by Kennedy Fox
We quickly clean up, and when I look over at Kat, I smile at how breathtaking she looks. I don’t know what I did in life to deserve such a sweet, caring woman, but she’s everything I’ve ever wanted. Though she calls me out on my shit often, Kat is my biggest supporter and quickly became my best friend. I can’t imagine life without her.
Even though I want to hold her soft body against mine all morning, I know we have to get going. As if she reads my mind, she kisses me one last time before standing to get dressed. I put on some clean clothes and take our suitcases to the truck. She follows me with a box full of pastries that need to be dropped off at the B&B before we leave. Before I lock up, I glance over my shoulder. “You got everything?”
“Yep, already double-checked my bag,” she reassures me, pushing the massive box of baked goods into the back seat.
Once we arrive to the B&B, I open the passenger door for her and grab the pastries before we walk up the front porch. My stomach grumbles as the sweet bread Kat baked mixes with the aroma of the bacon and eggs being placed out for the guests. Colton and Presley are chatting with John, and as soon as we walk in, they all light up.
“There’s the happy couple!” Presley exclaims, walking toward us with open arms. She hugs Kat and gives me a grin. After I hand John the box of goodies, Colton rushes to me with open arms trying to hug me, making fun of Presley and Kat, but I swat him away.
“Babe, we should eat breakfast here since we didn’t have time at home,” I suggest.
Colton and Presley glance at each other, then burst out laughing. “Ew.”
“Shut up,” I tell them, and Kat giggles.
“Yeah, help yourselves. Y’all have a long drive ahead of ya,” John says. Colton makes a joke about how John should happily offer us breakfast every morning. As they go back and forth with each other, Kat turns to me.
“Actually, I’m not feeling that hungry.”
I tilt my head at her because we routinely eat together before we go our separate ways for work. She was up late last night baking, so I let her sleep in this morning. “You feelin’ okay?”
“Yeah, I think it’s just nerves, flying and all that.” She glances at Presley, then back at me.
I shrug and walk over to the buffet line and grab a biscuit, cut it open, and place a sausage patty inside. I walk back to them, taking a bite, and she makes a face.
“Are you sure you’re okay?” I ask around a mouthful, noticing she’s wrinkling her nose at the smell of my food.
Colton snickers, watching Kat and me. His arm is wrapped around Presley’s waist. “Sounds like pregnancy symptoms to me,” he singsongs.
Presley looks at Colton with wide eyes and lightly elbows his stomach while Kat shoots daggers at him. If looks could kill, he’d be dead. Twice.
I glance over at my girl and notice the color draining from her face. I step toward her, closing the space between us.
“Are you pregnant?” I whisper low enough for only her to hear, searching her face. All eyes are on us.
Her mouth opens, then closes, and Colton and Presley excuse themselves as I grab her hands.
“Kat?”
She finally nods, and a beautiful smile fills her face. “Yes. I just found out.” Tears fill her eyes as my emotions burst in my chest.
I immediately drop to my knees and wrap my arms around her waist, kissing her stomach. “I’m going to be a dad.” I’m shocked and completely in awe. This was entirely unexpected, but nevertheless, I’m ecstatic.
She runs her fingers through my hair and forces me to look up into her eyes. “You are. You’re gonna make such a great dad too, Braxton.”
Tears stream down her face, and I stand, wiping them away. “I hope those are happy tears.”
Kat wraps her arms around my neck, nodding. “Of course they are! I never thought I’d have this life. I’m so damn lucky.”
I tuck loose strands of hair behind her ears and lean in for a kiss. “After you agreed to marry me, I thought nothing could top that, but you proved me wrong. Starting a family with you, getting to be with you for the rest of my life, you’ve made me the happiest man on earth, Kat. Thanks for roping my heart and never letting me go. I love you so damn much.”
She kisses me with everything she has, and I can barely contain my happiness. “I love you too,” she whispers against my lips. “Forever, cowboy.”
Epilogue
Kat
FOUR YEARS LATER
I let out a satisfied hum as Braxton holds me tight to his warm body, and when I feel his cock poking my back, I snicker.
“Braxton,” I whisper into the early morning. The sun hasn’t woken, and our alarms haven’t gone off, which means Brayden is still sleeping. He’s the best kid and so smart for his age. Next year, he starts preschool, and I can hardly believe it. Each day, he reminds me of his father with his smart mouth and toddler logic. He loves living near the ranch, always wanting to help out his daddy and feed the horses.
“Braxton,” I whisper again.
“Hmm?” He stirs.
“Fuck me,” I boldly tell him. “I need you.”
Rubbing his hand over his face and blinking a few times, he wakes up and smirks. “You don’t have to tell me twice.”
Between working and parenting, we have to find secret time to be intimate, even if it’s four in the morning. Braxton’s lips trail across my skin as his hands slide into my panties. Just the thought of him touching me has me all worked up. I gasp for air, craving to feel him inside me as his fingers tease my clit. Within moments, he’s hovering above me, thrusting hard and giving me exactly what I need. We’ve perfected making love quietly when little ears are near, but at moments like this, I want to scream out his name. He knows exactly how to pleasure me and works my body so damn good.
“Fuck,” he grunts into my neck. He moves inside me, and I can feel every solid, thick inch of him.
“Yes, yes,” I whisper, scratching my fingernails down his back, needing more of him. The orgasm builds quickly as we chase our release. As the sounds of his hushed pants fill the room, it doesn’t take long before we’re both losing ourselves in each other, never wanting to be found.
“Who needs coffee when I have you?” he teases with a grin before his lips press against mine in a deep, sated kiss. We stay connected for a moment longer as he worships my mouth. When we break apart and clean up, my nerves begin to get the best of me.
He clicks on the dim lamp on the bedside table and turns off the alarm that’s threatening to wake the neighbors in fifteen minutes because it’s so damn loud. We’re awake and have already had our exercise for the day, so we’re staying up. Lying back down, Braxton pulls me into his strong arms, and I mold against his body, listening to his heart beat in time with mine.
“Baby, I have something to tell you,” I say as he brushes his rough fingertips along my arm, creating goose bumps along the way.
He gives me that half-grin I’ve fallen in love with time and time again.
“What is it?” He searches my face, brushing loose sweaty strands of hair from my forehead.
“I’m pregnant,” I say.
A huge grin fills his face. “Really? Seriously? You are?”
I nod and am overcome with emotion by how happy this makes him. He loves Brayden with all of his heart, and we’ve been trying for the past couple of years to have more kids, but until now, it just hasn’t worked out for us.
“I realized I was late a couple of days ago, so I bought a few tests from the store. Then last night after you were already asleep, I got up and took a pregnancy test and then another and another. They were all positive, and I almost woke you up, but I know how much you’ve been working so I wanted to wait until this morning.”
“Baby, you could’ve, but either way, I’m so damn happy. I don’t even know what to say right now other than I love you. I love you so fucking much. Little B is going to have a baby brother or a sister.”
I wipe away a few tears. “I love you more than you�
��ll ever know, Braxton. I don’t take a day with you for granted. And who knows, maybe Little B will get one of each?”
“Twins?” He chuckles with wide eyes. “You think it’s possible?”
“It could be. Gigi told me twins run in the family. She has a set of cousins who are twins.”
Braxton lifts himself on one elbow and brushes his lips against mine. “Thank you, Kat. Thank you for being my best friend, my wife, and a wonderful mother. You’re my everything.”
“You’re my everything, cowboy. Always.”
TEN MONTHS LATER
Twins.
It must’ve been mother’s intuition after all because when I took the pregnancy test, it was almost as if I knew I was carrying two babies.
The first time I got to hold my baby girls, tears fell down my cheeks. They were so tiny and beautiful and everything I’d ever dreamed of. I’ll never forget the way Braxton looked at me with the proudest smile I’d ever seen.
Brayden loves his little sisters and wants to hold them as much as we’ll allow. I know he’s going to be overly protective of them when they are older; hell, he already is. Anytime he hears their little cries, he rushes over and has a chat with them, letting them know everything is going to be okay.
The twins were born a month ago, but between feedings and adjusting to our life with three kids, I’m so exhausted. Braxton took a month off to help because two babies are a totally different monster. Not to mention, Brayden still needs attention, though he’s been a sport about being a big brother and loves to help. Now that my cousin Callie helps manage the bakery, I didn’t feel so bad about not being available while on bedrest and maternity leave. She’s Mila’s older sister and moved here from Alabama a few years ago. She’s more than qualified, which reassures me that the bakery is being well taken care of. Not to mention, I hired a couple of other helpers to rotate shifts. Each week, I get an update on sales and how things are going, so I’m still in the know. It’s all been amazing and has worked out so smoothly.
I wake up before the alarm goes off and shake Braxton awake.
“Turn off the alarm, please,” I whisper.
“Hmm. Okay.” He reaches over and flicks the switch on the clock. Then he rolls back to me and grins. “Damn. You’re so beautiful, baby,” he tells me with awe as I yawn, feeling like a hot mess express even though the day hasn’t even started.
“Doubtful,” I say truthfully and laugh. “I just want to sleep for days or drink five gallons of coffee. Hell, I think I’m immune to it and need a straight IV into my vein.”
“How about I start a pot and make something to eat?” he asks, brushing his fingers along my cheek.
I smile. “Sounds perfect. I’ll get up and feed the girls soon.”
Rolling over, I quickly fall back asleep, and it feels like only minutes pass when I’m being woken up by Braxton with a kiss. “Time to get up, sleeping beauty.”
I force myself out of bed and nurse the babies before putting them in their swings, then grab the baby monitor. I walk into the kitchen where Braxton is scrambling eggs and frying bacon. Brayden is talking his head off about horses and trucks at the table. I lean against the doorway, looking at my amazing boys and feeling so damn grateful that this is my life.
Braxton turns and gives me a smile as if he read my mind.
“Hi, Mommy,” Brayden says when he sees me. I walk in and give him a kiss on his forehead, then place my lips softly against Braxton’s when he looks over his shoulder at me.
“I have your coffee ready,” he tells me, handing me a cup.
“You’re earning your keep,” I tease.
“Sit down and eat your breakfast, woman,” he demands in his dad voice, causing Brayden to giggle. I shake my head at them both, but sit and sip my drink.
“He told you, Mommy,” Brayden says.
“That’s right,” Braxton tells him, setting a plate of food in front of him. “But Mommy is the boss of the household, just remember that. She roped Daddy’s heart a long time ago.”
I nod and smile. “It wasn’t easy, but someone had to rope the cowboy.”
As I eat my breakfast, listening to Brayden talk about wanting a puppy, my heart feels so full. I love my life. Every part of it is a dream come true—my husband and kids, having my dream job, being in love—and I wouldn’t change a damn thing. I’ve truly got it all.
Want more cowboys?
The Bishop Brothers and Falling for the Cowboy are available now on all platforms! (Both are full-length novels). Get more of the whole Bishop family and crew!
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Keep scrolling for an excerpt of Taming Him and Falling for the Cowboy!
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Brooke Cumberland and Lyra Parish are a duo of romance authors who teamed up under the USA Today pseudonym, Kennedy Fox. They share a love of You’ve Got Mail and The Holiday. When they aren’t bonding over romantic comedies, they like to brainstorm new book ideas. One day, they decided to collaborate under a pseudonym and have some fun creating new characters that’ll make you blush and your heart melt. If you enjoy romance stories with sexy, tattooed alpha males and smart, quirky, independent women, then a Kennedy Fox book is for you! They’re looking forward to bringing you many more stories to fall in love with!
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TRAVIS & VIOLA DUET
Checkmate: This is War
Checkmate: This is Love
DREW & COURTNEY DUET
Checkmate: This is Reckless
Checkmate: This is Effortless
LOGAN & KAYLA DUET
Checkmate: This is Dangerous
Checkmate: This is Beautiful
BISHOP BROTHERS SERIES
Taming Him
Needing Him
Chasing Him
Keeping Him
BEDTIME READS SERIES
Falling for the Bad Boy
Falling for the Playboy
Falling for the Cowboy
HUNTER & LENNON DUET
Baby Mine
Baby Yours
MASON & SOPHIE DUET
Truly Mine
Truly Yours
LIAM & MADELYN DUET
Always Mine
Always Yours
CIRCLE B RANCH NOVELLA SERIES
Roping the Cowboy
Taming Him excerpt
Book 1 in the Bishop Brothers series
SYNOPSIS:
Alex Bishop is your typical cowboy. Charming, sexy, and wears a panty-melting smirk.
Working on the ranch helped build his solid eight-pack and smoking body. He's every girl's wet fantasy and he knows it too. Alex doesn't follow the rules of your typical playboy bachelor. After wining and dining his dates and giving them the best night of their lives, he always sends flowers and calls the next day—even if it's to say, let's just be friends. His mama taught him manners after all and his southern blood knows how to be a gentleman. Still, that isn’t enough to tame the wildest of the Bishop brothers.
River Lancaster has finally met the man of her dreams. Too bad after six months of romantic bliss, she finds out he's married. With a broken heart and blind rage, she books herself a ticket to Key West, Florida. Tired of cheaters and liars, she’s set on escaping to forget he ever existed. Who needs a man when there's an all-you-can-drink margarita bar, anyway? That's what she tells herself until she bumps into the right guy who can make all those bad memories disappear.
Eve
n if it's only temporarily.
Two weeks on the beach is what they both need. No strings attached, no expectations, no broken hearts. Too bad the universe has other plans—one that'll change the entire course of their lives in just nine short months.
* * *
River
I can’t believe I’m really doing this.
After begging my supervisor, she put in the request for my time off and made sure our boss approved it. She knows I’m a hard worker and work nonstop, and after giving her the sob story of Asshole, she sympathized, having had her own experience with a married man. God, the men here just suck.
Not that I’m expecting the men in Florida to be any different because let’s face it, downtown Key West is party city. But at least now, I have zero expectations. Don’t get too close. Have fun. No rules.