"I love you," he whispers. "Both of you. So much."
"I love you too."
The pleasure builds slowly, a rising tide instead of a crashing wave.
When I finally come apart, it's gentle and sweet, RJ following moments later with a soft groan against my neck.
We stay tangled together afterward, catching our breath, neither of us wanting to move.
"Worth the wait," he says eventually.
"What wait? We had sex yesterday."
"Twenty-four hours is a very long time."
I laugh, turning in his arms to face him.
His hair is mussed, his eyes heavy-lidded with satisfaction.
He looks happy. Relaxed.
At peace in a way I'm not sure he's ever been before.
"I was thinking," I say, tracing patterns on his chest. "After the baby comes, maybe we could visit Ireland. Let your Da meet his grandson."
"He'd like that." RJ catches my hand, bringing it to his lips. "We could stay at the Mackenzie estate. Liam's offered us a cottage on the grounds whenever we want it."
"A cottage in Ireland. Very romantic."
"We could make it our thing. Summers in Jacksonville, Christmases in Dublin. Give the little man the best of both worlds."
Both worlds.
Norse and Irish.
Florida and Dublin.
Fashion designer and Brotherhood soldier.
We're a family of contradictions, of impossible combinations that somehow work.
"I like that," I say. "He'll be the most well-traveled baby in history."
"He'll have stories to tell." RJ's hand drifts back to my belly, protective and possessive. "About his badass designer mam who took New York by storm. About his Viking grandfather and his Irish great-grandfather. About the family that would burn the world down to protect him."
"Let's hope he never needs that last part."
"Let's hope." But there's something fierce in RJ's eyes, a promise that has nothing to do with hope and everything to do with certainty.
If anyone ever threatens our son, they'll have to go through both of us.
And may the Gods help anyone who tries.
The baby kicks again, strong and sure, like he knows we're talking about him.
"He's going to be trouble," RJ says fondly. "I can already tell."
"With our genes? Absolutely."
