The Right Move (Windy City, #2)

by Liz Tomforde

“I want to go back to the city where it’s just you and me in our home.”

Daily update—I’m in love with your brother.

Best daily update I’ve ever received.

“Why are you learning sign?”

“Because they’re your family and you’re mine, and the fact you even have to ask is mind-blowing to me. Learning to communicate with your family is the bare minimum, Ind.”

“And because I love you and when I tell your dad that, I’ll be the one to say it.”

“I’ll always take care of you.”

“And I love coming home to you.”

Ryan’s stunning smile sparkles. “Read with me?”

“God.” My head falls back. “Talk dirty to me, why don’t you.”

“What’s this one about?” he asks, handing it off.

“A mafia boss cuts a deal with another mafia boss by using his daughter for payment. Marriage of convenience. Normal stuff.”

“How else would you get to live a thousand lives in the span of only one? The beauty of fiction is that it makes you feel things on a visceral level. You can cry with those characters, laugh with them. It teaches you to look at another’s perspective, to have empathy. In nonfiction, you simply learn about something instead of feeling it.”

“I love you.”

“I love you, Blue. So fucking much and I’ll fight for you forever, but I need you to fight for us too. Now eat your breakfast, it’s getting cold.”

“Why did you pay for my fertility treatments?

“No, you didn’t want your parents paying for that. You said you felt uncomfortable for someone else paying for you to start a family. Well, it’s going to be my family too, so I don’t count.”

“But that was back in December. ...

“Even then.”

“God, I love you so much,” she says, snaking her hands around my neck, intertwining her fingers. “I missed you. Thank you for understanding my fears and treating them with patience. You make me feel deserving of all the things I want in life. I don’t know where you came from or how I got so lucky to be loved by you, but Ryan, I adore you.”

“You are. You deserve every little thing you manage to dream for yourself. I hated being away from you, Ind, but I loved seeing you stand up for the things you want. Don’t stop doing that. Even if it’s me you’re facing off with, don’t settle for less.”

“What do you say, Shay? Want to be my roomie? Hide away with me in this big, beautiful house?”

“I think that sounds like the right move.”

“I will love you for the rest of my life,” she whispers against my lips.

It’s a promise, coming from the most loyal woman I know. “Forever, Blue.”

“I’m excited to be home with you forever, Blue.”

She smiles, soft brown eyes filled with so much love. “Forever sounds perfect.”

Ryan Shay has only gotten sexier with age. He’s still the same confident and controlled basketball player out there on the court and I love watching him run every game he plays. But when he’s at home, he’s relaxed and knows how to let loose.

When he’s home, he’s Dad and Husband, and he excels at both.

It’s my favorite view, the three of them together. I could sit and watch them all day and never tire of the sight. Ryan Shay as a dad is not only sweet and fun, but he’s also hot as hell while doing it. Have you ever seen a 6’3” basketball player laying shirtless with his newborns or in a nursery building cribs with his hands? Because I have and let me tell you, it’s a vision that will forever be branded into my memory.

“You look good wearing our last name, Mrs. Shay!”