Page 137 of Heartbeats & Highways

“Duke was with me that night,” he said. “He told the club. And then they gave me the name Savage.”

“Does Willa know? How you got the name?”

“Yes. They were the only people outside of the club who knew the story of my name. Now you know, too.”

“Thank you for sharing that with me.” I brought our hands to my mouth and kissed his knuckles. “It explains so much about you. The fighting, the anger . . .”

“You’re incredible, you know? You love me and accepted the fighting and the anger all without knowing about my past.”

I tugged him toward me. “Hold me, Savage.”

He turned off the lamp and then folded his body around mine and rested his hands on my belly. I fell asleep, sheltered in the protection of his embrace.

Chapter 35

I wokeup and knew from the sound of his breathing that he wasn’t asleep. I stirred against him and rolled over so that my cheek was pressed to his chest.

His hand immediately went to my head and his fingers combed through my hair.

I glanced at the clock. It was the middle of the night.

“Nightmare?” I asked him. “About your past? You shared a lot with me.”

“No.” He pressed a kiss to my head. “Just woke up and my brain turned on. But it’s not because of what I told you.”

I relaxed. “What are you thinking about?”

“Our baby class.”

“What about it?”

“I’m annoyed.”

“About what?”

“Things.”

I snorted. “It’s late, Savage. Stop being cryptic and tell me what’s on your mind.”

“When we went around the room and introduced ourselves, everyone said they were married. We’re not married. We don’t share the same last name. I don’t like that.”

“Oh.”

“And then I started to think about our future and what our family was gonna look like. I want a big family, Evie. It’s something I never got to experience or grow up with. I know it’s crazy to even be talking about it, since the twins aren’t even here yet. But I think we should talk about it.”

I licked my lips. “I need some water.”

“I’ll get it for you.”

He flipped on the lamp before padding naked to the kitchen. I listened to the cabinet opening and closing, the sound of water from the faucet. Savage returned and held out the glass to me. I took a few greedy swallows before offering it to him. He finished it off and then set it on the nightstand.

I tucked a strand of hair behind my ear, nerves shooting through my chest.

“What?” he asked, settling down on the bed next to me.

“I thought you didn’t care about marriage? I thought being an Old Lady was more of a commitment than marriage.”

“It is,” he said. “But there are other sorts of protections that come with marriage. Fuck, and the more I think about you having my last name, the more I like the idea. I want us to be a family.”

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