Page 127 of When Sky Breaks

Oh, that will be a fun conversation. Remember when you had to go up to school for a parent-teacher conference when Trek was failing chemistry? That’s his baby mama.

Foster rubs between his eyebrows before scrutinizing Trek over the fire. We’re all silent except for the crackling of the logs and twigs in the pit.

Finally, a slow smile creeps across his face. The breath I was caging slides out in relief.

“If your mother was here, she’d be having a field day with this. A grandpa, huh?”

Trek claps his hands and points at me. “I knew springing this on him while he was stoned would go over better.”

Foster rolls his eyes. “I’m not that far gone, although this turn in conversation has sobered me right up. I expect you to bring her over soon. And I mean soon, not when she’s about to go into labor. You hear me?”

Trek salutes him. “Loud and clear. But you’ll love her. She’s shy, but you seem to have a way of making people feel comfortable around you. She’s as nervous as me about this whole thing.”

My gaze meets August’s while Trek and Foster banter back and forth about the merits of Lamaze courses.

“What are you thinking?” he asks, his finger tracing circles over mine, his soft gray eyes reflecting the moon high in the sky.

“That you three are all I really need. But that I also need to call my mom and close that chapter. I want some peace, you know? I won’t be able to have it until I do this.”

“Want me to be there when you call her?”

I slip from my chair and slide onto August’s lap, him wrapping his arms around my waist and mine folding around his shoulders. “Yes. It won’t be easy, and I don’t know what to expect.”

Soon, I’ll tell Foster about my plans. He’ll understand and be there for me as well. That’s just the man he is. Dependable. Like the one currently tangling his fingers into the hair at the back of my head.

August leans up for a kiss and Trek tosses something at our heads. “Get a room, you two.”

We laugh and kiss anyway, the men behind us groaning, and again, something hits me in the head.

“What in the—a marshmallow?” I toss it back at Trek.

He catches it in his mouth, a cheesy grin morphing as he chews. “Excuse us. We got the munchies.”

I grin, the glow of happiness seeping into all my pores.

August murmurs in my ear, squeezing my waist. “So this is what family feels like.”

It’s not a question. It’s a subtle understanding resting in your bones. A warm, cozy place in front of a hearth, the feeling of coming home after a long journey. The open arms of a loved one welcoming you in.

“It sure is.”

CHAPTER FIFTY-TWO

august

“Okay. I’m going to do it. I’ll just put it on speakerphone so you can hear,” Sky says, wringing her hands as she paces her room.

On her twentieth jerky stride, I grab her wrist and pull her down next to me on her bed. “Are you sure you’re ready? You’re wearing a hole in the carpet.”

Her big blue eyes are as wide as a deer caught in headlights. She’s about as skittish as one, too. “I have to. I’m tired of wondering. Here’s my chance to figure it out so I can put it to rest.”

I tuck a wayward strand of hair behind her ear, trying to soothe her nerves. “What will you do if she wants to meet?”

Sky freezes. “I haven’t thought about that.”

“You wouldn’t have to go alone or at all if you didn’t want to. I’d come with you.”

She melts, wrapping her arms around my neck. “I’d like that. If I decide to. I’m not sure.”