More tears fell from her face. She was overwhelmed with the same kind of love I felt. “God, Jack Hennicke, where did you come from?”
“A little town in Pennsylvania. Next door to the love of my life.”
A small laugh escaped her lips, and she leaned into me.
She kissed me softly, unwilling to let me doubt the slightest bit how much she felt for me. Her lips tasted of the familiar honey and cider mixture I could never get enough of. But I let go, because my girl needed to be comfortable after standing all night.
Returning to the kneeling position I meant to take minutes earlier, I dipped my head to her feet to unbuckle the small heels she’d had on all day. Though they weren’t tall, I could tell they were killing her, swollen ankles and all. My fingers worked nimbly to unbuckle the trim strap, and Maggie let out a soft moan as I slipped the shoe off her foot. A sigh of relief escaped her when the second heel fell to the floor, and I couldn’t resist rising to take her into my arms and pulling her onto the bed, showering her with kisses and pressing my body into hers as she laughed and smiled under my touch.
She was so warm, so sweet, so soft. And just between my hands that gripped her ribs was ourbaby.I couldn’t fucking believe my life. My fortune. How lucky I was to have the most breathtaking and caring woman in my arms.
“Jack?” she asked after I gave her a break from my lips.
“Hm?”
“Is this really our life?” Her face held as much awe as I felt.
“I was just thinking the same thing.” There was no way in hell I would let go of my wife. I wanted her right here with me through everything.
Maggie tugged me closer to her, warmth emanating from her skin. She felt like electric and a soft fire all at once, her luminescence brightening everything around her. This work of art wasmine.
And I’d never let her forget it.
Epilogue
Maggie
My chest heaved unbearably as I tried to catch my breath in the tack room of Jack Hennicke’s barn. Correction:mineand Jack Hennicke’s barn. His hands held my hips while his forehead rested on my t-shirt clad chest. My fingers rhythmically clutched his hair while the aftershocks of what we had just done ran through me. The soft blonde strands between my fingertips mixed with the warm scent that was justhimallowed me to settle deeper into this bubble that was just us.
I had been living on Cloud Nine with Jack ever since we had renewed our vows two months ago. Despite me carrying an overdue, fully-grown baby, Jack was quick to initiate his suave charm and sexual desire to calm my waves of frustration. He didn’t react to my overreaction to running out of leather conditioner when I hadonebridle left to clean. He simply lifted my chin so I could meet his lips and sat me between his legs on the utility cabinet in the tack room and fucked me senseless—or at least until my tears became ones of pleasure instead of anger.
Jack was the absolute last person I imagined myself in this position with. Married. Living together atourplace halfwayacross the country from where we grew up together. Carrying a freaking baby and not having a stroke over it. Well, at least not anymore. I was ecstatic about the man before me becoming a father to our child. The man that would help me protect her at any cost. The man that would protectmeat any cost.
God.Here I was bitching about running out of product while my husband coddled me in the most romantic way possible. In our barn. Putting up with my rollercoaster hormones time and time again.
As clichë as it sounded, there was nothing more perfect than this. Us. The excitement to become parents was overwhelming and anticipatory, but it brought me the most joy I had ever felt. Less than a year ago, I was completely clueless as to where my life was going. The dream I had of becoming a professional player slowly morphed into the physical need to be a mother for my child. The fear I had of Jack being an unworthy father was replaced by the thousands of small moments that proved how perfectly fit he was to care for our baby. Our girl.
I thought that every possibility of me feeling something romantic toward Jack were thrown out the window with teenage curiosity and childhood crushes, but the truth was, there had been something between us for as long as I could remember. We grew up together. Distant friends or not, Jack knew me and I knew him. It didn’t matter that things were fake in the beginning. I was starting to realize that not much about any of this was a hoax, whether we believed it or not.Jackoffered to bring me to Wyoming.Hepromised that he would be there for every second of my pregnancy.Hevowed to do anything for us. For our family. And the craziest part was, he followed through with flying colors. The Jack I knew growing up was a completely different person, but still felt so familiar to me. He had grown so much in the last nine months, but I still recognized him as mine. I always would.
I was inexplicably in love with the man before me and I would forever be thanking him for it. Hold him forever and tell him that–
“Oh, my god!” A massive rush of pain swept through my lower abdomen, completely unlike the pleasure that had overtaken me moments before.
Jack clutched at my forearms, eyes flooded with concern as they searched mine. I knew he was searching for a way to fix it. The way he always did.
I only held his gaze for a moment before bellowing over at the consistent pain that began to move lower in my abdomen. It was unlike anything I had felt before, and I knew it could only mean one thing.
It was happening.
“Baby,” Jack cupped my face as stray tears began run down my cheeks. His thumbs rubbed back and forth in attempt to soothe me, but it only worked for a second before I squinted my eyes and pressed my forehead against his chest.God.This felt awful. “Tell me how to make it okay. Tell me how to fix it.”
His voice was so gravelly. So protective.
I squeezed his shoulders—tight—as if it could subside the pain, but it was no use. I needed to use my words. “I–I think it’s happening.”
Jack pulled back in surprise and locked his eyes with mine. His eyebrows raised as if I was telling him the best news of his life. The terror I was afraid to catch in his eyes wasn’t there. It was hope. Excitement. Gratitude.
His hands moved down to mine and clutched them tightly. I could feel the anticipation buzzing between our skin. Electricity transferring from one being to another. It was utterly terrifying and beautiful at the same time.
