Page 114 of Faded Rhythm

I take his hand and lay it flat across my belly. “The baby is yours,” I joke. “I promise.”

He doesn’t laugh, just continues to stare, his jaw slack. Then he looks into my eyes. “That’s my baby.”

I nod.

He blinks a few times, then leans down to kiss my stomach so gently, I almost cry. When he looks at me again, his eyes are wet.

“Believe it or not, I’m happy,” he says, making me laugh. “I am. I’m just…processing this.”

“I know,” I say, brushing a hand against the rough stubble on his cheek. “I know you.”

He captures my mouth in a slow, lingering kiss, and it tells me more about how he feels than words ever could.

“I’m sorry AJ found out before you did,” I say. “It was the only way—“

“I don’t care about that,” he says, cutting me off. “All that matters is me and you. Baby, I’m so fucking happy right now.”

I tilt my head and gaze at him, feeling warm all over.

“Are you hungry?”

“No.”

“Tired? Got any cravings?”

“Not yet,” I say, laughing.

“You know I’m not letting you out of my sight, right? I’m about to be waiting on you hand and foot.”

“I’m actually looking forward to that.”

He lays back down, his head on my breasts, his hand on my belly.

“Why St. Lucia?” I ask as I run my fingers across his scalp.

“I have a connect here. Joseph. Real cool guy. You’ll meet him. And the extradition process is long and murky here, so if shit got hot for me, I’d have plenty of time to disappear.”

I think about that. “How are we gonna make this work? AJ said it’s hot for you at home.”

“It is.” He rubs my belly, then gives it a kiss before sitting up. “Come with me. I wanna show you something.”

He slides out of bed and grabs my hand to help me up. I laugh when he pulls his t-shirt over my head.

“What?” he says with a grin. “I don’t want my baby to get a chill.”

I shake my head at that. I already know he’s about to be insufferable. But I love it. I look forward to it, because my other pregnancies were stressful.

I knew from the very beginning that Kelice was Dash’s. I agonized for nine months worrying about what she’d look like, and if Brett would be able to tell. Then I got pregnant with Rae a few years later out of guilt, feeling like I owed Brett a child of his own.

This already feels different. It’s the joyous pregnancy I keep hearing about. I see the glow on myself already.

I follow Julian across the hall to a different bedroom. I gasp when the door opens and I see what’s inside.

I step in, hand over my mouth. The room is pink, purple, and blue. Two twin canopy beds draped in fabric sit against the back wall. The comforters are glittery and covered in unicorn pillows. Books and toys line the shelves on the other wall, and there’s a small table topped with a little tea set. Above the beds, there’s a painted wooden sign that says, “Princesses Sleep Here.”

“Julian…” My throat tightens. “What did you do?”

He leans against the door frame. “I prayed every night that you’d come back to me. And I knew that if you did, it wouldn’t just be you. It would be the girls, too. So I wanted to be ready to receive that blessing. Just in case.”

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