Page 135 of Your Last First Kiss

ONE MONTH LATER

“Gage!”

He zips down the short hallway on some kind of hoverboard Dillon got him for his birthday and crashes into the wall.

Mari army crawls across the floor toward him, and I suck in a breath as I race to her. Holy crap, I need to babyproof. It’s been a long time since I had a crawler. I scoop her up off the floor and set her back down in the gated safe area of my bedroom. This time I make sure the gate is latched. It’s meant to keep her in and Gage out while I’m doing laundry, but it figures that he would be her favorite person in the world. She drags herself to him every chance she gets.

The front door opens, and Dillon walks through with Kai talking animatedly about The Celtics versus The Hornets. I don’t even know who likes which team anymore since they’re constantly switching back and forth. But I sit at the top of the steps and watch them.

Was it really only a month ago that my life fell apart?

Things are not perfect by any means. Kai still has bursts of anger that seem to come out of nowhere, but now he has the tools to combat them. That’s where they’re coming from. Dillon now takes Kai to his therapy sessions at Dillon’s request.

The time alone in the car on the thirty-minute drive to the therapist’s office is helping them bond, and Kai wasn’t opposed to it.

“Mommy,” an excited voice calls from the bathroom. But it’s a voice that has always called me Penny.

Dillon and Kai look up the stairs at me. The family therapist said it might happen, but I’m still not prepared for it.

Dillon takes the steps two at a time and holds onto my biceps. “It’s okay.”

“Yeah. I know.” My heart’s about to sprint out of my chest. “It’s just that it makes it feel real.”

“Mommy,” Lia calls again.

“It is, Penny. It is real. Trust it.”

I bite my lip at the same time as I pat down my hair. Why am I so stinking nervous? Dillon gives me a gentle nudge and I walk the few steps it takes to get to the bathroom. Lia is standing at the mirror, covered in makeup and a smile that will surely break hearts one day.

“I is so pwetty.” She beams the words to me like sunshine.

Laughter bubbles up my throat. “Yes, sweetie. You are so pretty. But we don’t need quite so much lipstick. This is—” I swallow past the nerves. “This is Mommy’s for work. We can get you your own play set sometime though, okay?”

She shrugs and hops off the stool. “Okay.”

I stand, unblinking, as she dances her cute little booty right out of the room. And then I catch my reflection in the mirror. Leaning in, I look at myself. I really examine every inch of my face.

For so many years, I avoided ever looking, but for some reason, I like what I see when I do it today.

Huh.

I smile, making the crow’s feet at the corners of my eyes more prominent.

And I like them too.

I exit the bathroom with a smile that makes my whole body happy, and Dillon is waiting for me. “You okay?”

“Yeah.” I smile and mean it. “I am.”

He grins and stalks toward me until I’m flush against the wall. His hands land on my face, fingers twisting into my hair. Then his lips crash into mine.

I moan into his mouth. I can’t help it and don’t want to, except Lia is running around and probably smearing lipstick everywhere.

“Landon wiped her face with a baby wipe after she hugged him and got lipstick all over his jeans,” he says, hovering over my lips. “Miller’s coming over tonight.”

“Oh, okay.”

He pulls back but doesn’t release my face.