“I was only telling the truth about how Cole sat you on his lap earlier.”
“Yeah, right. As if Xan doesn’t do the same.” Silver nudges her playfully and they both break out in laughter.
“You guys are lucky you’ve known your husbands since you were young.” Elsa sighs, taking a sip of her martini.
“You met Aiden when you were young, too,” Kim says.
“Yeah, but I didn’t live with him like you guys did.”
“You’re lucky you didn’t.” Silver sighs. “He was a wanker from a young age. Cole, too. Kim is the only actual lucky one here because Xan was like a ring on her finger since they were in nappies.”
Kim’s face flushes. “That’s not true.”
“Yes, it is. He always stood up for you and even beat Cole and Aiden whenever they bothered you.”
“Well, I guess.”
“You guess?” Silver attacks Kim’s ticklish side until they both break down in giggles.
“Rub it in, would you?” Elsa tears her gaze from them and focuses on me. “How about you, Teal? Don’t you wish you’d met Ronan when he was young?”
“No. Not really. I bel
ieve we met at the right time. Any earlier and it would’ve been off, you know?” My gaze automatically finds his and he winks. I smile back, feeling all sorts of fireworks explode in my chest.
I want him for myself.
As much as I love getting together with the girls and seeing all the kids play with each other, I’m actually selfish about my Ron, and even Remi.
I want my husband’s time for myself. I want to sleep in his arms and have him speak French to me.
I guess it’s time to go home.
25
Silver
“Call me afterwards, okay?” Kim squeezes me in a hug.
“I will.” I kiss her cheek. “Give that to Cecily on my behalf.”
“You say that as if she spends time with me when her daddy is around.”
I smile as I wave at her, then at Teal and Ronan, who are pulling out of the Meet Up.
Aiden left with Elsa, Eli, and Astrid’s twin boys because their parents are still MIA.
Cole straps a sleeping Ava in the baby seat in the back of the car and kisses her adorable cheek.
“Daddy…” she mumbles in her sleep. “Mummy…”
A smile grazes my lips as Cole kisses her forehead before he joins me. I throw a fleeting glance at my messages, then place my phone in my bag.
After putting his seatbelt on, Cole checks mine. It’s become a habit of his. The protectiveness of this man knows no limits. I’m addicted to it, in a way, and I can’t imagine my life without his over-the-top protectiveness. Whenever we’re with him, I completely let go because I know my baby girl and I are completely safe in his company.
He places a hand on my thigh — as usual — while he pulls the car out of the Meet Up.
For a moment in time, I’m lost watching his side profile and the way he’s grown into this absolutely mouth-watering man. Not that he’s ever been young. Cole has been an adult since he was a child. But he’s currently rocking his thirties like no one else. His physique has kept its lean quality, yet he exudes a lethal type of calm that can be seen from the deep green of his eyes.