Total pages in book: 79
Estimated words: 74211 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 371(@200wpm)___ 297(@250wpm)___ 247(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 74211 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 371(@200wpm)___ 297(@250wpm)___ 247(@300wpm)
“I do,” I said immediately. Preacher shook his head sadly and turned to Melissa.
“Melissa, my dear, do you take this man to be your husband . . . forever . . . with no escape . . . for all his many faults and bad behavior, for the rest of your life?”
“I do,” Melissa said primly. There was no doubt in her voice. She sounded sure. I held my breath.
“Then there is nothing but good sense to prevent me from pronouncing you man and wife, and apparently, we are all out of good sense. You may kiss the bride.”
“After I do,” Drake said and swooped in, dipping Melissa backward and kissing the heck out of her. Whiskey and Mac held me back, laughing their asses off. Drake didn’t stop kissing her until I threatened him with bodily harm, in great detail.
He set her on her feet, I was released, and I grabbed my girl, dipping her back again. Melissa let out a startled laugh as I murmured into her lips.
“You’re mine now, woman.”
She was still laughing when I stopped kissing her. Everyone cheered. I was grinning from ear to ear. Everything felt right.
There was just one last thing . . .
Without even looking, I reached out and shoved Drake off the dock and into the lake.
Nine months later
Nick
“Have another bite, sweetheart.”
My wife shook her head, rubbing her rounded belly.
“Nick! I already feel like I’m going to explode!”
“You like the key-lime, though. I thought it was your favorite,” I said, sitting back with a frown. We’d made the pie together. Well, I’d done the baking, but she had supervised. My wife loved to bake. She was just a little too pregnant to be on her feet for that long.
She’d had her feet up on another chair in the kitchen, with a cushion propped underneath them. And now we were on what was supposed to be a sexy picnic. A mini babymoon. I’d been about to break out the whipped cream.
Being pregnant made my wife very, very sensitive. I liked to take advantage of that whenever possible. Like now, for example . . .
“Well, if you won’t eat it,” I said teasingly, lifting the hem of her maxi dress. She was far too covered up for my liking. But I knew she was comfy in it, and she looked as pretty as a peach.
A very, very pregnant peach.
Being married to my girl was beyond perfect. She was cute all day and sexy all night. We both worked hard and liked to laugh. And what we did in the sheets was a whole other level of heaven.
And my own private heaven had a whole other set of rewards. Like the first of our many, many children to come. I could hardly wait to meet him or her. Melissa hadn’t wanted to know the sex before birth, and I went along with whatever made her happy.
Except right now, when she swatted my hand away. I pretended to be upset and she was instantly contrite.
“I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be. I was just hoping you would be my desert.”
She blushed and shook her head prettily.
“Nick, the ground is hurting my, um . . .”
“Your delicious ass?” I asked with a grin.
“Yes! And I can’t eat another bite. I’m sorry. I’m just not that much fun right now.”
“I guess picnics are not the best idea at this phase of the game.” I sighed. I didn’t want her cute little ass to hurt. I started cleaning up and took her hands to lift her to her feet. Melissa stood, looking shocked.
“Meli? What’s wrong, sweetheart?”
“I think . . .” Her eyes were wide. “I think my water just broke.”
“It did?”
She nodded, looking down at the picnic blanket.
“I’m all wet,” she said, clearly embarrassed. I let out a whoop and pulled out my cellphone, shooting off a quick text. Then I slung my arm around her waist to help her walk the newly laid pathway back toward the house and stables.
“The food!”
“I’ll send Jessie for it. Don’t you worry your pretty little head about it.”
Jessie was one of the new stable hands we’d hired. But he was a damned sight more than that. The man was a natural with the horses and hell on wheels, too.
I had a mind to induce him to the club. I’d even talked to Dev and the guys about it. And I knew he would grab some of the other workers we had now to deal with the leftovers and put the horses down for the night.
I loaded Melissa into the car, which already had her hospital bag in it, just in case. We were somewhat prepared, thanks to Janet’s foresight. She was a couple of weeks early, but I wasn’t too worried. She was healthy, and the pregnancy had been easy, according to the girls. Speaking of which . . . I pecked out a text to Janet, Melissa’s self-appointed big sister, to meet us at the hospital.