Total pages in book: 37
Estimated words: 33401 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 167(@200wpm)___ 134(@250wpm)___ 111(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 33401 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 167(@200wpm)___ 134(@250wpm)___ 111(@300wpm)
But the past is the past, and all that matters now is the future. And our future is amazing.
Bailey stirs and sits up, blinking sleepy green eyes at me. She gives me a soft, sweet smile, her heart-shaped lips lifting. "I'm sorry I fell asleep."
"Don't be," I murmur, brushing her hair out of her eyes. "You needed the rest."
"And you need the break," Bailey replies, raising an eyebrow. "You've been taking care of both of us nonstop."
"Because I'm the luckiest man alive." I stroke her cheek. "How's the soreness?"
Bailey grins. "It's not bad. I'm healing really fast."
"Good." I'm glad she's feeling better. Labor was brutal. "When we get back home, we can start the remodel of the house."
Bailey's eyes light up. We're buying a bigger place, with a big yard for our son and maybe some siblings to play with. "I can't wait."
I can't either. The house is going to be perfect for our family, with plenty of room to grow.
Bailey sighs. "I'm glad we did this. It's so relaxing to be here. Although, I wish we had made it before little mister decided to show up. Now we can't have any...intimate moments. At least not for a few weeks."
"So I'll just bring us back then." I shrug. With the new addition to the gym membership, rates are higher than ever. "We can afford it. Bring your mom. She can watch the boy."
Bailey giggles. "Watch the boy? That's what we're calling him now?"
I kiss her temple. "Fine, Logan. But I'm fond of 'the boy'."
She leans against me, and I wrap my arms around her, holding her close. "I love you," I murmur into her hair.
Bailey smiles, turning her face up for a kiss. "I love you too."
And that's all I'll ever need.
EXTENDED EPILOGUE
BAILEY
Ten Years Later
Porter's arm snakes around my waist as we watch Renae and Mark shuffle Logan's entire youth hockey team inside for training. I thought Porter was going to explode with pride when Logan first showed interest in the sport—plenty of opportunity for fighting on the ice if he ever goes pro, apparently. The thought makes me wince, but Porter's eyes gleam with glee every time we watch a game with our little man.
Meanwhile, Mel, now the swimming trainer, retrieves our two daughters, Emily and Katie, for swim practice. At four and six, they're the perfect age to get started, and the classes are always full to the brim, so they'll be making plenty of friends in no time.
It's incredible how the gym has changed since Porter and I first met. Not only did the pool and sauna help membership, but once I finished school, we added a second addition—a small sports medicine clinic for me to run. Being a kept woman is nice and all, but it's lovely to have something I'm passionate about to pour myself into as well.
For a while, I knew there was only one thing missing in my husband’s life, and it was something I couldn’t give him. But finally, last year, Ian was able to do what his father demanded of him—he came back a better man, having been in the Army for three years, and reconnected with his dad to tell him his big news. Ian found a girlfriend, and they would be married in the fall. I still wasn't fond of him, but it healed the last of the wounds Porter still held. And to me, that is priceless.
Now that the girls and Logan are inside and settled, Porter and I turn to head to our coffee date that we have every Wednesday while the kids have their practices. "Another busy day," Porter growls, tugging me against his side. His eyes glimmer with a heat that still sends a thrill through me. "How are you feeling?"
I smile at him, batting my eyelashes. "Oh, I'm fine. Tired, but fine."
Porter's jaw tightens. He's been very careful with me since Emily came along, even though it's been years. But Porter is a protector by nature, even more so with his kids, and there's not a force on earth that can change him. Not that I'd want him to change.
"If you're not feeling up to coffee...." Porter begins, but I cut him off with a laugh, pushing against his chest.
"Stop treating me like a doll, Porter. I'm fine."
"I know," Porter grumbles, nuzzling my neck. "But I can't help it."
The cafe is just a few doors down, but Porter has me pressed up against a brick wall before I know it, kissing me senseless. It's not until a passerby whistles that I laugh, breaking away and tugging him along. "You're going to get us in trouble!"
"Ha. It would be everyone else who would be in trouble if they tried to get a look at my wife, the hottest woman in the entire fucking world."
I laugh again, but this time it's a little strained. After three kids, my body isn't what it once was, and I've been self-conscious about being so much curvier. Not that Porter has ever complained, but he's still built like a god. Sometimes it makes me wonder if he misses my old body.