Page 84 of Love Is Ale You Need

I link my fingers with hers and lift, pressing a soft kiss to the back of her hand. “They’re excited. They’ll love you and Abby. My happiness means the world to them, and you make me happy.”

Her gaze falls to the sand. “Speaking of parents. I told my mother as well. While happiness may not be in her vocabulary, she’s aware and may or may not be there when our acorn is born.”

My eyebrows pinch together. “Why’s that?”

Rylee tells me about her mom and the numerous husbands she’s had since her dad left and how it was her mom who convinced her to marry Kyle after she got pregnant. Over the years, her mom hasn’t been supportive of her life decisions. While she’s maintained a relationship with her, it’s been distant.

I halt in my tracks and tug her to me. I wrap my arms around her shoulders and bend down, pressing my lips to hers. “You got me now. And I have no plans on leaving.” At one time, a six-year-old asked if I loved her mom, and I think I know my answer.

THIRTY

YOU’RE MY FAVORITE

Rylee

I snuggle deeper into the bed of blankets Trey set up earlier on the deck of our cabin. The moon rises gracefully over the lazy rolling waves of the lake, casting a shimmering reflection on the water’s surface. Shades of deep orange, soft pinks, and hues of purple paint the sky as stars fight to push through the darkening horizon.

The sliding door opens and Trey steps out, a mug of hot cocoa in his hand. When he’s within arm’s reach, he passes me the steaming cup. I wrap both hands around it, inhaling the chocolatey goodness before taking a sip.

“Thank you.” I glance up at Trey. “This is perfect. Well, almost perfect.” I place the mug on the Adirondack side table next to me. My fingers grip the corner of the blanket and lift. A shiver runs over my body. Trey kneels on the makeshift blanket bed, accepting my invitation. The cool air is replaced by his warmth. He wraps an arm around me, tugging me to his side. His thumb lazily brushes over my shoulder.

Goosebumps spread across my arms for an entirely different reason. I never grew up with dreams of what I wanted my life to be. If I’d told myself I’d be sitting under a blanket on a deck overlooking Lake Superior with a guy who I’m only having a baby with, I would’ve laughed. Especially when I already have a daughter with another man. Oddly enough, there isn’t anywhere else I would want to be.

“Oh.” I hold my breath, waiting to see if it happens again.

“What’s wrong? Everything alright?”

My lips curl into a smile. I grab his hand and shove it under the blanket.

“Oh!” His eyebrows quirk up as a devilishly sexy smirk crosses his lips. “We’re doing this out here?”

“No.” I laugh. “Our acorn is moving.”

“Oh! Well, that’s equally exciting!”

I position his hand on my belly where the baby moved, but after a few seconds of nothing happening, Trey’s face falls.

“I’m sorry. This won’t be the only time.” I drop my hand from his, but he keeps his positioned on my belly.

He pushes the blanket away with his elbow, and it falls to my lap. Scooting down so his head is next to my belly. “Hey acorn. This is your father,” he says in his best Darth Vader voice. “So, you might be too young for that, but I promise we’ll have aStar Warsmarathon when you’re older. I’ve been reading a library’s worth of how not to screw up your kids’ life books. That’s not actually the title, but that’s the gist of it. Anyway, I’m supposed to talk to you, so you hear my voice. But don’t listen while me and your mom are getting it on. Just… earmuffs.”

My belly bounces as I’m unable to contain my laughter any longer. I wrap my arm around Trey’s shoulders, my fingers playing with the short hairs on the back of his head. My heart swells for this man. Our baby. Everything that’s happening at this moment. If I wasn’t already pregnant, I would tell him to put one in me. Right now. Instead, I’m basking in the special moment he’s having with our baby. This is what it should have been like the first time. Not me in a house—not a home, because living with Kyle didn’t give home vibes—waiting for him to walk through the front door. And when he finally did, pretending he didn’t smell like some other woman’s cheap perfume because I was too scared to be alone.

Trey’s cooing at my belly pulls me back to the present.

“After many failed attempts at getting your mommy to go out on a date with me, she finally agreed to let me walk her to her car. Once we were alone, she was unable to resist Daddy’s charm. She seduced me into getting into the backseat of Daddy’s SUV and had her wicked way with me. And that’s the night you were conceived.” He glances up at me. “Did I get that right?”

I giggle. “Something like that. But also, we are never telling our child the actual story.”

A playful grin covers his face before he whispers to my belly, “Mommy’s no fun.”

A fluttering sensation takes flight on the right side of my stomach. Trey’s shoulders tense.

“Do you feel that?” I whisper.

Trey glances up at me, hand still splayed over my stomach. “I do.” Then he stretches, placing a kiss on my lips. “I think our little acorn wants to know more about conception night.”

For the next fifteen minutes, Trey continues talking to my belly about each time Daddy convinced Mommy to go on a date with him. “I think our acorn had enough of me talking.” He sits up, yanking at the edge of the blanket, covering us again.

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