Page 38 of Until the End (The Lost Letters #3)

Carson

R eaching over the middle console, I grab Ginny’s hand.

She squeezes mine between both of hers. The gesture eases a bit of the worry building in my stomach.

She’s been oddly quiet today. When I asked if she was okay, she smiled at me and promised she was fine.

She even made a joke about truly meaning it instead of saying it as a subtle hint of discontent.

While I believed her, there still seemed to be something on her mind that she wasn’t sharing with me. She will when she’s ready, I suppose, but the thought doesn’t stop me from being concerned.

The smell of garlic and pasta makes my stomach growl.

The bags of takeout we picked up from La Mensa are sitting on the floorboard at Ginny’s feet.

Mom invited us over for dinner, and we offered to get food for everyone.

Noah, his wife, Lilly, and their two girls are coming, too.

I didn’t want Mom to have to make a shit ton of food for all of us.

I’d rather buy it than have her spend the whole day cooking in order to feed us .

Ginny giggles at the ungodly sounds coming from my stomach, and I pinch her thigh in retaliation. “Don’t make fun of a starving man. You never know what he’ll eat to satiate his needs.” I glance her way and relish in the blush creeping up Ginny’s face.

“That threat isn’t the deterrent you want it to be.”

“I hope it’s not a deterrent at all, gorgeous. Trust that I’d eat you every day for the rest of my life and it still wouldn’t be enough.”

“Carson.” Ginny presses her palms to her cheeks as she giggles. “You can’t say stuff like that when we’re about to have dinner with your parents.”

“Why not?”

“Because I’d rather not go in there with red cheeks.”

“I could make your other cheeks red instead.”

“My other…? Carson!” Ginny’s hand snaps out to smack my arm while I laugh.

She tries to keep an indignant expression on her face, but her grin keeps peeking through. “You’re incorrigible.”

“That’s well established.” I squeeze her bare thigh, reveling in how soft her skin is.

Her smile stays for the rest of the drive to my mom and dad’s, making me feel about ten feet tall. Being able to cheer her up when her thoughts are threatening to take over will never get old.

We pull into Mom and Dad’s driveway a minute later.

Noah and the girls are already here. I can’t wait to talk to Nellie about how her classes are going.

Despite only being about an hour from Sonoma, she hasn’t had much time to come home.

Noah told me she’s joined a bunch of clubs and is busier than ever.

I grab the large bag of food and hold Ginny’s hand as we walk into my childhood home. My parents have lived in the same house since I was born, and while the inside has gone through a few different upgrades, it always brings a sense of comfort that’s hard to describe.

“It’s about time you showed up. We’re starving.

” Dad’s voice booms through the living room.

He grins, softening his dark eyes that have always held an overabundance of love for us.

He can sometimes come across as a bit harsh, with his sharp features and dark hair, when in fact, he’s actually a giant teddy bear on the inside.

In his arms is Noah’s six-year-old daughter, Mirabelle. She looks just like her mom, with dark brown hair and brown eyes. She has one arm wrapped around Dad’s shoulders, and her other hand is perched on her hip. “Yeah, I’m wasting away over here.”

Dad cracks up at that and places Mira on her feet. She runs over to me, and I scoop her up with my free arm. “We better get this growing girl some sustenance.”

“That’s right. Look at my muscles!” Mira flexes her tiny arms, and we all coo over her nonexistent biceps.

Dad helps me with the food bags while Ginny and Mirabelle chat about what she’s been up to lately. School seems to be her biggest activity, with gymnastics being a close second.

Mom, Noah, Lilly, and Nellie are sitting at the table, and their conversation comes to a halt as we enter the room.

Mom stands to give Ginny a hug first before turning to me. “Thank you for bringing dinner over.”

“Of course. It was mostly selfish because Ginny and I have been craving breadsticks all week.” I set Mira down so she can fill a plate.

“I hope you got extra. I’ve been craving them, too.

It’s the only negative thing I’ve found about Greensboro so far,” Nellie says as she comes to give me a hug.

She’s got her blonde hair pulled back into a low ponytail, and her blue eyes are sparkling with happiness.

I’m still taken aback at how much she looks like Noah.

“While that’s a crappy negative, I’m glad it’s the only one.”

We dish up the food in the kitchen and then sit around the table.

Our conversation is mostly focused on Nellie and how school is going.

Based on her enthusiasm alone, I’d say she’s thriving there.

I can only imagine the relief Noah and Lilly must be feeling.

We were all worried Nellie wouldn’t be interested in socializing, but it sounds like she’s fallen into a group of students with similar interests as hers and has been loving it.

“Carson, are you still helping with Teddy’s renovation?” Lilly asks.

“Yeah. We’re finishing the punch list now.”

“Punching isn’t nice, Uncle Carson,” Mira says with a grave voice.

I try hard not to laugh. “You’re right, kiddo, punching isn’t nice. In construction, we call the final list of things to do before the renovation is complete a punch list. We’re not hitting or hurting anyone.”

“Oh, okay. That’s good.”

“Lottie was really grateful for your help with the designs,” Ginny says to Mom.

Mom chuckles. “I was happy to help, and boy, did they need it. Who would’ve thought the two of them would have such horrible design sense?”

“I was surprised Lottie wasn’t better at it, given Aunt Quinn is a painter,” Ginny says.

“There’s a huge difference between being creative and designing a house. Not to mention how many options there are to create the design,” I point out.

“So true. I couldn’t paint a picture to save my life, but I love picking out paint for a house,” Mom says.

Ginny looks at me. “Maybe we should think about painting our house. It might be kind of fun to change things up a little.”

Her use of our makes my heart stutter. I’ve come to love that house, but the idea of redecorating to better suit us both is exactly what we need. “We can start looking for inspiration tonight.”

“Who’s ready for dessert?” Mom asks, standing from the table to start gathering plates. Nellie, Dad, and I help her with the dishes while Noah and Mirabelle dish up the carrot cake Mom made. I look around for Lilly and Ginny but don’t see them anywhere.

I make some decaf coffee for Ginny and me, placing our cups at our spots at the table. “Where did the girls go?” I ask my brother.

He shrugs. “Who knows? Upstairs, maybe.” I don’t bother asking him why they’d go up there. He doesn’t seem concerned in the slightest.

We’ve just started in on dessert when they finally come back. They both have odd expressions on their faces as they stand side by side in front of us.

I don’t have the patience to wait for them to explain. “What’s going on?”

“We’ve got news,” Lilly starts. They both start giggling, and I look at Noah for help. His eyes are narrowed at his wife as if he’s starting to figure out what they’ve done. I still have no clue, and I’m about to come unglued.

“We’re pregnant!” Ginny finally squeals.

My jaw drops. “What?” I stand and stride directly to Ginny. “Are you serious?”

She looks up at me as multiple emotions flash through her eyes. “Yeah. We just took tests.”

I don’t hesitate. I kiss the living hell out of my girl.

For the past several months, I’d wondered if having a baby just wasn’t in the cards for us. We’d never taken any sort of precautions, and Ginny’s cycle was always regular. I was okay with any outcome, but I can’t deny that having a baby with my best friend ignites something in my soul.

This is what I’ve always dreamed of having. It’s hard to believe it’s not still a fantasy.

“You’ve made me so happy, Goose,” I whisper against her mouth.

Ginny’s grin is a mile wide. “Right back atcha.”

Noah and Lilly are in a similar embrace, but theirs includes Nellie and Mira. I can’t believe we’re going to have newborns at the same time.

Mom and Dad join us in celebrating, giving hugs out left and right. Once the excitement dies down a little, we settle back at the table.

“How in the world did this come about?” Mom asks.

Ginny takes a sip of her coffee. “Since I knew I’d see you guys tonight, I asked Lilly if she’d buy a test for me.

I’ve had my suspicions for the past week, and when my period didn’t show up yesterday, I figured it was time to find out for sure.

While most people in town wouldn’t rat me out, I couldn’t take a chance on something this big, so I thought if Lilly got the test, it would keep the suspicion down. ”

“I was shocked at the coincidence because I’d literally just bought a box this afternoon. I’d been feeling off for a little while, too, and wanted to rule out being pregnant. Turns out, it is the reason,” Lilly jokes.

Noah gently pinches Lilly’s side. “I can’t believe you didn’t say anything.”

“I just wanted to be sure first,” she counters.

“This is the best day,” Mom gushes. “I can’t believe both of my babies are old enough to have babies of their own.”

“You do realize that train left the station like seventeen years ago, right?” Noah raises an eyebrow .

She waves her hand in the air. “Oh, hush, you. Let me have this moment.”

I wrap my arm around Ginny’s shoulders and pull her into my side. After pressing a kiss to the side of her head, I lean down to whisper in her ear. “Thank you for making every single dream of mine come true.”

“I’m only returning the favor.”