Page 16 of Forever with the Mountain Man
"Wonderful. Perfect." I twist my fingers together, suddenly nervous. "Can you come to my classroom? I have something to show you."
He sets down his drill immediately, concern flickering across his features. "Everything okay?"
"More than okay."
We walk back to my classroom hand in hand, and I guide him to the reading nook he built for me. I sit on the cushions, patting the spot beside me. When he settles next to me, I take his hand and place it on my stomach, pressing his palm flat against the soft fabric of my dress.
"Caroline?" His voice is questioning, hopeful.
"We're having a baby," I whisper. "About seven and a half months from now, if my calculations are right."
I watch the emotions play across his face—shock, joy, wonder, and finally, pure love. "You're sure?"
"I'm sure." My smile feels like it might split my face. "Are you happy?"
Instead of answering with words, he kisses me, pouring everything he's feeling into the contact. When we break apart, there are tears in both our eyes.
"I love you, Mrs. O'Sullivan," he murmurs against my forehead.
"I love you too, Mr. O'Sullivan."
Six months later, I'm arranging fresh flowers in the reading nook—a weekly delivery from Dahlia Pierce's shop that Finn insists on despite my protests that it's not necessary—when I feel tiny feet pressing against my ribs.
"Your daddy's going to spoil you rotten," I tell my growing belly. "He's already painted the nursery twice because he couldn't decide between sage green and buttercream yellow."
"Talking to yourself again?" Finn's voice comes from the doorway, warm with amusement.
I turn to find him leaning against the frame, tool belt around his hips and a smile on his face that still makes my heart skip. "Talking to our daughter."
"How do you know it's a girl?"
"Mother's intuition."
He crosses the room and wraps his arms around me from behind, his large hands settling on my rounded stomach. "I don't care if it's a boy or a girl, as long as they're healthy."
"Liar. You're hoping for a little girl you can spoil."
"Maybe." He presses a kiss to my neck. "But I'll settle for a boy who looks like his mother."
I lean back against his chest, marveling at how perfectly we fit together, how his body seems designed to shelter mine. "Think we'll be good at this? Parenting?"
"I think we'll figure it out together." His hands move in gentle circles over my belly. "Just like everything else."
Caroline
Two Years Later...
Two years later, I'm chasing Emma around the playground after school when I spot Finn's truck pulling into the parking lot. Emma sees it too and takes off running toward her daddy with the fearless enthusiasm that makes my heart simultaneously soar and stop.
"Daddy! Daddy! I painted a picture!"
Finn scoops her up, lifting her high enough to make her giggle—a sound that never fails to make both of us smile. "Did you? What did you paint?"
"A house! With flowers! And a dog!"
"We don't have a dog," I point out, reaching them slightly out of breath.
"We should get a dog," Emma declares with absolute certainty.
