Page 107 of Burning Embers
Rachel leans up and nibbles my jaw. “If she’s anything like you, I don’t doubt it.” I tense beside her. “Don’t, Olly. You’re a good man.” She caresses my face. Her fingers work up and into my scalp, my eyes drifting closed.
“But I’m not perfect. I need to tell you something about my past. And I’ll understand if this changes things between us.”
Her hand falls away from my scalp and into my lap where she grips my hand. “I doubt it,” she replies, sounding so sure of herself.
I take a deep breath.
And then I tell her about the night of the fire—how I never put out my father’s cigarette.
“Look at me?” I do as she asks, completely exposed and bare at this moment. “You’re a good man. You were aboy. It wasn’t your job to be the parent, it was theirs. Oliver, you knit hats for a baby ward, for Christ’s sake. You give self-defence classes to show women how to protect themselves. You saved my daughter.” Her words are determined and passionate. She cups my face. “I don’t care if I have to tell you every day what a good man you are, I will until you believe it. Olly. You. Are. Not. A. Monster.”
And then she kisses me.
With every stroke of her tongue, hope seeps in, the fear no longer holding me prisoner, and I know it’s partly to do with this exceptional woman who I already know I want to spend the rest of my life proving I’m worthy of her love.
Chapter Sixty-Five
OLLY
The room is almost finished, and I’m doubting myself. But then, I know if we’re going to make this work, I want Molly to have a space to call her own—and not just at weekends.
Simon was the one who gave me the idea, so here we are, at my house, making the finishing touches.
“I haven’t told Felicity or Sophie yet, but we’re thinking of adopting,” says Simon.
I drop the paintbrush into the tray and look up. He’s focused on the stencil he’s painting but pauses to look over his shoulder. “We want to come home—start a family,” he says.
I’m a little humbled he would share this with me first instead of his best friends. “I think it’s awesome. man. But why haven’t you told them yet?”
He stops what he’s doing and climbs back down the ladder. “I don’t know. It’s a long process, and we might not even be eligible. I wanted to hear what you thought—Soph mentioned you were fostered as a child.”
I smile. “I was. My foster parentsaremy parents. And I think it’s great, there are a lot of children out there looking for a forever home.”
“So, you don’t think it’s wrong to have same-sex parents?”
I let out a rough laugh. “Hell no. The fact you’re even worried shows you are serious about this. If you didn’t have concerns or questions, then I’d be worried. But what I do know is you’ll make a great dad. Your sexual orientation doesn’t determine what a good parent makes.”
“I’m ready to settle down, and we’ve talked about it for the past two years. Seeing Sophie with Selene has solidified it for me—this is what I want.”
I take him by the shoulder and hold his stare. “Then you go for it, man. When will you be moving back?”
He smirks. “I already have. I’m renting a short term let, while we wait for our house to be finalised with the solicitors. Ryan is tying up everything else in New York, and he’ll be leaving and coming over with the dogs next week.”
“Damn, man. I can’t wait to see Sophie’s face when she hears you’re coming back.”
“Same, and it’ll be nice being closer to my god-daughter.”
“Yeah, they grow up so fast, don’t they?”
He laughs. “They do, I mean look at Molly-Mae.”
“She’s a sweetheart.” I get back to my stencil. I want this finished before Rachel gets here.
“You love her like a father, don’t you?”
I do. I couldn’t love her more if she were my own. “Yes, hence this,” I say, waving around the room.
“Well, if this doesn’t seal the deal and have Rachel’s baby makers ready for more, I don’t know what will.”
