“Ugh, don’t remind me,” I groan, letting my head fall back until I'm staring up at the ceiling.
“We’ll help.Maybe we should just have a sleepover tonight.”Sophia wiggles her brows.
“Yes!Please can they stay over?”Bree bounces on her toes as she clasps her hands under her chin and begs me.
“That’s up to Maverick.It’s his house,” I say softly.
“It’s notmyhouse, baby.It’sourhouse now.”Maverick wraps his arms around my waist from behind and presses a soft kiss to my temple.“Sophia and Peck are welcome whenever they want, Bree, even for a sleepover.Maybe they should stop at home and grab a bag with a bathing suit and we can have a party in the hot tub tonight.”
“Dang, now I’ll definitely help if I get to relax in a hot tub!”Sophia claps her hands in excitement.
“The truck is loaded up.We can stop at home and then meet you at your new house.”Peck scoops Sophia into his arms and races towards the front door before we can even respond.
I’m so happy my brother found Sophia.She’s absolutely perfect for him and he’s happier than ever before.I always worried about him, especially when he left his life in Tuft Swallow to come help me with the kids.I was terrified I was ruining his life, but he insisted it was fine.Now, I like to remind him if my marriage hadn’t fallen apart, he never would’ve met Sophia.
I have no doubt they’ll get married one day very soon and I can’t wait for that to happen.
Chapter 23
Maverick
Idon’tknowhowwe did it, but we got the entire house packed up and moved into mine.We’re not unpacking tonight, but at least everything is here.
Tomorrow, I want to take Sydney back to her house to check one last time and make sure we got everything.I’d hate for her to have left something important to her behind because we were rushing.
I know we still have a lot of work ahead of us with unpacking and finding places for everything, but I'm so happy to have them here.
While I'm waiting for the delivery person to drop off our pizza, I head out to the hot tub and drop the temperature from one hundred four, down to ninety degrees.I know kids can't be in that hot of a temperature for more than a few minutes and I want to make sure they can enjoy the hot tub too.
“Mav, your house is awesome.Thank you for taking care of Sydney and the kids,” Peck rubs the back of his neck, clearly uncomfortable with having this conversation.
“I love her, Peck.I want to marry her.”I don’t bother beating around the bush.I’d love to get his approval before he moves away.I know how much Pecker means to Sydney and I want to make sure he’s ok with this.
“Not that you need it, but you have my approval.She’s happier than I’ve ever seen her before.I know it has everything to do with you.Plus, you’re amazing with the kids.They love you more than they ever loved Rob.”
“Yeah, that guy was a piece of work.I don’t understand how he ever got Sydney’s attention.”
“He showered her with compliments in high school,” Peck says softly.“I remember her being so excited that the popular football player was showing her attention.A few months after they started dating, he got her pregnant.She was so scared.His parents pushed them to get married and she went along with it.She was never happy with him.”
“Why did she stay with him then?”
“She thought it was better for the kids if they stayed together.It wasn’t.I think they knew she wasn’t happy and Rob treated them like an obligation he didn’t want to participate in.They’re all happier without him in the picture.Honestly, they’re infinitely happier with youinthe picture.You’ve made a huge difference in their lives, Maverick.I can't even begin to tell you how much I appreciate you.”
“I'm just treating them the way they deserve to be treated.”
“Which none of them have ever experienced before.I didn’t know how I was going to move to Philadelphia and leave the three of them behind.I didn’t want to make their lives harder again, but I don’t think it will impact them as much anymore.I think you’ve filled the large gap they’ve had in their lives and they don’t need me anymore.”
“They’ll always need you.”
“Yeah, they will… But not like they need you.”
Peck excuses himself when Sophia calls his name.I'm left on the deck staring out at the field behind my house.
I'm thrilled to have Sydney, Danny, and Bree here with me, but I can't stop thinking about how Rob treated them.I’ll make it my life’s mission to make them realize they deserve better.I’ll make sure I'm present in every aspect of their lives.I’ll show up for everything, even if they don’t expect me there.I’ll put my all into them.
“Hey,” Sydney’s soft voice floats on the breeze as she wraps her arms around my waist from behind.“What are you doing out here?”
“I was lowering the temperature of the hot tub so the kids can enjoy it for longer than a few minutes.”
