Page 138 of Outlaw Heartstrings
I want her. I want us. I want this little peculiar family that we’ve been building these past few months.
I just pray that she wants it, too.
The floorboards creak, and a tiny voice from down the hallway clutches my heart like a vise. “Easton?”
My stomach sinks when I hear Jagger call me by my name. Yet at the same time, a wave of relief washes over me as I turn and see his face.
“Hey, buddy.” I sink to one knee and he immediately runs into my waiting arms.
He wraps his arms around me and—fuck it—I start to cry.
Jagger leans back to get a better look at my face. He takes my cheeks in his small, warm palms. “What’s wrong, Easton?” he whispers innocently, ripping my heart in two when he says my name again.
“Nothing, little man.” I give my head a shake. “Just missed you. That’s all.”
Jagger lays his head on my shoulder, hugging me even tighter than before. “I missed you, too. But you had to leave. I understand. You’re not my dad, so you had to lea—”
“Me, not being your father doesn’t change a thing, doyou hear me?” I pull back, looking into his face so he knows I mean it. “It doesn’t change the way I feel about you.”
He blinks, his eyes cloudy with emotion. “You still love me?”
I ruffle the top of his head. “Of course I still love you, silly.”
His face lights up with relief and hope and love. I may not know what I’m doing, but I know I can’t leave any doubt in his mind about what he means to me. And seeing his reassurance renews my sense of purpose.
“We may not be related by blood, but we’re related by love, Jagger. That’s what matters most. So yes, I still love you, Buddy.”
“Twenty-four-seven,” he whispers.
And I chime in. “All the time.”
The blood running through his veins is never what made that kid my son. It was always his sweet little soul. The results of some DNA test could never change that.
Yet still, I can’t make him any promises. Because as much as I love him, the law is still an obstacle in the way. Now that the official paternity test results are in, I have zero legal leverage here.
But that’s not going to stop me.
Rising to my feet, I hold Jagger’s hand and turn to face Alba. Her arms are banded around her middle like she’s physically holding herself together. I want to be the one to hold her together.
“I want to go all in with you, Tiny Tiger.” I caress her cheek. “Whatever that means. Whatever comes next, I want it to be me and you and Jagger, facing it together. How can we make that work?”
Jagger’s large eyes bounce between the two adults.Clearly, he understands the importance of this moment. He needs us to figure it out. We can’t disappoint him.
I turn my attention back to Alba, pouring my heart out at her feet. “I meant it when I said I have your back, Alba. I love you and I love Jagger, and that was never conditional upon us being connected by blood. There’s never going to be anybody for me but you. I’d be a fool to let you slip away under any circumstances. All of this is messy, I know that, but let’s be the diamond in the rough. Let’s be the family that made it work against all odds.”
Alba lays her hand on top of my own, allowing her fingers to intertwine with mine. The softest smile graces her lips. “I want you, too, Easton. But I don’t even know where to start.”
“Are you willing to give this a shot?” I ask.
There’s a little smile on her face as she nods. “Yes.”
Hope. Hope beats inside my chest like a drum.
I say the first thing that comes to my mind. “I want to take you on a date.” I smile. I smile the biggest smile that my face can manage. “Are you free tonight?”
52
ALBA
