Page 46 of Paper Flowers (Stonebrook #1)

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

LUKE

I wake to Sienna tapping my shoulder, Shawn is standing beside her.

I look down and Tessa is still asleep on my chest. I look to my left and see Sadie and Dayna asleep as well.

Dayna’s parents aren’t in the living room with us.

The home screen to the Santa Clause is on mute and I’m trying to remember what part I fell asleep at.

“I’m going to take Tessa to bed. I am shocked at how well she knocked out.

She never falls asleep without her paci.

” Sienna says as she reaches down to get her daughter.

She begins to pull her off my chest when suddenly, Tessa holds onto my shirt tighter.

I try to pry her little fingers off, and she opens her eyes slightly.

We both freeze. Her eyes close and she relaxes long enough to release her hold on me.

With her sound asleep in Sienna’s arms, Shawn leads his girls to the guest room. “Night, Luke.”

I stretch my arms out and I roll to my side.

I can’t get enough of this sight before me.

Sitting here for a minute, I admire the sleeping faces next to me.

Dayna is holding Sadie’s hand and there’s a blanket draped over their lap.

I brush a strand of Dayna’s hair out of her face and she starts to wake.

She opens her eyes and blinks a couple times, to adjust her eyes in the glow of the television .

“Your sister just got Tessa and your parents went to bed. I’m going to get going in a few minutes.” The look of disappointment is on her face. I don’t want to leave but I also don’t want to intrude on her time with her parents.

“Can you two stay? I can sleep on the sofa and you two take my room?”

“Baby, if I’m going to stay, you’re sleeping in the same bed. Sadie can sleep between us for one night. If you don’t mind her tossing and turning.”

A huge smile comes across her face and I swear she does a little tap dance with her sock clad feet.

“Come on, Love— let’s go to bed.” I rise to my feet and pick up a sleeping Sadie. Dayna gets up and I hold her hand as we walk to her bedroom.

Dayna doesn’t know I packed an overnight bag for me and Sadie. When she said to bring pajamas so she can be comfortable, I packed a pair of extra clothes for myself as well just in case.

After Dayna pulled off the dozen throw pillows on her bed, I placed Sadie in the middle of the bed. I walked into her en suite bathroom and started changing into my pajamas. Dayna was brushing out her hair and gave me the biggest grin.

“You were going to stay this whole time?”

I laced my arms around her waist and put my chin on her shoulder. Looking at me through the mirror, she twists in my arms so she’s now facing me.

“Well, I was hoping to stay, but I didn’t want to intrude.”

“Luke…” She sighs my name, and that makes my cock twitch.

I cannot be hard right now. I pull her in close by her elastic waistband and kiss her soft pillowy lips.

“Baby, there is a house full of people and my daughter is right on the other side of this door. Do not say my name like that unless you want your parents to hear you moaning it.”

A gasp leaves her mouth, and she quickly closes her lips. She mimics herself locking her lips and hands me the imaginary key.

We finally slipped into bed, the room bathed in soft blue light from the window behind us.

Dayna shifts closer, wrapping an arm around Sadie and pulling her into her chest. Her lips brush against the top of Sadie’s head as she whispers, “I love you, Sweet Girl.” The words are barely audible, a quiet promise in the dark.

Within minutes, Dayna is fast asleep. Peaceful, steady breaths, completely at home in this moment.

Me, on the other hand? Wide awake.

I can’t stop looking at them— my girls. The way Sadie instinctively melts into Dayna’s hold, the way Dayna already loves her like she’s always been hers.

She wants to be a mother— I know that. God, I want to give that to her. Whether it’s bringing a baby into this world together or simply watching her step further into this role with Sadie. She’s already everything a mother should be. Dayna is a natural. If I’m being honest? She already is one.

When Dayna’s mom asked about Juliette, my heart took a plunge.

Even now, hearing her name spoken aloud still hits me in a way I can’t prepare for.

But sitting here— surrounded by Dayna’s family, by people who don’t judge or hesitate— who have embraced me and my daughter as their own, it doesn’t feel as heavy.

If anything, it makes me love them more than I ever thought possible.

They didn’t have to welcome us in. I was married.

I lost my wife. I’m a widower with a young child, carrying all the weight that comes with that.

But they never saw it as baggage. Just as part of who I am.

Yeah, Dayna and I had history, but we were just kids back then.

Life hadn’t thrown its curveball at us yet.

We each learned what loss felt like in our own way, but somehow, here we are— healing, rebuilding, finding something new in what we thought was long gone.

With the sound of their soft, even breaths filling the room, I whisper my love to them, letting it drift into the quiet.

Then, finally, I close my eyes.

A door creaks shut and my eyes blink open.

I glance to my side— Dayna is already awake, staring at the ceiling, her expression unreadable until she feels my gaze on her. She turns, a soft smile stretching across her lips.

“Good morning.” Her voice is warm, gentle— the kind of morning greeting that makes me want to stay in bed forever.

“Morning, Love.” I say as I shift to my side to face her better.

From down the hall, muffled voices carry through the quiet house. I can hear Sadie from down the hall. Her excitement is impossible to miss as she talks to Gwennie, her little footsteps padding toward the kitchen.

“Oh! I love helping make breakfast!” She exclaims, her voice bubbling with excitement.

Then, a couple hurried whispers, followed by hushed shushing.

“We don’t want to wake your parents— I mean your dad and Dayna.” Gwennie corrects herself quickly, but the slip-up lingers.

I feel Dayna stiffen beside me. Her whiskey-colored eyes lock onto mine, something hesitant and searching in them. I reach for her hand under the covers, squeezing it gently as I offer a side smile. “It’s okay, Baby. I know she meant well.”

She exhales, her body relaxing at my reassurance. She presses a soft kiss to my shoulder, her lips lingering for just a second longer than necessary, but who am I to complain?

I reach for my phone on her nightstand, squinting at the time. 6:30 AM.

I let out a groan, tossing my phone back onto the nightstand before shifting back to my side pulling Dayna closer. She curls into me easily, her face nestling against my chest, in a spot where she belongs.

Walking into the living room, I spot Sadie playing at the mat with Tessa, their heads bent together over a pile of toys.

I crouch down beside them, pressing a kiss to Sadie’s forehead and murmuring, “Good morning, princess. ”

Tessa grins up at me, fingers shoved into her mouth, and I tickle her belly lightly.

“Good morning to you, happy girl!” Her giggle is instant, bright and bubbly.

I stand, stretching slightly before making my way toward the kitchen, aiming straight for the Keurig.

As I grab a K-Pod from the drawer, I glance over my shoulder at Sadie, pressing the pod into the machine and setting Dayna’s favorite Disney mug in place.

“You snuck away this morning, Sadie Girl.” She barely looks up from the wooden blocks as she says, “Grandma Gwennie Mae needed my help with breakfast. You know I love helping, Daddy!”

I freeze for just a second— not because of what she said but how she said it.

Grandma Gwennie Mae.

She’s claimed her, made her hers , given her name a little extra sparkle, because that’s just how Sadie loves. Fully. Easily. From the corner of my eye, I see Dayna processing it too, her expression soft, her eyes warm. She meets my gaze, a small, knowing smile playing at her lips.

The sound of two little girls bonding— effortless, natural, wrapped in the comfort of pajamas, feels more like Christmas morning than the day after Thanksgiving.

I think of Nina and William, of seeing them soon, of all the pieces of our family fitting together in a way I never expected.

Somehow, in this moment, everything feels exactly as it should.

After a delicious, laughter-filled breakfast made by Gwennie and Sadie, I gather our things, preparing to head home. Across the room, Dayna smooths out the blankets on her bed, tucking in the edges like she’s done a thousand times before. I step closer, handing her a pillow.

“I was thinking we can take Sadie to the park.” I say, watching as she fluffs it into place.

“Throw the ball around, maybe take a bucket of baseballs for some batting practice at the field? I have a stack of homework I need to grade, so I won’t be able to take her anywhere this weekend.

” Dayna pauses, turning to face me with that easy, knowing smile.

“I’ll pack my overnight bag and I’ll meet you at home in a few hours.”

Home.

The word settles deep in my chest, wrapping around me like something solid, something unshakeable.

I’ve been thinking about asking her to move in.

Hell, I hate when she has to leave. The only reason I haven’t?

This is her home too. She bought it on her own after the divorce, made it hers, made it safe.

If home had a scent? It would be the faint, lingering trace of her strawberry shampoo.

Sadie and I say our goodbyes to Dayna’s family, the warmth of the morning lingering as we step onto the porch. Behind us, Tessa’s wail cuts through the air. I glance back just in time to see her tiny hands reaching for Sadie, her face scrunched in heartbreak, as Sienna holds her in her arms.