He doesn’t respond right away, just brushes his thumb over my knuckles, the touch so gentle that I nearly burst into tears.
Keeping this baby a secret from Ronan made sense at the time, but after everything we went through tonight, it feels like an unnecessary burden.
“I should have told you, Ronan. Because if I had died tonight?—”
“Don’t! Don’t you dare finish that sentence, Ciara. You’re alive, and that’s all that matters.”
“But…the baby?—”
“Will be fine too, I know it.”
“You’re not a doctor, Ronan.”
“No, but I trust my gut feeling, and it’s always right.”
“Oh, yeah? Like when?”
“For starters, when you agreed to marry me, I had a gut feeling you were going to be the biggest pain in my ass.”
I can’t help but laugh. “Is that the only time?”
“There have been plenty more. But the one that stands out is when I saw you pointing that gun at the guy who took Mila.”
I shudder at the memory. “Really?”
“I had a gut feeling I was going to fall so madly in love with you that it might very well be the death of me.”
“Ronan…” My voice cracks as I look into his dark brown eyes.
“I’m going to be a father.” He lifts my hand to his mouth and kisses the back of it. “Thank you.”
My brows pull together. “For what?”
“For this.” He places his free hand on my stomach. “For this new life and for loving me enough to build it with me.”
Tears well up before I even realize it.
Ronan bends down to wrap me in his arms, and I sob into his shirt. “I love you,Tine Bheag. And I’m so fucking happy.”
There’s a knock on the door, and Ronan and I instantly pull apart as a woman in a white coat enters the room.
“Hello, Mrs. Sullivan, I’m Dr. Lynch, the resident OBGYN.” She offers me a warm smile.
I wipe away my tears. “Please, call me Ciara.”
“Ciara.” She nods, glancing at Ronan. “And you are?”
“Her husband.” Ronan extends his hand for Dr. Lynch to shake. “Ronan Sullivan.”
After shaking Ronan’s hand, Dr. Lynch pulls out a stool and sits on the opposite side of the bed. “Let’s check on your baby, shall we?”
I lie back and reach for Ronan’s hand again, clutching it like a lifeline.
My heart pounds in my ears as Dr. Lynch rolls the machine closer to begin the scan.
I try to focus on her kind smile and soothing voice as she makes small talk, but I barely hear her.
Ronan squeezes my hand once and then twice to bring me back to the present. “Breathe.”
