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41

JAMIE

All it took was one look at Blakely as she slid into the SUV outside the stadium to know something was wrong.

I’ve never seen her eyes so red and puffy, not once. She tries to hide her face behind a curtain of hair, and I think that worries me more than anything. Every day we spend together, we grow closer, and I happily fall more in love with her. We’ve made so much progress, and her not letting me see her upset has me thinking back over the last week to see if I fucked up somewhere.

“I’m sorry we were late,” I murmur, waiting for the neighbourhood gate to open.

Nate leans forward in his seat behind me. “Don’t be mad, please. It was my fault. The st?—”

“The stubborn game wouldn’t save, so we had to finish another round,” I finish for him before he blurts out our surprise.

Blakely keeps her head turned and eyes out the window. Her fingers fidget in her lap, alternating between plucking at the lint on her leggings and tapping her knee.

“It’s okay.”

I meet Nate’s stare in the rear-view mirror and frown when he appears just as worried as I know I do.

The gate swings open, and I drive through while rubbing a hand down her thigh. “We put in an order for dinner before we left. Tacos with extra hot sauce and churros. I even convinced the cook to add extra spice into the meat for you.”

“Thank you.”

My worry shifts into alarm at her expressionless tone.

“We figured you deserved a break after prepping food all day.”

“It wasn’t that bad. I like prepping.”

“Jamie brought me to the thrift shop so I could donate my old gear too. And we ran a few drills at the field. I even caught a thirty-yard pass,” Nate boasts.

“It would have been longer than that, but my arm doesn’t compare to Jax’s,” I add.

Nate shrugs. “It’s pretty good for a receiver, I think.”

“Thanks, buddy.”

Blakely remains silent for a beat longer, and only when I pull into the driveway does she tuck her hair behind her ear and offer Nate a phony smile.

“I’m proud of you, Nate.”

Her brother’s smile is as real as ever. “Thanks, Lake.”

A chasm opens in my chest the longer she avoids my eyes and steps outside. Nate lingers, eyeing me funny in the mirror.

“Did you do something wrong?”

“I don’t think so. She was fine earlier.”

Her texts sure made it seem like it, anyway. Maybe I misread her teasing and pissed her off with mine.

“I’m not an expert in women or anything, but it sure seems like you did something wrong.”

“Is your sister the type of woman not to tell you when you’ve done something to upset her, though?”

“Fair point. Maybe she just had a bad day.”

“Yeah, you could be right. Let’s see if we can make it better, then, yeah?”

He all but dives out of the car. I chuckle, following and locking the doors. Blakely’s left the house door cracked open. Nate slips in first.

“Don’t go in your room yet!” he shouts, quickly kicking his shoes off.

Blakely’s shoes are perfectly tucked on the rack, like always. It’s such a simple thing, but having her stuff out and next to mine is so satisfying. It reiterates that she feels comfortable here.

“Better hurry, then,” she calls from upstairs.

Nate and I haul ass after her. We’ve been planning this surprise since his last football game, and I don’t want to risk everything not going perfectly.

Blakely’s waiting at our bedroom door with her eyes closed and arms hanging limply at her sides. When I reach her, I’m immediately sliding an arm around her waist and kissing her temple.

“Missed you today, baby.”

She keeps her eyes closed but leans into my hold, inhaling deeply. “I missed you too.”

“Did you also miss me?” Nate asks, slipping past us to open the door.

Finally, she shows me those pretty green eyes. “I missed you both.”

Nate puffs his chest and helps himself to our bedroom. I can’t do anything but grin at both his eagerness and comfortableness. Two months ago, he never would have been so confident walking inside my bedroom without explicit permission. Hell, he wouldn’t have even sat on the couch unless I asked him to.

“Come on! I’m dying here. You guys can cuddle and kiss and whatever after,” he groans.

“After what?” Blakely asks, intrigue sparking.

I tap the underside of her chin, and she tips it back on instinct so I can steal a kiss. Only taking one feels like a crime, but I’ll fix that later. Nate will wind up grabbing the surprises off the bed and shoving them at her if we don’t get a move on .

“I’ve got something to ask you,” I whisper, keeping her close. “To ask both of you.”

“Just come here, Lake!”

She tears her eyes from mine, and I release her. Nate’s already bounding in place beside the bed. He waves at the jerseys on the mattress and grins.

“What are those?” she asks, her voice so brittle it cracks.

I stand behind her and hold her hips, propping my chin on her head. “We’re a family, Blakely.”

“There’s one for each of us. And look, they’re all Bateman jerseys. Number one is obviously for you, then two is for Jamie, and three is me. Get it? One, two, three Batemans,” Nate explains excitedly, snagging the jersey with the number three below the Bateman and shoving it over his head. “Put yours on, Lake.”

I gently turn Blakely in my arms, my heart thudding as her face comes into view. The sheen in her eyes threatens to choke me up.

“Just hold on a sec, bud. I’ve got to ask you both something first,” I murmur, moving forward with the plan I didn’t discuss with him first.

Blakely doesn’t say a word, but I don’t expect her to. The emotion in her expression speaks for itself. Nate comes closer and lingers at her side, touching her arm.

“I want you to live here for real. Not just because you’re supposed to. This has become a home for you as much as it has for me, and it should be official. I don’t want to wake up one morning and know that either one of you is leaving,” I say, relieved I haven’t butchered the speech I spent all morning memorizing. “As far as I’m concerned, the contract is null and void. Once it ends, nothing is going to change. Not unless you decide otherwise.”

Blakely stares at me, a tear leaking from the corner of her eye. Disbelief ripples across her features, but before I have a chance to convince her, a body is hitting mine with the force of a bus .

Nate hugs me tight, burying his face in my shoulder. I hold him back, keeping my eyes on Blakely. Something shifts in her eyes as she takes in the image in front of her. I’m unable to tell if it’s devastation or just a mega load of emotions hitting her at all at once, and that sets off mental alarms.

“You’d really keep us for real?” Nate asks softly.

I rub the top of his head. “Yeah, buddy. That’s my plan.”

“This is incredible!” He pulls out of my arms and rushes toward his sister. “Thank you, Lake.”

Her lip wobbles as she bundles him close and rests her cheek against his ear. “For what?”

“For everything. You did so much for us, and now look what we have.”

“I wish I had done more,” she whispers, squeezing her eyes shut.

Tears track down her cheeks, and I have to force myself not to move to her and wipe them away.

“You did everything ,” he says firmly.

It’s what she deserves to hear. The one thing I know she’s been needing to have confirmed by him.

They hug for a few more moments until Nate drops his arms and grins at the both of us. He tugs at the shoulders of his jersey and spins to show the back.

“What do you think?”

I clap his arm. “You look like a Bateman.”

Blakely stares at me, eyes wide and lips pursed. Her cheeks flush, and when she squishes her features, almost in pain, I freeze.

Nate stares at her, having the same reaction as I am. He’s quicker to push past it. “Uh . . . do you want to talk to Jamie? Alone, maybe?”

“That’s a good idea,” I blurt out. “How about you watch for dinner?”

“Alright. Yeah, I’ll do that. See ya!”

He’s gone in a blink, closing the door behind him. Once it’s just me and Blakely, all I have to do is open my arms, and she’s taking her place inside of them.

The first sob that escapes her rattles my ribs, but the second rips them straight from my chest and plunges one into my heart. I lift her off the floor, and she wraps her legs around my waist immediately, clutching my back.

Carrying her to the bed, I rub along her spine, softly shushing her. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that. I’m sorry, baby.”

“Don’t,” she whimpers, shaking her head where it lies against my shoulder. “Don’t take it back.”

“Okay. Okay, I won’t.”

“I wish I could give you more.”

I sit us on the mattress and lean against the headboard. She stays on my lap, hiding her face as her words sink in. It wouldn’t be acceptable to tell her that she’s talking crazy, so instead, I try and rework my thoughts.

“There is nothing I need from you that I haven’t already gotten. I have you, don’t I? I have another brother who feels a lot like he was always supposed to be in my life. Both of you do. It took less than two months for me to know that I want you for keeps. Shouldn’t that say something?”

“Nate loves you, Jamie. If you ended up changing your mind, he’d never get over it. After losing so many people . . . I worry he wouldn’t let anyone in ever again. And that would break me.”

Gently, I press my hands to her cheeks and pull her from where she’s hidden in my chest. Even with her eyes red and cheeks wet, she’s the most beautiful person I’ve ever seen. Toss in a sniffling nose, and she’s something out of a dream.

“I will never break you,” I swear, pressing our noses together. “I’ve jumped in with two feet and am ready to either sink or swim. Of course, I’d prefer to swim, but that’s up to you.”

“What if I did something that hurt you? Something that broke your trust? Would you break me then?”

I push past my initial confusion and brush my mouth across hers. “Crush me beneath your boot, and I’ll find a way to glue myself back together and fight for you. I’m your husband, Blakely. I don’t fucking care that it wasn’t real in the beginning. It is now.”

She doesn’t reply with words.

When her lips meet mine, pushing with a fierceness I feel all the way in my bones, words are useless, anyway. I’m more than okay with communicating like this for the rest of time.