“Everything,” she admitted. “The way I feel about you. The baby. Kian. Sydney. Your mother. All of it.”
He waited. Tachina closed her eyes and forced the words from her. It was all or nothing at this point. She might as well get everything off her chest and be honest.
“I pushed you away because…because I’m in love with you and I didn’t know what to do with that.”
The shock on his face was instant. His eyes softened as he closed the gap between them, allowing her to feel his warmth.
“Tachina—”
“I’m scared,” she interjected. She hated how her voice trembled, but her emotions were consuming her. “I’m scared of loving you because I don’t want to be abandoned. I don’t know how I would survive if you chose her. I don’t want to raise this baby and Kian alone. It terrified me to think that she could have taken you from me.”
Her vision blurred. She blinked fast, refusing to let the tears fall.
Vic’s expression shattered into something vulnerable. She’d never seen him look like this before. It revealed a mix of his fears and affections. He reached up and slowly cupped her cheek. His thumb brushed away a tear that still fell from her eyelid.
“You love me?” he repeated. It was as if he needed her to say it again in order for him to believe it.
“I do,” she whispered.
His forehead touched hers. His voice dropped low, and it sent a tremor through her body.
“I love you, too, Tachina,” he said.
Her stomach clenched at the sound of those three little words leaving his mouth. Another single tear escaped despite her fight against it. His thumb caught that one, too.
“I love you,” he repeated. “And I’m not going anywhere. I will protect you, Kian, and the new baby. I don’t care who tries to come between us, they will never succeed.”
She thought of his mother.
“Even your mother?” she said.
His jaw hardened, and he wrapped his arm around her, securing her to him.
“I’ve already confronted my mother. I told her that she needed to choose. If she wants to be in my life, Kian’s life—our new child’s life—then she needs to understand where my loyalty is.”
“What?” Her mouth parted. “When did you speak with your mother?”
“After you went back to work. I called her from the car.” He caressed her cheek and sighed. “I am not playing these games with them anymore. You and the kids are all that matter to me.”
“I’m assuming Sydney told her about the baby, or did you tell her?” she asked.
“Sydney told her.”
Tachina wasn’t surprised at all. She exhaled shakily and told him what had happened in the restaurant bathroom. How Sydney had overheard her share the news with her potential client.
“I don’t want you having to choose between me and your family,” she said.
“You aren’t the one making me choose,” he murmured. “My mother had been forced to make a decision. She caused this. Not you. Once I told her that I was not interested in getting back with Sydney, she should have left well enough alone.”
Heat spread through her. She swallowed hard, unable to believe what she was hearing, but Vic didn’t stop there.
“When we go to the mayor’s dinner, I won’t be just showing up with you. We’ll go as a couple. Everyone will know exactly who you are to me. I will claim you before the world if I have to.”
“Vic,” she breathed.
He leaned in and kissed her lips. One that held a promise.It was the kind of kiss that proved she mattered to him, and it made her feel safe in loving him.
When he drew back, his hand slid down her arm, then he entwined their fingers together.