Nodding, I took one last look at Cara, the sweet girl from Nebraska who had shown me I could be so much more than an asshole, and I smiled.

Time to try my luck as the good guy for once.

Epilogue

One Year Later…

“No! Not Moman. Ro-man. Let’s say it again.” Roman’s manly voice echoed through to the kitchen where I was helping his mother prepare the ham for dinner.

I couldn’t help but smile, hearing him talk to his niece. Just a year ago, he hadn’t even wanted to hold her, and now, he was sitting underneath the Christmas tree, having a serious conversation with the toddler.

Well, it was serious to him.

He didn’t want to be known as Moman for the rest of his life.

“Are you sure you don’t want to move to the West Coast?” Lailah joked, tossing a salad beside me. “We could use another babysitter.”

The two of us laughed as we finished the fixings for dinner.

Jude and Lailah had been in New York for a week or so, making their yearly trip once more. I’d spent so much time with Lailah during last Christmas before we’d left to fly to Nebraska that I had been counting down the days until they arrived again.

She and I had grown incredibly close over the last year, calling each other to talk at least once or twice a week, and as our relationship had blossomed, I could see a marked change in Roman and Jude. Although Lailah had said there had already been some serious mending between the two of them in the last year or so before I’d arrived, it had only blossomed even more.

Before, their relationship had seemed one-sided, mostly thanks to Jude constantly reaching out, but now, Roman was making a solid effort. I’d like to think I had some credit in that change, but honestly, I thought he’d come to the realization that family was more than a name all on his own.

For so long, he’d based all his family values on what he’d observed and learned from his father. Once he’d figured out how to let go of that past, Roman was free to move on with his future, including his brother.

“When do your parents arrive in town?” Mrs. Cavenaugh asked as we all began to sit around the table for dinner.

“Tomorrow,” Roman and I said in unison.

“It’s their first time in the city, so they’re incredibly excited,” I added, feeling a flutter of anticipation in my belly. “My best friend is coming as well.”

“Roman said she was transferring. NYU, is it?” she asked.

I instantly nodded. “She loved the city so much that she decided to move here. The exceptional schools and good company didn’t hurt either.”