“Mom wants you both to know she has a date on Friday.”
“A date?” they both ask at once.
“A second date,” Harper totally blows me in.
Maddox walks into the room. “Tessa has a date?”
“A second date,” all three of my children say at once, followed by both boys asking, “Who?”
“Lucas Links?” Maddox asks.
“How did you know?” Harper asks Maddox.
“He’s a god man. He cares about her. The way he goes behind her back to fix issues—”
“You all do realize I’m right here, correct?” I interject.
“Friday night’s out, though. We’re coming home to teach Piper how to play in the dirt.”
“Piper will not be playing in the dirt. She’s a princess. Aren’t you Piper?” Maddox chuckles and tickles her chin.
Piper grunts. He does it again, and she makes the same sound.
“Her first laugh. Her first real laugh,” Maddox boasts. “Again, little princess, for Daddy.” He tickles her chin, and she grunts again.
Matthew chuckles. “Thinking she has gas.”
All of my children are laughing and cooing over Piper, and it’s … beautiful. I don’t know why I start crying, but I do.
“Mom?”
“Oh, Mom. Don’t cry. Please don’t cry.”
I shake my head. “Happy,” is all I can manage.
And then Harper starts crying. “We’re glad you’re happy, Mom.”
I swallow. “You all make me happy.”
“Of course we do.” CJ rolls his eyes.
“Mom, we love you. We’re glad to see an emotion. Happy or sad, we’ll take it.”
“I’m sorry.” I sniff. “I just. I miss him. But he wants me—”
“To live,” Matthew says.
“To feel,” CJ adds.
“To smile.” Maddox squeezes my shoulder.
“To love again.” Harper hugs me.
“Mom, Lucas and you can make us dinner. Better invite his kids, too,” CJ decides.
“Okay.”
“You better ask him first.” Maddox rubs my shoulder and laughs.