Page 82 of Unexpectedly Falling
“Fuck your no PDA rule,” I counter, surprising us both if her dilated pupils are any indication.
“Virgin ears!” Mason hisses, making my lips quirk up as I finally straighten, dropping my hands and taking a step back.
“You don’t get to justclaimme like that, Jensen Kade,” she barks, taking a step toward me and erasing the distance I’d created.
I look around the room, my eyes lingering on everything she’d made happen for tonight. “Looks like you already took care of that.”
“But they didn’t know,” she hisses like everyone’s not watching us duke this out.
“Y’all aren’t really subtle,” Archer mutters, making Bea snicker.
“Yeah well, don’t think this makes you my boyfriend,” she says, jamming her fingernail into my chest. My body’s reaction is instant. The memory of her dragging them over my skin, biting into my shoulders, has a fair amount of blood rushing south.
“I think he’s too old for that title anyway,” Montana adds helpfully.
“You’re not much younger, ya know,” Ellison sasses him, earning her a slap on the ass and a bunch of whispered promises I want to know nothing about.
“We can negotiate later,” I offer and her lips twitch.
“He means when they’re naked,” Bea stage-whispers toward Mason and Bodhi, earning a snort from the former and an eye twitch from the latter.
“Yeah, well, let’s eat before anything else happens I can’t unsee,” Archer deadpans, earning another round of chuckles, but it works. Glasses are filled and the island is covered in a buffet of everything imaginable as dishes and pans are placed on top.
Music plays and laughter fills my house in a way it never has before.
It’d been a house.
A structure with walls and a roof and doors—safe and reliable.
A shelter.
But tonight, it became a home.
The solitude I’d reveled in no longer holds any appeal. I want this today and every day after—love and joy and family.
My family.
Chosen and blood.
Because here, tonight, it is all the same.
38
NESSA
JENSEN: Leaving the airport be home in a little while
JENSEN: Don’t panic
Isnort as the second message comes in immediately after the first, like he can see me actively hyperventilating over meeting his parents. Because I am.
There’s never been as much at stake as there is with Dottie and Wayne Kade bursting the little bubble Jensen and I have lived in since I’ve been in Blackstone Falls. I want his parents to like me, not just because of Remi but for me too.
And despite Jensen’s reassurance that his mama’s heart is bigger than the state of Tennessee, I still have my doubts.
Remi coos at Scout as the puppy races around the room, the two already thick as thieves, and it makes me smile. Even if he doesn’t realize it yet, Jensen is already an amazing father, creating a home for Remi to grow and thrive in.
My heart squeezes a little at the reminder of how much I’ll miss—the big moments and the things a photo can’t quite capture.
