Aflame (Fall Away #4)(81)

“I can’t wait until he’s born.” I groaned, talking about our son. “I’m dying to get back on your bike. I miss the wind.”

Jared leaned down on his elbows, his eyes smirking at me. “Me, too,” he whispered. “We need a date night. And soon.”

I fanned myself harder, thinking about our last date night. Jared and I jumped each other any chance we got, but once in a while we made time for just the two of us to get out for the night away from the house. It usually ended with us in the backseat of his car.

Some things never changed.

The sliding glass door opened behind me again, and I heard Dylan. “Kade, do you want to go swimming?”

I turned around to see Madoc’s son walk off away from her. “Leave me alone,” he snarled. “I don’t hang with girls.”

Her eyes fell, and my heart broke a little. I was about to go to her, but Hunter—Madoc’s other son—came up behind her. “I’ll go swimming with you,” he offered.

She paused and then offered a little smile with a nod, taking one last look toward the hallway where Kade had disappeared before following Hunter back outside.

I knew Lucas was out there with them, so I didn’t worry.

I shook my head at Jared and breathed out a laugh. “You do realize that Hawke, Kade, Hunter, Dylan, and Quinn will all be in high school at the same time, right?” I said, foreseeing a very tumultuous future ahead of us. “For at least two years out of the four?” I reminded him.

Quinn was the oldest at eight. Hawke was a year behind her, and Dylan, Kade, and Hunter were only a year behind him.

“Relax.” He grabbed his jacket and slipped it on. “I don’t think anyone can get in as much trouble as we did.”

Looking at him, I mused about all the years of ups and downs and how much crap we’d both put each other through.

We got into so much trouble.

High school would’ve been more fun for me if I’d met Jared’s challenge sooner, but who knows? Maybe we wouldn’t be here otherwise. I wouldn’t trade any of it, because no matter what happened before or what would come next, I would always choose him.

Jared was my home.

My throat ached as I swallowed. “I’ll love you forever, Jared Trent,” I whispered, my eyes pooling with tears.

He reached out and ran a finger down the computer screen, and I knew he was tracing my face.

“And I’ve loved you forever, Tatum Trent.”



THE END





Dear Reader,

Jared, Tate, Madoc, Fallon, Jaxon, and Juliet represent a piece of who I am. I put so much of my heart into creating them, and they are not imaginary to me. It’s a difficult good-bye, but then I guess most good-byes are.

The characters of the Fall Away series all represent a confused time in our lives when making fast choices is easier than living with them. Now, as adults, we understand that even though adolescence is hard, making mistakes is necessary.

Parents, teachers, and mentors try to keep us on the right track and steer us away from poor decisions, but without those hard lessons, we don’t grow. The Fall Away couples were meant to remind us of that.

My only hope is that you’ve come out of this series knowing that everyone has a story, mistakes are inevitable, and life goes on.

Embrace your imperfections. Their lessons make you better.

None of us are unique in our suffering. But we are unique in our survival.

I am forever grateful that you’ve given me a forum in which to share some of my own life lessons, which I had to learn the hard way, and I cannot tell you how much your words of encouragement have meant to me.

While the journeys of Jared, Tate, Madoc, Fallon, Jax, and Juliet will now continue off the written page, you may have noticed that I left a finger in the book, so that it doesn’t close completely. I may explore their children’s stories someday. There are no plans to do this, but I’m interested in leaving the possibility open.

For now, though, other stories are wanting a life of their own, and I hope you continue to read my work long into the future. The adventures are just beginning.

Thank you for reading these books. Thank you for giving me a chance to be in your lives. And thank you for joining me on this journey.

Love,

Penelope





ACKNOWLEDGMENTS


To my husband and daughter, both of whom sacrificed to see these characters live. Now we can go to Disneyland!

To my support system at New American Library, all of whom put up with my endless questions and work hard to protect my vision for the Fall Away Series. Thank you, Kerry, Isabel, Jessica, and Courtney for your trust, advice, and help.

To Jane Dystel at Dystel & Goderich Literary Management, who found me, and thank goodness for that! You’re always working, and I always feel important. Thanks to you, Miriam, and Mike for staying on top of everything and taking care of me.

To my street team, the House of PenDragon, who are a wonderful group of women—and one guy—who hold one another up and create a community of friendship and fun times. Thank you for helping me on this book!

To Eden Butler, Lisa Pantano Kane, Ing Cruz, Jessica Sotelo, and Marilyn Medina, who are all available at the drop of a hat to look at a scene or provide quick emergency feedback. Thank you for walking with me through this process and being honest.