by Cherrie Lynn
“So what are you thinking?”
“Let’s give it a couple of weeks. Then we’ll tell them. We probably won’t be able to keep it any longer than that.”
He scoffed. “You won’t make it that long.”
Macy gave an exaggerated gasp and lifted her head to look up at him. “You have no confidence in my secret-keeping abilities, do you?”
Seth’s eyes crinkled in that adorable way when he smiled. “Nada. I know how you are. You’ll blurt it out the first time you see Candace. Admit it.”
Okay, he might have a point. She couldn’t imagine anything harder than seeing her friends or her mother and not letting them in on this amazing, magical news right away. But she would do her best.
There was another thing she couldn’t imagine, either. Standing in this bathroom and discovering these results without Seth by her side, without his arms around her as she learned that their lives were changing forever. He deserved to be a part of this moment, so she would be eternally grateful that things hadn’t worked out the last time she’d been in here stressing over a pregnancy test. Things had a way of falling into place, didn’t they?
Macy smoothed her hand over the back of Seth’s head and marveled, for just a moment, at how far they had come from where they began. And at everything that lay ahead for them, so much that she couldn’t wrap her mind around it all yet. But they had almost nine months to get it all done.
It was going to be so much fun.
“Are you happy?” he asked, trailing his lips over her ear and down to her neck.
“I’m the happiest I’ve ever been in my life.” She turned her head to meet him in a kiss. “There’s nowhere else on earth I would rather be than here, right now, with you.”
“Macy, every moment with you has been that way for me. Every fucking moment.” Then his kiss turned hungrier. God, he always managed to start that melting in her chest, that warm glow that spread out until every part of her was heated and trembling for him.
“Guess we’d…better…take advantage of these…spontaneous moments…while we still have them,” she said, only managing to push out the words when he let her come up for air.
Macy felt his smile against her lips, then his tongue danced in for another taste. “We’ll always have them,” he told her. “We’ll make them if we have to.”
“I think making spontaneous moments defeats the purpose of spontaneity.”
“Whatever you want to call it,” he growled, cupping her face with both hands. “I love you.”
“I love you, too.”
She hadn’t realized tears were streaming until he used both thumbs to wipe them away. “It’s all happening, baby. Everything we wanted.”
We . Macy couldn’t even begin to tell him how much it meant to her that his dreams matched her own. There had been a time when she doubted, at least a little. She couldn’t allow those little insecurities to creep in anymore, not when he showed her every day, with his every breath, with every beat of his heart, how inconsequential they were. How much she meant to him.
“Thank you,” she whispered, stroking the side of his face and staring into his eyes. Normally dark and unfathomable, right now they shone. Seth shook his head and opened his mouth, but she moved her hand to lay a finger against his lips. “You’ve changed a lot for me. I know you’re willing to change even more. But I don’t need it. I love everything about you. Sometimes I worry about things I don’t need to worry about, but you’re the one constant in my life, and I need you just that way. Constant. Exactly as you are. Especially now.”
He smiled, looking a little puzzled. “I know that.”
“Do you really? I don’t tell you enough. We disagreed about the band, and I’m afraid it made you doubt me.”
“So…you’re saying not to trade in my GTO for a minivan just yet, right?”
Macy laughed at the hopefulness in his voice. “Hell no. It all began in that car, right? And you say I already have a mom ride. You keep that car from now on if you want. I never get tired of seeing you in it.”
“And my job? I mean, I have other ideas of things to do, but I’m happy there, and—”
“What would we really do without Dermamania?” It had all begun there as well. The relief in his expression almost pained her. “You do what makes you happy. If you’re happy, I’m happy.”
“I have to admit it’s nice to hear you say it,” he said.
“Then I’ll say it more.”
He shook his head and gently pressed his lips to her forehead. “You’re perfect the way you are, love of my life.”
“If I didn’t know any better, I’d think you were still working toward one of those spontaneous moments.”
“You know me well,” he murmured, beginning to steer her into the bedroom with a wicked grin. Suddenly, he stopped and scooped her up into his arms before continuing toward the bed. “Better idea. I need to carry you around while I still can, right?”
Macy squealed and broke into laughter, but she couldn’t let him get away with that one. “While you still can, huh? Before I get big as a house?” She poked a fingernail into his chest. “Oh, I’m gonna make you pay for that one, Seth Warren.”
“Baby, I’m looking forward to it.”
He had never known he could feel this way.
The idea of a baby had been somewhat abstract. The knowledge of a baby, of evidence that a life was nestled inside his precious wife, that he’d played a role with her in creating it…it was a life-changer. In that fraction of a second when he’d seen the plus sign, all the petty concerns that plagued him on a daily basis had vanished. Gone. They were nothing compared to this amazing news.
A few years ago, the man he’d been would have felt trapped, freaked out. Actually, he’d been there before and knew exactly how he’d felt. The man he was today had never felt more free. All thanks to the woman in his arms, showing him what was important. He tried with every kiss and every caress to show her how grateful he was as he made love to her.
“You don’t have anything to worry about,” he told her after, his hand gently caressing her still-flat belly as they both watched, both dreamed about the future. He couldn’t wait to see her grow with their baby. “This is everything, Macy. I’ll fight like hell to protect you, and this one. I promise. If I’ve ever made you feel unsure, I’m sorry. I’ll do better for you both.”
She put her hand on top of his. “I love you so much.”
“I didn’t have much hope for anything when we first got together, you know. You changed everything for me.”
“Sometimes it scares me to think maybe you’d rather things go back to the way they were back then. You were so different, and I worry that you think you made a mistake getting married to me. That I ask too much.”
He caught her face in his hand, stroking her cheek. “Never think that. I can’t even imagine not having you. I wouldn’t be able to breathe, baby. You’re it for me. If you ever doubt it again, ask me, and I’ll tell you, show you, rent billboards to announce it to the world, I don’t care. Whatever it takes. Because there is no reason for you to ever feel scared of that. You’re the best thing that ever happened to me, and I can’t wait for this next journey with you.”
Her eyes filled with tears, shining with love. Ordinarily that would undo him, but he knew these were happy tears. “You can really be sweet when you want to be.”
“I’ll even be sweet all the time if you ask me to.”
And there was the devilish grin he knew and loved. “Nah. I also like it when you’re bad.”
He was glad to hear it, because he happened to think they were the perfect mix. Dynamite one minute. Pure tenderness the next, like now. Snuggling her closer, he buried his face in her hair, breathing her in. His very reason for living. He’d never thought he would need nor find another, but with their discovery today, she’d given him that, too.
Maybe he didn’t deserve it, Seth thought as his love, his wife, the mother of his child began to doze in his arms. But
he would damn sure take it.
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About the Author
New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Cherrie Lynn has been a CPS caseworker and a juvenile probation officer, but now that she has come to her senses, she writes contemporary and paranormal romance on the steamy side. It’s much more fun. She’s also an unabashed rock music enthusiast, and loves letting her passion for romance and metal collide on the page.
When she’s not writing, you can find her reading, listening to music, or playing with her favorite gadget of the moment. She’s also fond of hitting the road with her husband to catch their favorite bands live.
Cherrie lives in East Texas with said husband and their two kids, all of whom are the source of much merriment, mischief, and mayhem. You can visit her at http://www.cherrielynn.com or at the various social networking sites. She loves hearing from readers!
Also by Cherrie Lynn…
Unleashed
Rock Me
Breathe Me In
Leave Me Breathless
Light Me Up
Take Me On
Watch Me Fall
Breathless
Sweet Disgrace
Far from Heaven
Shameless
Raw Deal
Raw Need
Raw Heat
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