Total pages in book: 31
Estimated words: 28663 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 143(@200wpm)___ 115(@250wpm)___ 96(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 28663 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 143(@200wpm)___ 115(@250wpm)___ 96(@300wpm)
Everything inside me stops. My heart. My breath. Everything. For a second, the world goes completely silent, and all I can do is stare at her, trying to process the words she just said. A baby. Our baby.
“Say that again,” I manage to get out, my voice breaking in the quiet.
She laughs, the sound bubbling out of her, and her hand presses to my chest, right over my heart. “We’re having a baby, Knox.”
It hits me all at once. The woman I love, the woman I just vowed to spend the rest of my life with, is carrying our child. I feel it like a punch to the gut, a good one, one that knocks me sideways with a mixture of shock, awe, and the deepest kind of love I’ve ever felt. My hands come up to cup her face, and before I know it, I’m kissing her again, the world around us fading away as the reality sinks in.
We’re going to be a family.
Just then, Betty’s voice cuts through the crowd, loud and proud. “I knew it!” she crows, her laughter ringing out as she claps her hands together. “Another generation of Steele boys is on the way! You mark my words.”
The laughter that follows is filled with warmth, and I feel the tightness in my chest spread into something so big I can barely hold it. I pull back from Perry, blinking against the sudden emotion burning behind my eyes. “You…you just told me I’m going to be a father,” I choke out, my voice thick with a mixture of disbelief and overwhelming joy.
Perry grins, her eyes brimming with unshed tears. “I did.”
I can’t help the laugh that escapes me, low and shaky. “You turned everything upside down from the moment I met you, Petal.”
She presses her forehead to mine, her fingers brushing the back of my neck, grounding me in this moment, in this life we’re about to build. “Is that a complaint, Knox?”
“Hell no,” I whisper, my voice rough with emotion. “It’s the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”
Betty’s voice rings out again, cutting through the intimate moment with her signature no-nonsense tone. “Come on now, let’s hear it for the next Steele generation! This is what I’ve been telling you boys for years, isn’t it?”
My brothers hoot and holler, their voices mixing with the laughter and cheers of our friends, and I can’t help but laugh too. It’s a kind of happiness I never knew I could feel—pure, unfiltered joy. I look back at Perry, seeing the same thing reflected in her eyes, and I know that this moment, this night, will be etched into my soul forever.
“Betty might be right,” Perry teases softly, her lips curving into that playful smile I love so damn much. “She did predict this, didn’t she?”
I grin, kissing the tip of her nose. “That’s just another feather in her matchmaker cap. She called it with Barron and Tamlyn too. Seems like Betty’s got a sixth sense for Steele boys finding forever.”
Perry’s laughter is soft, but the way she looks at me, her eyes shining with love and hope, makes my chest tighten all over again. I tighten my arms around her, pulling her closer, and kiss her deeply, letting all the emotion I can’t put into words pour into that kiss.
“I love you,” I murmur against her lips. “I love you more than I ever thought I could love anyone.”
“I love you too,” she whispers back, her voice filled with the same intensity I feel. “Always.”
We turn to face the small crowd again, and as everyone raises their glasses in a toast, the fairy lights twinkling above us, and the scent of pine and flowers filling the air, I know that this is the life I was always meant to live.
A life with Perry. A life with our future child. A life full of love, hope, and endless possibilities.
And as I hold her close, her body warm and soft against mine, I realize that everything I ever needed, everything I was searching for, has been right here all along.
Second Epilogue
Perry–nine months later
The cabin is quiet except for the soft coos of our two little girls as they settle into their new nursery. Violet and Lily, just days old, are swaddled in matching lavender blankets, their tiny hands peeking out from the soft folds. The nursery is everything I imagined—sunlight filters through the pale yellow curtains, casting a warm glow over the double wooden cribs that Knox built himself. It's filled with the scent of baby powder and fresh flowers—roses and peonies, the same ones that decorated our wedding truck and the very flowers that fill my shop every day.
Knox stands at the foot of the crib, his broad shoulders blocking most of the light, his face a mixture of awe and sheer panic. I can’t help but smile. The man who once faced down threats in the military without blinking is now rendered speechless by two tiny humans.