His expression turns so offended I burst into laughter.
“Never!” He kicks open the door to our suite, making me laugh harder.
Then I see the room. It’s decorated with flowers and champagne and a bed big enough for six people. Luke would be happy with a full-size so I’d have to sleep on top of him.
He doesn’t head for the bed, though. He carries me to the window seat, settling down with me in his lap, my dress pooling around us.
“Hi,” he whispers, his forehead against mine.
“Hi.” I run my fingers through his hair.
“We probably should have told them all bye.” Then again, probably not. Everyone knows how Luke can be with me.
“Tomorrow.” He kisses my jaw, my throat, the hollow above my collarbone. “We have all night. I have plans for you.”
I smile, feeling the secret I’ve been holding bubble up, impossible to hold anymore. “I have plans for you too,” I tell him.
“Yeah?” He pulls back, his eyes dark and soft, his hands gentle on my waist. My overbearing teddy bear husband. “What kind of plans?”
I take his hand, the one with the gold band that matches mine, and press it flat against my stomach. A secret that’s half him and half me and entirely ours.
“You’re going to be a dad,” I say.
He goes completely still; the playful hunger vanishes from his face, replaced by awe, fragile, terrified, and beautiful. I cover his hand with my own.
“Madeline,” he whispers my name. “I thought?—”
“You’ve waited long enough.” I said years ago that we’d wait a few years after college to start trying, but as we neared the end of college and our wedding approached, I knew I also wanted it now.
“Buttercup—” I cup his cheek. He stares at me for a long moment, pressing his mouth to mine hard and desperately, his hands framing my face. “This is perfect. You’re perfect. We’re—” He stops, pressing his forehead to mine, his breathing ragged. “A baby. We’re having a baby.”
“We’re having a baby.” I say it again so he knows it’s real. “Hey,” I whisper. “You okay?”
“I’m better than okay.” He catches my hand, kissing my palm, my wrist, and the inside of my elbow. “It’s everything.You’reeverything. You and this baby. This life you gave me when I didn’t deserve it.”
“Luke, you deserved it,” I tell him, pulling him close. “You deserve all of it.” I’ll spend my life proving that to him.
He carries me over to the bed, treating me like I’m made of glass.
“I love you,” he whispers against my hair, his hand spread wide against my stomach, holding our future. “I love you so much.”
“I know.” I smile up at him. I’m exactly where I’m supposed to be. “I love you, too.”
Outside, the party continues. Inside, we begin another chapter of our lives with a million more to come.
Epilogue
LUKE
Many Years Later
The house is finally quiet. A rare thing around here these days, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. I never could’ve imagined my life would be this way. I know it wouldn’t be without Madeline.
I close the door to our youngest son’s room as softly as I can, holding my breath until I’m sure none of them are stirring. Not that it matters. In the middle of the night, they always switch beds, ending up all together. We don’t fight it.
I love how close they are, and I don’t want them to lose that. I hate the years my brother and I lost, but we’ve made up for it over time.
Three kids under five, and I’ve learned to move like a damn ninja instead of a grizzly bear. Especially when I want to find my wife for some alone time.
