Tell Me It’s Right (Sweetspire #1)

Epilogue

LIAM

Gracie is practically vibrating in her chair. We’ve been sitting here for hours, but it hasn’t dampened her spirits in the slightest. She keeps her palms pressed together between her knees, one leg bouncing vigorously against the ground, her lips folded so tightly together they’re white.

“Sweetheart, take a breath, or you’re going to be admitted next.”

Her round eyes snap to mine. “I am breathing.”

I can’t hide my smirk, and I throw my arm over the back of her chair. As far as hospital waiting rooms go, I suppose they could be more uncomfortable.

But not by much.

Gracie bites her lip, that leg going back into overdrive. “I hope everything’s going okay.”

I grip her knee and trace circles with my thumb. “I think C-sections generally take less than an hour, right? So they’re probably done already, and now it’ll be until Keava feels up to having visitors. Probably wanted some time with just the three of them first.”

“What if it’s not actually a girl? You know, sometimes they get that wrong.” She stares in horror at the pink It’s a Girl! balloon tied to the care basket she made for Keava.

I shrug. “Then he’ll learn early on it’s okay if he likes pink too. Or I can run to the gift shop for a new one.”

Her shoulders relax a bit at that, and it takes everything in me to hold back my laughter. This girl.

She goes back to staring down the hallway, where she’s hoping someone will appear with news, and I go back to staring at her. Her freckles have been making an appearance as we’ve transitioned into June and started spending more time on the shore than in the city. They brighten her whole face, especially when she wears her hair back like this.

I subtly slide the hand not on her into my pocket for the millionth time today. I’d been hoping to ask today, but now it seems like the wrong time. I don’t want to take away from Keava and Leo’s moment, and I want to make sure it’s special for Gracie.

I run my fingers along the grooves of the key. We’ve been renting separate apartments in the city for the past six months, but now that my lease is up, and Gracie feels ready to quit her job—which would take her apartment with it—it feels like the right time to find somewhere new…together.

We can still use my apartment here for the days we spend on the shore, but even with her things in the closet and drawers, I know it must feel more like my space than hers. A new apartment in the city though, it’s a chance for something to feel like ours.

She’s been talking for months about everything she doesn’t like about her current apartment, what she’d rather have. Finding someplace with all her specifications was no easy feat, but the moment it became available, I couldn’t risk losing it. Hopefully that wasn’t a bad call.

I press my thumb into the sharp point of the key until it hurts, forcing my mind back to the room.

Gracie gasps, her hand flying out to grip my arm, as a nurse rounds the corner and makes eye contact with us. She smiles at us and nods. “You can come on back now.”

Gracie squeals and does a little dance that I think is purely involuntary.

I wave her off when she goes for the basket. “I’ve got it.”

She squeals again and wraps an arm around mine, all but dragging me down the hall in her haste. She starts dabbing at her cheeks with the back of her hand before we even make it to the room.

“Oh, look! It’s your auntie Gracie. That’s Auntie Gracie!” Keava coos to the baby in her arms. Leo stands beside her, one hand on her head, the other on his daughter.

Gracie covers her mouth with her hands and takes a few tentative steps forward.

“How are you doing, Keava?” I ask from the door.

She gives me a tired smile. “Good. Thanks for asking.”

“How’s our godchild?”

Leo grins up at me, his eyes looking a little watery. “Perfect.”

“Your parents said they’re on their way,” I add. “Stuck in traffic.”

“Did you decide on a name?” asks Gracie.

Keava beams. “Rowan. Rowan Isla Collins.”

“Oh, I love it. Rowan, you and I are going to be very good friends. I’ve already called first dibs on babysitting. Me and your uncle Liam. That’s right. That’s right.”

She glances at me over her shoulder, her cheeks going a little red as everyone laughs at her babytalk, and I can’t take my eyes off her.

I know she said uncle Liam because Leo and I are practically brothers. But there’s a very different circumstance that would also give me that title.

I think I’ve always known it was only a matter of time, but in this moment, my future has never been clearer.