31. Macy

Chapter 31

Macy

It's been almost a month since Dad had dinner with Cord and I for the first time. We've made it a weekly thing and I look forward to it now.

He's not the monster I still remember, he's the dad I forgot I once had. He's not afraid to be transparent and emotional with us and I love it. But it's making me a little more emotional too.

"Why are there so many cars on the street?" I eye the cars as we pull into Cord's gated driveway and into the garage.

"I think Shirley said she was having a party today. I don't know, her parties get out of hand every time." He waves me off as he climbs out of his car and comes around to my side to open my door.

"Can you open the door for me? I need to get those cases of wine from my trunk."

"Why are we getting cases of wine for Wyatt?" I ask as I unlock the door to the house .

"Wyatt said Charlie's almost out and I told him I was stopping at the store to get more wine today. He asked me to pick up a few cases." He shrugs his shoulder as he squeezes past me and stops right inside the door to toe off his shoes.

"I think Charlie has a problem if she needs this much wine." I roll my eyes and move further into the living room. "Wyatt better keep an eye on her."

"I'm sure she's fine, babe." Cord chuckles. "Can you put on the game while I set these in the kitchen?"

"Yeah."

"SURPRISE!"

I shriek and stumble back a few steps as people jump out from behind the couches and every other place they can possibly hide in this house. My gaze travels from one face to another and I blink in shock.

Cord wraps his arms around my waist from behind and rests his chin on the top of my head.

"Happy birthday, beautiful." He presses a soft kiss to my cheek and I can tell he's smiling. He's so proud of himself.

Everyone is here. Liam, Miranda, Noah, Frankie, Levi, Kitty, and all the kids. Owen, Carrie, Luke, Avery, Parker, Logan, and their kids. Every person from Mulberry Lane. Every player from the Pit Bulls. And standing right in the center of everyone, is Dad. He's smiling from ear to ear, looking so happy to be here. To be included in something as simple as a birthday party for me .

"Happy birthday, princess." He's the first person to step forward and give me a hug.

"Thanks, Dad."

"I don't have a drinking problem," Charlie grumbles under her breath as she steals me out of Dad's arms. "It's for your party."

"I was a little worried." I chuckle, making her laugh.

I spend the next thirty minutes moving from one person's arms to the next. Everyone is so loving and happy to share my day with me. This is so much more than I expected for my birthday. I thought Cord and I were going out for a fancy dinner alone, but this is so much better.

I smile when Liam's kids run over to Dad and give him a big hug. His eyes fill with tears and I wonder if that's going to happen every time he sees us. Is he going to get used to it sooner or later, or will he consider it a huge blessing forever?

Cord hands me a glass of wine and a bottle of water to Dad. He smiles at my boyfriend and nods his head in thanks.

"Alright, I want to say a few things about this beautiful woman," Cord says loud enough for everyone to hear him.

It gets eerily silent as every eye falls on us. I love the attention and couldn't care less, though I know most people would be squirming right now.

"Mace, I'm fairly certain I've been in love with you since the day I met you. You were this loud mouth who demanded attention… and you haven't changed. "

Everyone laughs and I stare up at Cord with the biggest grin. I'm so lucky to have him in my life. I don't know what I'd do without him.

"I knew you were different from day one. I knew there was something special about you. I didn't have a doubt in my mind I was meant to spend forever with you… but then we broke up. Fuck, baby, that destroyed both of us. I truly didn't know how I would survive without Macy Hayes in my life."

He takes a deep breath and lets it out slowly. I know he's not comfortable speaking in front of a large group of people. He never has been.

"She worms her way into your heart and leaves this unusual hole behind. No one and nothing can fill that hole. It's not a square or triangle, it's this shape that's unique to her and she's the only one who will ever make you feel whole again."

I sink my teeth into my bottom lip to keep it from trembling. He said the same thing to Schmidt in the parking lot at Kennedy's Pub.

"She'll drive you absolutely crazy, but you know without her your life will be empty and cold. No matter how many women you try to replace her with, none of them fill that odd shape she carved out of your heart. None of them quite fit your life and where you saw yourself being at this point."

"Cord," I whisper as tears begin to gather in my eyes .

"I know what it's like to be without you, Mace. And it's pure hell. I never want to go there again, but my month is up."

"What?"

"You gave me a month and it's over today."

"So?"

"So, you have a decision to make. Are you going to be mine forever, or are you walking away?" His eyes are locked on mine and I feel like I can't breathe. How can he be willing to make himself this vulnerable in front of everyone in our lives? What if I walked away?

You could never walk away from Cord Powell.

The words echo through my heart, making me realize how true they are. I can't live without this man. Not happily.

"I'm not going anywhere," I whisper.

"Good." He fishes something out of his pocket before dropping to one knee and staring up at me. "Then, marry me, baby."

He pops the lid to the black velvet box and I gasp. I used to point out rings I loved when we were out shopping and sitting in the center of the box is the exact ring I've shown him countless times. Though I think the diamonds are bigger than the one I pointed out.

"Cord…"

"Marry me or walk away, Mace. Those are your choices."

"I'd never walk away from you. You're my forever. I want to marry you and start a family with you. "

"Thank God, because I wasn't letting you go anyway."

Everyone cheers and the world around me fades as he wraps his arms around me and kisses me deeper than is appropriate with this many people watching. He dips me back and keeps kissing me until someone grumbles something about little eyes being present. I think it was Wes. But someone else muttered something about a free show and I'm positive that was Lincoln.

When Cord releases me, I glance down as he slips the ring onto my finger and smile. This is all I ever wanted.

I have all of the people I love surrounding us, with the man I love by my side. And Dad. He's here and that's all because of Cord. I know if it weren't for Cord, I never would've given Dad a chance. I would've told him to leave me alone forever and he would've.

As usual, Cord Powell has given me everything I wanted, needed, and more without me ever asking for it.