Page 148 of The Exception

“Sloan and Jasper send their love,” I said.

“Aw. I miss them. And I miss baby Henry and his cute little chubby cheeks.”

I arched a brow. Did Lily want a baby? She’d mentioned possibly wanting children someday, but only if she found the right person. We’d been so busy with the château and everything else, we hadn’t discussed it since.

“What?” she asked.

“Do you…” I wasn’t sure how to ask this. I knew how I felt about it, but I found myself suddenly hesitant to ask. Afraid to hear her answer. “Do you want to have kids?”

She studied me a moment then nodded.

“Do you want to have kids with me?” I asked.

She nodded again. “Yeah. I mean…if that’s what you want.” It came out as more of a question, and I sensed she was nervous.

I took her hands in mine. “Even though we’re not married for real,” I teased.

Somehow, my grandparents had known exactly what I’d needed. And I liked to think that their marriage clause—as annoyed as I had been by it—was responsible for bringing Lily and me together.

Lily slapped my chest playfully. “Our marriage is real.”

“Hey.” I lifted my hands. “I’m merely repeating what you often said.”

She narrowed her eyes at me.

“You’re the one who said you might want to get married for real someday and have kids.”

“Actually, I’ve been thinking about that.”

I furrowed my brow. Where was she going with this?

“I know you don’t like attention, but I feel like we should have a wedding redo. We could host it here, recite new vows that are more authentic to our relationship now. And invite your family.”

“But still not yours,” I said, and we shared a look.

Her family was still on my shit list for the way they’d treated her. Over the past few months, they’d called and texted a few times. Lily had yet to respond to their texts, even though they’d tried to apologize. Sadly, we both suspected it was a thinly veiled attempt to get back in her good graces so they could ask for money.

I hated it for her. And though I’d offered to do some hacking to make them pay, she said they weren’t worth the effort. She was right. I was no longer pouring my energy into things that didn’t matter.

“When?” I asked.

“Next summer.”

I shook my head.

“Too soon?”

“Too far away,” I said, pulling her to me. “I don’t want to wait that long.”

“To get married or…” She trailed off.

“Both,” I said.

She jerked her head back. “Both? As in—” Her cheeks flushed. “As in, you want to have a baby?”

“As soon as you’re ready, yes.”

She threw herself at me, wrapping her arms around my neck. I caught her, hoisting her up so her legs were wrapped around my waist, her ass in my hands.

---