My mother did a weird little fist pump and yelled, “Yeah! Eat our dust!”
Everyone laughed as we made our way into the building. I glanced over at Reed, who winked at me and gave me a thumbs-up.
How did I get so lucky with him?
I wanted to ask him what he’d said to Noah when they were alone, but the faster I forgot about what had happened, the better.
I wasn’t the least bit shocked when we got in there, and Reed pulled me off to the side to give me the strategy on how we were going to take everyone down.
“If you have to, use the I’m-pregnant card on your mother, father, and your brother only. Anyone else is not going to care.”
I nodded and said, “Got it.”
Reed went over the hand signals, and we even made up our own little handshake.
“What? Do you have a damn team cheer also?” Tyler said as he walked by.
Meg was smiling from ear to ear, and my heart just broke for her. She should be dancing at her wedding right now. I hit Tyler on the shoulder, and Reed and I took off in different directions.
I wasn’t sure how long we had played, but Reed and I made one hell of a good team. When we won four games in a row, Sissy declared that she and her friend Ryan were officially quitting. My parents had given up after two games. Now, it was down to Reed and me, Tyler and Meg, and Tyler’s friend and his wife.
I ran around a corner, and Tyler was standing there.
I almost panicked but played it cool. “Oh my God! I just felt the baby move!” I yelled out.
Tyler dropped his gun down to his side and said, “What? I want to feel.”
As soon as he took a step closer, I started shooting the shit out of him. I let out an evil laugh and took off running.
Reed and I met up in our meeting place, both of us fighting to catch our breath.
“They’re dropping like flies,” Reed said between pants.
Reed and Tyler were really getting into this. I smiled, just thinking of how Reed was kicking Ty’s ass.
Oh, how I love my husband.
“Ty’s friend’s wife said she was bored, so they stopped playing, and now, the only other couple is Tyler and Meg,” I said.
Reed gave me a quick peck on the lips and said, “Let’s get these bastards!”
I gave him a funny look, shrugged, and said, “Okay! Let’s do this! Brother or not, he’s got to go down.”
And down he went. With my little stunt I’d pulled about feeling the baby move, it pretty much sealed the deal for us. When we won the last game, Reed and I might have celebrated a little too much.
As we walked out of laser tag, my parents were making arrangements for everyone to go to dinner.
“Mr. and Mrs. Will, I’ve already made dinner arrangements for all of us,” Reed said.
I smiled at him. I wanted to attack him and cover him in kisses. Reed looked at me and smiled as my heart thumped in my chest.
Meg walked up to me and hooked her arm through mine as we walked toward the rental car.
“I’m so sorry, Meg. Maybe if I had said something, he wouldn’t have touched you.”
She gave me a weak smile and said, “No, Courtney. Don’t say that. None of this is your fault or my fault. Please don’t ever think that, okay? I’m just ready to move on, and knowing he will be forever out of my life is amazing. He’s finally going to get what he deserves.”
I couldn’t even begin to understand how it had been for Meg to see Noah day in and day out, having him over for dinners, parties, vacations. Yuck.
By the time we got back to the hotel, I was spent. I looked into the mirror and frowned. I look like shit. My hair was pulled up in a sloppy ponytail, and I was dressed like I’d just rolled out of bed. I could see the pain buried in my eyes, and I closed them in hopes that when I opened them, everything with Noah would just be a dream.
The moment I felt Reed’s arms wrap around me, the love just flowed from his body into mine.
“You’re so beautiful,” he whispered against my neck.
I let out a giggle and opened my eyes to see him staring at me in the mirror. “You must be looking at a different reflection than me,” I said with a weak smile.
He pulled his head back while he looked my body up and down in the mirror and slowly shook his head. “The reflection I see is the most amazing woman I’ve ever met, one who has such an incredible passion for life and love. I see the most beautiful woman I’ve ever laid my eyes on. I see the mother of my children, the woman I’m going to spend the rest of my life with, and the woman who—for some crazy reason—took a chance on love with me. I also see the luckiest man on earth standing next to her.”
I bit down on my lower lip and closed my eyes as I sank back into his body. “I love you, Reed. I knew you would come for me. I knew you wouldn’t let him hurt me again.”
He turned me around and held on to me while I cried. I wanted to forget everything that had happened, but I couldn’t until I talked to him about it.
“He was going to touch me, and there was no way I could let him. I was pleading with him to stop while I was praying for you to find me and make him stop.”
Reed sucked in a breath of air. “I’m sorry it happened in the first place, baby. I’m so sorry.”
I placed my hands on the sides of his face. “Don’t say you’re sorry. Just tell me he is forever gone from my life.”
He placed his hands on mine and smiled. “I promise you, he will never bother you ever again. I promise you, baby.”
When I saw the tear roll down his cheek, my heart exploded. I’d never loved anyone like I loved Reed, and I knew I never would.
As I showered and got dressed for dinner, I was beginning to long for Texas. New York no longer felt like home. Texas was home now, and all I wanted to do was sit on my front porch, crochet my blanket, and drink some tea as I watched my sexier-than-hell cowboy work on a fence or do some cowboy shit like that.
“What are you thinking about?” Reed asked as he pulled the rental car up to the valet parking at the restaurant.
I shrugged my shoulders. “I’m just sad that Tyler’s wedding was ruined.”
Reed gave me a smile that caused my breath to stop. He quickly placed his hand behind my neck and pulled me in for a kiss. “Ya never know…this might just turn out to be one of the best days of Tyler’s and Meg’s lives.”
“Yeah. Maybe.”
We got out of the car and made our way into the restaurant.
Reed walked up to the hostess and said, “Hi. Reed Moore. I called earlier.”