Page 83 of Saving You

“Do I need to teach you how you get the girl?” Josh prods, and something in my head clicks, making me groan. I use my napkin to wipe my mouth as Josh says, “You should be fearless and ride in on your white horse and say you’re enchanted by her and that long story short, she’s your end game.”

I groan so loud that everyone looks at me. “As much as I enjoy messing with Grayson, and I’m not sure who this says more about, you or me, but you can stop with the Taylor Swift song titles,” I say.

Olivia throws her arms up and pushes off her chair before she runs around the table and wraps her arms around me from behind. “I love you, thank you. I just won a bet,” she says.

“You’re welcome,” I say, confused.

As she rounds the table, Matt stares at me. “Really dude, you had to say something?”

“What? Josh said like twelve song titles, it was getting to be a little much.”

Matt, still confused, says, “Youwere able to identify twelve Taylor Swift songs in what Josh said?”

“Yeah.”

“How?” Matt asks.

“My girls love Taylor Swift. I’m constantly hearing it,” I say with a shrug.

Grayson laughs. “You really are fucking pussy whipped.”

I glare at him. “Watch your language in front of my daughter,” I growl.

The entire table goes silent, and Grayson’s eyes widen. He puts his hands up in a placating manner. “Sorry, man. I’ll watch the language, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t true.”

“Josh is right too. When you find someone you love, you’ll do anything for them. You won’t be saying this stuff then.”

Grayson continues eating. “Not going to happen,” he grumbles.

“Sure.”

I turn the conversation to Liv, who apparently was the mastermind of this bet. “Okay, so what exactly was this bet?” I ask.

She grins. “Well, Matt and I got into a little debate about how popular Taylor Swift is, so we made a bet. I said if Josh could throw song titles into a conversation and not get called out on it, I would let Matt find out the sex of the baby.” She rolls her eyes, and I can see the unease on Josh’s face. “But, if I won, I get to set him up on a date with someone and he has to go on at least three dates with her.”

Bailey’s hand comes to my thigh, and her thumb gently strokes over the fabric of my pants. I look to my left, my eyes meeting Bailey’s tear-filled ones. My hand instantly goes to her face. “What’s wrong, baby?”

She closes her eyes and leans into my touch. When she opens them, an electric shock runs through my body.

“Your daughter?” she whispers.

When I nod, she whispers, “I love you.”

Her voice is so quiet I almost don’t hear her. A smile spreads across my face as my entire body feels light and warm. I lean my forehead against hers.

“I love you,” I whisper before giving her a quick kiss.

I never thought I’d utter those words to another woman. But I’ve never felt this soul-deep love that I do for Bailey. I’m always aware of her presence. Just stepping into her embrace can have all the tension leaving my body. My hand goes to her thigh as we continue eating.

I’m over the moon as we finish dinner. I’ve got my friends around me and, most importantly, I have my two girls. And Bailey just told me she loves me. I didn’t think she would be the one to say it first, not that it matters. All that matters is she feels the same about me.

I’m not sure I deserve the love of someone as amazing as her. She calms my soul. She’s pulled me from my nightmares on several nights. She’s so unbelievably strong, and I know I will spend the rest of my life working to be worthy of her love.

Charlie, my beautiful little Charlotte, is so resilient. She has seen things most children will, and should never, see. She continues to be a happy girl who laughs and gets excited about the little things in life. The way she has accepted new people into her life over these last few months and bonded with them makes my heart swell.

When we finish eating, I help Josh clear the table. As we make our way into the kitchen, Matt and Grayson join us.

“Your daughter?” Grayson says, leaning against the kitchen counter with his arms crossed over his chest.

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