Page 27

STELLA

6 Months Later

“Mommy, look at this one!” Harper shouts, running toward me with her hand waving in the air.

We decided to take a vacation while Greyson is in his off-season. Although it’s more like a few weeks off before training camp starts up. Either way, I took full advantage of the time. We decided to come stay with my friend Thea for the week. This is my second time visiting her here, although when I came to see her last year with our friend Addison, Nana had offered to watch Harper one last time since we were moving to Tampa the following month. At the time, Thea was convinced she was going to clean up and sell her grandma’s house. However, at some point she decided to keep it and move here full time.

One look around the quiet beach and I don’t blame her one bit.

The only other house in sight is a mile down the beach, and Thea has become close friends with the woman who lives there, Kat. Other than her and her boyfriend, Jackson, there isn’t a soul to be found on the beach.

Which has led to Harper finding all sorts of seashells. My daughter crashes into me, almost shoving the shiny purple shell in my face.

“Oo, that’s a pretty one. Why don’t you add it to your bucket?” I point at the pink sand pail beside me. She immediately grabs it, adding the latest one to the mix.

“Miss Kat says there’s more that way,” Harper tells me, flinging her arm in the direction of Kat and Jackson’s house. I bite back my grumble and Greyson chuckles behind me. When we sat down in the beach chairs five minutes ago, content to watch Harper from here, I told him I wasn’t going to move for at least an hour.

“We don’t mind walking with her, as long as you’re comfortable with it,” Kat says, finally catching up with her boyfriend trailing behind her.

“Oh, you don’t have to do that,” I tell her, but Kat just grins.

“I know. I want to.”

“She’s collecting some too, Mama! She’s gonna make a picture with them,” Harper tells me, her eyes wide, and I can see the idea sparking behind her own eyes to do the same. I glance at Kat again.

“As long as you’re sure.”

“I am,” Kat says with a nod and Harper takes off, her little bucket swinging wildly as she takes off without looking back.

“You behave for them!” I call out after her.

Greyson takes my hand and squeezes. “She’s a perfect angel.”

I level him with an unamused look. “She literally drew on one of your jerseys three weeks ago.”

Grey shrugs. “It was an old jersey.”

I shake my head but laugh with him. Sitting back, I rest my head against the back of the chair and soak up the sun.

After a few minutes of just listening to the waves, Thea breaks the silence.

“There’s a fresh margarita pitcher in the fridge!” She comes to a stop beside me, the ice in her insulated cup clashing right next to me. “Where’d everyone go?”

I point to Harper’s, Kat’s, and Jackson’s retreating forms. “To find more seashells.”

Thea looks after them before glancing at me and Grey, then back to them.

“Yeah, there’s no way I’m gonna stay here and be the third wheel to the two of you while he’s making fuck me eyes to the side of your head,” Thea says, starting down the path to follow them. “Just don’t fuck in the hot tub. That’s practically begging for an infection.”

I can’t even respond before she starts jogging away.

Laughing, I turn to Greyson, expecting him to share my embarrassment or amusement, only to find that Thea was right. He doesn’t bother trying to hide the desire.

My heart skips when he pushes to his feet, and I hold his gaze as he moves to stand in front of me. Bending down, he cages me in, supporting his weight with his hands on the arms of my chair.

“Those are definitely fuck me eyes,” I say, my voice raspier than it was moments ago.

“And we have the house to ourselves for the time being,” he responds with a smirk. “Better not waste a single second of this beautiful opportunity.”

Before I can think of a response, Grey grabs me. One second, the world is upright and normal. The next second, I’m practically being tossed over his shoulder. His perfectly round ass is in my face, and I brace my hands against his lower back so I don’t bounce around.

“Greyson!” I shout, but he doesn’t stop. One arm bands around my thighs to keep me in place, while his other hand lands on my ass.

Grey carries me as if I weigh nothing. I’ve never thought much about my weight, but I’m not tiny. I have curves and some lingering pregnancy weight that never went away after Harper. But when I’m in his arms, he can manhandle me and never show any sign that it’s too much.

If anything, his ability to lift and move me however he wants makes me feel sexy.

He moves through the house with ease, making it to our room without wasting a single second. Kicking the door shut behind him, he crosses the room and drops me on the bed.

I bounce a little, laughing as I stare up at him.

“I could have walked,” I tell him.

“You could have,” he agrees. He reaches out, carefully grabbing my ankle and dragging me to the end of the bed so he can step between my thighs. “Carrying you was a better idea, though.”

My eyes drag down his form, biting my lip and wishing he weren’t wearing a shirt, before dropping to his crotch. The swim trunks he has on do absolutely nothing to hide just how turned on he is.

His hand trails up my leg, pushing my thighs wider for him.

“I’ve been dying to get you out of this,” he growls when he reaches my bathing suit bottoms.

“What are you waiting for then?” I tease. Pushing to rest on my elbow, my smile widens when his gaze drops to my breasts.

His hands leave me, and I bite my bottom lip as he steps away and pulls his shirt off. My mouth opens to sass again, but the raised skin and shiny ink on his chest make me pause.

Sitting all the way up, I point at him.

“What’s that?” I ask, finding him already watching me.

Tears prick at the edges of my eyes as I take in the fresh ink on him. Just below the constellation outline that makes up my zodiac sign is another one.

“It didn’t feel right not having both my girls together,” he tells me.

My touch hovers over his skin and I smile up at him.

“You added Harper?” I ask, even though he pretty much just said that.

Greyson lifts his hand, pushing a stray curl that escaped my bun behind my ear.

“You two are the most important people in my life. It only made sense to have her added.”

He bends down, kissing me sweetly, and I melt into him.

“I love you, Stella. I love our daughter and the life we’re building together. I don’t need a North Star to guide me home because I have the two of you lighting my way back.”

A tear finally falls and I cling to him. A million agreeing thoughts run through my head, but no words form. I kiss him desperately, hoping to put enough emotion into it for him to understand. When I break away to catch my breath, I rest my forehead against his.

He pushes me to lie back down and slowly removes the rest of our clothes. As he kisses every inch of my body, all I can think about is how I feel about him.

For years I thought I only needed Harper. That I would be happy because I had her and that would be enough for me. Having Greyson back shows me just how foolish I was for ever believing that I would be okay without him.

“Move in with us,” I blurt out and Greyson pauses, his lips hovering just above my breasts.

He peers up at me, his head tilting as he watches me closely.

“Say that again?”

Swallowing thickly, I hold his gaze and do as he asks.

“Move in with us. You’re already there most of the time. You have a key.” I start listing off all the reasons why he should so I can prove that I’ve thought this through. “Harper loves having you with us and is always sad when you don’t come back to our place after an away game. Plus, I love you, so?—”

His kiss cuts off my rambling.

“You had me at move in with us.”

His words soothe any worry I had remaining. He kisses me again, and I finally realize how whole I feel.

Greyson is the love of my life. Years apart didn’t change that. I’m finally able to notice that I haven’t been worried about him leaving us in a long time.

Some part of me has always known that Greyson and I were meant to be. We took the long way around, hitting more than our fair share of bumps. But we made it back to each other.

I stare up at the man I love and smile.