Page 146 of Fake Out Hearts

“Thank you all so much for coming,” she says. Callie pulls a tissue from her bag and passes it to Becca so she can dab at her eyes without ruining her perfect makeup.

“Hey, you’re Theo’s family, so you’re our family now too,” Noah says, and I beam at him because he has no idea how much it means to me to hear him say that. I never blamed him for being skeptical about my relationship with Becca at the start, even though I didn’t like it. But the fact that he’s come around, that he’s seen just how real our initially fake marriage has become, is worth more than any win or trophy.

I clap him on the back and pull him in for a hug. “Thank you for saying that.”

“Of course. But don’t let us keep you, Becca. You can talk to us any time. You’ve got parents to charm and students to recruit,” Noah says, gesturing at the parents and kids already helping themselves to food and drinks.

Becca takes a deep breath to steel herself and nods. “Wish me luck.”

“You don’t need it,” I say and kiss the top of her head as she drifts past me to greet her potential new clients. She’s just as warm and friendly with people she’s meeting for the first timeas she is with anyone else, and watching her talk with them this effortlessly makes me even surer that she’s going to crush this business.

She makes the rounds, making sure to stop and talk to every single person in the studio, but I hang back with the rest of the Aces to let her shine. This is her moment, and I’m more than content to watch her work her magic.

“She really is something else,” Noah says, following my gaze as I track Becca. “But you’d better watch out, bro. At this rate, she’s gonna be making more money than you.”

“I hope she does, for her sake.”

Noah smiles and nods. “And that’s how I know you love her. You want to see her win, want to see her dreams come true.”

“That’s all I’ve ever wanted for her, from the very beginning.”

“I never would’ve guessed you were so altruistic,” Noah says, and I shrug.

“What can I say? She brings out the best in me.”

“And we’re all grateful for it. For real. Congratulations, Theo. You deserve all of this.”

“Thank you,” I say and clap his shoulder again before I excuse myself to go grab some food for Becca while she’s between greetings. I know her well enough to know that she’s enjoying this so much that she’s not going to stop anywhere near long enough to eat, so I take a plate of veggies and dip and a cup of water and bring it to her while she has a second.

“Seems like it’s going well,” I say as I hand out the plate to her. She takes it and kisses me on the cheek.

“Always thinking of me,” she says and swipes a baby carrot in the dip before popping it into her mouth. “And yes, it’s going incredibly well, just like you said it would. I’ve already had half a dozen parents tell me they’re going to sign their kids up.”

“See! They love you. Not anywhere near as much as I do, obviously.”

“Not that it’s a competition or anything, right?”

“Exactly.”

She laughs and continues eating, but her eyes drift over to two little girls in matching pink dresses playing some sort of game together. They can’t be any older than ten, and they look so similar that they must be sisters. They’re singing and clapping their hands against each other’s, but one girl misses the other’s hand and almost hits her in the face, and they burst out laughing.

Becca turns back to me with a warm smile and something in her eyes that I can’t place. She bites her lower lip and idly pushes around the veggies on her plate with her finger.

“What’s on your mind?” I prompt, and she hesitates before she eventually drops the broccoli floret she’s been twisting between two fingers.

“I’ve been thinking…” She trails off, her gaze floating back to the two little girls.

“About what?”

“About adoption,” she says, and before I can say anything, she rushes forward. “I mean, it’s okay if you don’t want that. It’s just something I’ve been thinking about and—”

Her words break off as I pull her into my arms. I kiss her forehead gently, then tilt her chin up, gazing into her luminous eyes.

“I want it, princess. With you, I want everything.”

She beams up at me, and when I press my lips to hers, I know that I’m holding my future in my arms.

Epilogue Two

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