“Ah . . . this is where I should say goodnight.” Henley looked at Viv. “You know how to reach me.”
“I’m gonna reach you in about two seconds if you don’t get the fuck out of here,” I said, stepping closer to him.
The bodyguard put himself between me and pretty boy, rushing him into a waiting car.
“Kane,” Viv said again.
I turned and took in her pained expression. “Hey.”
“What are you doing here?”
“I’m not walking out. You told me not to walk out on you ever again and I won’t. I love you, Viv. Not a little. I love you with everything I am. I can’t go back to life before you. I fucked up and I’m sorry. I should’ve told you about Cori.”
The corners of her mouth turned down sadly.
“It hurt so much, finding out you were torn between me and her, Kane. I don’t know if I can get past that.”
“It wasn’t like that. Not even close. I was never torn between you and her. For a few hours, maybe, I thought I had to choose between you and Brooklyn. Cori had me wondering if I was supposed to think of Brooklyn’s happiness instead of my own.”
Viv’s brow furrowed. “Because you being with me would make Brooklyn unhappy?”
“No.” I breathed out a cloud of cold winter air. “It makes Cori unhappy, but she fucked with my head enough to make me wonder if I was being a shitty father. I was a shitty father for so long that I doubted myself.”
She nodded slightly.
“And by the way,” I said, crossing my arms over my chest, “what the fuck did Justin Bieber mean when he mentioned me kicking his ass for being friendly to you?”
“Henley?” She smiled at the Bieber reference. “That weekend I had to fly to L.A. he tried to hit on me. I told him you’d kick his ass if you knew.”
“Hell yeah, I would’ve. But I didn’t get a chance, did I? Because you never told me, Viv.”
She opened her mouth and closed it again. “This is different.”
I moved closer to her. “Like hell.”
“Kane . . .”
“Viv.”
A few seconds of silence passed.
“I love you,” I said. “I’ve never had this before, what we’ve got, and I’m not losing it. I’ll tell Cori no more visits at their house.”
Viv met my eyes solemnly. “You’ll tell her you want time with Brooklyn without her present. And if she says no, we’ll petition the court for it.”
A sliver of hope glowed warm in my chest. “Okay, that’s fair. I’ll tell her that.”
“And you’ll share stuff with me from now on. Not leave me in the dark.”
“I’ll never leave you in the dark again.”
Her eyes softened. “And you won’t let me sleep alone ever again.”
I put my hands on her hips, the soft, familiar curves of her making my blood pump. “Never again.”
“I love you,” she said, resting her palms on my chest. “I don’t think I’ll ever be able to love anyone else.”
I leaned my forehead against hers. “I hope not, because I’ll fucking castrate any man you look twice at.”
She laughed softly. “So romantic, Kane.”
“I’m your unpolished gem, remember?”
“You are.”
“So let’s go inside and I’ll remind you just how unpolished I am in bed.”
“I may need multiple reminders.”
I pulled her in close. “Done.”
Four months later
THERE WAS SOMETHING SEXY ABOUT the pale pink paint specks in Kane’s beard. He saw me admiring him and arched his brows.
“See something you like?”
“Maybe.”
“Maybe?” He smacked my ass and scooped his hands behind my legs, picking me up.
I laughed uncontrollably and even snorted in a most unladylike way as he tickled me. Brooklyn came running into the kitchen carrying a pink-paint covered paintbrush.
“You ready for more paint?” Kane asked her, setting my feet back on the floor.