Alison stirs beside me, her long lashes fluttering before her lids rise. It takes her a second to realize where she is and watching that realization spatter across her features is priceless.
A slow smile stretches across her lips that beg to be kissed. “Morning,” she says sleepily.
“Morning, beautiful.”
She stretches and starts to pull away and I just sink her in even closer, if that’s possible. She understands my sentiment because she shakes her head, but relaxes, her head on my chest this time. “I could get used to this.”
“You better get used to this,” I reply, my tone sharper than I intended.
She gazes up at me, cocking a brow, and I shrug.
“What? You think you’ll be out of bed before me in the morning?” I ask, a tease in my tone.
Before she can reply, the door flies open and Huxley leaps from the doorway, through the air, and lands on the foot of the bed. “Morning!” he almost shouts before jumping on top of his mother and I.
“Hux!” she says. “Easy, kiddo. It’s early.”
As he shimmies himself on top of the blankets between us, I catch her eye over the top of his head.
“And you’re going to have to start knocking,” she laughs.
“I can’t help it,” he says, giggling. “I have so much energy.”
“What have you been into this morning? What time is it?” she asks.
“I don’t know, but Uncle Linc made waffles with chocolate syrup this morning. Have you ever had that, Mom?”
Laughing, I roll onto my side so I can see them both. This would’ve seemed like the oddest picture a year ago but now, it’s perfect.
“It’s because he’s really a little kid smashed into that big body,” I say.
“I can see that,” Hux replies, considering my words, making us laugh.
“You know, Huxley,” I say, tapping him on the stomach. “We have a few things to discuss today.”
“We do?”
“We do. We were going to have a conversation about what we were going to do with this mom of yours. Remember?” I glance at Alison and watch her blush.
“Oh, yeah,” he says, looking at me. “What are we gonna do with her?”
“Hey, now!” Alison shoves at Huxley. “Be nice to your mother.”
Hux doesn’t glance her way, just watches me, his little eyes filled with anticipation.
“I’m going to have to move to Atlanta in a couple of months,” I tell him, watching a wave of worry storm through his irises. “I have a lot of work to do there.”
He looks at the ceiling, then the wall, then out the window. Anywhere but at me.
“I can’t be in Atlanta if you guys are here,” I whisper.
His head jerks towards me, a smile tickling the corner of his lips.
“I’ll worry about you both, and I won’t get anything done. It’ll be hard for me to see you guys, and then she’ll stop singing while she cooks, and then everything will go down the drain.”
“So,” he starts, his voice shaky, “what are we going to do? If you leave, she’ll cry, and I’ve already told you I can’t deal with that. Plus, you promised you wouldn’t make her cry.”
I know Alison is staring at me. I can feel her gaze heavy on my features, but I keep mine fixed on her son.
“I did promise you that. That’s why I propose you both come to Atlanta with me.”
“Really?”
Nodding, I reach across him and take Alison’s extended hand. She squeezes it and holds on for dear life.
“Really, Hux. It would mean a new school for you, new friends. You’d be away from your grandparents a lot of the time and I know that would be tough for you. If you go with me, that would mean we would live together. Our lives would change. Do you understand all that?”
He doesn’t look away this time. He doesn’t smile either. He just searches my face for a lot longer than I expect.
My heart starts thumping because I thought I had this in the bag. I was sure I did. But the look on his face, the blank canvas, makes me think I overestimated myself.
“Barrett?” he asks finally.
“Yeah?”
“Are you going to marry my mom?”
I force a swallow and look at Alison. She wipes a tear at the corner of her eye and opens her mouth to speak, but nothing comes out.
My heart swells. The peace and love in this room is such a different feeling than I’ve ever felt, even with my own family. This gorgeous woman and her son support me and love me, even when I mess up and even when I might not deserve it.
I’ll do anything in my power to ensure they’re mine forever.
“Would that be okay with you, Hux?” I ask. “If I married your mom one day?”
“I’d really like that.” His words are heavy, pressed around a lump in his throat. “I think that would be really great, actually.”
Alison squeezes my hand and brings it to her mouth, planting a soft kiss against my knuckles.
“I’ll have to talk to her about that and hope she agrees,” I wink, “but if I have your blessing, that’s a step in the right direction.”
He leans over and wraps his arms around my neck, knocking the wind right out of me. Before I can respond, he leans away.