Come A Little Bit Closer
Page 63

It hadn’t taken him long, fortunately, to accept the love between Sophie and Jake, and to understand just how long in coming it had been. His mother, it turned out, had always seen it, but then again, when had she ever missed one single thing for any of them? And, of course, Mary Sullivan was the first one Smith had confessed his own feelings to. Because he’d known she’d understand and support him, no matter whom he loved, or how difficult it had been to convince that one precious woman to love him back.
“Yes, I love him,” Valentina had said. And there had never been sweeter words spoken, or ones that touched his heart so deeply. And even if the first time he heard her say those words had been to a bunch of paparazzi, instead of directly to him, he wouldn’t ever want her to take them back.
“How is Valentina?” Sophie asked him as if she could read his mind. She grinned before he could reply and said, “You knew Lori would tell me about the two of you.”
“Amazing,” he told his sister as he thought of the way Valentina had faced the paparazzi and sacrificed herself to their spotlights—for him and for his family—without fear, without hesitation. “She’s absolutely amazing.”
“Oh Smith, I’m so h—”
Her words were cut off by another contraction. Her hand clamped down on his so hard he heard his joints crack at the force of her small, strong fingers wrapped around his much bigger fingers.
Every last ounce of Jake’s concentration was on his wife, and soothing her pain, even though it was clear to Smith that he was barely holding on to his own control. If Smith had any final reservations about his friend’s love for his sister, they were all dispelled as he witnessed Jake’s utter devotion to Sophie.
When the contraction finally passed, and her grip had loosened the slightest bit, she gave them both a watery smile. “I think that one was a little better.”
“You’re doing so great, sweetheart,” Smith told her, his voice thick with emotion. “I’m so proud of you.”
She smiled at him, such a pure sweet smile full of love, and in that moment she was again the quiet little girl he’d always taken special care of, making sure that his louder brothers and sister didn’t run roughshod over her.
But, just as he’d said to Valentina, Sophie was a heck of a lot tougher than people gave her credit for. Tough enough to withstand the pain of yet another contraction as it hit her like a Mack truck.
Smith turned to meet his mother’s eyes and even though he knew she didn’t like seeing her daughter in pain any more than the rest of them, it was clear where Sophie had gotten her strength from. Mary Sullivan looked delicate, and was just as beautiful now as she’d been in her modeling days...but they’d all learned their strength from her.
Looking back at his sister, Smith saw that Sophie’s head was buried in the crook of Jake’s shoulder as she worked to get her breath back between contractions. Smith would always be there for her, but now he finally realized she didn’t need him to protect her from the world anymore.
She had Jake. And Smith knew with utter certainty that her husband would never let any of them down. Especially not the woman who meant absolutely everything to him.
With another kiss to her cheek, Smith said, “I love you, Soph. And I can’t wait to meet your babies.” He silently passed on his trust, and faith, to Jake, who accepted it with a nod.
Smith slipped his fingers from hers and left his sister with the two people he trusted with her life. Sophie had found the forever love that she’d been looking for.
And so had he.
Chapter Twenty-seven
Valentina was sitting with Lori in the waiting room when Smith emerged from Sophie’s room. Both of them immediately jumped up as Lori asked, “How is she?”
Smith smiled. “She’s great. Better than great. The contractions are pretty rough,” he said as he flexed his hand to try to get the bones back in the right position, “but I don’t think it will be long now.”
Chase’s wife Chloe was holding onto her baby daughter in the waiting room, clearly close enough to her own birth experience to sympathize. “God, I swear I can feel her pain even from here.”
Baby Emma chose that moment to reach out and grab Heather’s ponytail with a happy giggle. Everyone laughed along with the baby, who looked around at her big family with glee.
Zach’s fiancée took the baby when Emma reached out for her and together Heather and Zach pressed kisses to each of her soft cheeks so that she giggled even louder as she really got a good hold on Heather’s ponytail.
But even though Smith absolutely adored his little niece, he couldn’t take his eyes off Valentina. Every moment he’d been with Sophie and Jake, he’d been thinking of her. Now, even with his entire family surrounding them, it was as if they were the only two people in the room.
For the first time in his entire life, he was so overcome with love he simply couldn’t get any other part of his body to work, save his heart, which beat only for her.
“Do you feel better now?”
“Yes,” he said, both for the knowledge that Sophie was in good hands...and for the very, very sweet knowledge that Valentina loved him.
Conversation flowed around them, but Smith was happy just holding Valentina in his arms. She was quiet and warm against him. A short while later, his mother burst out of the double doors with the biggest smile he’d ever seen on her face.
“She did it!” Her eyes overflowed with happy tears. “Oh, they’re so beautiful. Sophie and Jake can’t wait for all of you to meet their little girl and boy.”
Mary Sullivan was one of the most even-keeled women on the planet. She’d had to be to deal with eight rambunctious children, but for the first time ever she almost seemed unable to pull herself back together.
Marcus and Lori were the closest and they flanked her on either side as she said, “They named their daughter Jackie, after Jack.”
Smith felt his own eyes go damp at the tribute to his father, and was glad when Valentina moved even closer to him. This moment wouldn’t be nearly as good—or anywhere near complete—without her there to share it with him.
“And they named their son...” Mary looked at Smith and smiled through her happy tears. “They named him after you, Smith.”
Jesus. He’d never thought how much something like that would mean to him, but now he knew.
It meant the world.
“Oh, Smith,” Valentina said as she looked up at him with eyes that were so soft and warm they took his breath away just as much as hearing his sister had named her son for him. “That’s so sweet.”