“Everything okay?”
Lara smiles. “Yes, everything is great.”
“Okay.” I glance in the mirror one more time to make sure my hair is in place, then follow Lara out of the sapphire room—which I’ve been getting ready in, not spending the night. Nope, I’ve been staying with Lilly every night. Theo threw all the traditions and rules out the window after we returned from the hospital. We knew that we didn’t need to be separated to ensure our relationship was built on more than sex. Our sexual compatibility was never called into question. But our true faith in each other was. We both know we’re so much stronger now. We’ve endured so much and are better as a result. We both didn’t love the journey, but the results speak for themselves.
When Lara and I reach the room, I push through and find it empty.
Her cousins aren’t present, nor is Timmy.
Instead, Lilly stands in the middle of the room, in her wedding gown, her gorgeous hair curled and draped over her shoulders, a flower crown placed gently on her head while flowers cascade down the tendrils of hair framing her gorgeous face.
My mouth goes dry as I fully step into her room, Lara shutting the door behind me.
“Lilly,” I say, taking her all in, my eyes roaming, my heart rate speeding up with every new thing I notice about her dress, about her hair, about her makeup. She’s so gorgeous, and to see her like this, waiting for me to take her hand, makes a grown man want to fall to his knees in thanks. “You look . . . you’re stunning.”
She smiles and walks up to me, looking like a goddamn floating angel. “You look unbelievably handsome,” she says as her hand finds the lapel of my suit.
I chuckle. “Don’t get any ideas.”
Her fingers run up my chest. “Why not? Today is a cause for celebration.”
“Yes, but let’s get married first and then celebrate.”
“That’s not the kind of celebration I’m talking about,” she says.
“What do you mean?” I ask.
My hand in hers, she walks me over to her nightstand and hands a box to me. It’s the size of my palm and long.
“What’s this?”
“It’s for you. I thought I would give you a little present before we walk down the aisle.”
Confused, I give her a look that just makes her laugh and poke me to open it. So I lift the box, push back the tissue paper, and when I see what’s inside, my stomach falls to the fucking ground.
“No,” I say, tears springing to my eyes.
She nods.
“No, this is a joke.”
She chuckles. “It’s not, Keller. You’re going to be a dad.”
I run my hand over my mouth in awe as I stare down at the positive pregnancy test. “This is for real?”
“Very real,” she says as she takes the box from me and sets it back down on the nightstand. “The doctor confirmed it last night.”
“But . . . how . . .”
“Well, there was the multiple times in bed, the multiple times up against the wall, the time in the bathtub, oh, and when we were in the stairway . . . remember that night? But if I really had to pin it to something, I think it was when we decided to have a quickie in the kitchen. The whipped cream you sucked off my tits really made a baby.”
“Jesus,” I mutter, making her laugh. “I didn’t mean like that.”
“I know, but it’s fun pressing your buttons.” She stands on her toes and kisses my jaw. “The doctor just said this kind of thing happens all the time.”
“So we’re really having a baby?”
“We are,” she answers.
