Move in with me.
Love,
Atlas
As soon as I finish reading the letter, I set it down and wipe my eyes. If this is how much I cry when he asks me to move in with him, I have no idea how I’ll survive a proposal.
Or wedding vows, for that matter.
I pick up my phone and call Atlas over video chat. It rings for ten long seconds, and when Atlas finally answers it, he’s lying on his living room couch. He’s smiling through his obvious exhaustion from being up all night with Josh.
“Hey, beautiful.” His voice is barely awake.
“Hi.” My hand is curled into a fist, and I’m resting my cheek on it, pushing down my huge smile. “How’s Josh feeling?”
“He’s okay,” Atlas says. “He’s sleeping, but I think I stayed up so long, my brain is too overwhelmed to shut off now.” He puts a fist to his mouth and stifles a yawn.
“Atlas.” I say his name sympathetically because he does look absolutely drained. “Do you need me to come over and give you a hug?”
“You mean do I need you to come home and give me a hug?”
I smile when he says that. “Yes. That’s exactly what I meant. Do you need me to come home and give you a hug?”
He nods. “I do, Lily. Come home.”
Chapter Thirty-Five Atlas
“Aren’t you rich?” Brad asks. “Couldn’t you hire people to do this for you?”
“I own two restaurants. I’m not even close to rich. And why would I hire someone when I have you guys?”
“At least we’re going downstairs,” Theo says.
“Take notes from your son, Brad. Silver lining.”
We don’t have much left to move. Lily didn’t need a lot of her stuff since my house is already furnished, so she donated most of it to a local domestic violence shelter. We should have her apartment completely cleared out by this afternoon.
Brad is the only person I know with a truck, so he and Theo have been helping us load the things we can’t fit into our cars. Emerson’s crib, Lily’s living room television, some of the artwork hanging on her walls.
Josh lucked out. He’s at baseball practice, so he didn’t have to help with the move.
I was surprised when he came home a few months ago and told me he had signed up for tryouts. He made the team and has been giving it everything he has. Between Lily and I, we haven’t missed a single game.
I texted our mother his schedule, but so far she hasn’t shown up to a game. She’s only shown up once to the dinners we started having every Tuesday night. I was hoping she would want to be more involved, but I’m not surprised she isn’t. I doubt Josh is surprised, either. We don’t focus too much on what isn’t working out in our lives. We focus on what is, and there’s a lot to be grateful for. The two main things being that I was able to get custody of Josh, and Lily and Emerson are moving in with us. Funny how drastically life can change on a dime.
The Atlas of last year wouldn’t know what to think of the Atlas of this year.
Lily is heading up the stairs right as I reach the bottom of them. She grins and gives me a kiss in passing, then runs up the rest of the steps.
Theo shakes his head. “Still can’t believe you made it this far with her.” He hoists his box up with his knee and then presses his back against the exit door to push it open. He holds it open for me and Brad, but I pause once we’re in the parking garage.
There’s a car that resembles Ryle’s pulling into a parking spot a few spaces away from Brad’s truck.
A sense of dread washes over me. I haven’t had a single interaction with him since that day he attempted to fight me at my restaurant, but that was months ago. I have no idea how much he’s warmed up to the idea of me and Lily, but from the look he’s shooting in my direction, it doesn’t seem like he’s warmed up much.
Someone else is with him. A man gets out of the passenger seat, and from what Lily has told me, it looks like he could be Ryle’s brother-in-law. I’ve met Lily’s mother, and I’ve met Allysa and Rylee, but I’ve never met Marshall.
I walk over to Brad’s truck and load up the box I’m carrying, but I’m watching Ryle’s car the whole time. Theo and Brad head back inside, unaware of Ryle’s presence. Marshall lifts Emerson out of the backseat and closes the door. Ryle remains in the car as Marshall walks Emerson in my direction.
He holds out a hand. “Hey. Atlas, right? I’m Marshall.”
I return his handshake. “Yeah, good to meet you.”
He nods, but when Emerson sees me, Marshall has to clasp a tighter hand around her because she lunges for me. I step forward and take her from him.
“Hey, Emmy. Did you have fun today?”
Marshall watches me with her for a moment, then says, “Be careful. She puked on Ryle twice today.”
“Is she not feeling well?”
“She’s fine, but she’s been with the two of us all day. Both the girls had sugar for breakfast. And snack. And lunch and second snack and…” He waves a dismissive hand. “Lily and Issa are used to it.”
Emerson reaches up and pulls the sunglasses off my head. She tries to put them on her own face, but they’re crooked, so I help her adjust them until she’s wearing them right. She grins at me, and I smile back at her.
Marshall glances over at the car that Ryle’s sitting in, and then back to me. “Sorry he’s not getting out. This is all still a little weird for him. Her moving in with you.”
When Marshall says “her,” he doesn’t mean Lily. He’s looking at Emerson. I nod in understanding, because I do understand. “It’s fine. I can’t imagine this is easy for him.”
