Be Mine, Sweetheart (Something Borrowed)

by Codi Gary

  The loud rumble of his purr echoed in Chris’s ear as he headed out to the living room. Headlights brightened wall the far wall and Chris waited just inside the door for Kelly to come in.

  The minute she opened the door, Chris saw it. The ‘oh shit, I have something big to tell you’ face.

  “Hey, you okay?” he asked.

  “Yeah, I just…I’ve got something big to tell you.”

  Chris took her hand and pulled her close. “Can I get a kiss first?”

  Kelly’s eyes sparkled a bit as she said, “Sure, if you get rid of the cat butt in my face.”

  Chris turned his head and chuckled. He lifted Fungi up and set him on the back of the couch. “How is that?”

  “Much better.”

  They shared a soft, gentle kiss and when they pulled apart, Chris heard Kelly sigh shakily.

  “Baby, what is it?”

  She took held tight to his hand and led him over to the couch, motioning him to sit. They sat at the same time, their knees touching.

  “I need you to know that I didn’t plan this. I take full responsibility, but I didn’t mean for it to happen.”

  Chris heart slammed against his breast bone in dread. “Are you…are you trying to tell me you want to be with someone else?”

  “What?” Her expression warred between shock and outrage. “No! Have I given you any indication I’m not completely devoted to you?”

  “I’m sorry, but your tone was so apologetic and—”

  “No, no, it’s not anything like that. I’m pregnant.”

  Chris stilled, letting her words sink in. “You’re pregnant.”

  “Yes.”

  “Having my baby?”

  “Uh huh.”

  He paused, waiting for the perfect response to come…

  “Okay.”

  Kelly’s eyebrows shot up her forehead. “I just told you something that could ultimately alter our lives forever and all you’ve got is okay?”

  “What do you want me to say?” he asked.

  “I don’t know. How you feel about it?”

  “I thought…I thought you were on the pill?”

  “I am, but I’m not great about taking it at the same time every day, which makes it less effective. If you want to scream and get pissed at me, I completely understand.”

  Chris didn’t know how to answer that, so he just squeezed her hands and stood. “Stay right here. I’ll be back.”

  “Really? You have to go right now?”

  “Yeah, but just give me a minute.”

  Chris sensed her irritation, even as he made his way down the hallway. He went into his bedroom and pulled out the airline tickets.

  Chris came back down and she was walking out the door. “Hey, Kel, stop.”

  He caught her on the front porch and when he took her hand and pulled her around gently, he caught the shimmer of tears. “Kelly, come on, don’t cry. I just wanted to show you something!”

  “And you had to show me right this second?”

  Chris held the plane tickets out to her. “Here.”

  Kelly took them reluctantly, and he knew the exact moment she realized what they were.

  “Ireland.”

  “Yeah, to be followed by Scotland, England, France, Italy, and Spain. I have several weeks planned for us.”

  “But…what does that have to do with me being pregnant?”

  “Not a thing. That’s what I’m trying to say. I’m not mad. We were both consenting adults. I could have worn a condom if I was really worried that this could happen, but I didn’t.” Chris laid his hand over her stomach and looked her in the eyes. “I should be asking if you want this?”

  Kelly covered his hands with hers. “I do.”

  “Well, I hope this isn’t presumptuous, but maybe we can change this trip to a honeymoon.”

  Kelly shook her head. “Chris, you don’t have to marry me just because I’m pregnant. This isn’t the 1950s.”

  “I know, but you see, I got this yesterday. I just saw it and thought it looked just like you.”

  Chris pulled the velvet jewelry box out of his pocket and Kelly covered her mouth with her hands.

  He popped the ring box open, showing off the two-carat diamond with two tourmaline stones on either side.

  “I was going to save this for September, and ask you inside a castle or maybe the top of the Eiffel Tower, but honestly, why wait? I know what I want.”

  Chris brushed his lips over hers and whispered, “Be mine, sweetheart. I’m begging you.”

  Kelly threw her arms around him. “I love you.”

  “I know, but that’s not the answer I’m looking for.”

  “Yes, yes!” She kissed him, and he tasted the salt of her tears on her lips.

  When they finally came up for air, he slipped the ring on her finger and twined his fingers with hers.

  “Just one thing. Do you think you can plan a wedding in two months?”

  Kelly gave him one of her sassiest looks. “Excuse me? Don’t you know who you’re talking to?”

  Chris laughed and pulled her into his arms on the couch. As they snuggled in, Chris drifted off to sleep, Kelly’s warm breath fanning the side of his neck.

  Chris climbed up stone stairs surrounded by green rolling hills. He knew he needed to get to the top, even if he wasn’t sure why yet.

  When he finally made it, he stared out over a deep stone cliff and the white capped waves of the ocean rolling up onto the beach.

  “Beautiful, isn’t it?”

  Chris wasn’t even surprised by Ray’s presence, but he was a little shocked to find his friend wearing a kilt and holding a bag pipe under his arm.

  “What are you doing?”

  “Hey, it’s not my fault your twisted mind insists on dressing me up.”

  “I am so sorry,” Chris said.

  “Naw, it’s cool. I got awesome legs for this.” Ray leveled him with a dark, serious gaze. “So, you and Kelly are getting married?”

  “Yeah.”

  “And having a baby.”

  “Looks like.”

  “Congratulations. I’m glad you finally worked your shit out.”

  Ray started to walk past him for the stairs and Chris grabbed his arm. “Hey, where are you going?”

  Ray patted his cheek. “My work here is done, bud. I can finally sit around all day playing the…” Ray looked down at the instrument in his hand and shrugged. “Whatever the hell this is and floating around on clouds.”

  “Are you going to be okay?”

  “Probably bored, but it’s better than the alternative.”

  “Is there anything I can do?” Chris asked.

  “Actually, there is one thing…”

  Chris woke up with a start, sucking in air. Kelly lifted her head off his chest with a sleepy frown.

  “Hey, you okay?”

  “Yeah, just a dream.”

  “Wanna talk about it?” she mumbled.

  He kissed the top of her head and held her close. “Someday, I’ll tell you all about it.”

  Epilogue

  Inside the brightly lit hospital room, full of bustling nurses and interns, a miracle was about to happen.

  “Oh, my God, what fresh hell is this?!” Kelly Ryan screamed, squeezing her husband’s hand as hard as she could.

  Chris stood beside her hospital bed, looking rumpled and pale. He winced, and she felt him try to extract his hand from hers. “Ow, ow, babe, babe, my fingers are starting to crack!”

  “So is my pelvis!”

  Kelly thought she heard a snort and focused on Chris’s face with narrowed eyes. “Did you just laugh?”

  “No,” he said with a completely straight face.

  “I am in labor with your unborn child and you’re laughing at
my pain?”

  His mouth twitched with mirth, even as he lied. “Honey, I’m not, I swear!”

  The pain subsided slightly, and Kelly flopped back against the hospital mattress, her muscles aching. Her contractions had started six hours ago and had been barely a twinge at the time. So, of course she’d told the doctor she didn’t need an epidural. She was tough.

  Now, with violent viselike pain hitting her every minute, she was over this.

  “Okay, Kelly, I want you to bear down on the next contraction,” the doctor said through his facemask. His tone was calm and soothing, and she was tempted to lift her foot up and kick him.

  “You hear that, babe? After this next one, he’ll be out, and the pain will be gone.”

  Her husband’s jovial words did nothing to alleviate her dark thoughts; now she was imagining pinching him.

  “Chris…” the doctor said, warningly. The man probably didn’t want Chris getting her hopes up in case he was wrong.

  God, I hope he’s right. How can women do this for twenty hours?!

  The pain built once more and Kelly planted her feet on the hospital bed. Holding tight to Chris’s hand once more, she pushed, her mouth opening wide as she released a cry that would have sent a chill down Dracula’s spine.

  “Great job, Kelly. We’re almost there. I can see the baby’s head. Just one more hard push and we’ll be done.”

  Even with the doctor’s reassurance, Kelly still wasn’t convinced. Her whole body ached and sweat covered her skin like a layer of slime. She was bone tired and wished she could just curl up into a ball.

  “I don’t know if I can,” she whispered.

  Chris held her hand tight until she met his gaze. “Yes, you can,” Chris said firmly. “You remember on our honeymoon, when I rolled down that hill in Scotland and sprained my ankle?” Chris smiled tenderly, his blue eyes far away as he reminded her, “You carried me on your back all the way to where the bus was parked. You are the strongest woman I know.”

  Kelly wanted to laugh and cry at the same time. “I never realized you were so heavy until I had to give you a piggyback ride.”

  He leaned over and kissed her forehead, his voice soft and low. “I want you to think of that, the feeling of pushing through the pain. I know this is hard, but I am right here with you. I love you.”

  Kelly took several deep breaths and as the pain climbed again, she hollered, “I know!”

  Kelly’s eyes filled with tears as pain ripped through her followed by the heavenly wash of relief.

  And then the sweetest sound in the world filled the room.

  “Congratulations, mama, you did it,” the doctor said.

  The high-pitched wail that had alerted her to her child’s birth subsided, and she lifted her head, her gaze following the nurse hungrily as she carried the child around to their side.

  “Would you like to cut the cord, daddy?”

  Kelly met Chris’s tear-filled blue eyes. “Yes, I would.”

  While Chris separated her from their child, she laughed breathlessly. “I did it.”

  Chris smiled tenderly at her as the nurse took the baby across the room. “Yeah, you did.” He picked up a washcloth from the side table by her bed and wiped her sweaty brow. “I am so proud of you.”

  “Are you ready to meet your son?” the nurse asked, holding out a blanket-wrapped bundle to Kelly.

  Kelly and Chris had agreed to be surprised, choosing a name for a girl and a name for a boy just in case. As the nurse placed the baby in Kelly’s arms, Chris wrapped his own around both Kelly and their boy.

  “We have a son,” Kelly whispered.

  “Hey, guy.” Chris kissed her temple. “He’s perfect.”

  “Do you have a name yet?” the doctor asked.

  Kelly thought back to that cool December night. It was almost Christmas and they were just decorating the tree when the baby kicked her. She’d grabbed Chris’s hand and put it over her stomach, right as a hard jab had pushed against her skin.

  “He’s a fighter,” Chris said.

  “Yeah, he is.”

  To her surprise, Chris had stopped stroking her abdomen and told her about his dreams of Ray. That he’d had them infrequently after he’d died, but just before they got together he was having them every time they were intimate. He told her about the last one, how they stood inside a castle, looking out over the ocean. At first, Kelly had laughed, never imagining Ray in a kilt.

  And then Chris said, “He made one last request. He suggested we tell our child all about their Uncle Ray.”

  Kelly wasn’t sure if she had really believed it was Ray visiting him, but she’d taken Chris’s hand and squeezed. “I’ve got a better idea.”

  Now, Kelly kissed Chris sweetly before she answered. “His name is Raymond. Raymond Christian Ryan.”

  Acknowledgments

  This book would not have been possible without my understanding husband and amazing kids. I love you. To my awesome agent, Sarah, who listens when I need to talk and is always rooting for me. Thank you for being on my side. For my fantastic editor, Norma, who makes my books better and believed in this series. Thank you. To my friend, Tina Klinesmith, who is my sister from another mister. Thank you for every mind meld and two-hour phone conversation. Thanks to my parents, my in-laws, siblings, aunts and friends. Your love and support make this journey possible. To the amazing women who make up my Rockers. I love your guts. And to all the readers who have followed me over the years. Thank you for reading.

  Meet the Author

  An obsessive bookworm, Codi Gary likes to write sexy small-town contemporary romances with humor, grand gestures, and blush-worthy moments. When she’s not writing, she can be found reading her favorite authors, squealing over her must-watch shows, and playing with her children. She lives in Idaho with her family.

  Visit her on the web at www.codigarysbooks.com.

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  RULE #1: GROOMSMEN ARE STRICTLY OFF LIMITS

  Marley Stevenson never imagined her stint as a rented Maid of Honor would practically become a career. Then again, nothing in her life has gone according to plan. At least the money’s good—and she needs it to pay off student loans and help out her mom. But the job has rules, which have never been an issue . . . until one encounter with a gorgeous best man—and his swoon-worthy Southern accent—sends Marley reeling.

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