Page 121 of Toxic Salvation
He peeks up at me with one eye, like he’s testing the waters. “I’m nervous.”
“That’s okay. But I’m here, and I’m not going anywhere.”
Both eyes appear now, wide and uncertain. “I’m really glad you’re pregnant.”
“Thank you. But I don’t think that’s what you wanted to say.”
He takes a shaky breath. “I was wondering if… maybe you could be my mom, too? Like, officially? So the baby and I can be real brothers?”
I’ve been expecting it, hoping for it, but hearing him actually ask makes my eyes fill with tears I can’t hide.
“You’re crying!” Luka gasps, immediately alarmed.
“Happy tears,” I assure him quickly, reaching for Kovan’s hand. “The happiest tears.”
“Really?”
“Luka, you asking me to be your mom is one of the best things that’s ever happened to me. Especially since I already think of you as my son.”
“So I can call you Mom?”
“I would be honored.”
He buries his face in my shirt again, but this time, I can feel him smiling. “Thank you, Mom.”
The word makes me feel complete. “No, baby. Thankyou.”
In the quiet of the room, with both my boys sick and safe in this bed, I think this might be the most perfect moment of my life.
Vomit-covered shoes and all.
42
KOVAN
There aren’t many firsts I have left to give Vesper.
But joining the mile high club? Definitely one of them.
Not that she believes me as she traces lazy patterns across my chest, her skin still flushed from round three at thirty thousand feet. The private jet’s cabin feels smaller now, heavy with the scent of sex and her perfume.
“You’ve been flying private your entire life,” she says suspiciously, “and you really expect me to believe you never hooked up with some gorgeous flight attendant during one of those trips?”
“Never.”
“Bullshit.”
“You calling me a liar?”
She grins and shifts on top of me, making us both groan. “I’m calling you forgetful. How many women have there been, Kovan? Maybe you lost count.”
“You think I’ve slept with so many people I can’t remember having sex in the sky?” I grab her hips to stop her teasing movements before I embarrass myself. “What am I, some kind of degenerate?”
She kisses me instead of answering, which is probably smart. We both know my past isn’t exactly pristine.
My phone buzzes with a voice message from Waylen before she can elaborate on my questionable reputation. I grab it and hit play, putting it on speaker.
Luka’s voice fills the cabin, chirping and excited.
