Page 40 of Tex

“You left everything you knew to take a chance on me.”Tex pressed a kiss to his temple.“That’s the definition of brave.”

“I did leave for you, and that made it easier.”

Orlando cleared his throat loudly.“Are you two going to be gross and romantic all night, or are we playing this game?”

“We can do both,” Tex said, not moving from his comfortable position with his mate tucked against his side.“Besides, it’s not like you and Liam are any less gross.”

Tex looked down at his mate.Nymon had chosen to trust him.He’d chosen to leave everything behind and to build a new life with him.He didn’t care if they were gross.In fact, he hoped they’d continue being grossly in love for the rest of their lives.

The evening settled into comfortable chaos that made Tex feel warm.Liam and Nymon fell into another conversation about plant propagation techniques.Milton accused Jethro of cheating.Orlando laughed so hard he nearly fell off the couch.Kael exclaimed over every bite of pizza he ate, and Ridge watched him with adoring eyes.

This was home, Tex realized.Not the house, although he loved what he and Nymon were building here.Home was having his mate by his side, their friends gathered around, and the comfort of people who cared about each other.

Through the window, he could see the space where the greenhouse would go.In a few months, Nymon would have a proper place to grow the plants he loved.Maybe eventually they’d figure out a way for him to visit Starhaven again, to check on what he’d left behind and retrieve more of his things.But even if they didn’t, they had this.

They had each other, and really, what more did they need?