Page 178 of Forbidden Billionaires: Vol. 3

This Is Love - Chapter 21

3 Months Later - Saturday -Penny

The seagulls cawed as I walked through the sand. But the sound was mostly drowned out by my family’s laughter.

“Welcome to our little slice of paradise,” I whispered to Liam as I showed him the ocean for the first time. We had finally found a beach house that was big enough to accommodate our extended family. And this weekend everyone was here to celebrate our new home away from home.

“Most people think paradise has more palm trees. But this is paradise to me too,” Melissa said as she stared at the ocean with us.

I glanced down at her stomach. She was finally starting to show. She and Josh had originally planned their trip to help me out while Liam was born. But they also had news of their own that they hadn’t shared because of all the chaos. She was pregnant. A wonderful, unexpected surprise for her and Josh. But she was so excited.

“No bikini today?” I asked with a smile. “I swore I wore a bikini the whole time I was pregnant with Scar.”

“No. No bikini and no wedding dress until after this little girl is born.” She put her hand on her stomach, her engagement ring shining in the sun. “Besides, moving back to New York has been stressful enough. I can’t even think about planning anything else.”

“It’s good to have you back. Even though I had to settle for us being neighbors instead of roomies.”

She laughed. “It’s crazy how much we’ve grown up. I mean, who would have guessed we’d be here?”

“I always knew you’d end up with Josh. You guys are perfect together.”

“She just needed some time to be convinced,” Josh said as he wrapped his arms around her waist and placed a kiss on the side of her neck.

I left them alone as he tried to pull her into the water.

“One day you’re going to fall in love,” I whispered to Liam. “Way, way in the future. Like Melissa and Josh.” I looked up the beach where Mason and Bee were sitting in beach chairs. Bee was waving around sunscreen, probably trying to convince him that he wasn’t immune to sunburn just because he was naturally tan. “And Mason and Bee.” I bounced Liam on my hip. Tyler and Hailey had wrangled the kids together to build a sandcastle that did not look like it was going to stand up for very long. “And Tyler and Hails.” Jen and Ian were up on the boardwalk, staring at the chaos we had unleashed on the beach. “And Jen and Ian.” Matt was holding little R.J. in his arms while Rob and Daphne were jumping waves. “Like Rob and Daphne. And Matt...well, I'm sure he'll find someone soon. I’m going to help him.”

Liam wiggled in my arms.

“What? I’m a good matchmaker.”

He blinked up at me.

“I helped Mason learn that not all girls are lame salad eating divas. And I pushed Tyler away. If I hadn’t, he’d never have met Hailey. Plus I kinda accidentally broke up Melissa and Tyler, which sent her back in the arms of Josh in a weird, roundabout way. I encouraged Ian to ask Jen out. And Rob was at James’ bachelor party when he started things with Daphne. I feel like that counts too.”

He blinked again.

“Fine, technically I’ve never done any real matchmaking.” I sat down in the sand, balancing Liam on my lap. “But that doesn’t mean I’ll be bad at it. Look at me and your father. That’s true love. If anyone knows what the real deal is, it’s me. One day, I hope you find love that strong.”

“Are you already hoping that Liam’s falling in love?” James asked as he walked up to us. “He’s only 4 months old.”

“No, I’m simply hoping he finds a love as great as ours. And the beach is a great place to fall in love. Don’t you think?”

James laughed and sat down beside me. “The only little girls here are his sister and his cousin. So no, I don’t think he’s going to find love here right now.”

“Well, Melissa is having a little girl.”

He kissed the side of my forehead. “Let him live his life, Penny.”

“I’m not going to interfere in his love life. I promise. Mostly. Okay, fine. I might interfere a little.”

He laughed and wrapped his arm around me. We looked out at the ocean in silence, watching the waves splash against the shore.

“I love it here,” I said. “Thank you. For all of this. Having everyone here…it’s amazing. Are your parents still coming down tomorrow? I think my mom is excited to try to bond with your mother again.”

James laughed. “Yeah, they’ll be here. Fun tonight and then the parents are arriving in the morning.”

“We’re parents too.” I gently nudged his side.