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“I’m sorry,” I start, fiddling with the hem of my shirt.

“For what, son?”

“For not being a good son lately.” His hands palm my shoulders, turning me around so I’m looking him in the eyes.

“Listen to me, and listen good,” he orders, not angry but firm. “You have nothing to be sorry about.” I open my mouth to interject, but he continues. “You went through something horrible, and I wish…I wish you had talked to us, but you needed some time to figure things out.” He looks over where Alexis is lying on the grass, she sees us watching and waves smiling widely. My heart stutters in my chest, I wave back with a big grin on my face. Fuck, that woman is my girlfriend, I still can’t believe it.

“I’m glad she was there to help you.” He slaps my shoulder, turning back to the grill.

“She makes me very happy.” And it’s the truth, she’s been making me happy ever since she moved here, even when she didn’t know it yet. But I’ll treasure her, I’ll be the best boyfriend ever, and hopefully some day in the future, her husband. I sit down on the grass, watching her interact with my family, my heart soaring at the sight. Colton runs over to her, she picks him up, holding him high in the air. My nephew shrieks excitedly as she rolls him into the ground, tickling him. When a friend of Connor approaches her. I have never seen him before, but he’s younger than my brother that’s for sure. He’s crossing his arms across his chest, trying to make himself look more intimidating, he’s smirking, leaning closer to her.

Oh that little fucker.

I wait in anticipation. I trust Alexis. I know she wouldn’t do anything to jeopardize our relationship, but I want to see how far that little shit takes it before she rejects him. He steps closer to her. Alexis narrows her eyes, glancing at the man’s feet, then takes a step back. She cocks her head, her eyebrows furrowing, sliding her gaze to mine then says loudly for anyone to hear. “Cars, honey, can you come for a second?” I’m on my feet before I know it, ignoring all the curious glances and Killian’s smirk from the other side of the garden.

I step to Alexis’s side, wrapping my arm around my waist, pressing a kiss to her cheek, loving the way the smirk falls off the little shit’s face. “You okay, Sunshine?” I murmur in her ear.

She nods. “Yeah, this guy didn’t believe me when I said I had a boyfriend.” I love how she called me over, how she staked her claim on me. I like when people know I’m hers. She could tattoo her name on me if she’d like. I hold out my hand, smirking.

The guy swallows hard, scanning the garden for a way out. “I don’t think we have met before. I’m Carson, Alexis her boyfriend. Are you a friend of Connor?” He looks at my outstretched hand, then at me and hesitantly shakes my hand, wincing in my firm grip. “I’m a—I’m Connor’s coworker,” he stutters. Cursing under his breath.

“Sorry I got to go.” He runs away from us his cheeks burning in shame.

Alexis bumps her shoulder against mine, grinning up at me. “You’re my hero.” My lips meet her forehead in a short peck.

“I’ll always be your hero.” She grabs my hand, leading me over to an empty spot on the ground, pulling me down on the grass, our interlocked hands in my lap, her shoulder leans against mine. “Was he being an asshole?”

She shakes her head while the guy keeps staring at us over his shoulder with fear in his eyes. “Not really, he asked me out, I said that I had a boyfriend, and he didn’t believe me.”

“Baby, that means he was an asshole. You said no he should respect that.”

“I’ve been through worse.” She says lightly. She doesn’t talk much about the things that happened while she was living in the system. But I know it wasn’t good. Sometimes she lets some information slip out and then acts as if it’s totally normal. Because it is normal for her. No one apart from her brother and Asher showed her love, she grew up with people who didn’t care about her, who treated her like dirt. But I will change that, I will try to replace all the bad memories with good ones. For the rest of my life, I will try my very best to make sure nothing bad happens to her anymore, that her beautiful eyes only shine with happiness.

I know I can’t change the fate of her brother or make the devastating loss of him disappear. But I hope I can soothe the pain with happy memories. And make his resting place the best place it can be for him. I’m planning on asking my father to help me make a Mickey Mouse-themed bench for near his grave, with his name engraved into it. So any time Alexis visits, she will be comfortable and doesn’t have to sit in the grass.

“I’ll take care of you.” My words contain nothing but the truth.

“I know.” Her lips curls as he kisses me on the lips. “I’m going to grab some water, do you want something?” I shake my head, handing her a lollipop. She smiles even wider, kissing me one more time before walking away, and like the lovesick fool I am, I watch her until she’s out of my sight.

A few seconds later someone lies down next to me, their legs splayed out. My best friend turns his head, looking into my eyes. “So?” he asks, his eyebrow raised.

“So…What?”

He sighs, slapping himself on the forehead. “How was last night?”

“At the cemetery?” I ask, puzzled.

“No. I’m sure that went well. The other thing.”

The other thing? What the fuck is he talking about?

“Carson Elijah Cooper.”

What is it with people and my full name? I’ll respond to my first name just fine.

He palms my shoulder. “I have known you for fifteen years. And in those fifteen years you have never been laid…I can see it in your face man, I know you got lucky last night.” How the fuck does he know that? I took a shower this morning so there is definitely nothing he can see anymore.

“How the fuck do you know that?”