Page 117 of Not For Keeps
I reach for my ice cream, which has started to melt, and take a spoonful. “Did you ever think we’d get here?” I ask.
He stretches an arm behind his head and gives me a crooked smile. “Not exactly here. But something like it. I knew I’d fight for it.”
I rest my head against his shoulder. “You never gave up.”
“And I never will, mi amor.”
I smile and reach for my phone. My fingers fly across the screen before I can second guess myself, sending a text to The Council of Chaos.
Me: Anna, get your planning fingers ready, The wedding is in 10 weeks. Save the date!
I hit send, grinning as three little dots pop up almost instantly.
We sit like that for a while, no rush, no need for anything more than this. And even though my leg aches, and I know we have a hundred things still ahead of us—wedding plans, surgery follow ups, the reality of raising a daughter together—I feel calm.
Because whatever comes next, we’ll face it like we always have. Together.
Chapter Forty
MATEO
The morning light spills across the living room in soft, golden streaks, warming the hardwood floors and catching on the specks of glitter Maya somehow still has on her cheek from last night’s fundraiser. Andres is right, glitter lasts for fucking ever.
She’s curled up on the couch in her unicorn pajamas, a blanket wrapped around her like a little burrito, cartoon playing low in the background. One of her legs bounces absentmindedly, the way it always does when her brain is going a mile a minute.
She doesn’t know it yet, but today’s going to be big. Not like yesterday’s, everyone’s covered in whipped cream kind of way. But in a big way that matters.
She’s going to learn that her whole world is about to shift—in the best possible way…at least, I hope she feels that way.
I take a deep breath and run my hand over my jaw, nerves buzzing low and steady in my chest. I’ve fought fires, dragged grown men out of burning buildings, performed CPRunder pressure. But telling a six-year-old I want to be her dad? That might be the scariest thing I’ve ever done.
“Are you okay?”
I turn to find Analyse standing in the hallway, leaning against the wall with her crutches tucked under her arms. She’s already dressed—leggings, a loose sweatshirt, her curls still damp from the shower.
“Just…thinking,” I say.
She makes her way over slowly, and I meet her halfway. Gently, I reach out and take the crutches from her, steadying her as she shifts her weight to lean against the arm of the couch. My hand rests on her hip without thinking.
“You ready for this?” she asks.
I hesitate. “Am I ready to be her dad? Absolutely. There’s nothing I want more. Am I ready to ask her? I don’t know. What if she doesn’t want?—”
“Mateo.” Her voice is firm. “She loves you. So much. She already sees you as hers. This just makes it official.”
I nod slowly, still staring at the little girl on the couch who changed everything in my world without even trying.
“Okay,” I breathe. “Let’s do this.”
She smiles, leans in, and presses a kiss to my cheek. “I’ve got you. We’ve got her.”
We settle on the couch with Maya between us, the blanket still wrapped around her little legs. She’s halfway through an episode ofBluey, but the second I grab the remote, her eyes narrow.
“You better not be turning that off.”
Analyse chuckles. “Just for a minute, bebé. We need to talk to you about something important.”
Maya crosses her arms. “Is it bad?”
