I squeeze Fallon’s shoulder, kissing her temple. The waiter comes back, taking in the fact that the other two guests have left, but we’ve gained five adults and two babies. “Uhh, do you guys want to move to a bigger table?” he asks.
“Probably,” I say with a laugh.
Fallon and Presleyhave spent the last few days at my place, and the girls couldn’t be more happy. They are still all aboard the “Mom and Dad are getting married” train, and we’ve had to shut them down a few times.
I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t thought about our future more in the last few days. Having them here with us feels right, though we definitely need more space. The girls deserve to have their own rooms, their own spaces, and neither Fallon, nor I, have enough bedrooms in our respective houses for them to have their own.
I stir the macaroni and cheese on the stove, watching the neon orange powder melt into the noodles and milk. Fallon comes into the kitchen, her blonde hair pulled into a messy bun, wearing one of my old T-shirts. I love seeing her in my clothes. Maybe it’s cavemanish of me, but it’s sexy. She has a pair of leggings underneath, though I wish she were only in underwear, or perhaps nothing. I’d love to slide my hands underneath the shirt and grasp the bare skin of her supple ass. The dark circles under her eyes stop mefrom initiating anything, though. She’s exhausted, and I don’t know how I can help her sleep.
“Where are the girls?” Fallon asks, coming up behind me, and wrapping her arms around me.
I turn so she’s wrapped around my front. I lean down, kissing the top of her head. “Last I checked, they were in the living room, coloring.”
Fallon nuzzles her head into my chest, tightening her arms around me. “Thank you for picking up my slack these last few days.”
“No need to thank me. That’s what partners do.”
“You’re a really good one,” Fallon states, tilting her head up. I give her lips a tender kiss. “Presley and I should probably go home tonight. I don’t have any more clothes.”
“Stay,” I murmur, kissing her again. “Please.”
“We don’t have any clothes, Jase.”
“Then get some and come back. Or Lennie and I can spend a few days there.”
“Someone is clingy,” Fallon teases.
I run my hands over her ass, giving her a gentle squeeze and resting my hands on her hips. “Yes, I am. I don’t care, I’ll openly admit it, sunshine. I want to be with you all the time. Six months ago, I would have laughed in your face if you told me I was diving headfirst into a committed relationship, but here we are. I’m here. I’m committed, and I want to be with you and this little family we’re building.”
“Who would have thought Mr. Grumpy Grumps would be begging me to spend the night again.”
“I want you to spend all the nights,” I tell her. There, I said it. It’s out in the open.
Fallon leans back, her eyes narrowing, brows furrowing. “Jase, what are you saying?”
I step away from the stove, and lean against the countertop. “I want you and Presley here all the time. Things are good. Great, and I want to be with you guys all the time.”
“Isn’t it a little too soon?” Fallon mumbles. Her body tenses in my arms. “I mean, we’ve been officially together for, what, a month? I’m about to potentially be dealing with my ex-husband and a custody battle for who knows how long. Is that really a good idea? I don’t know. I don’t want to overwhelm Pres.” She rambles on, her voice growing more stressed as the moments pass.
“Hey, slow down.” I reach up, cupping her cheeks in my palms. “It was a suggestion. We don’t have to do anything now, but I know what I want.”
Fallon’s chin wobbles, her green eyes growing wet with tears. “I want that too. I do. But it’s so fast.”
“I understand.” I kiss her forehead.I’ll do whatever she needs to be comfortable. “At least stay the rest of this weekend. We can run to your house and get more clothes. Okay?”
She nods. “Okay.”
I turn my attention back to plating the macaroni and cheese. “Can you tell the girls to wash up and head to the table?” I ask Fallon.
She agrees, heading into the living room. I finish adding some strawberries and carrots to the plates. Fallon appears behind me again, her mouth turned down in thought. “Why do you think we haven’t heard anything yet from him?”
I hand her two of the plates, taking the other two in my own hands. “I’m honestly not sure. He could be talking with his lawyers, and making a case, or he could be over it, and forgotten about it by now like we hope.”
“I don’t think he’ll let it go that easy, as much as I may want that.”
“I agree.”
“I hate this waiting. I called the lawyer I had for the divorce and told her what was happening. She’s happy to take us on again, but maybe I should wait? Is he going to have someone pop into my work one day and serve me papers? Ugh, I hate this.”
