I huff out an exasperated laugh. “I can’t believe bikers refer to vehicles as cages.”
“It feels like one when you’re used to riding the open road on a Harley,” he mutters before stopping himself.
I decide to change the subject, because there’s still something I have to tell him. Now that everything is settled and I can finally breathe, it’s time. “I have a special gift for you today.”
He glances at me. “Is it lacy or delicious?” Before I can answer, he adds, “Or maybe it’s both.”
I just laugh because I love Flint when he’s playful like this.
***
The beach house is more like a hut and ten yards from the sand. There’s a deck with two chairs and a welcome mat made of coconut fiber.
We walk through the front door to find the kitchen the size of a closet, and a huge king-size bed that dominates the rest of the room. It’s covered with a quilt edged in a seahorse pattern. Flint drops our bag beside the bed. I go in the bathroom and change into a one-piece swimsuit I packed this morning.
When Flint turns to look at me, I have to laugh. “Aren’t you just made of eyes today?”
He lets out a low whistle. “Foxy doesn’t begin to cover what I’m seein’.”
I slip my sandals on. “Get into your trunks and let’s go for a walk on the beach.”
He doesn’t move. Instead, he just gropes around in the side pocket of our suitcase for his swimming trunks while continuing to stare at me. “Sweetheart, you are the most beautiful woman I’ve ever set eyes on. You’re glowing.”
“Stop. You’re making me blush.” I try to make it sound like a complaint, secretly loving how wowed he is by my new swimsuit. It has a really cute vintage cut with a ruched waist and cups that push my breasts up.
Suddenly, Flint turns the tables on me by slowly stripping off all his clothing, revealing every bump and swell of his ripped body. Standing there, in all his glory as he casually steps into his swimming trunks, takes my breath away.
When we walk out to the beach, I’m the happiest I’ve ever been. It’s midmorning, and the sun is still climbing higher in the sky. Fresh waves are rolling in, leaving behind shells that glisten in the sand.
He pulls the towel off his shoulder and spreads it down on the sand. We drop down and watch the waves rolling in. The salty smell of the ocean soothes me in a way that nothing else does.
“Flint. Thank you for suggesting we get away for a couple of days.”
“You deserve a break after everything you’ve been through.”
“We both do. You were with me every step of the way.”
He reaches over and wraps one arm around my back. “I wouldn’t have it any other way, foxy.”
After a while, he murmurs, “Sun’s gonna burn your beautiful pale skin if we’re not careful. Did you bring sunscreen?”
“Yeah, it’s in my purse.”
“I’ll grab it,” he offers.
Before I can respond, he gets up, walking back across the sand the way we came. I sit there enjoying the breeze with my arms wrapped around my knees.
Flint’s gone for longer than I expected. I look over my shoulder at the deck of the house. He’s standing on the deck. He has my purse open in one hand and something in his other hand. I close my eyes, knowing all the way down to my bones what he’s found. This isn’t the way I wanted him to find out.
I jump to my feet and quickly walk back to him, dragging our towel behind me in one hand. He is watching me come. He’s not moving towards me, not meeting me halfway. He’s staring at me so intently that I worry he’s going to be mad. Mad that I’m carrying his child. Mad that I didn’t tell him and he had to find out on his own.
I climb the three steps onto the porch and stop in front of him. “Flint. Look, I’m sorry.”
He tosses the bag back through the front door and drops down on the stoop with the plastic bag containing the three pregnancy test strips. Turning his hand so he can look at them, his gaze turns intense.
I quietly sit beside him, deciding to give him a minute to absorb what he’s seeing. Just when I think he’s too shocked to grasp what he’s seeing and maybe this is going to be worse than I ever thought, he snorts a laugh. I’m honestly bewildered by his response.
Then he laughs again. It sounds more relieved than anything, a soft sound, low in his chest.
