Moving Forward

Chapter Thirty-Eight

When the doorbell rings, Blake springs to his feet and tugs me with him. Blake nestles his face into the crook of my neck and squeezes my body tightly. It's only when I gasp for air that Blake releases my body from his grip. I suck in a deep breath and shoot him a tight smile.

"Everything is going to be okay!" At least I hoped it would be.

"Thank you, baby." Blake softly kisses my forehead.

"Good things happen to good people, Blake! Maybe this is your chance for a fresh start?" Maybe this is our chance for a new beginning? There would be less pressure if London wasn't carted around the place.

"Good?" Blake cups my cheek and runs his thumb across my chin. "I'm no good."

"What are you talking about?" I frown.

"I'm trying to fix my mistakes," he answers.

Blake's comment leaves me baffled, but there isn't much I can do. He steps back and runs his hand through his short hair before trudging towards the front door. I swoop behind to grab London from her bedroom.

I walk into her room to find London perched behind a tall stack of soft building blocks. She crawls under the arch, then smiles up at me.

"Mum," London shouts. "Look!"

"Wow!" I smile. "What's this?"

"It's a castle." Her smile winds.

"It's so big! I almost didn't see you." I gasp. "Are you ready to stay with Mummy?"

"No," London screams.

"What's wrong?" I pout. "Why don't you want to leave?"

"My castle." Her bottom lip begins to quiver.

"How about you play with the castle when you come back?" I suggest.

"Okay." London slowly nods her head.

I grab London's bag from the side of her bed and walk towards the door. London grabs my hand and we walk towards the front door. It's only when we get down the passageway that I hear them talking.

Blake stops their conversation to grab London as she tears towards the front door. He scoops her into his arms and showers kisses over her cheeks.

"Ew." London tries to fight Blake off.

"Are you going to have fun?" he asks London.

"Yes," she chirps happily.

Blake places his forehead against London's and smiles at her, "And I'll see you soon, okay? I love you, London."

He passes a fidgeting toddler to Tori and then wraps his arm around my waist. I lean my head against Blake's shoulder and smile at the pair of them. Tori says goodbye and starts walking towards her car. We close the door and backtrack to the lounge room.

I watch as Blake rolls over the side of the couch and plops against cushion. He snuggles into one of the plush cushions and looks at me, a thoughtful expression playing on his face.

"This is the most I've seen you think, Blake," I tease.

"Don't be mean, boo." He pouts. "Tori agreed to give me full-custody."

"Shit, seriously?" I thought it would have taken more to convince her otherwise.

"In the end, she knows this is what's best for London." I couldn't agree more, so I nod my head and smile. Tori will always be London's mother, and she'll always have a space her to hang out with London, but carting her back and forth for the rest of her life isn't the way to go.

"Serious question, what do you want for dinner?" I ask. "Because I'm starving."

"Pizza?" He offers. "I have a hankering for ham and cheese."

"Sounds good." I smile. "And can we get it delivered? I can't be bothered driving."

"I was thinking the same." He nods.

I walk around the side of the couch and lay beside Blake. He wraps one arm around my waist and kisses my cheek. He grabs his phone and opens the pizza app to order. I point out what I want and then leave Blake in peace to order his food. Once it's done, he places the phone on the ground and wraps his other arm around me.

His lips find mine and hold him tightly. I never want to let go of Blake Rivers or this feeling burning inside of my chest.

Just as life is about taking a baby steps or colossal jump, it's also about moving forward despite the toughest of times. People can tell us what to do, but at the end of the day, we have to make our own choices, our own mistakes, over own steps, even if that means a wrong turn along the.

Life is a series of motions combined into one.

Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed the book. Don't forget to check the next book, Little Leaps.