CHAPTER 33

G ray! We can’t keep the baby!” I yelled after Gray. Things I never thought I’d say.

“That man better give back my baby,” Tessa grumbled.

“Oh, I ain’t keepin’ her,” he told us as he wandered across the parking lot with Jo half over his shoulder. She giggled and babbled the whole way. “But I am teachin’ her about the good music.”

“That man is about to play Taylor Swift for her,” she said.

“That man is about to play Taylor Swift for her,” I agreed with a stupid smile. God, I loved him. I shoved my hands in my pockets as I watched Gray turn on our car and sit in the front seat with our niece. As soon as the engine turned on, he had his song playing and danced in the front seat with Jo.

And while all of that was funny, the entertainment only increased as Jake joined them. What ensued was nothing short of a literal dance party when Gray stepped back out of the vehicle to make it a whole thing. The two passed Jo around, dancing and making a scene.

“Why… why is my husband joining them?” Tessa asked.

“I don’t know, but that little girl has two grown men dancing in a fucking parking lot to teenage pop songs,” Mal commented.

“I like him.” Her shoulder bumped into mine.

“Me too,” he chimed in. “You should keep him. Unless the whole temporary thing is still in play. Is there a cutoff for when it stops being temporary?”

“Mal!” she exclaimed.

“What? It’s a legitimate question!”

“I bought a ring,” I told them quietly.

“You what ?” Their response was in unison as they faced me. I shrugged.

“I bought a ring,” I repeated.

“Oh, my fucking God— ow !” Mal’s rant was cut short as Tessa smacked him hard on the shoulder.

“How long ago?” Tessa asked.

“I bought it… four years ago? Something like that. I don’t know,” I said. I kept my gaze on Gray, loving every moment of his simple antics. “I don’t even know if he’d say yes, or if it’s even worth asking, but I have it in my wallet.”

“You two are so fucking clueless,” Mal replied. What the hell did that mean?

“Don’t you say a word,” she snapped.

“What the fuck is wrong with you two?” I crossed my arms and faced them. I glared at them, waiting for one of them to crack. To their credit, they didn’t, but they sure as hell looked like they weren’t telling me something. “What the hell do you two know?”

“Nothing!” they exclaimed together. Bullshit.

“Mhmm, I believe that as much as I did any other time you two lied to me.”

“It’s just we happen to think that if… you wanted to make it less temporary— ”

“Who the fuck said this is temporary?”

“You did,” Tessa said.

“That was nine years ago!” My eyes widened in disbelief. There was no way in hell they thought my relationship was temporary.

“But that’s what you said!” Mal replied.

“My relationship has lasted three times longer than your marriage,” I told Tessa before my gaze snapped to Mal. “And you. I don’t think you can fathom nine years with anything.”

“So, when are you going to ask him?” she whispered. “I need to know when to plan a wedding for.”

“I don’t know.” I shrugged and rotated enough to watch Gray dancing across the parking lot to make Jo laugh. The truth was I had no good way to describe Gray and me. We just were, and that was enough. Maybe I’d give him a ring or maybe not. We didn’t need it. Not really. We’d always fallen outside of the norm. And while I had doubts, I knew it really wouldn’t change a damn thing for us.

We were exactly what we were and nothing could change that.

“I don’t know,” I repeated quietly.

“Yeah, temporary,” Mal teased.

“I will beat your ass,” I warned.

“You can try,” he said. He made a playful lunge in my direction, but I had him in a headlock before he could think about fighting back. “Okay, okay, okay!”

He tapped my arm furiously so I’d let him go. The grumping as he fixed his clothes made me laugh—something I’d done a lot of today and it felt damn good.

“Shit, you win,” he conceded. “ Fuck .”

“Remember that next time,” I said before I realized what I was saying. Would there even be a next time? Would it be over a decade before we did shit like this ?

“Can we call you?” Tessa asked as if reading my thoughts. “Or text you?”

“Yeah. You know I’ll be there anytime you two need help.”

“No, I mean just because,” she corrected. “Maybe pictures of Jo or how we’re doing?”

I faltered. That sounded like a very normal fucking relationship between siblings. We hadn’t had that since I joined the military.

“Or updates on Star Wars ,” Mal added, making me chuckle.

“Yeah, I’d like that,” I whispered. I would. I missed them, even if we lived in very different worlds.

“And maybe you could tell us how you’re doing? You and Gray?” Tessa suggested. “It’d be nice to know where you’re at and if you’re okay.”

“I can do that.”

“Thank you.” She wrapped her arms around my waist, and I hugged her back. “Can I get some family pictures?”

“ Fuck .” I groaned. Tessa and her goddamn pictures. This woman took more pictures than anyone should. I knew it came down to how broken our family was and wanting to preserve what we were but still. “Do you even print the pictures you take?”

“She has a picture room.” Mal laughed. “Has three fucking bookshelves full of photo albums going all the way back to when we were kids.”

“Do you look at them? Ever?” I demanded and glanced down at my baby sister. She gave me a cheeky smile.

“I like having them thank you very much. They’re important,” she retorted. She grabbed mine and Mal’s hands, dragging us across the parking lot while Mal dramatically groaned. “Please. It’s been forever since we had a family photo! Just one!”

There was no fucking way it’d be one photo.