“Am I talking too much? I’m just so happy you’re out, and I want to fill you in on everything.”

“You could never talk too much.” He lifted her hand, kissing the back of it. “I’ve missed your voice as much as I’ve missed everything else about you. You’ve gotten even more beautiful, babe. I just can’t stop looking at you.”

She blushed and turned down a side road.

“Where are we going?”

“I need to make a quick stop before we go home,” she said. “It’ll only take a minute.”

When she turned down Dixie’s old street, lined with the cars and trucks of his friends and family, he realized something was up. “I guess Tru and Gemma bought Dixie’s house after all, huh? Leave it to Jace to get her to sell and speed up his baby timeline.”

“Speaking of babies,” she said, parking behind Bullet’s truck. “I can’t believe I forgot to tell you that Bullet and Finlay had a baby girl. She’s the cutest thing I’ve ever seen.” They got out of the truck and headed up the walk. “Her name is Tallulah Wren, and they call her Lulu. She’s got a shock of black hair, like Bullet, and Finlay’s big blue eyes. Bullet never puts her down. I think he’s more of a baby hog than Jace is.”

“I can’t wait to meet her,” he said, drawing Roni into his arms. “Babe, before we go inside and get sidetracked with everyone, I want to thank you for believing in me and sticking by my side. I wish I could have been there for you this last month while you were dealing with all those bad feelings. I will do everything within my power to be here for you from now on. You’re my other half, my love, the face I see when I close my eyes, and the only person I ever want in my arms at night. I adore you, beautiful, and I hope that when we’re old and gray, you look back on our life together and have no regrets, because I sure as hell won’t.”

Tears welled in her eyes, and as she swiped at them, she said, “The only regret I’ll have is walking in there with smudged eyeliner.”

She went up on her toes and pressed her lips to his. As soon as they walked through the door, everyone yelled, “Welcome home!”

Quincy was passed from one set of loving arms to the next as everyone congratulated him and said how proud they were of him, sending a rush of emotions through him. The last time he had gotten out of rehab, he’d barely known these friends who had become family, and now he couldn’t imagine a life without them. Everyone was talking at once. Several of the kids piled in for a group hug. The girls said they missed him, and the guys joked around and talked shit. It was great to be back with everyone, even if they still had him cornered in the foyer.