Eli’s eyes widen, but he stands and lets Holden pull him into a hug. I bite my lip against a smile. Who knew it would be Holden and Julian who would be the ones to get through to him? Eli’s essentially letting Holden support all of his weight, and Holden doesn’t seem to mind it at all. He cups the back of Eli’s head, running his fingers throughthe black locks. “We’re going to get you all taken care of, kid. You stick with me, yeah? I got you.”
Eli sniffles and Holden tightens his hold. When Eli finally pulls back, Holden lightly taps his cheek. “Okay, cutie. Let’s go make dinner. You any good in the kitchen?”
Eli smiles. The first real smile I’ve seen from him. “Not really?” he says, shrugging.
Holden laughs. “No problem. You can learn anything. Come on.”
The two of them walk out of the room and the three of us all share a glance. “Uncle Hold to the rescue,” Beck says with a grin.
“Uncle Hold?” I question. “Nah, that was Uncle Julian. Hold was just the sidekick this time.”
Julian stands with a chuckle, before giving us a little bow. “I do what I can. Also, I won’t be responsible for your fates if Holden hears you calling him my sidekick.”
After dinner, the five of us are sitting around the living room. Eli is sprawled across the floor with Kassie licking his face. He’s giggling, and the sound makes my heart swell.I can’t drag my eyes away from them—from Eli’s joy and Kassie doing what she does best.
Maybe I should have Eli take her into his room at night. He might sleep better with her there.
“Roman?”
I’m pulled back to the conversation by Holden’s questioning tone. “Yeah?”
“I asked if you were nervous about the wedding.”
“No. Why would I be?”
Holden’s eyebrows shoot up. “Well, I don’t know. Seems like pre-wedding jitters are normal.”
Not for me. I glance at Beck. He’s deep in conversation with Julian, not paying any attention to Holden and me. There are a great many things in this life I’m unsure about—why my dad hurt me, why people hurt their children in general, how I survived ten years with such a vital part of my heart so far away from me.
But not once have I ever been unsure about Beck or my love for him.
I’m thankful for all the things I have—my friends, Kassie, Beck’s family, and now Eli. But all of it means nothing without Beck. He’s everything. “No. No pre-wedding jitters for me. I’ve never been more sure of anything in my entire life.”
Hold gets up and comes closer, settling in beside me. He rests his head against my shoulder. “Shit sure has changed, huh?”
I laugh a little under my breath. “Yeah, that’s one way of putting it.”
Holden sighs. “I can’t believe this is our life, Ro. Sometimes I lie awake in bed at night, staring at Julian, thinking, ‘How the fuck did I get here? What did I do to get so lucky?’”
I wrap my arm around him, pulling him in closer to my side. “I find myself wondering the same thing, especially seeing Beck interact with Eli. It’s like… I didn’t know my heart could hold so much love.”
Holden giggles. “You one-upped him.”
“What do you mean?”
“He said you couldn’t have a dog. And then he got you Kassie. And then you all decided you didn’t want kids, and you brought a kid home.”
I shake my head, laughing a little. “I’m not sure that I would have looked at it that way, but you’re not entirely wrong.”
“I’m going to ask Julian to marry me this weekend,” Holden whispers.
I can’t help my grin. “Yeah?”
He nods. “I wanted to wait until after your wedding, but I don’t think I can. Honestly, I don’t even know why we’ve waited as long as we have. But I’m so fucking tired of waiting.”
“He’s going to say yes,” I whisper, watching as Eli sits up, only to get knocked back down by an excited pup.
Holden scoffs. “Duh. He’d be stupid not to.”
