Page 23 of Can't Take Moore
She giggled again. “Good point. I'm glad my shower emergency was helpful.”
Buttoning my shirt, I walked around the bed to her side. Then I leaned down to brush my lips against hers. “As far as I'm concerned, the mishap you had with that faucet was the best damn thing to happen to me in a long time.”
“Me, too.”
Sitting on the edge of the mattress, I pulled on my socks and slid my feet into my shoes. “See you soon, princess.”
Although I had used the nickname several times yesterday, she hadn’t asked me about it. Until now. “Princess?”
I winked at her. “I guess all the talk about your figure skating dresses got to me, my gorgeous ice princess.”
“I like it.”
After giving her one last kiss, I finally forced myself to leave. But instead of heading for my house or the office, I drove over to Leaves & Pages. Using my rearview mirror, I ran my fingers through my hair to fix it. Then I climbed out of my car to go into the shop.
“Good morning, Dean. The usual?”
I flashed a smile at Skylar while Simon reached for a bakery bag to drop a muffin inside.
“Actually, could you double my order, please?”
“Early morning meeting?” she asked.
I knew by the gleam in her eyes that she was hoping I had a different reason for wanting the extra tea and muffin. I decided to satisfy her curiosity. “No, it’s for Vienna.”
“Yay.” She clapped her hands and did a little wiggle on her stool.
“Careful,” Baxter growled, coming up behind her to rest his hand on her lower back.
She twisted her neck to glare up at him. “I’m fine. Stop hovering.”
“Never.” He shook his head before brushing his lips against hers.
Normally, I would’ve given my cousin a hard time over what a softie it was when it came to his wife. But now that I’d found Vienna, I didn’t have much room to talk.
However, my restraint apparently didn’t stop him from giving me a hard time. Baxter’s gaze darted toward me, and his head tilted to the side. “Why do you look so rumpled?”
Skylar’s head turned toward me, her eyes widening. “Now that you’ve pointed it out, he really doesn’t look like his usual put-together self.”
A muscle jumped in my cousin’s jaw, and I knew it was because he didn’t like that she’d commented on my appearance, no matter how innocently. Shooting him a knowing look, I muttered, “There’s nothing wrong with what I’m wearing.”
“Oh,” Skylar gasped, her hands moving to cup her rounded belly. “I definitely felt that.”
“Is my brother kicking?” Simon asked, moving to her side as he set two bags of muffins on the counter.
Baxter’s palms slid over hers, his brow wrinkling. “I don’t feel him.”
“It wasn’t a kick.”
Nudging Simon out of the way, he swiveled her stool and crouched down in front of her. “What did you feel then?”
She sighed. “Just a particularly strong Braxton Hicks.”
“Braxton Hicks?” I echoed, my brows drawing together. “What’s that?”
“A contraction,” Baxter growled.
I gaped at him. “As in labor? Like she’s about to have the baby?”
