Page 53 of Can’t Let You Go (Ivy Ridge #3)

JASON

S he’s incredible.

Watching her stand up to him, tell him what she thought of his sleazy ass and stand up for herself and her daughter was the most incredible thing I’ve ever seen—aside from Lennie being born.

Holding Fallon in my arms as she falls apart is eye opening. I love her. And I love Presley as my own. I’ve been falling for her, for them, but now, I’m gone. I will do whatever it takes to keep her and Presley safe.

“Shh,” I whisper. “You’re amazing. You’re so strong.”

I almost forget we’re at the diner, until the scraping of a chair sounds at the small table.

I peek out from where I’m holding Fallon in time to watch Marley and Josie pulling their chairs up next to Fallon.

They rub her arms and her back while I hold her, whispering words of encouragement.

My brothers come up to the table too, scooting around and making room for everyone.

In the thick of everything, I’d forgotten they were all here, but I’m thankful they were.

Fallon pulls away from me for a moment to give Josie and Marley hugs, then she’s leaning back into my side. I wipe the few remaining tears off her cheeks, and wipe the running mascara from under her eyes.

When she looks up at me, I take her chin in my fingers. “We can do this. He doesn’t have much of a case. He willingly waived his rights to custody and made no effort to be a dad. Sure, he’s back now, but he will have to jump through so many hoops. Who knows, he might decide it’s not worth it.”

“Is it horrible to say I hope he decides it’s not worth it? But then, it sounds like I’m saying my daughter isn’t worth fighting for.” Her lower lip trembles as she speaks those words, and I run my thumb over it to soothe her.

“Presley is worth any fight. You are worth any fight. For him to not try in the first place gives me some idea that maybe this will be all too much for him. He wants it easy.”

Fallon nods. “And we aren’t going to give him easy.”

“No, we’re not.”

One of the twins chooses that moment to squawk, making their presence very known. Fallon leans back into me, while Beau passes a baby across the table to Marley who hoists her shirt up to feed them.

“Thank you for being here,” Fallon says to the five people surrounding the very small table. “Even though you weren’t next to me, it was still nice knowing you had my back.”

“Always,” Thomas says, lamenting his earlier words. “Every step of the way, we’ll be here, supporting you and Pres.” He pauses for a long moment, a shit-eating grin pulling on his lips. “Hey, not to change the subject, but… Trixie? Sounds like he picked her up at a strip club.”

The table bursts into unceremonious laughter. Thomas is always the one to lighten the mood when things get heavy.

“I wouldn’t be surprised,” Fallon says through her teary laughter.

I squeeze Fallon’s shoulder, kissing her temple. The waiter comes back, taking in the fact that the other two guests have left, but we’ve gained five adults and two babies. “Uhh, do you guys want to move to a bigger table?” he asks.

“Probably,” I say with a laugh.

Fallon and Presley have spent the last few days at my place, and the girls couldn’t be more happy. They are still all aboard the “Mom and Dad are getting married” train, and we’ve had to shut them down a few times.

I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t thought about our future more in the last few days.

Having them here with us feels right, though we definitely need more space.

The girls deserve to have their own rooms, their own spaces, and neither Fallon, nor I, have enough bedrooms in our respective houses for them to have their own.

I stir the macaroni and cheese on the stove, watching the neon orange powder melt into the noodles and milk.

Fallon comes into the kitchen, her blonde hair pulled into a messy bun, wearing one of my old T-shirts.

I love seeing her in my clothes. Maybe it’s cavemanish of me, but it’s sexy.

She has a pair of leggings underneath, though I wish she were only in underwear, or perhaps nothing.

I’d love to slide my hands underneath the shirt and grasp the bare skin of her supple ass.

The dark circles under her eyes stop me from initiating anything, though.

She’s exhausted, and I don’t know how I can help her sleep.

“Where are the girls?” Fallon asks, coming up behind me, and wrapping her arms around me.

I turn so she’s wrapped around my front. I lean down, kissing the top of her head. “Last I checked, they were in the living room, coloring.”

Fallon nuzzles her head into my chest, tightening her arms around me. “Thank you for picking up my slack these last few days.”

“No need to thank me. That’s what partners do.”

“You’re a really good one,” Fallon states, tilting her head up. I give her lips a tender kiss. “Presley and I should probably go home tonight. I don’t have any more clothes.”

“Stay,” I murmur, kissing her again. “Please.”

“We don’t have any clothes, Jase.”

“Then get some and come back. Or Lennie and I can spend a few days there.”

“Someone is clingy,” Fallon teases.

I run my hands over her ass, giving her a gentle squeeze and resting my hands on her hips.

“Yes, I am. I don’t care, I’ll openly admit it, sunshine.

I want to be with you all the time. Six months ago, I would have laughed in your face if you told me I was diving headfirst into a committed relationship, but here we are.

I’m here. I’m committed, and I want to be with you and this little family we’re building. ”

“Who would have thought Mr. Grumpy Grumps would be begging me to spend the night again.”

“I want you to spend all the nights,” I tell her. There, I said it. It’s out in the open.

Fallon leans back, her eyes narrowing, brows furrowing. “Jase, what are you saying?”

I step away from the stove, and lean against the countertop. “ I want you and Presley here all the time. Things are good. Great, and I want to be with you guys all the time.”

“Isn’t it a little too soon?” Fallon mumbles.

Her body tenses in my arms. “I mean, we’ve been officially together for, what, a month?

I’m about to potentially be dealing with my ex-husband and a custody battle for who knows how long.

Is that really a good idea? I don’t know.

I don’t want to overwhelm Pres.” She rambles on, her voice growing more stressed as the moments pass.

“Hey, slow down.” I reach up, cupping her cheeks in my palms. “It was a suggestion. We don’t have to do anything now, but I know what I want.”

Fallon’s chin wobbles, her green eyes growing wet with tears. “I want that too. I do. But it’s so fast.”

“I understand.” I kiss her forehead.I’ll do whatever she needs to be comfortable. “At least stay the rest of this weekend. We can run to your house and get more clothes. Okay?”

She nods. “Okay.”

I turn my attention back to plating the macaroni and cheese. “Can you tell the girls to wash up and head to the table?” I ask Fallon.

She agrees, heading into the living room. I finish adding some strawberries and carrots to the plates. Fallon appears behind me again, her mouth turned down in thought. “Why do you think we haven’t heard anything yet from him?”

I hand her two of the plates, taking the other two in my own hands. “I’m honestly not sure. He could be talking with his lawyers, and making a case, or he could be over it, and forgotten about it by now like we hope.”

“I don’t think he’ll let it go that easy, as much as I may want that.”

“I agree. ”

“I hate this waiting. I called the lawyer I had for the divorce and told her what was happening. She’s happy to take us on again, but maybe I should wait? Is he going to have someone pop into my work one day and serve me papers? Ugh, I hate this.”

“I know.” I wish I could hold her again, but both our hands are full. “Come on, let's feed the girls, and then we can talk.”