by Lisa Simmons
“This is Abigail,” Reece introduced, fending off an arm that hand landed on his cheek momentarily as the little boy giggled. “My girlfriend. Abby, that’s Tim and Mel. Parents of these two little monsters.”“Nice to meet you two,” I said honestly, grinning at them. Mel had long red hair and a beautiful face as she beamed at me, clearly pleased to see me. Tim had short dark hair and thick, black-framed glasses. I guessed them to be about 25 or so. “You as well,” Mel said. “Sorry these two woke you up but they just couldn’t wait to see Uncle Reece.”
“Uncle Reece,” I repeated with a grin. “That’s so cute.”
“Adorable,” Reece muttered, pulling a tiny fist from his hair. It was the little girl, this time, and he redirected his gaze at her to scold her gently. “Hey, what did I say about pulling hair?”“No!” she shouted gleefully, waving her arms in front of her as she gripped his finger in her hand. The little boy was perched on his lap, poking uncertainly at the tattoos on his arms. “That’s right, no,” he said, ducking his head down and scrunching his nose at her. She shrieked loudly in amusement. “Do you wanna tell my girlfriend your name?”He pointed at me, her tiny gaze following his finger to look at me before burying her face into his chest, hiding. She peeked out at me from behind his shirt but didn’t say anything.
“She’s not as mean as she looks,” he promised, winking at me. I swatted at him lightly, pretending to be offended. The little boy appeared completely uninterested in anything Reece was saying as he continued to poke at his arm. “I’m Abigail,” I offered gently, smiling at her as she pressed her face into Reece’s chest.
“Go on, tell her your name,” Reece urged gently, picking her up and removing her from his chest to turn her around again on his lap so she faced me. Her tiny face was pinched together in a shy smile, a little double chin forming as she pressed her chin down adorably. “Layla,” she said before giggling once more. She squirmed on Reece’s lap as he tickled her gently, his head lowering to press a kiss into her ear. She shrieked loudly as he blew a raspberry against her skin. “Good girl,” he said happily. Layla apparently decided then that she had had enough because she crawled off his lap to land on the couch. I watched in amusement as she rolled to her round tummy and scooted to the edge to let her pudgy legs dangle over the side, sliding herself down until they hit the floor. She then waddled far faster than I would have imagined to her father across the room, an innocently happy smile on her young face. “Reece,” the little boy said, tapping him clumsily on the chest. Reece looked down at him, his eyes wide and patient.
“What, what?”
“Butterfly!” he commanded, poking him in the stomach.
“What do you say?” Reece said, picking up the little boy’s hands in each of his own and wiggling them around.
“Please,” he said, giggling just as his sister had when Reece made his arms do a little dance. He released one of them to lift his shirt enough to reveal the butterfly tattooed on his stomach. The little boy squealed happily and patted his hands clumsily over the inked skin. Reece laughed good-naturedly as he indulged the little boy.
“Well Abby, this is Stevie. He’s a bit distracted, sorry,” he said, shooting me a grin.
“It’s okay,” I said, shaking my head and waving my hand nonchalantly. I would have been more than content to sit there and watch him with them the entire day.
“I can’t believe how big they are,” Reece said to Tim and Mel, shaking his head in disbelief.
“Yeah,” Gemma agreed from across the room. “I swear they were just babies yesterday. Now they’re running around and talking. Kind of,” she laughed.
“They’re nearly three now,” Mel said, sounding surprised herself.
“Crazy,” Reece murmured, redirecting his attention back to Stevie on his lap, who apparently had gotten bored with his butterfly because he had gripped Reece’s shirt in his little hands and started flapping it up and down against his stomach. His adorable laugh rang out through the room and I watched joyfully as Reece’s lips pulled into a wide smile.
“Hey!” he teased, poking the little boy in the stomach. “How do you like it if I do that to you?”
Reece then picked up the edge of Stevie’s shirt and pulled it up, revealing his round little tummy. Reece’s lips formed a round ‘O’ and his eyebrows shot up as the little boy laughed and squirmed on his lap. I hadn’t even noticed, but my lips had been pulled so widely into a smile that my cheeks were starting to hurt. Watching Reece interact with these two adorable little kids had absolutely melted me in every single way. He was so good with them, so natural and easy, that I could watch it forever. It was a side to him I’d never really seen before but wasn’t all that surprised to find; I’d known ever since the day he told me about them that he’d be amazing with them.
My entire body felt warm as I watched him carry on, his eyes lighting up even more when Layla decided to return to him and join the fun. I watched as he teased them both, making them laugh again and again with the silly faces he made and the things he said to them, even if they didn’t fully understand. For the first time, I felt the realization that this could potentially be my future someday. Years from now, if I was lucky enough, I could be in this position, watching Reece with children of our own. We’d never discussed it, but I knew from watching him now that he would want kids some day. Not now, not anytime soon, but someday. I’d never felt so completely in love with him as I did in that moment with the possibility of the future laid out in front of me. As if he could feel my thoughts, he broke his connection with the two little pairs of eyes in front of him to glance at me with a wide smile on his face. My heart fluttered unevenly in my chest.
“I love you,” I mouthed to him, too emotional to say the words. He was positively beaming, the presence of his godchildren making him immensely happy.
“I love you,” he mouthed back, his green eyes burning into mine along with the brilliant smile on his face.
He beamed at me for a second longer before returning to tend to the children on his lap, leaving me to further indulge in watching him with them some more. I observed with a happy heart and a settled mind, comforted and enthralled by everything I was seeing. I hadn’t thought it possible, but I’d absolutely fallen even more in love with Reece than I already was.
"I'd burn it down, I'd light it up... For you, I'd risk it all."
Chapter 82
Breath was forced from my lungs as Anne’s arms tightened around me, hugging me so tightly I thought she’d never let go. I’d never felt so openly welcomed into a family as I had over the past 24 hours. Reece stood beside me, returning his sister’s hug as well as those of Tim and Mel while we prepared to leave. “Thank you guys so much for coming,” Anne said as she finally released me. She beamed at me as she held me at arms length. “You’ve made me so happy.”“It was so amazing to meet you,” I replied. I felt so oddly emotional after watching Reece with his godchildren all day so I wasn’t surprised when I felt tears stinging the back of my eyes. My feelings were rolling tumultuously inside me, making me feel like I was actually overflowing. “Oh god,” Reece muttered, rolling his eyes playfully as he glanced at the two of us starting to tear up at the same time. “Get yourselves together.”I let out a watery laugh and swiped at my eyes. To see Reece with his family had filled my heart so completely, cementing my belief that I would either be with him or no one for the rest of my life. “Reece, Reece!” sounded from the floor. I glanced down to see two small children attached to Reece’s shins, their stubby little arms clinging to his legs as they tried to climb up to his arms. He bent down and scooped them up once more, holding one in each arm.
“I gotta go, kiddos,” he told them. They didn’t seem to register his words as they squirmed gleefully in his arms, content to be receiving attention from him once more. All day, they’d scarcely left his lap, their little faces split into wide grins whenever he so much as tickled them. “See you soon, okay?” he said, kissing each of them on top of the hea
d. They giggled and squirmed some more, making it difficult for Reece to hand them off to Tim and Mel. Their short arms reached out automatically, reaching for Reece as soon as he let go of them while they whimpered quietly. He smiled sadly, as if already missing them.
“Come back soon, okay?” Anne said to Reece and I.
“I’ll see you again,” I promised. “Soon.”
“Good,” Gemma piped up, moving to stand next to her mother and put a comforting hand on her shoulder. She grinned at us widely. “Don’t think she’d make it if she didn’t get to see you guys now that she knows what’s going on here.”“She’ll survive,” Reece said, shaking his head good-naturedly. “But we’ll come back soon, don’t worry mum.”
He moved toward the door, grabbing my hand and tugging me with him. “Bye, everyone.”
“Bye,” I added, my eyes watering once again. I really needed to get ahold of myself. I waved in response to everyone else’s called goodbyes before Reece finally managed to pull me out the door into the evening air. Reece had already loaded our bags back into the vehicle and he kept his hand clasped in mine as we moved down the walkway. He glanced down at me to see me trying to subtly wipe away my tears of happiness before letting out a quiet chuckle. His hand released mine so he could throw his arm around my shoulder and haul me into his side, looping his arm around my neck to bring my head close enough for him to press a kiss to my temple while we walked.
“You sap,” he teased lightly, his voice gentle and quiet. I gave a weak laugh in response, too overcome to try and hide my emotions. I gripped his hand that hung over my shoulder and nestled into his side, taking comfort from his warmth. We reached the car and Reece didn’t release me until he’d walked me to my door, which he opened for me. I turned to back into my seat but paused before sitting down as Reece stood in front of me, blocking me in between the car, the door, and himself. His hands rose to gently cradle my face as he looked down at me, a contented expression on his face.
“I love you,” he whispered. “I just wanted to tell you.”
Another half laugh, half gasp escaped from my lips as I beamed up at him with watery eyes.
“And I love you,” I replied. “I can’t tell you how much this has meant to me.”
“I can see that,” he teased gently, swiping his thumb beneath my eye to wipe away a stray tear that leaked out. He shook his head slowly in happy amusement. “Crying all over the place.”I shoved my hands lightly at his chest, pushing him for making fun of me but not really trying to distance myself. He hardly budged before closing the distance between us to press his lips lightly to mine. My hands bunched up the shirt covering his chest as my head tilted back, drinking in the feel of his lips on mine before he pulled back. His thumbs swiped over my cheeks once more as he shot me another amused grin before he stepped away to let me get in the car. He moved around the front to climb into the driver’s seat, starting it and pulling away from the curb. As we drove, Reece’s hand settled over mine, claiming it before tugging it into his lap. His thumb raked slowly across my knuckles and I smiled contently. My mind seemed to be whirling with the events of the last 24 hours. We’d only been there one night and the majority of the day, but it had felt like weeks. Reece’s father’s outburst, my talk with Anne, the playful banter exchanged over wine, Reece’s and my night together, and the thrill of seeing him with his godchildren flashed through my mind, the highlights of our time spent making me grin widely. After from the mishap with his father, it had been absolutely perfect. A sudden memory came to me as I pictured Reece hugging his mother before we went to bed. He’d looked slightly exasperated when she’d whispered something in his ear before he’d rolled his eyes playfully at whatever she’d said.
“What did your mum say to you last night? Before we went to bed?” I asked suddenly, curiosity burning through me.
“She said a lot of things last night,” Reece chuckled.
“You know what I mean- when she hugged you,” I prodded, grinning at him.
“Oh that,” he said, ticking his head upward as he remembered. “She said to keep you no matter what it takes.”
I sucked in a quiet gasp and squeezed his fingers between mine. “She said that?”
“Yeah,” he said casually, glancing at me for a split second before refocusing on the road.
“So she liked me?” I asked stupidly. It seemed too good to be true.
“I think ‘liked’ is an understatement, Abby,” he said, scoffing playfully. “You were both crying when we left. It’s a bit ridiculous, actually.”“Hey,” I retorted quickly as he laughed. “I’m just so happy.”
“I’m glad,” he said simply, picking my hand up to kiss the back of it briefly. I felt like I was glowing from the inside out. My lips pulled into a wide grin as I observed his profile unabashedly. “Are you gonna listen to her?” I asked.
“About what?”
“Keeping me.”
“I think I’ll keep you around, yeah,” he said with a wide grin on his face as he shrugged. I shoved his shoulder lightly as I let out an scorned laugh. He pretended to flinch away from me. I giggled as he glanced at me once more. “You should already know the answer to that.”“I do, I just wanna hear you say it,” I said with a wide, cheesy grin on my face.
“I’m keeping you forever, Abby,” he said, squeezing my hand once more. “No matter what.”
“Then I’ll be happy forever.”
Our words were simple and playful, but they carried the weight of a promise I would hold dear in my heart forever. No matter how many times I said it or how many ways I reworded it, I would never be able to fully express how deeply my love for Reece went. It was like an infinite pool with no bottom. The deeper I swam, the harder it got to see the end; it would go on forever in the blissfully mysterious abyss, spreading on and on for as long as time would carry on. The rest of our drive passed with lots of playful banter and cheesy confessions of our favorite parts of the weekend. Mine had been Reece with Layla and Stevie, while Reece claimed his to be our time spent alone in his bedroom, slightly drunk and far too turned on for our own good, but I knew he’d enjoyed the family moments just as much as I had. Before I even realized, we were pulling back into the limits of our small town. Familiar streets and buildings flashed by as Reece maneuvered his way back to my apartment. When he pulled into the parking lot, I found myself very unwilling to part from him even though we’d just been together for so long. I turned to face him in my seat, keeping hold on his hand as he aimed a breathtaking grin at me.
“You coming in? It’s only Saturday, after all,” I reminded him. It would seem pointless to spend the night apart.
“I was planning on it,” Reece said casually, shrugging. A grin stretched across my face at how easy that had been. We climbed out of the vehicle and made our way through the parking lot. Reece insisted on carrying my bag for me, which only made me smile even more. When we arrived at my door, I could hear the soft murmur of the TV through the door and see the thin line of light streaming out across the floor. I felt a slight twinge of uneasiness thanks to the numerous times unwelcomed things had awaited me in my apartment, but was instantly reassured when I felt Reece’s hand light on my back as he moved to go in before me. He pushed the door open, flooding the dim hallway with light as he entered. I relaxed when I saw a wide grin settle on his face as he looked inside and followed him instantly. Upon entering, I immediately saw what had made him grin so widely. There, on my couch, were two people so hopelessly tangled together that they didn’t even bother trying to hide it when they were intruded upon.
Emily and Luke.
“Oh my god,” I exclaimed, my jaw falling open and my eyes widening in happy surprise. “Oh my god!” I couldn’t help but repeating.
Emily screeched suddenly as if realizing what was happening, yanking a blanket off the floor to cover her chest, which I just noticed was bare. My eyes scanned further down to see that they were both completely naked, a fact that seemed to have
escaped me in my surprise.
“Luke! Way to go, man,” Reece said, sounding somewhat impressed.
“Oh my god,” Emily said, shoving Luke off her to tuck herself completely under the blanket. Luke looked slightly dumbfounded for a moment before settling back on the couch and pulling a cushion over his groin, which barely managed to cover his center. I jumped when a hand landed over my eyes, cutting off the sight.
“Don’t look, Abby. Two heathens have snuck into your apartment to fuck,” Reece teased, his voice dripping with amusement before letting out a booming laugh.
“Reece, get out, oh my god,” Emily shouted. She sounded absolutely mortified but I couldn’t help but notice the slight amusement in her voice. Luke let out a loud laugh, joining Reece. His hand finally dropped from my face, revealing an all-too-comfortable looking Luke reclining on my couch, still fully nude apart from the cushion over his groin. Emily had hiked the blanket up to her chin and had her legs completely tucked under it, sitting as far away from Luke as physically possible. I gaped at them, speechless but also thrilled that they appeared to finally have gotten together. Emily was looking at me as if afraid I would be mad or upset while Reece and Luke seemed to find the whole situation hilarious. “About time,” I finally managed to say, a wide grin splitting across my face. “We’ll, um, let you guys finish.”
Reece snorted a laugh as I grabbed his arm, pushing him down the hall toward my room.
“Get in, bro,” Reece shouted, leaning back against me as I shoved harder, laughing wildly as we moved down the hall.
"Fuck off, Reece!" Luke shouted. Reece cackled loudly as Luke cursed at him.
“Reece!” I laughed, struggling to push my hands into his wide back. He seemed far too busy laughing at Luke to notice me trying to push him into my room, but I finally managed to shove him through the door. He dropped my bag on the floor and collapsed back on my bed, flopping onto his back and letting his hands fall to his flat stomach as he gasped for air. I closed my door before turning to watch him, an amused grin pulling at my lips as I watched him laugh. “Yes!” he shouted suddenly, punching his fist into the air triumphantly. I laughed and dragged my bag to the side of my room to start unpacking.
