She runs her shaking fingers up my chest.
"Don't you want to know if the baby is yours, Ace?"
I smile. Snatch her hand and press a kiss to her palm.
"Ain't my first concern, sweetheart. No matter what, you're both mine and I'll love the two of you until my last breath." I hold her hand against my chest. "My first concern is that you're both healthy."
She nods slowly. "I had a scan recently. They said the baby is doing really well."
I blow out a breath. Relief floods through me so fast my eyes sting.
"How far along? How long have I got to build this new house with the wrap-around porch?"
She laughs, and another piece of my soul heals.
"I’m thirteen weeks."
My hand glides down to rest on her tummy. I look at the small swell beneath her shirt.
Fuck. It's perfect. She's perfect.
"My world revolves around you, Harper Jones." I keep my eyes on hers. "It has since the first time you smiled at me when we were sixteen years old. There isn't a version of me that doesn't love you. Not in the past. Not in the future. If there is one damn thing I'm certain of in this life, it's my love for you."
I press my hand firmer against the bump. Feel the warmth of her. The life underneath.
"So if you tell me the baby isn't mine, it changes nothing. Not a single thing. I'll love you the same. I'll love that baby the same. I'll be the man you both need me to be."
Tears stream down her cheeks. I lean in and kiss them away. One side. Then the other. Tasting salt and makeup and grief and relief all mixed together.
"The baby is yours, Ace. You're going to be a dad."
I close my eyes. Rest my forehead against hers.
The world stops. Just for a second. Everything goes quiet, and there's nothing but her breathing and mine and a heartbeat between us that's brand new.
"You've just made me the happiest cowboy in the world, baby," I whisper.
She giggles, and my heart nearly explodes. Even with her husband's body a few feet behind us. Even with blood on the floor and a war outside the door. That sound rewrites everything. And now this nightmare feels like a second chance.
Because it is. Well, it's our third chance, actually. And it's the last one either of us will need.
Colten's footsteps behind us. He clears his throat. We don't move.
"I hacked the security. All cut and deleted," he says.
I nod. Pull back to look at Harper.
"What do we do now?" she asks.
“I’m going to kidnap you, and you’re never leaving me again,” I say with a straight face.
“Fine. But, what do we do with him?” she says, pointing to her dead husband.
“Ohhhh. That.” I joke. "Me and Colt are going to clean this up. You've got a car here, right?" I brush a strand of hair from her face. "We'll take him back to Sterling Ranch and make sure he disappears."
She blinks at me. "How? He's a big deal. People like him don't just disappear."
I run my thumb along her bottom lip. "Trust me, baby. We can make anyone disappear. Everyone has a price. Don't worry about that. Okay? I've got you."
