Page 101 of Mistaken Identity
I set it as my lock screen and knew that I wouldn’t be changing it ever.
God, if this man asked me to marry him right now, I would.
I had no clue just how much he meant to me until that moment as I watched him let go and be happy for the first time in a long time.
To truly see him let go…
“He looks so happy,” Telly said softly.
I looked to my new friend and said, “I agree.”
They ended the night with a fire show as all the men used long sticks with fire on both ends to twirl around their bodies, showing off their hard abs and each dip and divot of their bodies.
It was the second-best part of the show.
As everyone was leaving, Audric brought Keanu up to meet me.
He held out his hand and said, “Ahh, the arch nemesis. I’ve heard a lot about you, and not all of it good.”
I grinned wildly, only feeling a twinge of discomfort due to his nearness.
Audric immediately picked up on it, pulling me into his side as he said, “Don’t go there. I just finally got her to like me.”
“Oh, we should definitely go there,” I teased.
“I thank you for sharing him with us tonight. We were in a bind, and I would’ve been sunk without him,” he explained.
“Oh, it was my pleasure to share him with you. I loved seeing him up there. I definitely got a lot of photos of him for my troubles.” I snickered.
I showed him the photo I’d taken of Audric doing the Haka, and Keanu laughed. “I guess he does win the scary contest.”
I snorted. “Y’all were both ferocious.”
A little girl walked up then, tugging on Keanu’s hand.
Keanu bent down and lifted the girl into his arms.
The girl looked over and squealed, throwing herself at Audric. “Aric!”
“Sigh,” Keanu said. “My own daughter loves him more than me.”
“He’s a hard man not to love,” I teased. “How old is she?”
“Three.” He smiled as Audric peppered kisses all over the girl’s face.
“Alani, honey,” a woman who looked exhausted said. “Come on, let’s let Daddy finish up. It’s time for bed.”
Keanu dropped a kiss onto his wife’s cheek, and it was only then that I saw the newborn strapped to the woman’s chest. Her flowing dress made it impossible to see unless you were looking closely.
“Kiana,” Audric said. “I can’t believe he has you out here working six weeks after giving birth.”
Kiana rolled her eyes. “Family business doesn’t just stop when you have babies. Life goes on. But this one, she rolls with the punches. Didn’t move an inch when I was working today at all.”
That’s when I realized that she’d had the baby strapped to her during her many dances earlier.
Talk about strength.
“But I’m super tired, and we’re ready for bed. I’m sorry to cut it short, Audric,” Kiana apologized.
