Total pages in book: 83
Estimated words: 80203 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 401(@200wpm)___ 321(@250wpm)___ 267(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 80203 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 401(@200wpm)___ 321(@250wpm)___ 267(@300wpm)
“I added you to the house. I figured it was one way I could show you that I wasn’t going anywhere.”
Joy sparked in her eyes, and then her mouth was on mine, kissing me with a hunger I felt in the depth of my soul. She was a force in my arms, and our kiss spun out of control, our mouths only parting to remove clothing, until we were both naked and desperate.
I backed up to the bed and sat on the edge as she straddled me, her naked breasts pressed against my chest.
“I love you,” she whispered as she lowered herself onto me, taking me inch by inch. She was so slick that I slid easily but groaned at the exquisite friction.
“I love you,” I replied, thrusting up to take her to the hilt.
Then our words were gone, our breath used in sighs and groans as we made love. Each time I sank deeper inside her, and she moaned even louder, swirling her hips over mine the way she knew would take me to the brink.
We both came hard and fast, as though our bodies were as unwilling to wait as our hearts had been. I’d never been swept away so quickly in my life and thanked God that she’d been right there with me, just as desperate as I had been.
She rested her head on my shoulder as we both gasped for breath. “You’re serious about the whole wanting me thing, right?”
“You have no idea.” I ran my hand down her spine, already hardening inside her again. I was going to spend the entire night with my mouth and cock between her thighs, making her come until my name was the only word she could speak.
“Good.” She sat up and looked me in the eye, running her tongue over her lower lip nervously. “Because I’m pregnant.”
Everything in me stilled.
“I’m not saying you have to follow through on the whole Elvis thing. I’m not really a big Elvis fan anyway, but it’s good that you have that big house, right? Because I don’t want to raise our baby above a bar,” she babbled.
Our baby. A surge of protectiveness, hell, even possession, swept through me. Echo was pregnant with my baby. We were going to be a family. Our family.
“Say something,” she pled.
“This is the best night of my life.” My fingers tunneled through her hair as my arm wrapped around her waist.
Her smile was bright. “You’re sure? I know it’s a lot to take in, and we’re so young—”
I kissed her, letting all my love and joy shine through. “We’re young, so we’ll be able to keep up with her easier.”
“Or him,” she laughed.
“And yeah, it’s a lot, but I’m…” I couldn’t even think of a word. “God, I can’t wait to see you holding our baby.”
She grinned. “That means you’ll be stuck with me forever. You know that, right?”
“Looking forward to every single minute of it,” I replied, flipping her so she was under me. I withdrew from her and slid down her body, pressing a kiss against her flat abdomen. It was insane to think our baby was in there.
“I’ll never be the perfect suburban mom,” she said as I kissed her belly again.
“No, you’ll be the exact mom our baby needs,” I assured her, sliding over her until I met her lips with mine. “She’ll know her worth from birth. She’ll never gawk at tattoos. She’ll know that beauty is individual and subjective. She’ll know her brain is the most valuable part of her body. She’ll know how to throw a mean right hook.”
“Or he will,” she reminded me. “What’s that grin for?”
“Little tiny baby skates,” I answered with glee.
“You’re such a kid,” she laughed.
“You feeling okay?” I paled, thinking that I’d just tossed her around like a rag doll.
She arched against me. “Perfect. I’ll be even better once you make me come a few more times.” A wicked smile played over her face.
“I love you so much.”
“Yeah, I know. Now show me.” She pulled me into her kiss, and I did just that.
I’d show her for the rest of our lives.
Epilogue
Echo
Seven Months Later
“Are you sure that’s close enough to our bed?” I asked, watching as Sawyer tucked the newly constructed bassinet next to our bed.
Our bed.
Our home.
Us.
I smoothed my hand over my giant stomach, my lower back aching something fierce.
“It’s as close as it’s going to get without me actually putting it in our bed,” he said, smiling at me as he rose from his crouched position. He walked the distance between us, cupping my huge pregnant stomach. “Everything will be perfect,” he said, leaning his forehead against mine. “I’ll take care of you both.”
My heart swelled, my mind spinning with happiness despite the aches in my body and my general constant state of uncomfortableness.
“We’ll take care of each other,” I said, arching a brow at him. Just because I was madly in love didn’t mean I’d lost my sense of independence. Though, I had loosened the reins on my control a tad bit since this basketball started growing in my stomach. I hired one of my best staff members, Hayley, to manage Scythe while I was on maternity leave, but I’d worked up until this last month. That was a comical sight, a pregnant woman slinging whiskey sours and vodka tonics to customers.