Yep, now I’m crying too. “They’re beautiful, y’all. Well done.”
“Aw, thank you, Ry. Hard to believe this all started with the road trip from hell.” Wheeler grins at my brother.
Duke grins right back. “You mean the best road trip ever. Minus the U-Haul.Thatthing was…not safe.”
“Neither was the sex we had,” Wheeler replies with another laugh.
I shake my head. “Really, y’all. You had so much of it you had to make not one, but two babies.”
“People love making that joke.” Duke groans. “Although it is kinda true. That weekend?—”
“Was amazing.” Wheeler gets this starry look in her eyes.
Maggie,my brother’s perfect daughter, opens her eyes. They’re unfocused, but very blue. Just like Duke’s. Her full, wide mouth, though, is all Wheeler, and so is the smooth shape of her little chin.
Everything inside my chest swells to the point of pain. I keep falling in love with all these beautiful babies. Wonder when it will bemybaby I fall in love with?
I’m in no rush. But would I marry Billie tomorrow if I had the chance? Fuck yeah. I’d have a baby with her the day after too.
First, though, we gotta get this therapy program off the ground. Then we gotta decide where we’re living—her place or mine. I love the Wallaces and wouldn’t mind starting a new life on their property. It’d be weird not living on Lucky River Ranch, though, especially now that I’m getting a bunch of renovations done at my place.
At the end of the day, home is wherever my girl is. Don’t matter what the house itself looks like or where it’s located. As long as Billie lives there with me, I’ll be a happy man.
It’s time for Wheeler to nurse the babies, so Duke helps her get situated on the couch while I grab the gifts I brought from my truck.
My brother meets me on his wide front porch. He yawns, blinking hard.
“One thing you’re not prepared for is the sleep deprivation.” He tucks his hands in the pockets of his sweats. “I thought a decade as a cowboy would make me immune to exhaustion, but Lordy, was I wrong.”
I hold out a big brown paper and a cardboard drink holder containing two lattes from the Caffeinated Cowgirl. “Sorry I didn’t wrap this. And if y’all ever need me to hang with the kids so you can catch some shut-eye, just gimme a ring, yeah? I’m everyone’s favorite uncle for a reason.”
“Because you let them do whatever the hell they want?”
“That, and I’m around the most.”
“Might not be the case for long. You and your lady got some big projects coming down the pipeline.”
I’m grinning from ear to ear. “We do. Wrong that I don’t miss my free time?”
“Why would you? You spent it working. Of course you’re gonna love spending that time with Billie Wallace instead.”
“Fair point.”
Duke takes the bag, and together we head back inside and fall heavily into some chairs in his tiny kitchen. He opens the pair of kids’ cowboy hats I got them and chuckles, his eyes shining with tears.
“These are fuckin’ cute, man. Thank you. The kids’ll love ’em.”
My eyes are wet too. “For later, obviously. When they get older and follow in our family’s footsteps. We’re always looking for more cowgirls and cowboys.”
Duke’s throat bobs on a swallow. Next thing I know, he’s giving me a bear hug, the kind that almost hurts it’s so ardent.
“Can’t breathe,” I gasp.
Duke just holds me tighter. “I love you.”
He only lets me go when we hear the pop of tires on gravel outside. A beat later, someone slams the car door. My pulse jumps.
I don’t know why, but a bad feeling settles in my gut.
