Piece of My Heart (Fostering Love 4)

“Come on,” Alex said, tugging me along behind him. He thought he was going to surprise me, but he was seriously underestimating my memory, because I knew exactly where we were headed.

We’d been at his parents’ house for nearly a month, and things were going well. We had good days and bad days. Sometimes I still had a hard time getting out of bed in the morning, but we were actively working on getting better. It helped that Alex had started working at the logging company and his health insurance allowed us to see a really nice counselor once a week. My cast was gone, which was a relief.

I’d also been talking to my aunt and uncle again. Things weren’t the same as they had been before, but knowing that they loved me made a huge difference. Even though I’d been pretty lost in my own world when they’d come to see me, I’d still recognized how much they cared. Once I’d been able to see it from the other side, I’d made an effort to repair my relationship with them.

“Alex,” I said, huffing as he pulled me along. “These boots are going to give me blisters if you keep making me walk so fast.”

“Sorry,” he said, grinning back at me. “I’m in a hurry.”

“I can tell,” I said, slowing down so he was forced to also.

A few minutes later, I could see something flickering in the trees, and I watched in confusion as the light got brighter.

“What did you do?” I asked, laughing as I realized there were candles hanging from at least twenty branches.

“They’re LED candles,” he said proudly. “Don’t worry—I’m not starting any fires.”

“I wasn’t worried,” I mumbled as I stepped between the trees and into his old hideout.

There was a picnic laid out in the middle of the clearing, on what looked like an old green sleeping bag. A thermos held whatever we were drinking, and a box of doughnuts sat off to the side.

“I remembered the lights and the sleeping bag,” he said, laughter in his voice. “But I forgot the food, so Mom helped me out.”

“I think it’s perfect,” I said, smiling at him as I moved to the sleeping bag. “Is this yours?”

“It was either mine or Bram’s,” he said with a chuckle. “They were both exactly the same.”

“I love this,” I said, sitting down.

“Wait!” he said. “Stand up.”

I wobbled as I pushed myself up again, and searched the ground, thinking that I was about to sit in something or there was a rodent or spider.

I was still searching for whatever had made him panic when he dropped down on his knees in front of me.

“What are you doing?” I asked, my lips twitching.

“Sarai Levy,” he said, holding up his hand to stop me from correcting him. “I promise to always tell you when I’ve had a bad day.”

I bit my lip, trying to hold back my smile.

“I promise to bring you dinner when you go back to school, because we both know you’re not good at making time for necessities like food.” We’d discussed my finding a program in Oregon where I could transfer my credits, but I wasn’t ready for the stress of that yet. Maybe someday.

“I promise to turn my socks right side out before I throw them in the hamper, because even though you’ve suffered in silence, I know it drives you crazy.” I couldn’t hold back my laugh, and he grinned proudly.

“I promise to always try to make you laugh, even when you’re mad. I promise to share my family with you. I promise to support you in everything you do. I promise to never let you feel alone. I promise to give you children when the time is right.”

My eyes watered. He wasn’t done.

“I promise to always open your doors when we go on a date. I promise to learn how to cook that matzo ball soup that you love. I promise to get along with your family even when they piss me off. I promise—”

“That’s a lot of promises,” I said, cutting him off with a watery laugh.

“Remember what I told you?” he asked, wrapping his arms around my hips and resting his chin on my stomach.

“What?” I whispered, smiling down at him.

“I’ll give you everything,” he whispered back.

And he did.

Epilogue

Alex

I was really hoping you’d do a Jewish wedding,” Ani said as she leaned against the wall beside me. “I wanted the whole step-on-a-glass, mazel-tov thing.”

“Sorry to disappoint you,” I replied drily, taking a drink of my champagne. “Sarai wasn’t comfortable with that. She did invite her rabbi to the party, though. So that’s something.”

I smiled as I watched my wife dance across the room with Shane and Kate’s son Keller. She was laughing at something he’d said, and Keller’s face was so full of mischief that I chuckled. He was probably hitting on her, the little punk.