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Lyon

I looked around our home and smiled. Everywhere I turned, there was something of Gracie’s—a blanket draped over the couch, a tiny sock abandoned on the floor, a stuffed animal resting in the corner. Our world had changed in the best way possible.

Brutus had taken his role as protector to heart. He refused to sleep anywhere except in the baby’s room, and if she stirred in the night, he didn’t wait for the baby monitor to alert us. Instead, he’d march into our bedroom and bark directly in our faces.

I cradled Gracie in my arms, gently rocking her as she let out a soft sigh.

“Lyon, you’re going to spoil her if you keep holding her all the time,” Niki teased, arms crossed, though the warmth in her voice betrayed her amusement.

“What are you talking about? If I’m not holding her, you are.”

“Exactly. We’re both guilty.”

I grinned down at our daughter. “Look at this face. Does she look spoiled to you?” I kissed her chubby cheek, inhaling the sweet scent of baby powder and warmth.

Niki smiled. “No, she looks happy. But you know, we could start on number two tonight…”

My eyebrows shot up. “Yeah?”

She nodded, her eyes glinting with mischief.

A slow grin spread across my face. “Then we’ll put Gracie to bed early, because I’m ready to start on that baby right now.” I wrapped my arms around my beautiful wife, pulling her close.

The only woman I would ever love.

The one who saved me when I was fifteen and she was twelve. I could still see it—the moment she stormed down that filthy alley, fearless and fierce, pulling those older boys off me and leaving them sprawled in the dirt as she took my hand and led me away.

I tightened my hold on her. “You know, the best thing that ever happened to me was when those boys dragged me into that alley and started beating the hell out of me.”

She frowned. “Lyon—”

I cupped her face. “Because if that hadn’t happened, I never would’ve met you.”

Her lips parted slightly, her breath catching.

“I always knew,” I whispered. “From that day on, I knew you were the only one for me. Fate put us together, Niki because it knew we belonged together.”

Her eyes softened, shimmering with emotion. She reached up, threading her fingers through my hair, and whispered back, “I feel like I have loved you forever.”

And as I kissed her, holding her close, I knew—our story was only just beginning.