I snort softly. “I own a chocolate shop. I run every day.”
He nips lightly at my skin—just enough to make my breath hitch. “Not like today.”
I open my eyes and turn my head. “What do you mean?”
Wyatt’s gaze holds mine, steady. “Today you stood in front of your mother and didn’t flinch.”
My throat tightens. “I flinched.”
Wyatt shakes his head. “Not the way you used to.”
I swallow hard. “Because I’m tired of being small.”
Wyatt’s mouth curves. “You’ve never been small.”
I scoff. “Tell that to my family.”
Wyatt’s hand spreads over my belly, protective. “I don’t care what they think.”
“You would’ve,” I say quietly. “Back then.”
Wyatt’s eyes soften, just a fraction. “Back then I thought I had to be worthy of you.”
My breath catches. “Wyatt…”
He exhales and leans his forehead to mine. “I fell first,” he says again, like it’s still the truest thing he’s ever admitted. “And I spent too long trying to bury it.”
I cup his jaw, thumb brushing his beard. “Then stop burying.”
Wyatt’s gaze drops to my mouth. “I did.”
I kiss him.
It starts slow, sweet, familiar—then deepens the way it always does with us, hunger catching like a spark in dry pine.
Wyatt’s hands tighten at my waist, and he pulls me onto his lap against the rock ledge, water spilling around us. He looks at me like I’m the only thing he’s ever wanted.
I breathe out, shaky. “You’re staring.”
Wyatt’s voice is low. “I’m memorizing.”
I try to sound flippant, but it comes out breathy. “I’m not going anywhere.”
Wyatt’s eyes go dark. “I know.”
His mouth claims mine again—slow, possessive, all-consuming—until my hands are in his hair and my body is arching into him without dignity.
He pulls back just enough to murmur against my lips, “You okay?”
I nod, swallowing. “Yes.”
His hand slides to my belly, gentler now. He presses a kiss there, reverent.
“I’ll remind you every day,” he says, voice rough with feeling. “You’re my forever bride.”
My throat tightens. “Wyatt…”
He looks up at me, eyes bright in the starlight. “I mean it. You chose me. I choose you back—every morning, every night, every time this family grows.”
