I mustered up the best smile I could and looked at the playground. “A part of me hates him for it, but then I’d never have Luke.”
He hung his head, ashamed. “I feel like I’ve stolen the choice from you, too.”
“What? No! You did nothing like that,” I assured him. My hand rested on his jaw, stroking his cheek, but he still didn’t look at me. “I wanted that as much as you. You didn’t take anything from me.” I looked down at my stomach and let out a heavy sigh. “We really screwed up, huh?”
He let out a pathetic laugh. “You could say that. What do you want to do? Do you want to get Plan B? Do you want to see what happens? Whatever you want, I’ll do.” It was sweet of him to be so supportive—I wouldn’t have expected anything less of him—but he had absolutely no clue what he was saying.
“Babies are a lot, Levi.” I peered over at him. “And we’ve only known each other for two months.”
“I know enough,” he said. “I know I love you and Luke.” He reached for my stomach. “And I know I’d love another mini version of you.”
“You’re crazy,” I laughed through tears. “You’re actually insane.”
He shrugged. “Maybe. But I’m not going to take this choice away from you. Whatever you want to do, we’ll do it. Whether that’s a baby nine months from now, nine years from now, or never. I’m all in with you, Tess.”
I swallowed hard. “You really mean that, don’t you?”
“Yes.” And I could see it in his eyes that it was the truth.
I knew I loved him and that he’d be a great father, but that didn’t mean I should make him one. It was too soon. We just said I love you yesterday. We haven’t even been a real couple for more than a week. But situations with strangers having babies together happened all the time, and it turned out well. Why couldn’t it turn out okay for us? I knew I wanted more kids, and if it happened now, maybe it wouldn’t be the end of the world… But I couldn’t help but think about the early days with Luke. They were some of the darkest days of my life. I was alone with no help, drowning in guilt and anxiety. I wasn’t sure I could go through with it again.
The warmth of Levi’s hand on my stomach, the tenderness in the touch, reminded me that he was nothing like Jeremy. Helovedme, loved me in its purest form. He would never leave me to suffer alone. He was all in.
And I was, too.
My fingers slid between his over my stomach. My heart was pounding, and I was terrified, but I knew I wanted this with him. “Let’s see what happens then,” I whispered.
Levi’s eyes widened a fraction. “Really?”
I chewed on the inside of my cheek, nodding. “If I’m not pregnant, then I’ll get back on birth control. And if I am, then…”
“We’ll have a baby,” he finished, his smile thick in his voice.
Hearing him say the words sent a rush of hope through me. “Yeah.”
“What about preventing in the meantime?” He leaned in, his nose brushing mine. “Because I do plan on collecting my prize later.” His voice was a sexy whisper against my lips before giving me a little peck.
“Condoms,” I replied, a little breathless.
He kissed me again. “But it feels so good to have you bare,” he rasped against my skin. He placed a kiss on my cheek. “Like heaven.”
A shaky breath slipped past my lips, my eyes fluttering. “I know.” I crossed my legs, aching for him.
Another kiss. This time on my jaw. “When are you getting your period?”
I was panting. “Three-ish weeks. They’re a little irregular.”
“Guess we’ll have to be good until then.” It would be torture, but I nodded in agreement.
Someone cleared their throat, and we sprang apart, only to find a woman in her forties glaring down at us. She placed her hands on her hips. “There are children present, you know,” she snapped.
I sat there stunned into silence, mortified. “Sorry,” Levi said with his friendly charm. “We’re newlyweds. You know what they say,” he added with a chuckle.
Her eyes softened a fraction, but she didn’t let up. “Congratulations, but still, tone it down.”
We looked at each other and giggled as she walked away. We grabbed Luke and took him to get ice cream. And I knew whatever happened, that Luke and I would be okay because we had Levi and he had us.
20
