The Presence of Grace (Love and Loss #2)(64)

But eventually I convinced him we needed to leave the house and get some fresh air.

We went to a movie.

We went out to dinner.

We went on a champagne cruise around the marinas and coastline, all the while Devon’s hands never left my skin. He was either holding my hand, grabbing my waist, or pulling me into his side with a strong arm around my shoulders. He wanted me near and I wanted the same thing.

At night he made love to me, telling me over and over how much he loved me, how glad he was we’d found each other again, and how he couldn’t see his life without me in it. He held me close, spooning me as we slept, and made love again to me in the morning.

We video chatted with the kids every day, and I loved hearing about how much fun they were having with Evie and Nate, how exciting it was to be at Disney again, and all the rides they enjoyed. What made me smile the most though was how they seemed just as excited to talk to me as they did to Devon. They told me they missed me, and I with tears threatening told them how much I missed them too.

Talking to them made me emotional and on the second day I broke down.

“What wrong, babe?” Devon asked as soon as we hung up.

“I’m not sure. I just miss seeing their faces and talking to them, I guess. I miss the way Jaxy irritates Ruby and how Ruby rolls her eyes at you,” I said through a mixture of laughter and cries.

“Ah, baby, I miss them too. They’ll be home soon.”

He said the word home like it included me, and deep down I hoped it would.



The day the kids were supposed to fly home was lazy. Devon went in to work, kissing me soundly before he left, grumbling about how the last night of an empty house had passed, but I remained in his bed, soaking up one of my last free days before I would have to go back to work at the school. I picked up a book I’d been trying to read all week, but hadn’t because Devon wouldn’t let me get a minute to myself. I smiled at the memory of him ripping the book from my hands and throwing it across the room before rolling me onto my back and keeping me otherwise occupied.

Without shame or regret, I stayed in his bed reading for hours.

I knew I’d have to get up eventually, but those hours were precious. The plan was for Devon to pick the kids up at the airport when he got off work. After their first flight, both the kids felt comfortable flying home on their own, so all the adults figured it would be okay to save Evie the time and the money, and let them fly as unaccompanied minors.

My phone rang an hour before their flight was to come in. I smiled when I saw it was Devon.

“Hey, you on your way to the airport?”

“Not quite,” he said, sounding frustrated.

“What’s wrong?”

“My mom was sick yesterday, and now my dad is sick, so there’s no one here to watch the store. Usually, I’d just close up early and call it a day, but the computer system crashed and the software company’s customer service line is only open for a few more hours.”

I sat up from the bed and started looking for my shoes.

“I’ll go get the kids, it’s no problem.”

“I appreciate that, but when Evie took them to the airport she gave them my name so no one else can get them now. I called the airline and checked. Only the person who was listed can pick them up, and I have to show ID.”

“Oh, well, that sucks for us at the moment, but I understand. It’s a good call on their part.”

“Yeah.”

“How can I help?”

“Do you think you could meet me at the airport? I’ll get the kids off the plane, then you can take them home while I go back to the store to try and get the computer system put back together.”

“Of course. I’ll leave in just a minute.”

Devon let out a sigh of relief.

“You know, I’ve done this for three years by myself, and I love you for a lot of reasons, but right now I love you for just being there. You’ll never know how much your help and support means to me.”

“Hopefully you’ll never have to do it by yourself again,” I said softly, letting all my insecurities take a back seat. It made me indescribably happy that Devon called me when he had a problem and wanted me to help him fix it. It had been a long time since I’d felt like someone’s partner, or like someone needed me.

“Not if I have anything to do about it,” he replied. “I love you, baby. I’ll meet you at the baggage claim at the airport.”

“Okay, I love you too.”



When I saw Devon round the corner by the baggage claim, my face lit up. Then, from behind him, Jaxy came running toward me, arms outstretched and smile wide.

“Grace!” he exclaimed as he lunged for me. “I got to sit in the cockpit!” His arms wrapped around my waist and his face burrowed into my belly. I leaned down and squeezed him hard, thankful to be able to hug him again. He leaned back, but just his head, and looked up at me. “They said maybe next time I could help fly the plane!”

I laughed, but chose to go along with it. “Sounds amazing!”

“He kept asking them a million questions about flying so I think they just told him that to make him stop,” Ruby said, trying to sound annoyed, but I could tell otherwise when she reached out and ruffled his hair.

Ruby stepped up next to me and wrapped one arm around my back, giving me a side hug. I wrapped my one arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer, pressing my cheek against the top of her head.