P.S. You’re Intolerable (The Harder They Fall)

IT DIDN’T TAKE MUCH arm-twisting from Catherine to convince me to invite my friends and family over for dinner before the Rockford grand opening tonight. Since putting a period at the end of the William van der Wyck tale, I was feeling a lot more sociable.

I wanted to show off my family’s home and let my friends get to know my girls better since they were a permanent part of my life.

Though, now that I had laid eyes on Catherine in the dress, I was on the verge of saying fuck everyone and tossing them out.

As it was, she walked into the kitchen where West, Elise, Luca, Saoirse, and Miles were gathered, and I grabbed her by the waist and steered her right back out into the powder room around the corner.

She laughed the whole way, grasping my shoulders so she didn’t fall.

As if I’d let her.

I kicked the door shut behind us and held her in front of me at arm’s length. “Holy shit,” I uttered. “You are stunning, sweetheart. So fucking stunning.”

I’d seen her in this dress once in a dressing room, but this time, it was even better. I could look at her freely, as lasciviously as I wanted—and I wanted.

The black silk draped over her lovingly, highlighting all the best parts of her. Her breasts were pushed up high and the fabric draped low, showing the top half of her round, creamy globes. It fell loose around her middle, flaring out over the sexy, exaggerated curves of her hips and ass.

Taking her hands, I spun her to face the mirror and splayed my hand over her soft stomach. I crowded her against the counter, looking at us together. Nothing alike, but our contrasts complemented beautifully.

“Elliot,” she breathed. “You look stunning too.”

I slid my hand up her front to rest at the base of her throat. “I don’t think you understand how in love with you I am.”

“I think I do.” Her shining lips curved into a smile. “I’m right here with you, you know.”

Dipping my head, I kissed a line up the curve of her neck. “We have to get out there, don’t we?”

“We do. Our friends probably think you’re having your way with me right now.”

I raised a brow. “If they already think it, then I should—” I started to raise her dress, but she swatted me away with a laugh, earning a groan from me. “All right, sweetheart. Let’s go entertain.”

Dinner was easy and stress-free. Freddie was babysitting Joey upstairs, and as much as I loved my baby girl, I had to admit having adult time was a nice change.

After we ate, Catherine went upstairs to feed Joey before we left for the party while the rest of us cleaned up. There wasn’t much to clean since we’d ordered in, but there were a few dishes and utensils.

Elise held up a plastic container. “Recycle, or do you keep these for spare storage?”

“You can recycle.” I opened a cabinet to show her the stack of take-out containers we’d kept. “We have a collection.”

Her eyes flared. “Oh my god. Elliot! You have to cook for your girlfriend. Weston and I are terrible cooks, but he’s marginally better, so he insists on doing most of the cooking. Catherine deserves that treatment too.”

“She does deserve it, you’re right.” I lifted a shoulder, unbothered. “We do cook sometimes, but we have a baby. It’s easier to do takeout most nights.”

West cleared his throat. “You said ‘we’ have a baby.”

I nodded, glancing at each of my stunned friends. “I did. She’s mine now.”

Luca was the first to move, clapping me on the shoulder. “Things you don’t see coming are often the best kind of surprises.” Then he slipped his arm around Saoirse to demonstrate how true his statement was.

Elise tugged on my elbow. “Think Kit needs help with the baby?”

I looked down at my sister, who seemed like she might be looking for a moment in private with me more than anything.

“She might. Let’s go check.”

Elise and I found Catherine in Joey’s new nursery. She wasn’t sleeping in here full time yet, but she took all her naps in her big-girl crib and we were slowly thinking about moving her at night.

When Catherine was ready.

“Hi, you two,” Catherine greeted us. She’d finished feeding Joey and had her on the changing table. “I was just getting this stinky girl all cleaned up.”

“Oh, can I do that?” Elise asked. “Well, Elliot and me? I want to see my brother in action.”

Catherine’s brows rose in surprise. “Sure you can. I’m warning you, though, it’s kinda gross up in here.”

Elise patted my back. “Elliot can handle it.”

I narrowed my eyes at her. “I thought you wanted to help.”

“I’ll give you encouragement.”

Catherine snorted a laugh. “I think this is a brother-sister thing. I’ll leave the two of you to work out who gets disgusting diaper duty.”

Catherine left us to it, disappearing downstairs to join everyone else. Elise made no move to change Joey’s diaper, but it didn’t bother me to be the one to do it. It was all part of taking care of my girl, and she was always so damn adorable when I had her on the changing pad. She blew raspberries and kicked her feet the entire way through, happy as a clam.

“Should we put on your jammies, little girl?” With my hand on her soft little belly, I reached in the drawer beneath her and pulled out some one-piece cotton footie pajamas. It was cute as hell, with a bunny face on the butt. “You’re going to wear your bunnies tonight, Joey-Girl. We love the bunnies, don’t we?”

Elise sighed as she watched. “She really is yours, isn’t she, El?”

I looked at my sister, whose cheeks were flushed, eyes shiny with unshed tears. “Don’t cry, El.”

She blinked rapidly and dragged her index finger beneath her eyes. “You were always so good at taking care of me, so I knew you’d be a good dad, but I didn’t think you wanted it.”

“I didn’t.” I picked up Joey’s foot and slid it into the leg hole then did the other side. “Not until Catherine and Joey.”

“She’s so cute.” Elise patted Joey’s tummy and slid her hand over the top of her head. “I think it will be easy for me to fall in love with her.”

“I promise you it will be.”

Once I had her all dressed, Elise asked if she could hold her, and I told her of course. My sister carefully scooped my girl into her arms, softly telling Joey her name. Seeing Elise like that, happily holding my girl, settled another part of me that had been off-kilter most of my life.

Elise swayed and rhythmically rubbed Joey’s back while Joey looked her over, deciding what to think of her. After less than a minute, Joey came to a decision, her head slowly descending onto Elise’s shoulder, her little body going lax.

“Oh god,” Elise whispered. “I’m a goner already.”

I chuckled through the tightness in my throat. “See?”

“Can I be Aunt Elise now?”

“Yeah.” I hit my chest to clear away the knot. “That’d be all right with me.”

Understanding passed between my sister and me. We’d gone through hell, and this was our other side. The crumbled foundation of our adolescence hadn’t defeated us. We’d both found our own version of a new beginning, and it was our good fucking luck we got to be side by side to witness each other’s happiness.

The Levys’ days were looking up.

Elise kissed Joey’s head and sighed. “I think you should marry her, El.”

“I’m going to, El. Don’t worry about that.”

“Oh yeah? When’s that going to happen?”

I leaned down, kissed my girl, then whispered in my sister’s ear, “You’ll just have to wait and see.”