"C’mere.” I sit and pull her down on my lap, reaching down to rub one of her calves.
She groans as her head falls onto my shoulder. "Actually, there's something I wanted to talk to you about. I got a call from Miller on my way over here."
I tense, but then pick back up with my massage. "What did he want?"
"To set up a meeting. With both of us." She pulls out her phone, reading from the screen. "'To discuss a mutually beneficial resolution to our current situation.' Whatever that means."
"It means he's planning something," I say, already thinking through scenarios. "The coalition must be hurting him more than we thought."
"Or he's found a new angle," Wren counters. "Either way, I told him we'd meet. Tomorrow, at Cascade."
I nod slowly. "On our turf. Smart."
"I thought so." She looks up at me, her expression serious. "We need to be prepared for whatever he throws at us."
"We will be." I pull her closer and wrap myself around her as much as I can in this position. "We've got each other's backs, remember?"
"Yeah." I feel her smile against my neck. "We do."
After a few more minutes alone, we head out to rejoin the others, finding them clustered around one of the brewing tanks. Noble's happily tucked in Banks's arms again, drooling on his dad's shoulder.
"Did you survive the inquisition?" Reed asks, looking between us.
"Barely," I say. "But we've been summoned to dinner on Sunday, so the execution's been postponed."
"Meeting the parents," Lake whistles. "That’s a big step."
"We're having a baby together," Wren points out dryly. "I think we’re there."
Everyone laughs, and the tension from earlier dissipates. We spend the next hour catching up, sharing beers (non-alcoholic for Wren, which she wrinkles her nose at but drinks anyway), and enjoying the company of our friends. Watching Wren with Noble, the way her face softens when he grabs her finger, makes my chest ache in the best possible way.
By the time everyone heads out, it's after sunset. After I check out with my evening bar staff, Wren and I head home in comfortable silence, her hand resting on my thigh as I drive.
"So," she says as we pull into the driveway. "After all that excitement, what do you think about working on the nursery tonight? I need something normal and productive to do."
"Yeah, if you’re up for it, I’m game."
When we get inside, she changes into comfortable clothes, which are more my stuff than hers. We head to the room we've designated for the nursery, which still looks more like a storage space than a baby's room.
"We should decide on a theme," Wren says, surveying the boxes we need to clear out. "Something that isn't aggressively babyish."
"What, you don't want pastel blue everywhere?" I say, already starting to move boxes.
She wrinkles her nose. "God no. I was thinking something more... I don't know. Mountain-y? Outdoorsy? To go with the whole Portland vibe."
"That could work," I agree. "Pine trees, mountains, maybe some wildlife that isn't too cutesy. Foxes or something."
"Exactly!" She looks surprised and happy that I'm on the same page. "Like the label you designed for Dawn Breaker."
This may be the first thing we’ve agreed on when it comes to the baby. I pause, a box half-lifted in my arms. "You want the nursery to match the beer label?"
"Is that weird?" She suddenly looks uncertain. "I just thought... it's meaningful. It represents both of us. The trees for you, the stars for me."
The weight of what she's saying settles into my bones. I set down the box and cross to her.
"That’s…" I say against her hair as I pull her against me. My throat’s tight as hell and I swallow a couple of times before I can finish my thought. "No, it's not weird. It's... us."
She relaxes against me, her arms sliding around my waist. "Good. Because I may have already ordered some stuff online."
