Page 116 of The Wrong Groom

Peyton frowns. “Already?”

“What do you mean, already? It’s past your bedtime.”

“But—” Peyton starts, but Gabriel is already shaking his head.

“I don’t mean to be the bad guy, but you’re going to be tired tomorrow if you don’t get some sleep. Don’t you want to play with Pepper in the morning?”

Reluctantly, Peyton sighs and nods. “Okay, Daddy.”

Gabriel holds out his hand. “Let’s head upstairs.”

“Wait,” Peyton says, brightening, “can Alexis put me to bed?”

For a moment, Gabriel looks taken aback. He blinks, his brow furrowing slightly in confusion. My heart skips a beat at Peyton’s words. I’m surprised and honored, but also concerned.

I haven’t forgotten the conversation Gabriel and I had a long time ago, shortly after the wedding. The one where he told me that he wanted to keep the lines clear for Peyton. Keep things simple, and keep me a passing presence in her life. Nothing more.

I meet Gabriel’s gaze, searching his eyes for any signs of doubt or reluctance. But his expression is warm. Proud, almost.

He gives a small nod and smiles at me. “Of course. Go ahead.”

Chapter 37

Alexis

Peyton takes the stairs two at a time, still a bit too energized after visiting Pepper. By the time I join her in her bedroom, she’s already in her pajamas.

I try to run through a mental list of everything Gabriel takes care of in the evenings. “Have you brushed your teeth yet?”

She flashes a cheesy grin in response, showing me her teeth, then flops into her bed.

“So you’re all ready for bed?” I marvel. “Wow, you did that all by yourself. Look at you!”

“I’m practicing for taking care of Pepper,” she says solemnly.

“Well, that’s good. You’re going to be an amazing kitten mom,” I say with a smile, sitting on the edge of her bed.

Peyton shifts to get comfortable in her blankets, her curls bouncing. I take a few minutes to carefully braid her hair the way I’ve seen Gabriel do it. Two simple French braids, just to stop those ringlets from getting tangled while she sleeps.

“Are you going to read me a bedtime story?” she asks. She twists her head to look at me, her eyes pleading.

I smile as I finish the second braid. “Of course. Do you have a story in mind already?”

She points over at the bookshelf, pushed into one corner of her room. “Ollie’s Hidden Garden!”

I crouch in front of the shelves, perusing the titles. It only takes a few seconds to find the well-loved copy of Ollie’s Hidden Garden. On the cover, there’s a stylized illustration of a little gray cat with blue eyes, sitting on a garden wall. The cat’s tail is curled into the vines that crawl between the stones.

“This one?” I show it to Peyton, and she beams, nodding.

I tuck her into bed and settle beside her, flipping open the book. The artwork is rendered in bright pastels. It fills the pages, bright and whimsical.

Peyton snuggles into her pillows as I read the story to her. I make sure to linger on each page so that she has time to look at the artwork, although I can tell from her expression that she’s heard this story dozens of times before.

It’s a simple tale. Ollie the kitten lives in a cozy seaside village with his human, a woman named Miss Hazel. He goes on an adventure one morning, gets lost, and discovers a secret garden filled with fairies, who help him find his way back home. It’s cute, and Peyton loves it.

By the time the story wraps up, with Miss Hazel scooping Ollie into her arms and giving him a kiss on the forehead, Peyton is half asleep. I turn off the lamp on her bedside table and quietly stand, careful not to disturb her as I return the book to the shelf.

Before I can turn to leave the room, Peyton whispers, “Alexis?”