Page 12 of Marrying the Mountain Man

And when my orgasm finally overtook me, I understood what the term “consummate a marriage” truly meant. Here, buried inside her, I felt a connection I’d never had with a human. She got me. I could trust her. I could count on her for anything I needed for the rest of my life.

But as I rolled onto my back and pulled her into my arms, I knew this time had been important. This time, our lovemaking had created a life. I wasn’t sure how I knew it. I just felt it.

I hoped more than anything my instincts were right because there was nothing I wanted more than to start a family with my new wife.

EPILOGUE

CHERRY

“What are you drinking?” Kenzie asked as she plopped down at the table with me and Skylar.

“Margaritas,” Skylar answered.

“Mine’s virgin,” I said.

The word brought a smile to my lips. Virgin. I couldn’t help but think of my first day in this town. In this very sports bar. I’d ordered my margarita virgin without even thinking about the secret I’d shared on the phone. No doubt Phoenix had immediately thought about me being a virgin when I used that word. I’d been so innocent. It was like I was a completely different person, and that’d only been a few months ago.

“I would hope it’s virgin, considering,” Kenzie said, deliberately dropping her gaze to my stomach.

I looked down at my belly. I was seven months pregnant and definitely showed it. When Phoenix and I talked about starting a family right away, we hadn’t imagined we’d get pregnant on our wedding night. That meant by our one-year anniversary this summer, our baby would already be a few months old.

“I’ll be right back,” Kenzie said. “Do either of you need anything?”

I shook my head, as did Skylar. We watched as she headed over to the bar.

“I think she’s pregnant,” Skylar said.

My head snapped around to look at her. Skylar and Kenzie had become my closest friends since moving here. It helped that our men were constantly hanging out. Surprisingly, Phoenix had bridged the gap between us and all our neighbors. He finally figured out that playing pool and fishing with his coworkers on the logging crew didn’t mean they’d nose into his business. In fact, their friends gave them the privacy they needed and anything they confided stayed within the group.

“What makes you say that?” I asked. “Did she tell you?”

Skylar shook her head. “You probably didn’t notice, but when we took that shopping trip last weekend, she had to sit up front because she said she gets motion sick. She’s never done that before. Plus, she’s ordering a virgin margarita right now.”

Skylar nodded toward the bar. Sure enough, Kenzie walked toward them, holding a drink that looked identical to mine. That didn’t mean it didn’t have alcohol in it, though.

“This is amazing,” Kenzie said after taking a long sip through the straw. She plopped back down in the chair and set the drink in front of her. “You wouldn’t even know it doesn’t have alcohol in it.” She looked at Skylar. “You want to taste it?”

Skylar shook her head, but she was battling a smile. There could be other reasons Kenzie wasn’t drinking. Maybe she and Will were trying to get pregnant. Or maybe she just wasn’t in the mood.

But if Skylar was right, that would mean they’d have children around the same age. Maybe Skylar would get pregnant soon too, and they could all raise their children together.

The door to the sports bar opened, and in walked three men. Men that would grab attention walking into any building, anywhere. But I had eyes for only one of those three, and as Phoenix scanned the room, his eyes finally landing on me, it was clear he felt the same.

“They’re drinking again,” Granger announced, a teasing tone in his voice.

“Virgin,” I said, lifting my glass.

I didn’t speak for Kenzie, and she didn’t say a word. But her margarita glass matched mine, while Skylar was drinking sweet white wine.

“How was work?” Kenzie asked as the three men took their seats at the table.

“It was a day,” Will said.

Phoenix leaned in to give me a kiss on the lips. “Aww,” the other guys said. But they had similar greetings for their own women. We all were cheesy as hell.

“We were just talking about unwinding with a game of pool,” Will said.

The game room was at the back of the building and included a pinball machine, an air hockey table, and a pool table, along with a few arcade games along the walls. Until recently, I loved to see how far I could get on one of the arcade games, but these days, standing that long wasn’t worth it. So, I’d sit here with my friends and rest while the guys did their thing.

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