Page 144 of Outlaw Heartstrings
“She signed the adoption form…” my voice cracks as I look up at him. “Raya signed the adoption form.”
53
EASTON
Tucked between the towering bookshelves of the local library, Alba crouches down in front of Jagger, adjusting the collar of his blue button-down shirt for the hundredth time. “And remember, 'The Wild Adventures of Rory the Red Cardinal' was written by—”
“Quinn Choudhury,” the little boy completes her sentence before she can even finish asking it.
“And in ‘Munchy’s Magical Banana Quest’—”
“The man’s hat is green,” I interject with a smirk on my face.
Alba rises to her full height, a sheepish expression in place. “Sorry.”
I place my hands on her shoulders, squeezing lightly. “We’re ready, Alba.” I glance at Jagger.
“Right! We’re ready!” he confirms with a little bounce.
“Okay, okay,” Alba says with a laugh. Her eyes shift between us. “I’m proud of you both. And I love you.”
“We love you, too.” Jagger throws one arm around Alba’swaist and one around mine. Together, we fall into a group hug.
“Twenty-four-seven. All the time,” we say in unison and something inside my chest dances.
Man—there’s nothing like this feeling. Nothing like loving wholeheartedly, and waking up every morning to receive that love in return. I will fight till my dying breath to protect these two, to give them the life they deserve, to remind them each day how much they mean to me.
I plant a kiss to the top of Jagger’s head before pressing my lips to Alba’s.
Jules comes around the corner right then and catches the three of us in the middle of our embrace. “Aww. Isn’t this precious?” she coos, hands clasped over her chest. “Come on, Alba. The competition is getting started in a minute. The rest of us are waiting in the main community room.”
“We’ll be right there.” As her bestie walks away, Alba gives Jagger and me one last tight squeeze.
Jules makes sure to give me a thumbs up over Alba’s shoulder and I grin widely in response.
“I’ll be rooting for you guys. Good luck!” she says.
Oblivious to the grand master plan I’ve set in motion with the help of her friends, Alba plants a kiss on my cheek and one on Jagger’s. Then she’s gone, her cute little ass scampering between the bookshelves.
Jagger turns to me, shoulders back and head held high. “Okay, Easton. You ready?”
I chuckle. “I’m ready.”
The little boy gives a satisfied nod, then he sticks out his hand, starting us at the beginning of our special handshake. Then up, over, squeeze, shake, and then snap.
We grin at each other.
His fingers curl around my wrist, giving my hand a tug. “Come on, Easton. Let’s go.”
“Wait, Buddy,” I say in a hushed voice, glancing around. “There’s something I need to ask you.”
He pauses, looking up at me with curious eyes. “What?”
I hunch down to his level, ignoring the nerves that come to life in my stomach. “There’s a very important question I need to ask your Aunt Alba today, and since you’re the man of the house, I figured we should have a discussion about it first.”
Jagger blinks up at me, clearly having absolutely no clue what I’m talking about.
With a grin, I reach into my pocket and pull out a green velvet box. When I flip it open and reveal the diamond ring inside, Jagger’s eyes pop like fireworks. “Wo-o-o-o-ow!” he says, touching the ring with delicate fingertips.
