands on his chest. His head is hung, like he’s preparing for the lecture I’m about to unleash on him.
“I’m so sorry, Kenna. I didn’t know they were going to ask about Cadence. Please don’t be upset with me.”
“This needs to stop. You keep making sacrifices on our behalf. It’s like you’re trying to make up for lost time. But you don’t need to do that, Griff. Cadence loves and adores you. We both adore you. We both love you, too.”
He quickly lifts his head, his deep brown eyes searching mine. Pleading for truth in what I just said.
“I love you, Griff. I never stopped loving you. And I never will. I’ve loved you through scraped knees, endless summers, through fireworks and loss, through distance and time apart, and I’ll love you through the end of time.”
He cuts me off from continuing with a blistering kiss. When he finally pulls his lips from mine, I’m trembling with need for the man that I’ve loved and adored for almost a decade.
Griff cups my face in his hands, holding me like I’m made of porcelain—right now, I feel as if I am.
“McKenna Marie, I haven’t stopped loving you for a single moment since I so stupidly pushed you away. Hearing you say you love me, and our beautiful daughter loves me, heals me in ways nothing else ever could. Before you came back into my life with Cadence, I was going through the motions, unfeeling and completely void. But the moment you allowed me to be part of your lives, you shined your light onto my darkness and our world turned incandescent. I love you and Ray more than anything, Sunshine.”
His words are like a balm to my aching heart. It’s no longer broken because it was fixed almost two years ago when I first saw my baby girl open her eyes—her daddy’s eyes.
But his words soothe my heart, making it feel whole again.
What we had, what wewere—it was pure, untainted. It was smooth, not rough around the edges, riddled with heartache and loss. Our love can never go back to what it was. But this version of us—the one that’s messy, polluted with heartbreak and hurt, is also filled with so much unwavering love, devotion, and dedication to make this work. What it was before was beautiful; it’s the start of our story, a piece of us, but it’s just that—the start. What it is now is more than I could’ve ever imagined for myself—it’s raw, it’s real, but it’s not perfect because we had to work on ourselves apart in order for us to be stronger together.
33
April
I’m branching out of my typical athleisure style. I’ve got on my favorite pair of mom jeans; they’ve got a relaxed leg but are form-fitting across my waist and hips, making my ass look amazing, and I’ve got on a white bodysuit that tucks into my jeans. Dainty gold jewelry dangles from my ears and neck, and on my right pointer finger is the turquoise ring that Griff gave me.
Griffin said he was taking me, Cadence, and Ranger for a surprise mini staycation and to pack a bag for the weekend. In typical Griff fashion, he wouldn’t give me any details beyond the fact that I wouldn’t need to pack much for Cades since we would have a lot of things for her where we’re going.
I have my guess as to where we’re going, and I’m pretty sure I guessed right as we continue heading north toward my family’s cabin.
Turning down the volume of Paramore’s “Still Into You,” I look over at Griff and take him in. He is so effortlessly sexy in his Raybans, with his hand gripping the steering wheel. He’s got on his heathered gray Patagonia zip-up and dark-fitted jeans that cling to his athletic thighs, highlighting the perfect bulge that I can’t wait to get my hands on later. And of course, he tops the look off with a black backward hat with the Wolverines logo and the number ninety-one on it.
Is he trying to make me jump him right this second?
“Like what you see, Sunshine?”
