Page 65 of Where You Belong
I don’t remember a time in my life when I was ever this happy. Even on the bad days, Corbin is next to me, reminding me we’re in it together.
The judge signed off on my divorce a few days before Christmas. I never went into marriage with the thought of it ending in divorce, but the judge agreed after hearing the charges against Atlas, and he awarded me full custody of Huxton.
His trial is set for this summer, and if he’s convicted, he could spend up to ten years in prison. One day, I’ll be faced with the reality of him walking free, but until then, I refuse to let him continue to run my life or let me live in fear.
Life with Corbin only seems to get better with every day that passes.
We recently agreed we were ready to take our relationship a step further. When my lease was up at the end of this summer, Huxton and I would move in with him on the farm. Until then, we stayed busy on the weekend working on home renovation projects, using the time to get everything done before moving in.
The spring weather in Iowa is beautiful, with fields of flowers in full bloom and clear blue skies overhead. Madelyn gifted us with a photo session for Christmas. I wanted pictures of the three of us hung up on our walls.
“Oh, Huxie, you look so handsome.” I cup my hand over my mouth when he comes running toward me. He’s dressed in a light-blue polo and denim jeans, with a pair of boots matching Corbin’s. He stuck his hand in his pocket, mimicking Corbin. He flashes me a wink and wiggles his brows.
“Oh my goodness, who taught you that?”
“Corbin.” He grins, snapping his fingers and shooting me a finger gun.
Madelyn, who’s holding her camera around her neck, slaps her hand over her mouth, attempting to contain her laughter.
“Oh Lord, help me. I’m in trouble with the two of them.”
Madelyn chuckles. Corbin pushes the door open, stepping out onto the deck, and jogs down the stairs. He’s wearing a pair of denim jeans, snug in all the right places, and a navy polo.
Something about the sight of Corbin in jeans and boots made it difficult to breathe. I’m reminded how much trouble I’m truly in when he notices me staring.
“You keep looking at me like that, and this photo session is about to be cut short.”
My gaze darts over to him before bouncing to Madelyn’s, who pursues her lips, pretending she didn’t hear him. She nods her head, letting me know she had.
Corbin shrugs. “We can call it baby makin’ practice.”
“Baby making?” Huxton asks, squinting his eyes at Corbin in confusion.
“All right, time for pictures.” I cut off the conversation before it goes any further. “Madelyn, do you have an idea of where you want us?”
We follow Madelyn toward the back of the property. I swear, the longer we’ve been in a relationship, the more he continues to come out of his shell.
When he’s sure Huxton and Madelyn aren’t looking, he reaches his hand over and grips my ass.
“Ahem, what do you think you’re doing?”
“Appreciating your ass in these pants. Am I not allowed to return the favor?”
When his fingers travel lower, I clear my throat and shoo his hand away before glaring at him, warning him to behave.
He presses his lips together, smothering a laugh. He raises his hand in the air in mock surrender. He may behave now, but I know better than to think he won’t try again at some point.
Madelyn runs through her ideas for pictures. She snaps a few toward the back of the property, overlooking the field lining the trees. We move back near the barn, taking a few there, too.
After about twenty minutes, Huxton gets antsy and asks if he can get back to riding his bike. He loves it out here, where he has all the space a boy needs to roam and play.
“Just a few more pictures left, buddy.” Madelyn urges him to stand beside Corbin before stepping back to snap a few more.
“Haelynn,” Corbin says, dropping his hand from my waist.
I peer over, expecting him to say something, when he reaches for my hand and kneels on the ground in front of me.
It takes me a second before my mind lands on what’s happening. I faintly hear the sound of Madelyn snapping pictures in the background as my hand flies to my mouth.