I raised my eyebrow over the frame of my sunglasses. “Do tell.”
“I thought we should get used to even more chaos, so I got us a puppy.”
I tried to stifle a smile. We were having a baby in three months, and Layton decided to do something crazy like this. We’d been living together for a year, so you’d think I’d be used to his enthusiasm, his grand gestures and crazy ideas. Especially when I got pregnant after being in California for six months—Layton was absolutely giddy.
“One of the guys on the set got this pup,” he explained, “and there was one more left in the litter. A boy, which was perfect. I thought I’d even the playing field. You know, since there’ll be three of you soon.”
“Lay, we don’t know if it’s a girl.”
“It is.” His eyes, the color of toasted almonds, sparkled in the sunlight, contrasting with the never-ending blue sky behind him.
“You’re crazy. Another puppy? I’m definitely paying the price for your quiet childhood.”
“I named him Jackie. You’ve got to see him, all cute and fluffy. And that puppy breath, it’s absolutely awful.”
“It’s a good thing I love you. A puppy? And a baby? We already have Harri and Jay. We must be certifiable.”
“I think we kind of need to step up the hunt for a new place.”
“You think? Three canines and soon to be three humans?”
Layton averted his eyes, concentrating on Jay. “There’s one thing I didn’t mention. Jackie is a Newfie, so he’s going to get pretty big.”
I grabbed the back of Layton’s neck, warm from the sun and slick with sweat, and slid my hand through his hair to pull him in for a kiss. It was a better alternative than slapping him.
“So, you’re cool with it?”
I kissed him again. His tongue wound its way into my mouth and he deepened the kiss. Of course, my raging hormones took over and I moaned into his lips. My hand roamed his back before slipping into the waistband of his shorts.
“Char, not in my shorts. Not right now.” He pulled back a little, a smirk on his face.
“What? I’m horny, fat, and carrying your baby, so it’s your job to take care of me. Anyway, when have I never been able to touch you?”
My chest rose and fell, my heart beating a furious pace.
“Oh, I’m going to take care of you. But first, I need to do this.” He reached around his back awkwardly, and I realized he was unzipping his pocket.
“Marry me?” he asked, a shiny bauble hanging from his pinky.
“Look at me.” I motioned to my belly.
“Yeah? I am looking at you, and I love it.”
“I thought we said we weren’t going to think about any of that until after the baby.”
He raised his hand to my cheek, running his knuckles all the way to the back of my neck. “Are you going to marry me, Charleston? You’re not your mom. You’re doing what you want. I know we’re not in New York but you’re doing what you want. Writing by the beach, which is better anyway. I know you think so. Say yes, so I don’t get a complex.”
“Yes,” I whispered into the ocean air. Then I said it louder, afraid it would get lost forever at sea. “Yes!”
“Good,” he said and placed a kiss on my closed lips. “I was getting nervous. Luckiest damn day of my life.”
“Well, now we have to tell my mom we changed our minds. It will crush her; she was still holding out for a Wall Street banker or something.”
Layton chuckled. “She knows I’m your something, she’s just afraid to admit it. You know that. She as much as said it, that she felt enormous pressure for you not to turn into a free spirit like her. She wanted you to be like your dad. He grounded her.”
“I’m stuck on you being my something,” I said while I scribbled it on my notepad. “And I’m totally going to use that line. And yes, my dad centered my mom before I did. Now I don’t, and she’s pissed. Feels lost.”
“As long as you said yes, I’m cool with it. And while you’re happy, one more thing. I already called your mom. She knows. I told her I was going to ask you.”
