Total pages in book: 134
Estimated words: 130159 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 651(@200wpm)___ 521(@250wpm)___ 434(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 130159 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 651(@200wpm)___ 521(@250wpm)___ 434(@300wpm)
“About?”
“Jack and Connor. Us. Seth. The future.” He paused. “Babies.”
So she wasn’t the only one? “Me, too.”
Her uneasy confession lured him closer. In two long strides, Beck stood in front of her, setting his coffee aside and holding her with a piercing stare. He tucked a stray curl behind her ear, grazing her cheek with his warm fingers. Heavenly closed her eyes and savored his touch.
“Feel like curling up on the couch and comparing notes?” he murmured.
After what happened last weekend in Vegas? “I think we should.”
With a nod, he slung an arm around her waist and guided her to the family room. Heavenly sat on the couch, tucking her legs beneath her. Beck eased down and cuddled her against his side, surrounding her with his heat and familiar scent.
Beck didn’t say anything right away. He seemed to be collecting his thoughts. That suited Heavenly since she was sorting out her own.
“Do you really think Jack and Connor will keep their mouths shut?” She hadn’t intended to break the silence, but worry had been plaguing her since the twins had barged into their backyard last night.
“I hope so. But I’m not as convinced as Seth, if that’s what you’re asking.”
“I’m not, either. It makes me nervous.”
“Because?”
“We’ll be meeting his family in a couple of months. I don’t want to walk through the door and already be labeled a whore.”
Beck scowled and shook his head. “If that happens, I’ll beat the shit out of those bigmouthed bastards, with or without Seth’s help.”
“You can’t go around beating up people who hurt my feelings.”
“Want to bet?” He arched a brow. “Anyone who calls you a whore is getting an ass beating. Case closed.”
She sent him a faint smile. “Hopefully, it won’t come to that. If the twins say anything to Grace about us, Seth will out them, too. But that won’t help family harmony.”
Beck nodded. “We just have to hope the prospect of losing their college tuition is incentive enough for them to keep quiet. If not, Seth’s family will probably shun me, too, for being the interloping deviant who can’t keep his cock out of you.”
That possibility had crossed Heavenly’s mind, too.
“And then what happens?” She blew on her tea, then took another sip. “I worry our relationship will cause a rift between Seth and his family. That would devastate him. They seem really close.”
“Yeah. Being estranged from my family is nothing new for me, and I guess that’s why it’s hard for me to wrap my head around Seth’s fear of letting his mom down. But for him, it’s clearly enormous.”
Heavenly nodded. “I get it. Dad and I were really close. I hated to disappoint him. But then again, we only had each other. It sounds as if Seth is that close to his whole family. I’m still shocked he left them all and moved to LA. Even if my dad had been healthy, I could have never packed my bags and moved across the country without him.”
“Seth did that for you, little girl.” Beck kissed the tip of her nose. “He’d move across continents to be with you. So would I.”
Her heart melted. “You would?”
“Absolutely,” he murmured before slanting his lips over hers with a kiss so full of passion, she couldn’t help but dissolve against him. Then he eased back and studied her face with a warm gaze.
“What are you thinking?” she whispered.
“You mean besides plucking you off the couch and carrying you back to bed?”
“Besides that.” Suddenly Beck sobered, and Heavenly’s anxiety surged. “What is it?”
“There’s something I’ve wanted to discuss with you for a while, but there never seemed to be a good time between work, Zach, Gloria’s wedding, and Seth’s brothers. This summer has been crazy.”
“It has, but I always want to hear about whatever is troubling you. Talk to me.”
Beck turned serious, resting his elbows on his knees and lowering his head. At the tension in his posture, more trepidation filled Heavenly. She gently stroked his back, both to comfort him and draw on his strength, as she steeled herself for whatever he needed to say.
“Do you still want kids?”
That’s what’s weighing on him?
“I know you’re young,” he went on. “You’re still going to school and volunteering at the hospital. You’ve been adjusting to life here with Seth and me. I’m grateful you put off finding a new job this summer so you could help Zach acclimate, so the last thing I want to do is put more pressure on you. But I have to know”—he tensed and pinned her with a solemn stare that broke her heart—“is getting married and having babies still on the table?”
They’d discussed that at the lodge months ago. Everything had been so busy and complicated since. And with Seth’s seeming uncertainty about their future, it was no wonder Beck felt unsure.