Until Cobi (Until Him 3)

“Oh my,” Hadley whispers.

“Trevor!” Mom snaps.

“Christ, Dad, seriously?” I growl.

“What?” Dad casually takes another sip of coffee.

“Babe, you should probably learn now that my parents do not care about PDA or anything else like that, especially my dad.”

“Sure don’t,” he agrees, giving Mom a wink.

“Can we just pretend we are a normal family for one breakfast?” Mom asks.

“Sheesh, you guys are making a bad impression on Hadley,” I tease.

“I’m okay, really. It’s nice to get a little glimpse of why Cobi is the way he is,” Hadley murmurs.

“How exactly am I?”

She tips her head to the side and answers. “Sweet, funny, affectionate, a little too honest, sometimes, okay, a lot of times, annoying.”

“Just like his dad.” Mom laughs and pats my chest. “Now, Hadley, how many pancakes do you want?”

“Three is good for me,” she answers, and I smile at her while Mom pours batter on the griddle. When my father’s eyes meet mine over the top of his cup, I know he’s happy for me. I also know he understands exactly what I’m feeling right now, because it’s what he’s felt for my mom for years.

By the time breakfast is finished and we’ve said goodbye to my parents with a promise to see them later, Hadley is completely at ease with both of them. Not that I’m surprised—my parents are easy to talk to, quick to laugh, and down to earth. Unlike a lot of kids, when me and my sister were growing up, we had no issues hanging at home with our parents, and normally our friends chose to spend their time at our place instead of at their own.

Now isn’t any different. If I have time off, I go to my parents’ place or spend time with the rest of my family, who are exactly the same. My family is close; we have always been, and I hope with time Hadley will settle in and feel what I’ve felt my whole life. A connection to people, who she knows will look out for her, protect her, and have her back when she needs it most. I want that for her more than I want anything else. I want her to know deep down to her bones that she belongs, that she can be herself, and that she has a family. Because one thing I know for certain is that at the end of the day, the unconditional love a family can bring you is what will make you stronger as an individual.

Chapter 12

Hadley

“SO HOW WAS IT seeing Harmony again?” Brie asks as we slide into a booth across from each other. It’s the Monday after I met Cobi’s parents on Saturday morning and the rest of his family that night when we went to his Uncle Nico’s house for dinner. Having met Nico and Sophie at the hospital I felt at ease around them, and it didn’t take me long to fall in love with the rest of Cobi’s family. Just like his parents, everyone made it a point to include me and make me feel welcome. It was strange at first being around a family that actually cared and obviously loved one and other, and, if I’m honest, it made me crave that for myself. “Hadley,” Brie calls, pulling me from my thoughts and bringing my attention back to the moment. “How was it?”

“Sorry,” I let out a breath. “At first it was a little weird,” I admit, unwrapping my fork and knife from the napkin bound around it. “Harmony and I just kind of stared at each other from across the room then she started to cry and so did I and we ran to each other.”

“You cried?” Brie asks astonished.

“It was emotional,” I say quietly.

“I bet. And it’s understandable. You two went through something traumatic together.”

I nod. “It’s odd, but I feel a strange connection to her because of what happened that night.”

“I think that’s normal. Who knows what would have happened to her or either of you if you weren’t together.”

“Yeah,” I agree, then look up at the waitress when she arrives. After she takes our lunch orders and leaves, I look at Brie once more. “But it was good to see for myself that she was okay and being taken care of.”

“So you met all Cobi’s family then?”

“Most of them, everyone who lives in the area was there.” I say, placing my napkin on my lap.

“What do you think of them?” she questions, studying me.

“They’re all really nice.”

“Real nice or fake nice?”

“Honestly they all seem like good people, the kind of people who you’d want to have as a family. They are super close, but I never once felt uncomfortable or out of place.”

“Like Cobi would ever allow you to feel uncomfortable.” She rolls her eyes.

“You’re right, he wouldn’t. Still, I never did. Not once.”