Chapter Thirty

CHAPTER THIRTY

Blakely

“What are you guys doing?” Ella asks.

“Renn is making a fire,” I say.

“She’s into caveman kinks— ouch !” Renn laughs, rubbing his rib where I jabbed him with my elbow.

I make a face at my husband. “Actually, Renn served me with divorce papers yesterday.”

Brock bristles beside Ella.

“I was making a point,” Renn says, lifting a brow at Brock. “And I’ve spent the past two days trying to get Blakely to let me give her the wedding of her dreams.”

“Are you going to do it?” Ella asks.

“No. I don’t need another wedding as long as the first one counts.”

Renn smiles. “It better count, or you’re guaranteeing yourself a redo.”

I try to play it off, but his insistence makes me feel special.

Renn, Brock, and Ella get into a conversation about weddings. Now that my brother and best friend are getting married, it’s a hot topic around here. Ella wants to wait until after the baby is born. Brock prefers to do it before the baby is born. It’s a whole mess … but a mess stemming from love.

To say I’m relieved that they’re going the distance is an understatement. I’ve never seen him … dote, but it’s adorable. And will probably drive Ella crazy very soon . I grin. But that’s their jam. It works.

The fire roars as it catches in the fireplace. Renn leans back, proud of his handiwork.

“There you go,” he says. “Look. I made fire.”

“Good job.” I roll my eyes, handing him the manila envelope filled with ice cream-stained papers. “Burn these.”

He drops it unceremoniously into the flames.

It’s satisfying to watch the papers turn into ash.

“My retirement will be announced tomorrow,” Brock says. “The Royals had a complete meltdown when they realized that Renn and I were both leaving. Serves them right.”

“Are you going to play in the charity game next weekend?” Renn asks him.

“No,” Ella and I say together.

Brock sighs. “It sounds like I’m not.”

“You have no business out there,” I say. “We are no longer a rugby family.”

“We have to find something to do with our time,” Renn says. “We can’t sit here all day staring at our beautiful wives. We have to do something.”

“You can golf,” Ella offers.

“Actually,” Brock says, sitting and pulling Ella onto his lap. “We were thinking about starting a podcast. We don’t need the money; we need to have something to do. And who knows what a podcast can turn into.”

“There’s zero chance of getting hurt,” Renn chimes in.

The doorbell rings. I excuse myself and head to the foyer. I turn the handle, swinging open the door.

My heart skips a beat. Okay. We’re doing this.

“Hi, Blakely.” Rory Brewer steps inside, offering a hug but nervous, I think, that I won’t accept it. Of course, I do . “I hope I’m not interrupting anything.”

“Absolutely not,” I say, pulling out of her warm, motherly embrace. “Come on in.”

“I’m not staying long. I just wanted to come see you face-to-face and ensure things are okay between us.”

I smile at her.

As terrible as Renn’s father is, she’s the opposite. He’s disgusting and vile. She’s genuine and kind. It’s hard to believe they ever worked as a couple. I can only figure that Reid must’ve changed a lot over the years—for the worse.

“I’m happy you came by,” I say. “I’ve been wondering how to break the ice and hoping it wouldn’t be awkward between us.”

“Why should it be awkward? My soon-to-be ex-husband is to blame for this—not us. We must stick together. Family always comes first.”

Does that mean she sees me as family? She accepts our marriage?

“Reid and I had problems long before you came along,” she says. “Nothing like what he did to you, or I would’ve left him years ago. But he crossed a line with you. It’s unacceptable. So please know you are welcome at my home any time you’d like to swing by. You are as welcome as my other children. Brock, too. He’s also a part of our family now.”

I smile. “Thank you, Rory. You will never know how much that means to me.”

She pulls me in for a quick hug. “And you will never know how much it means to me to see a smile on my son’s face. I can never thank you enough for that.”

She takes a step back. “Let your husband know I was here, please. I’d like to have a family dinner again soon. Maybe we can sync schedules?”

“I’d love that.”

“Okay, sweetheart. Goodbye.”

“Goodbye, Rory.”

She lets herself out quietly.

I make my way slowly back to the others.

“My soon-to-be-ex-husband is to blame for this—not us. We must stick together.”

I can’t imagine the pain Rory must be experiencing. Yes, she said her marriage hadn’t been great for a while, but her life has still been upside down. And she must love him on some level. That must hurt. Still, she radiates peace and … strength. Maybe even joy.

Mom would have loved her.

Her strength, kindness—her resilience. She puts family above all else. Differently than my mother, but the same, too.

For many years, I was afraid I’d never find the person I was supposed to be with. Or if I was going to marry at all . I felt like time was passing me by—that there was a window of opportunity and, if I missed it, I’d be out of luck. And alone .

I didn’t realize that my timetable isn’t necessarily the same as the universe’s.

Renn— the bad boy troublemaker extraordinaire, my brother’s best friend. The man who said he’d wanted me from the first day he laid eyes on me. Someone my mom knew and loved. And now the man I’m going to spend the rest of my life with.

Seems we just needed to wait until the time was right. Maybe, if we’d gotten together earlier, it might have failed. Between Australia and the United States?

No. Our time is now.

I grin, making my way back into the living room. I stop in the doorway and take them all in.

Renn’s by the fireplace, laughing at something Brock said. My brother’s on the sofa next to Ella, rubbing her shoulders. Ella glows as she basks in Brock’s attention.

How did I get here? How did this happen?

How did I get so lucky?

I walk in and sit on Renn’s lap. As usual, he puts his arms around me and holds me close.

My protector. My passionate, kind, sexy man—the one who loves me.

The only man I’ll ever love.

I might have missed the proposal— and I might not remember the ceremony, just the llama —but I know I’ll have many amazing years with this man, making incredible memories filled with love.