“Yup.”
“You didn’t ask for another vote?”
“Nope.”
“You want me to have it?”
He cocks his head. “Are you or are you not standing half-naked in our kitchen right now?”
I turn it over and his dollar sign patch is sewn on the left, with “Sunshine” underneath.
“Was the dollar sign because you were treasurer?” I ask. “What if you want to run for another position one day?”
He laughs. “That’s your question?”
“I realized I’ve never asked.”
“The dollar sign is because I was a cocky little dick when I patched-in. I thought it was clever.”
I hook my arm around his neck. “I love you. Cocky, clever dick and all.”
“Good. My cocky, clever dick loves you too.”
I snort and laugh, making him shake his head and snatch the vest out of my hands. “Turn around.”
I turn and he helps me into the vest, then arranges the buckles at the side so it conforms to my shape. “Shit, that’s hot,” he mutters.
I’ll admit it turns me on too and here I never, ever thought I’d be caught dead wearing something that declared I was “property of” anyone or anything.
Amazing how love has the power to change your perspective on almost everything. Before I would’ve felt degraded. Now, I feel cherished and protected.
Honored that he wants the world to know that not only do I belong to him, but that his brothers will protect me as well.
“I feel like I need heels to go with this,” I tease.
“No. Bare feet is perfect.”
“Oh, God. I can not be barefoot in our kitchen with a ‘property of’ patch. Absolutely not.” I grin and duck out of his grasp, running into the living room where he easily catches me, tossing me onto the couch.
Touching his forehead to mine, he stares into my eyes and cups my cheek with his hand. “Sunshine, I’ll take you barefoot and wearing my patch anywhere I can get you.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE
Murphy and Heidi were over earlier helping us paint the kitchen. Alexa kindly left us one of her tiny hand prints on the wall and we decided to leave it.
After they went home, Marcel and Carter went outside to work on a secret project.
I’m in the living room reading when my brother’s car starts up and drives away.
Marcel sneaks up behind me, and kisses my cheek.
“Where’s he going?” I ask.
“Out.” He holds out his hand. “Come here, I want to show you something.”
I set my book down. “Is it your dick? Because there are a few rooms in this house we haven’t christened yet.”
He bursts out laughing. “No. Get over here.”
I take his hand and he leads me into the backyard. There’s a grove of large trees. The woods thicken as the yard stretches up the mountain, but in this spot, it’s flat and the trees provide a lot of shade.
The closer we get, I notice a hammock strung between two of the trees. A much bigger, nicer one than the one in my apartment.
Little white lights wrapped around the tree trunks sparkle, illuminating the area around the hammock.
“It’s like a fairy wonderland.” I glance at Marcel. “Is this what you two were working on?”
“Yes.”
Marcel even has a small table set up next to the hammock. A thick black notebook rests on top.
“Remember when you told me you liked to sit in your hammock and picture your ideal life?”
“Yes.” Heat creeps over my cheeks. We had our first fight that night too.
He points to the ground and grass under our feet. “Green grass.” He points skyward. “Blue sky.” He winks at me. “Well in the daytime.”
“The night sky’s even prettier,” I whisper. My pulse races. “Marcel?”
He picks up the notebook and hands it to me. “Here’s my ideal life.”
I open to the first page.
Marry Me.
Not a question. A statement.
I fight the smile forming on my lips. “Are you trying to ask me something?”
He drops down on one knee and sighs. “I knew you’d be difficult.”
He reaches into his pocket and pulls out a small box.
“Oh, shit,” I gasp. “You’re serious.”
“Yeah, Sunshine. I’m serious.”
He opens the box and pulls out a ring.
“Marry me, Charlotte.”
“That’s still not a question.”
“No, it’s not.”
I give him my hand, and he slips the ring on my finger. I can’t stand teasing him any longer and throw myself at him. Down we tumble to the wet grass, rolling over until I’m on top of him, staring into his eyes.
“Yes, I’ll marry you.” I lean down and press a kiss to his lips. As if I tripped a switch, his breath hitches and he cups the back of my head, holding me in place for deeper kisses. Underneath me, he hardens and I rub against his erection.
His hands move from my head to my pants. “Get these off.” His hoarse voice leaves no room for discussion.
I wriggle out of them while he frees himself. Before he even has a chance to ask or order, I throw my leg over him. One of his hands grips my shoulder, applying light pressure, while he uses the other to guide me to his cock. We both groan as I take him all the way inside me.
He holds my hip, digging his fingers in, and I move it to my breast. His other hand rests on my shoulder, and I guide him to my neck. He strokes his thumb over my pulse. A light brush. “There.”
I move faster and faster, my cries growing louder, but all I hear is the movement of our bodies and the blood rushing through my veins. Blinding pleasure gathers at my core, seizing me in place. I grind down harder, chasing the sensation for as long as I can. At the perfect moment, Marcel applies just the right pressure against my neck and I’m flying.
For a few seconds, there’s nothing but the bliss of our bodies joined together. And our love binding our souls together.
He groans and arches up into me once, twice before stilling.
I blink down at him and smile.
After we catch our breath, we collect our clothes. He holds me in his arms and we tumble into the hammock, swinging side to side in silence.
“We should do this every night,” I whisper.
A happy rumble rolls through his chest and his arms tighten around me. “Works for me.”
“This is so beautiful. Can we leave the lights up?”
“Whatever you want, Sunshine.” He glances down at me and strokes his hand over my cheek. “You light up my whole world, Charlotte. You’re the something I was missing and didn’t think I’d ever find. Anything that makes you happy, I want you to have.”
Tears wet my lashes. Our lips meet. A soft brush of a kiss. “You make me happy Marcel,” I whisper. “You helped me recover a piece of my soul I thought had been lost and damaged forever. I want to be your wife and your partner.”
He wraps me up in an embrace, squeezing to the edge of breathlessness. “I’m all yours.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
“Make some babies with me,” I mumble against Charlotte’s neck.
While we planned to sleep outside under the stars, at a certain point we realized we were just getting chewed up by mosquitoes and ran into the house.
I flatten my palm against her belly, loving the way her body’s curves fit my hands so well.
“What?” she murmurs.
“Let’s make some babies.”
“Marcel, if you want morning sex, just say so.”
I run my hand up between her breasts, and turn her to face me. “No, I want to have a family with you.”
I woke up with a clear vision of two kids playing on a swing set in our backyard. The vibrant image and feelings it brought on won’t leave me.
“Well,” she says, blinking and coming fully awake. “We need to plan for that. Like responsible adults, don’t you t
hink?”
“You’ve got my patch, my ring, we have our house. How much more planning you want to do?” I ask, kissing her neck. My teeth scrape her shoulder and she throws her head back, moaning softly.
“I need to go off the pill.”
“Do it.”
“It still takes a while.”
“Good. We can practice a lot.”
She laughs softly as I nudge her legs apart and settle on top of her. Her arms loop around my neck and she stares up at me while I tease my cock against her.
“I always wanted to be in a place where I could, you know take time off and be with my children until they go to school.”
“So, do it.” I reach under her, tilting her hips so I can slide into her. She clings to me tighter as I slowly thrust in and out. “Your man will support whatever you want to do.”
I will not tell her how much I like that idea. Won’t say how much the thought of her only job being the mother of our children for a little while appeals to me. Nope.
Instead, I brush my lips against hers.
I spend the rest of the morning alternating between pleasuring her and planning a future with the woman who took the shattered pieces of my soul and helped me meld them into something stronger than they’d been before.
EPILOGUE #1
Somewhere down the road…
I can’t believe this.
My stomach heaves one last time, tossing up the last of my breakfast.
This is the third morning in a row.
Today is not the day for this.
In fifteen minutes, I’m arguing to a judge that one Blake O’Callaghan should be allowed to legally adopt his wife’s daughter, Alexa Jade Ryan and change her name to Alexa Jade Ryan O’Callaghan.
It’s a formality. The judge has had the petition for a while now. Still, I can’t very well stand up and barf all over the table.
I take a few deep breaths.
“Charlotte, are you okay?” Heidi asks.
Of course she followed me in here.
“I’m fine.”
When I emerge from the stall, she’s standing against the sink with a huge grin stretched across her face.
“Get out of my way.” I bump her with my hip and she giggles.
Running cold water over my wrists seems to help. I splash some on my face and then dry off with a stiff paper towel.
“Oh my God. Tell me I’m going to be an aunt!” She presses a hand against her own rather generous baby bump and sighs. “We can be birthing buddies.”
“What the hell is that?”
“Oh, it will be so much fun not to do this alone again, Charlotte. And I can help you out too.”
“Slow your roll, sister. It’s just an upset stomach.” I gesture to her belly. “Besides, you’re way ahead of me.”
“You’re knocked up. I can tell. I know these things.” She claps her hands and bounces up and down on her toes a little. “Oh my God, my brother must be so excited.”
“I’m not sure about anything yet, so if you could not get his hopes up, that would be great.”
“Okay, I promise not to say anything.”
“Thank you.”
She bites her lip and her smile fades. “Are you sure this will be okay? Murphy’s so happy. I can’t stand it if something goes wrong.”
Feeling shitty for snapping at her because now I realize she was trying to distract herself with good news, I pull her into my arms. “It’s going to be fine. It’s really a formality.”
“Thank you.” She squeezes me tight. “Thank you so much for everything.”
“Let’s go make you an official family.”
She peeks at herself in the full-length mirror. Heidi wanted to present a polished, mature image to the judge. She chose a conservative crimson dress, flats, and a sophisticated up-do.
“You look like Audrey Hepburn,” I assure her.
She flashes a quick smile, probably not sure who that even is, and tucks a few stray hairs into the sleek chignon Trinity styled her hair into this morning.
We step out of the bathroom and I smile at the scene in front of us.
Someone—Heidi, I assume—wrestled Murphy into a deep navy suit, complete with navy and burgundy tie. While his beard is normally kept neat and tidy, today every single hair is perfectly in place. Despite the grooming and the formal attire, plenty of ink peeks out, declaring he’s still a badass. Something I assured him of when he showed up at our house fidgeting like a madman this morning.
Marcel’s also in a suit—again, Heidi’s doing, I bet—waiting with Murphy and Alexa.
Alexa looks so sweet in a little plum-colored dress, holding her dad’s hand, I almost burst into tears.
Shit, I probably am pregnant.
Marcel’s concerned gaze sweeps over me the minute I step out of the bathroom. “Are you all right?” he asks, taking my briefcase from my hands.
“I’m fine. Where’d Rock and Hope go?”
“Inside to grab a seat.”
My gaze goes to Murphy. “Ready?”
“So ready,” he says, flashing a huge smile. He slips his free arm around Heidi’s shoulders and guides her into the courtroom.
Marcel leans down and brushes a quick kiss on my forehead.
“Thank you for doing this.”
“Of course, I want to do it.” My lips quirk into a half-smile. “They brought us together again. Now I’m able to return the favor.”
His eyes light up. “That’s right.” He gives me a more critical look. “I guess I was so excited about our own news, I forgot.”
I gasp and step back. “What’re you talking about?”
He tilts his head and fits his hands into the curve of my waist. “Sunshine, I know every single detail of your body.”
Heat races over my skin. How unprofessional would it be if I hustled him into the bathroom and—
“Save that thought,” Marcel warns, turning me toward the courtroom.
A baby girl’s screams pierce the air and Marcel laughs. “Sounds like little sister is pissed.”
I laugh with him, then pull on his tie. “Give me one more kiss for luck.”
“Happy to.”
EPILOGUE #2
A few weeks later…
“Now can we tell everyone?” Charlotte asks as we step into the elevator.
“That we’re pregnant or that we’re having twins?”
“Both.”
“Hell yeah.” I whip out my phone. “I’m texting Murphy to meet us at the clubhouse now.”
“Do you think we should wait and tell everyone at once?” She touches my arm. “Rock will want to know too.”
“We’ll start with Murphy and Heidi and work our way up.”
“Deal.”
At the bike, I stop. Shit. Should’ve brought the truck.
“Stop it,” Charlotte scolds. “The doctor said it was fine for a little longer.”
I hand over her helmet. “Enjoy your last ride.”
“Enjoy your last ride,” she mutters under her breath.
“I heard that,” I growl against her ear, reaching around to grab her ass.
“Are you groping me in the parking lot?”
“Yes. I’d fuck you right now if I thought the cops wouldn’t cart us away.”
“Doctor get you horny?”
“No. Your hot, pregnant body did.”
She squeezes my face between her hands and gives me a quick kiss. “You say the sweetest things.”
“Sunshine, we better make these announcements quick or maybe we should stop at the house first so I can rut all over you.”
She fixes her helmet. “Mmm. Such sexy talk.”
Her mocking only gets me more excited.
“I have a confession to make,” she says, as she climbs on behind me.
My hand freezes over the start button. “What’s that?”
“I already told Carter.”
I snort out a laugh. “You think I don’t know that?” I reach back and pat her thigh. “Ho
ld on.”
Even though the doctor said it was safe, I take the slowest route home avoiding the busiest roads.
As we pass our driveway, I give it a longing look. But she’s right, we should tell everyone now so I can have her to myself for the rest of the night.
Murphy and Heidi are waiting in the living room at the clubhouse with Wrath and Trinity. Heidi sets baby Grace in her bouncy chair and Alexa hands over her favorite pink baby doll.
“You’re watching Grace?” I ask, bending down to say hello and kiss the baby’s cheek. Alexa wraps her arms around my legs, refusing to let go until I pick her up. While she loves baby Grace, she’s not always thrilled at the attention being taken away from her, so I’m careful to give them equal attention. In a few months, when there’s even more competition for everyone’s attention, she’s really gonna be pissed.
“Are you playing big sister?” I ask Alexa.
Heidi chuckles. “Alexa loves having her over.” She rubs her stomach and laughs. “I’m worried her sister’s going to feel left out.”
“They’ll be fine,” Murphy says, settling his hand over hers.
“Down,” Alexa demands, making everyone laugh. As soon as I set her on the floor, she runs over to Wrath.
“Come here, you spoiled-rotten princess,” Wrath says, holding out his arms.
Heidi raises an eyebrow at Charlotte, “So?”
Charlotte’s bursting to share this news. “Yes!”
“I think I know the answer,” Trinity says. “But, yes what?”
“Wait.” I tap Charlotte’s arm. “Heidi already knows?”
“Well,” Charlotte hedges. “She kind of guessed.”
Wrath groans, gesturing at me, then Murphy. “You two know it’s not a competition, right?”
A slow grin slides over Murphy’s face. “Of course it isn’t. We’re already winning.” He points to Alexa and then rests his hand over Heidi’s baby bump. “Two to one.”
I bust out laughing and settle my hand against Charlotte’s stomach. “Guess again, bro.”
“Holy shit!” Trinity yells.
Heidi struggles to sit up and hug Charlotte. “No way.”