Page 19 of Born Wild

“Again? Right now?” The surprise in her tone makes me chuckle.

“No.” I hug her into my side. “Ask me again in a few minutes.”

She snuggles into my body. “I think we’re going to be really happy here.”

“Cassie, I love you.”

She pushes up on one elbow and in the dim light I watch as her eyes gloss with unshed tears. “I love you, too.”

I brush her hair back from her face and cup her cheek. “I want you to know that I will choose you, always. There’s never beenanyone else for me and there never will. I will try to be a man who deserves your love.”

“Careful, cowboy. You’re gonna make me cry.”

“That’s the last thing I want.”

“I blame the pregnancy hormones.”

I press a kiss to her mouth. “I wish I could marry you tomorrow.”

“Well, lucky for you there’s only a week to wait.”

“You’re going to make me the luckiest man in the world.” My palm travels down her body to the growing belly. “I wish I could take away all the pain you’ve endured that led us to this point . . . but I don’t wish away this child and I never will, because this led me to you.”

She’s my first, my last, and everything in between. I vow to love this woman the best I can. I don’t need a ceremony or vows. The promises I make this woman are written on my heart. She holds it all, and I can’t wait to start our future together.

EPILOGUE

CASSIE

Two days after my due date, exactly four months after our wedding date, I go into labor. Tim rushes me to the hospital, where our first born takes their sweet time. Labor is long. I’m scared. At several points, I wonder if I can even do this. But every step of the way Tim is at my side, holding my hand and whispering words of encouragement. Reminding me how strong I am. Reminding me how proud he is. How I only have a little more to go.

Relief floods my veins when it’s finally over. Our baby is rushed to a table where measurements and stats are recorded. And moments later a bundled baby is returned to my arms.

“Breathe, Daddy. Mama and baby are perfectly healthy.” One of the nurses notices my husband’s pale face. “Go meet your son.”

Tim’s forehead is lined with worry. But as soon as his gaze meets mine, the tightness in his jaw loosens. His eyes sparkle with emotion as they land on the swaddled baby in my arms.

“Isn’t he perfect?” I ask.

“A boy?” He clears his throat and wipes away a tear before it can fall. “We have a son?” He doesn’t have to explain the disbelief in his words. I’m right there with him. After everything we’ve been through, it’s surreal.

“Yeah.” Physically I’m spent. My body feels every second of the thirty hours of labor I’ve endured. But in spite of all that, a stillness settles around my heart. In this moment, I’m complete. Everything I love most is in this room. My perfect, beautiful little family. It’s all I need. It’s all I ever want.

“Do you have a name picked out?” one of the nurses asks.

I glance over to Tim. We never settled on a boy’s name. If the baby was a girl, we decided to name her Maeve. I squint, pulling some of the names that neither of us disliked from my brain. “Ryan?”

Tim leans over and reaches his large hand over the baby, moving the blanket lower to examine his face. “He doesn’t look like a Ryan. Does he?”

I want to laugh. Does a baby ever look like their name until it’s given? Instead, I stare at my child and nod. “What about Jack? Or Jackson?”

Tim’s gaze darts to mine and his lips smirk. “You know that one didn’t make our list.”

“Well, I still love it.” I chuckle.

“What about Tim?”

All humor fades at his suggestion. My pulse skips a beat, and my love for this man doubles. He wants to give this child his name—a child who’s not biologically his. Tears form in my eyes,clouding my vision before they fall freely down my face. “You want to give him your name?”

---