by Kaylee Ryan
“I almost forgot to tell you.” She turns to face me in the passenger seat of the truck, as much as her seatbelt will allow. “I got Knox the cutest little outfit for today.” She stops. “I mean, if you want him to wear it today.”
“Hey.” I reach over and grab her hand. “Yes, I do. It’s fine, babe. I love that you love him,” I tell her honestly.
She grins. “It’s the cutest little pair of jean shorts, and a red shirt and blue tank top. I even got him a matching fisherman’s hat and a pair of sunglasses.”
Seeing her excitement over an outfit for my son makes me smile. She’s such a sweet person with a heart of gold. I’m a damn lucky man that she chose us.
“We’ll have to make sure Mom gets a picture of the three of us. Not that we’ll need to ask her, since she always has her camera at the ready at these things.”
Ten minutes later, we’re pulling up outside my house. Kendall’s car’s in the drive, and so is Tyler’s truck. I make a mental note to ask him if there’s something going on with him and my sister.
Kendall meets me at the front of the truck, and I hold my hand out for her. She doesn’t hesitate to lace her fingers through mine as we head into the house.
“We’re back!” I yell as soon as we step into the entryway.
“In the living room,” Tyler calls out.
Reagan is asleep on the couch, and Tyler has Knox in the crook of his arm, watching the sports channel. “He was up three times last night. She’s exhausted.” He points to my sister.
“Did you stay here with her?” I ask him.
He hesitates. “Yeah, fell asleep on the couch. She didn’t wake me.”
I look around my living room and see a pillow and blankets that my sister is using. His story seems to add up.
I reach down and take Knox from him. “Hey, bud. You kept Aunt Reagan up?” He coos and smiles at me. “We missed you,” I say, reaching out to snag an arm around Kendall’s waist, pulling her into me.
“Hey, Knox,” Kendall coos, and I swear he lights up. “We’re going to Grandma and Grampa’s for a cookout,” she tells him, tickling his little foot.
“He had a bath,” Reagan says, eyes still closed. “He shit all over himself at six o’clock this morning.”
“Aww, did your belly hurt?” Kendall asks him.
He grins. My boy.
“Tyler, take me home. I have to get ready.” Reagan literally rolls off the couch. After climbing to her feet, she walks toward me and gives all three of us a hug. “I’m proud of you, Ridge.” This time, her voice is serious. “You do this on your own, and never once complain.”
“He probably just missed me, that’s why he didn’t sleep well. Usually, he sleeps at least six, sometimes eight hours, straight.”
“He missed you guys. Look at him, all smiles.” She chucks his chin. “See you in a few hours.”
“You need a ride?” I ask her.
“Nah, man. She’s on my way, so I’ll swing by and pick her up.”
I watch as my sister and Tyler wave over their shoulders as they drag ass out the door. “Something’s going on there,” I tell Kendall.
“Hmmm.”
“What do you know, woman?”
“I know she’s your sister and she’s amazing. I know Tyler must be a great guy because he’s important to you. I know you should stay out if it, and if there is something going on, let them figure it out.”
I smack her on the ass. “Go shower and get ready. We men don’t take near as long.”
She stands on tiptoes and kisses my cheek, then gives Knox one on his as well before grabbing her bag and running up the stairs.
“She’s special, Knox.” He babbles. “I’m glad you approve, because Daddy wants to make her a permanent part of our lives.” He coos and moves his little arms. “She loves you too, little man. She loves you too.”
I spend time with my son, trying to pull every smile from him I can. That’s how Kendall finds us, lying on the floor, me acting a fool just to see him smile.
“My boys look happy.” I can see in her face she didn’t mean to let that slip.
Grabbing Knox, we stand to greet her. “Your boys think you look beautiful.” She does. She’s wearing red shorts with a white and blue layered tank top. She’s also wearing a blush from my words. Will she ever get used to me telling her, stop blushing? I hope not.
“My turn.” She opens her arms for Knox. “Let’s get you ready while Daddy takes a shower.”
I kiss her, getting lost in her, in us, until she says “Ow!” Looking down, Knox has her hair tight in his fist. “Guess he was jealous.” I laugh and help free her from his grip before dashing off upstairs.
The driveway is full by the time we make it to my parents.’ I’m glad; maybe she won’t notice her parents’ car. I don’t look for it, because I already know they’re here. Dad texted me just as we were leaving the house.
I grab Knox, seat and all, drape the diaper bag over my shoulder, and reach for her hand. “I have to carry the food.” She laughs.
“No, leave it. I’ll come back out and get it.”
“Ridge, that’s silly. I can carry it.”
“No, I want you with me. Come on.” I tug on her hand to pull her away from the truck. “Let’s say hello, and I’ll come back out and get it.” She shakes her head, but doesn’t say anything else as she laces her fingers through mine and we head inside.
We take all of Knox’s things to his bedroom, as Mom calls it. “You’re gonna have the ladies drooling,” I tell my son.
“He looks so cute. Here, don’t forget the glasses.” Kendall hands me a mini pair of Aviators. Where she found them, I have no idea, but they make him look cute as hell.
Knox in one arm and the other around Kendall, we head out to the back deck.
“What?” She turns to me, mouth hanging open as soon as she sees her parents. “How did you . . . ?”
“I wanted our families to get to know each other. This is us, sweet girl,” I whisper in her ear just as her parents approach us.
“Hey, you two.” She grins, giving each of them a hug. “I’m glad you’re here.”
“It was all Ridge.” Her mom turns to me. “Thank you for the invite.”
I put my arm back around Kendall and pull her to me. “You’re family.” I can see recognition in her eyes from my simple statement. Yeah, I love her and this is permanent.
“Can I hold him?” her mom asks.
I nod and transfer Knox to her arms. He’s good for a few minutes, until his little lip juts out. Kendall is next to him in a flash. “Hey, bud. It’s okay,” she says softly. His eyes follow her voice and then he grins when he finds her.
“Like father, like son,” her dad says, coming to stand next to me.
“She’s amazing,” I tell him.
“That she is, just like her mother.”
“You’re a lucky man.” He is if her mother is anything like her.
“So are you,” he replies.
“I love her.”
“I know. I can see it. You remind me of me.”
“Then you know what I want.”
“I do. She’s my baby and she’s not had the best of luck with men, so take care of her.”
“With everything in me.”
He laughs. “Good talk.” He squeezes my shoulder and leaves me to join my dad back at the grill.
The rest of the day is filled with family and friends, and lots and lots of food. Mom always makes way too much. I keep Kendall and Knox close, touching her every chance I get.
“Hey, I’m going to go check on Knox and help them clean up,” she says, trying to move off my lap. I hold tight.
“He’s fine. Mom is in the house, and I have the monitor.” I point to where it’s sitting on the patio table.
“Ridge.” She laughs. “I’m going to go help your mom.” Her voice is final, so I kiss her shoulder and let her go.
“You haven’t let her out of your sight all day.” Dad says, taking the seat
beside me and handing me a beer.
I wave my hand, declining. “Can’t. I’m driving home, and I have Knox tonight. Already had my two for the day,” I tell him.
He nods, a look of approval on his face. “I’m proud of you, son. You’re a damn good father.” He takes a long pull of his beer. “I like her.” He points his bottle to where Mom and Kendall are standing in the kitchen. Her parents left a couple hours ago.
“I love her,” I tell him.
He laughs. “You always did know what you wanted.”
I don’t say anything, because he’s right. I’ve always gone after what I wanted, and Kendall is no exception.
“Hold on to that, Ridge. I can see she cares for you too. It takes work and a hell of a lot of love, but I promise you if she’s the one, it’s all worth it.”
“She’s worth it,” I assure him.
He nods and that’s the end of that. A man of few words, my dad, but when he does talk, you listen. He always has something profound to say.
Today, he didn’t tell me anything I didn’t already know.
Kendall is everything.
Chapter 40
Kendall
It’s Monday and I’m back at work. The long weekend was amazing, and I’m sporting a permanent smile on my face. Dawn has reminded me of the fact every time she comes into my office. The last time she stopped in, she needed a paperclip. I threw it at her and told her to stop making excuses to razz me and get her lazy ass back to work. She laughed all the way down the hall.
Trying to keep focused is proving difficult today, after the weekend. My phone vibrates and I sigh in frustration, knowing it’s probably Dawn. I’m never going to get through this report at the rate I’m going. Pulling my phone from my scrub pocket, the frustration leaves as I see Ridge’s name light up my screen.
Ridge: Mom and Dad are taking Knox to my aunt and uncle’s. They won’t be back until after dinner. You and me, mini date night?
I smile.
Me: Mini date night?
Ridge: Dinner, just the two of us. By then, Little man will be home.
Me: Yes. Where? Should I meet you?
Ridge: Anywhere. I’ll be at your place at six.
Me: See you then.
Ridge: Love you, sweet girl.
My heart melts.
Me: Love you too.
Looking at the clock, I see it’s only one. Four more hours before I can rush home and change to get ready for my mini date with my man.
“Hey, Kendall,” Dawn says from my office doorway.
“Really?” I ask, laughing.
“Hey now, this time, I have a reason. And it’s not just to tell you you’re glowing.” She smiles knowing her description gave her the opportunity to tell me yet again. “Mark just texted and wanted to know if you and Ridge—and Knox, of course—wanted to grab dinner tonight.”
“Ridge just texted me. His parents are going to have Knox until later this evening, and we’re going to dinner,” I tell her.
“Seriously?” She laughs.
“Let me call him.” I grab my phone from my pocket, pull up his name, and hit send.
“Hey, beautiful,” his deep voice answers. I try like hell not to let Dawn see how easily he affects me.
“Hey, Dawn wants to know if we want to do dinner with her and Mark.”
He chuckles. “Mark just asked me the same thing. I was getting ready to text you. I’ll leave it up to you, babe.”
“It’ll be fun,” I tell him.
“Sounds good. We’ll be at your place at six or a little after.”
“Perfect. I’ll let Dawn know.”
“Sounds good, baby. Love you.”
My face floods with heat. “Love you, too,” I say, ending the call.
“What? You’re telling him you love him and didn’t tell me?” she asks.
“It was over the weekend. It just happened, and I haven’t seen you. You were with Mark, remember?” I remind her.
She blushes too. We’re a mess. “So, the guys will be at our place around six,” I tell her.
She holds up her phone, showing a text from Mark probably saying the exact same thing.
“Come on, five o’clock.” She grins as she leaves my office for what feels like the hundredth time today.
At four fifty-nine, Dawn is standing in my doorway, tapping her foot.
“This has been the longest day in history,” I say, shutting down my computer.
“It really has. The patients were even slow. I didn’t think five o’clock would ever get here.”
“I know. The long weekend ruined me.”
We drove separately this morning, since she stayed at Mark’s last night. Ridge begged me to stay, but I had laundry to catch up on. He offered to go pick up every piece of clothing I owned and bring it back to his place. Crazy man. Needless to say, after a very tempting goodnight kiss he relented, and I went home. It was hard to sleep in my own bed after being in his for the past several nights.
“Where are we going?” I ask Dawn once we’re home. We both took up residence on the couch, but we need to be getting ready so the guys aren’t waiting on us.
“I suggested that new steakhouse. Mark said he doesn’t care.”
“Ridge is the same way. Sounds good to me.”
We start to talk, getting caught up with what’s been going on in our separate lives. She and Mark are really hitting it off. She confessed that she’s falling hard, and she thinks he is too.
“I’ll have to grill Ridge later and see if he can give me any insider info.”
She laughs. “You don’t have to do that.”
“Hey, we girls have to stick together,” I say.
My phone vibrates in my pocket.
Ridge: Headed your way.
“Shit! It’s ten till. We need to get ready.” We both scramble off the couch and race to our rooms.
“We need a girls’ night!” Dawn calls out from her room across the hall. “I miss my bestie.”
“Plan it!”
A loud knock sounds at the door. “Shit,” I say, as I hear Dawn yell for them to come in. Ridge must have been closer than I thought. I slide my tank over my head and meet Dawn in the hallway. I’m buttoning my shorts, not paying attention, when she stops in front of me.
“What the hell are you doing here?” Her voice is filled with anger. Hatred.
Looking up, I see Cal. My ex Cal, standing in my living room. My first thought is that it took long enough. But then I remember that Ridge will be here anytime, and he knows about Cal and how he pushed me around. He looks sober now, but you never know with an addict. What I do know is that Ridge is not going to be impressed.
“What are you doing here, Cal?” I ask, stepping around Dawn and joining him in the living room. He’s standing just inside the door.
“I miss you, Kendall.”
“Really? It’s been almost a year since I left, and not even a phone call from you.” I cross my arms over my chest, not buying his bullshit.
“I got clean,” he says, his voice low. “When we got home and your apartment was cleaned out, I went on a bender. Ended up thrown in jail, mandatory rehab for three months. I’ve been clean ever since.”
“What the fuck ever,” Dawn mumbles under her breath.
“That’s great. If it’s true, then I’m happy for you. But I’ve told you time and time again that it’s over between us.”
“I can make it up to you, Kendall,” he pleads.
I open my mouth to answer when there’re another quick rap of knuckles before the door opens and in walks Ridge and Mark.
I move toward Ridge, lacing my fingers with his and pulling him to stand with me behind the couch. Mark makes his way toward Dawn.
“What’s up, babe?” Ridge asks.
Taking a deep breath, I introduce them. “Ridge, this is Cal. Cal, this is my boyfriend, Ridge.” He stiffens beside me, drops my hand and places his arm around my waist, pulling me into his side.
“Boyfriend?” C
al seems more defeated than angry.
“Boyfriend,” Ridge repeats.
“Kendall, can we just . . . go somewhere and talk?” Cal asks.
“Not happening, my man. You have something to say to her, you say it from where you are,” Ridge tells him.
“I didn’t ask you,” Cal says through gritted teeth.
Ridge throws his head back and laughs. “I don’t give a flying fuck who you ask. I’m the one who’s telling you it’s not going to happen.”
Cal turns to me. “You let this guy boss you around?”
“What? Like you pushed her around and cheated on her?” Ridge asks. His anger is growing, if the sound of his voice and the grip he has on my hip in any indication.
I wrap my arms around his waist and rest my head on his chest, trying to help diffuse his anger. “Cal, I’ve told you it’s over. If you really are clean, then I’m proud of you. I wish you the best of luck, but it’s over.”
“It’s been over,” Dawn adds from behind us.
Cal hangs his head in defeat. “I miss you,” he whispers.
Ridge growls.
“Cal, you think you miss me. I was in your life before the drugs. You need to find something positive to focus on. Even if Ridge weren’t in the picture, I wouldn’t be coming back to you,” I say gently.
Ridge kisses my temple.
“We can work through this,” Cal pleads.
“Enough!” Ridge says, his voice raised. “She’s told you that she’s not interested. There is nothing here for you.”
“I love you, Kendall,” Cal says, sadness in his eyes.
“Out!” Ridge roars.
“Ridge.” I grip his shirt, and he looks down at me. “I love you,” I tell him.
He squeezes my hip.
“Cal, please go. I’m proud of you for getting clean, but it’s time for you to move on.”
He looks up at me, and I can see in his eyes he truly thought I would come back to him. My heart hurts for him, but it’s too late for us.
“Are you happy?”
“Yes,” I say without hesitation. The man holding me tight against his side will guarantee that I am.
