“I know. I know. You’ll kill me if I hurt her or something like that, right? You almost died saving her from a fire. I respect that.”
Kendall pulls out of Aidan’s embrace and says. “And you almost lost your life saving me.”
Aidan’s face turns stoic as he remembers the blast. One no one wants to recount unless we’re appreciating the fact we are all here together right now. I shake my head. “That doesn’t count. Your dad laid it all on the line to save you, Kendall,” I say.
“That’s why he’s walking me down the aisle, and that’s why this time, I’m saving myself,” Kendall says and signs.
I palm my chest. “By marrying me?”
She nods. “A decision I should have made long ago.”
“I didn’t ask you back then,” I reply.
“What? You’re saying if I asked you back then you would have turned me down?”
I pinch my lips together with my fingers, and she shoots daggers at me. Laughing out loud, I see Magnolia rush into the kitchen holding a finger over her lips. Kendall signs a quick, “Weston is asleep.” I cover my mouth and apologize using what I think is a soft voice. It’s odd how losing my hearing has affected my speech. You forget how to talk at proper levels. Kendall says my voice is still the same, and that nothing except the decibel at which I sometimes speak is different.
Kendall hugs her mom and tells her she asked Aidan to walk her down the aisle. Magnolia is taken by emotion straight away, tears falling until Aidan pulls her into his arms. It’s a poignant moment that isn’t lost on me. Kendall married Adam in a courthouse ceremony, so this will be the first time it was an option.
“I’m so glad you found this with each other,” Magnolia says, and Kendall signs for me.
Magnolia walks over and hugs me. “Thank you for taking care of her when I couldn’t. Now your next task is to get her back here. To Florida. Forever.”
I grin. “I’ll work on it but I can’t make any promises.”
“That works,” Magnolia says. Her lips are so like Kendall’s I can read hers, too. “Welcome to the family. I couldn’t have picked a better match for her if I tried.”
“I appreciate you saying so,” I say, clearing my throat.
“You won’t even hear bitching. You’re already ahead on the marriage game,” Magnolia adds coyly.
Kendall yells, I can see her neck working. “Mom. I don’t bitch!”
Aidan says, “All women bitch.” Then Kendall stops signing. Which is just as well. Everyone is laughing.
“I’m offended,” I say.
Everyone quiets, and stares at me like I have five heads. Eyes wide, and mouths ajar wondering what to say next. “Just fucking with you,” I say. Kendall rolls her eyes, and takes Coal from my arms. She bounds up the stairs to put him in her bedroom and returns a few minutes later, hovering by the front door.
“We’re going now, guys! We’ll be back for dinner. Tell Weston I have a surprise for him,” Kendall says.
“Welp, looks like I’ve been summoned. Can we bring anything for dinner?” I rise from the table and Magnolia looks like she’s thinking if she needs us to bring anything, but Aidan just looks happy—ecstatic, even.
“Wine,” Magnolia says, eyes wide, speaking slow to make sure I got it.
“I’m not blind. Just deaf. Red or white?”
She shakes her head, laughing and tells me white. Aidan claps me on the back and I see the approval shining in his eyes. This is what I’ve been waiting for. What I’ve always wanted. This love. A family who supports each other and doesn’t fake feelings. It’s real. I’ve been waiting my whole life for real like this. It’s why I was awful to Aidan all those years ago. He had something I never had. Instead of ruining his life, I should have realized what was right in front of me.
I drive the mile and a half down the road to the Inn and usher Kendall into our room. She spins on me the second I shut the door. We’ve been on our best behavior on the property because a retired SEAL and his wife own this Inn and I want to mind my manners and respect them. Kendall tried to convince me to go down on her on the docks last night, but I heaved her on my shoulder and brought her up to the room as quickly as possible instead.
“We’re here. All of your rules have been followed. The door is locked. No one is around. I’ve wanted you all day.”
A terrible thought crosses my mind. “We don’t have condoms. The bulk box didn’t last the week.” It’s half humorous, half horrifying.
Her smiles falls, then appears again. She shrugs. “That’s okay.” She pulls off her tank top and bra, and slides the cotton skirt off. She’s not wearing panties. “You can come on my back.”
Clearing my throat, I cough once in surprise. “Can I then?”
