Total pages in book: 91
Estimated words: 86335 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 432(@200wpm)___ 345(@250wpm)___ 288(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 86335 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 432(@200wpm)___ 345(@250wpm)___ 288(@300wpm)
And just like that my decision is made—I’m moving to Rosemary.
“I wish my mom were here,” Paige admits, laying her head on my shoulder as we watch the fountains dance to the lights. “She would’ve loved your mom.”
After we had dessert and everyone said good night since we’re going to see them tomorrow at the barbecue, I asked Paige if she’d like to go for a walk with me. Downtown can get busy, but there’s a walkway along the water, where I sometimes go for a run, that’s beautiful at night. She spotted the fountains immediately, so we had a seat on the bench to watch them.
“Do you think she would’ve liked me?” I ask, curious since they were so close.
Paige looks up at me and grins. “She would’ve warned me away from you. Told me you were too good-looking and you would break my heart.”
I know she’s only half joking, but I lean in anyway and speak so she can hear me clearly over the sound of the water. “I would’ve proven her wrong…shown her not to judge a book by its cover because there’s no man who will love her daughter like I will…like I do.”
Paige’s eyes go wide. “L-love? You mean hypothetically, right?”
“No,” I admit truthfully. “I love you, Paige.” I glance up so I can look into her striking green eyes. “I fell in love with you in London, and I told you so, and it’s only grown since then.” I place my hand on her bump and kiss her lips before backing up slightly so I can look at her again. “I’m going to show you every day how much I love you and our little one.”
Paige’s eyes water as she nods in understanding. I don’t expect her to say the words back. Even if she feels them, she’s too scared about our future. But I need her to know how I feel. I love her, and if I have it my way, I’ll get to spend the rest of our lives showing her how much.
“Wow, you have a big family,” Paige says, sitting in a chair I saved for her. “Your mom introduced me to them as her daughter-in-law.”
“Give it time, and she’ll be insisting you call her Ma.”
My mom knows no boundaries. Once you’re part of our family, you’re in it for life. Valerie and Penny are both close with their moms, but it didn’t stop mine from insisting they call her Ma, claiming they were the daughters she never had.
“Oh, she already did,” she says, her eyes glassy with emotion. “Right after she told me she can never replace my mom, but she already loves me like one of her own.” She glances out at everyone laughing and talking and mingling. “I’ve always wondered what it would be like to be part of a big family.”
“It’s not all rainbows and sunshine,” I tell her. “People disagree, and arguments happen. One Thanksgiving, my aunt Linda stopped talking to my uncle Barry, and the whole ordeal got canceled. Half the family ate at my parents’ while the other half ate at my uncle Barry’s.”
“But they obviously made up since they’re all here now,” Paige points out.
“Yeah, they always make up. That’s what families do. They fight, and they make up.”
“My dad and I never fought,” Paige says softly. “Sometimes, I wish we had. Then, we could have gotten it all out, you know?”
“It’s not too late.”
“It feels like it is.” She shrugs and then changes the subject. “Are we doing anything tomorrow? Valerie and Penny asked me to go to breakfast with them.”
“Ahh, yes. Tomorrow is their monthly girls’ brunch. My brothers and I usually go golfing, and the girls go to brunch at the country club. I can skip it, unless you want to go.”
“I do,” Paige says. “I’d like to spend some time with them since our time here is limited.”
“We can come back anytime you want,” I tell her, tugging her chair closer so I can wrap my arm around her. “I know Rosemary is your home, but here, with my family, can also be your home.”
chapter twenty-one
PAIGE
“Uncle Nate!” Annemarie, Nate’s three-year-old niece, yells. “Come and throw me in!”
“Me too!” Dylan, her two-year-old brother, adds. “Throw me in!”
Nate looks between the kids and me, torn on leaving me, so I say, “Go! Go play with your niece and nephew. I’ll be fine right here.”
“Or you could go in with me.” Nate waggles his brows. “You know I’m dying to see you in that swimsuit you put on this morning.”
“Uncle Nate, please!” Annemarie begs.
“Go play, and I’ll think about going in.”
“Fine,” he says, standing and pulling his shirt over his head, exposing his washboard abs, chiseled chest, and sexy tattoos. He drops his shirt onto the table and then reaches down to tie his board shorts that came loose.