Page 74 of One Little Kiss

He leans down and kisses my lips gently, but chastely, before pushing off the bed and pulling on some boxers. “I’ll get our little guy and we’ll start breakfast. I don’t leave for about an hour, so take some time for yourself. I’ll call you when the food’s ready.”

“You cook?”

He pauses in the doorway to flash a brilliant smile. “I can be very domestic for the right lady, Winnie. Lucky you.” He winks, and my entire body blushes.

“Okay, then,” I mutter to an empty room long after he’s left. I watch him enter Weston’s room on the monitor. Even through a six-inch screen, I can see the love he has for my little brother. I realize with a start that he’s wearing a similar expression to the one he uses with me.

“No one sticks around you for long.”Claire’s words enter my consciousness, but for some reason, they don’t have the same barbed edge as they normally do.

Glancing back down at the screen as Colton lifts Wes into his arms, I finally see the possibilities of a future.

* * *

Wes runs up and down the hallway leading from the family room to the foyer. Over and over again he runs to the door, wags his arms like he’s an airplane, then flies back to me on the sofa. It takes a few minutes to realize he’s searching for Colton.

“Hey, Wes?”

Turning in place, he smiles at me, and my heart melts. He’s like a different kid here, and guilt threatens to eat me alive. I couldn’t make him this happy or at ease on my own.

“Are you looking for Colton?” His eyes light up like the Fourth of July as he runs to the door again. “Hey, buddy. Colton had to go away for a couple of days, remember? He’ll be back on Thursday.”

“Coto. Lub Coto.”

“You love Colton?” I ask through a lump in my throat.

“Yup,” he replies happily. “Yup, lub Coto.”

“Th-That’s good, Wes. He loves you, too.”

With bright silver blue eyes, he nods. “Yup. Yup. Yup.” A second later, I’ve lost him to a train table in the corner of the family room that showed up at some point during my last shift.

A knock at the front door has us both freezing in place, and before I can react, I hear the door open, followed by a masculine voice.

“Winnie? It’s just me, Halton. I wasn’t sure if knocking would freak you out. Is it okay if I come in?”

Jumping from the sofa, I stare down at my sweatpants and disheveled T-shirt. With no time to change, I do my best to make myself presentable as I walk toward the hall. Peering around the corner, I find him standing in the doorway, tucking a package under his arm.

“Oh, yeah. Of course, come in. Come in. Sorry. I wasn’t expecting anyone.”

Halton chuckles as he pushes the door open to allow his wife, Rylan, to enter ahead of him.

“One thing you should know about the Westbrooks is you can always count on company. Especially if someone knows you’re home alone.” Rylan smirks. “It’s how they do things.”

Rylan is a beautiful woman with dark chestnut hair and bright green eyes that exude kindness.

“Oh, did Colton ask you to stop by?”

“No, but we wanted to check in. And Halton had something for Wes.”

“I hope that’s okay,” he adds quietly. “When I drew you and Colt, I didn’t know about Wes. We don’t like to leave anyone out.” He holds up a smaller canvas wrapped in brown paper. “Is it okay if I give it to him?”

My hand drifts to my wrist, but I control my movements even as my heart tries to escape my chest.

“You made something. For him?”

Halton pinches the back of his neck. It’s a move I’ve seen Colton do, too.

“They really are very similar.” Rylan laughs, obviously noticing the same thing.