Page 45 of Power Play

Tate shrugs as he follows Tyson’s lead.

“You had to know this was coming, right?” he asks with a smile. Levi nods and smiles back.

“What’s comin'?’” Harper asks from around the corner, and we all jump. His eyes find mine immediately as I bend down to pick her up.

“Nothin’, little mama,” I tell her with a kiss on her temple. “Did you say hi to Levi?”

She smiles a shy smile, tucking her face into my chest.

“Hi, Levi,” she whispers. He smiles down at her, tickling her arm.

“Hi, Miss Harper. Is it okay if I have dinner with you guys tonight?”

She nods, then she lifts her head off me quickly.

“But you hafta have pizza. We’re only having pizza,” she says, her face serious. I look up at him, and he smiles.

“I love pizza. Will you help me make mine?” he asks. She nods again, lying back down on me. I kiss her again.

“Why don’t you go see if Pop has the oven heated up?” I ask her. She nods and smiles, and I set her back down.

Demi scoops Harper up and heads out the back door, closing it behind her. I look up at him, mortified.

“My God,” I laugh nervously, covering my face. “I’m sorry. I knew they would give you shit, but I thought maybe we’d have, like, a day at least.” I feel his fingers wrap around my wrists, pulling my hands gently from my face.

“They could give me shit for the rest of my life, and I’d be laughing it off every single day, as long as I get to keep looking at you.” That slow, easy smile pulls at his lips just before he kisses the side of my palm. He drops my hands slowly and starts making his way toward the back door. “Shall we?”

God, please, no.

“Yep,” I say, trying to sound as confident as possible. “Let’s do it.”

About two hours later, we’re all still sitting on the patio, still picking at our pizzas. Demi had brought over an enormous bubble wand for her and Harper to play with, but even she is winding down some. She walks over to me, lowering the wand to the ground, and looks up at me. She has her tired eyes, and she blinks them slowly. Big and brown, like mine. Other than that, she looks like…him.

I hold out my arms, and she climbs up into my lap, curling her legs up into a ball and tucking her arms underneath her body like she does whenever she’s tired. I stroke her hair and kiss the top of her head.

“You sleepy, little girl?” I whisper. She nods.

“Me too, baby girl,” Tate says, yawning and stretching his arms. He reaches around Demi to smack the back of Tyson’s head. “Come on, chauffeur. You’re my ride, and I need my beauty sleep before practice tomorrow.

Tyson waves his hand away and nods. He stands slowly, grabbing plates and dishes off the table.

“Alright, alright,” he says. “You’re such an old man now.”

“Shut up,” Tate says, grabbing his plate and cup. “Thank you for dinner, Pop. And thank you, the best sous-chef in the world.” He kneels down and kisses Harper’s head. Demi stands up, too.

“What if I put you to bed tonight, Mama?” she asks Harper. A big smile spreads across Harper’s lips. She reaches up for Demi who cradles her head to her shoulder. Over top of it, she mouths, “Good luck,” in mine and Levi’s direction.

Bastards.This was a coordinated effort. And now they’re just leaving me for dead.

“Goodnight, baby,” I call after Harper. “I love you.”

“I love you, Mommy,” she says. And then at the same time, we say, “More than all the stars!”

We’ve been saying it since she was two. She told me one night that she was going to tell me she loved me more times than there were stars in the sky. And she put herself to sleep that way. Telling me she loved me over and over and over.

They disappear into the house after all their goodbyes, and then it’s just us. Me, my dad, and Levi.

And my heart is beating a million miles per minute.

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