Page 104 of Christmas with Brother's Best Friends

Josh shakes his head. “You needed time with your family. I think that’s what helped convince your brothers not to kill us.”

Emma lets out a soft laugh as she draws away from him. “Above everything, they want me to be happy and safe. I just had to remind them who you guys are. You’re some of the best people that they know.”

“We try to be,” Ryan says, coaxing her to gravitate toward him. “We’re not perfect, but we do love you.”

Emma wraps her arms around his neck, her chest pressing against his. “You don’t have to be perfect. I’m not perfect. No one is.”

A disappointed expression forms on Ryan’s face as he gazes down at her. “I’m sorry. I feared the worst, which made me expect the worst. I almost didn’t come.”

Emma frowns as she gently strokes his hair. “Why?”

“I thought I would lose you, and I can’t bear the thought of that,” Ryan replies. “You’re the piece of my life that has always been missing. You and the baby you’re carrying.”

Emma smiles, her eyes fluttering shut as his lips press against her forehead. “I’m not going anywhere. You have me forever.”

“Good because I don’t want to let go,” Ryan says as his hands glide up and down her back.

“You don’t have to. I’m ready to go home with you guys,” Emma replies as she looks behind her at us. “If that’s okay.”

“My place it is,” Josh volunteers with an eager grin.

Emma lets out a soft laugh. “Let me say goodbye and then we can go. I got plenty of sleep while I was here. I think I’m good to stay up a little late tonight.”

An amused smirk grows on my face as I share a brief look with Josh and Ryan. She has gone through hell and back, but that hasn’t changed her playful spirit in the slightest. She’s still our girl.

She always will be.

Chapter forty-seven

Chapter Forty-Seven: Emma

Afew glasses of wine and sparkling cider later, the four of us lounge in Josh’s large living room, our eager voices filling the space as we talk about anything and everything.

“Okay, we need to settle this once and for all,” Max says as he sits on the square, leather ottoman in front of me. “What are the living arrangements going to look like when the baby comes? Between us, we have four apartments. That’s a lot of jumping back and forth.”

“We live pretty close together, but that’s still too much traveling around,” Ryan agrees as he leans back against the couch cushions to my left. He finishes off his wine and sets the empty glass on a coaster on a side table. “We need one central place.”

“If you’re comfortable with that,” Josh adds from my right.

My eyes widen as I realize what Ryan was hinting at. “You all want to live together? Under one roof?”

“It would be a lot easier,” Max points out as he rests his hands on his thighs. “We’d have all the baby stuff in one place. All of our stuff in one place. We’d all be around to take care of the baby.”

“And each other,” Ryan murmurs next to my ear.

Laughter bubbles within me as I playfully push at his shoulder. They’re not wrong, though. If we all lived together, things would be a lot easier parenthood-wise and relationship-wise.

Andbetter.

No wondering when the next time we’re going to see each other. No struggling to come up with plans to meet up. No cold, empty beds to wake up in.

“Would we choose an apartment to move in or what would we do?” I ask as my eyes roam around to each of them.

“Our apartments are big, but they wouldn’t be suitable for a big family,” Josh replies. “I think we should get a house together.”

My eyes grow wide as I place my hand on Josh’s arm. “A house?”

Josh grins. “Hell yeah. Plenty of space. A big backyard. Everything we could want for our family.”