I feel all of it—the tremble in her body, her fingers at my back, the quiet sounds she can’t quite hold in.
I breathe her in through it all.
Her skin.
Her hair.
The familiar warmth of her.
My forehead comes to rest against her shoulder, my eyes closing for a second as I let myself hold on to the moment. She shudders one last time, then slowly relaxes beneath me.
It takes me a minute to come back from it myself.
I don’t move straight away. I just stay there, close to her, making sure she’s okay.
Her hand slides up the back of my neck, her body loose and relaxed now.
“God, I missed you,” she says.
“I know.” I press a kiss to her shoulder. “I missed you too.”
We shift slowly, neither of us in a hurry to break the contact. I ease onto my side and guide her with me, one arm slipping around her middle as she settles in front of me.
She fits there easily, back to my chest, my body curved around hers. I adjust the pillows, make sure she’s comfortable, then pull her in closer, my hand spreading over the curve of her stomach, holding her there.
We lie like that, quiet, breathing in sync.
Our son moves under my palm—a lazy roll, completely unaware of what he's doing to me.
“He’s big,” I say, more to myself than anything.
Charlotte laughs. “Because he’s almost ready to hatch.”
I still for a second, then my mind starts working it through, lining everything up. “When did this happen?”
“Based on my due date, I think he was conceived when we were on the yacht. I’m guessing during your little fit of jealousy about a hypothetical man.”
“You mean when you were deliberately provoking me.”
She huffs a quiet laugh. “I provoked you so hard you put a baby in me.”
“Did you know when you left Brisbane?”
“No.” She settles back into me. “I found out a few weeks after we got here. At first I kept looking for another explanation—anything that made more sense—but eventually I ran out of those.”
She pauses, then exhales slowly. “It was hard not telling you. Every time we spoke, I was holding it in, and—” She trails off. “It was a lot to carry on my own.”
The baby shifts again beneath my hand.
“Your mum figured it out not long after we got here. I couldn’t hide it forever.” There’s a small smile in her voice. “She’s been incredible, Dane. Better than I expected. You should know that.”
“I’m glad she was here for you when I couldn’t be.”
My hand drifts to her stomach, settling there. I can’t seem to stop touching her. “They’ve checked everything? He’s healthy?”
“Everything’s fine.” No hesitation. “He’s perfect. They’ve run every test they can. Nothing’s wrong.”
“You’re sure?”
