Page 63 of Contracted to the Bikers

“We’re building a fortress!” she announces.

“It looks amazing, sweetheart,” I say.

Cruz chooses that moment to splash us again, and I let out a high pitched shriek.

Jessy collapses into giggles at my response, burying her face against Boone’s arm as he shakes his head, a quiet smile tugging at his mouth.

There’s something so comfortable about the way we all fit together.

Rook leans in closer behind me, his voice drops lower, breath warm as he leans in to whisper in my ear. “I was just getting started.”

My pulse jumps. “Were you?”

His hand slides to my waist briefly, grounding, possessive in a way that feels less like control and more like certainty. “When we get back,” he murmurs, close enough that I feel the words against my skin, “I’m not stopping.”

Heat flares through me. I turn my head slightly toward him, lowering my voice. “In that case,” I say, “we’ll need to stop by the pharmacy on the way home.”

He pauses, brow furrowed. “Why?”

“I need to fill my prescription. My contraceptives run out tomorrow.”

A mundane, normal statement, but something in his expression shifts. Subtle, but unmistakable. “What if you didn’t?” he says.

I blink. “What?”

His gaze holds mine, steady, searching, but not uncertain. “What if you didn’t take it?” he repeats.

I wait for the punchline, for him to laugh, but his expression remains the same, open and serious. “You’re serious,” I say.

“Yes.” There’s no uncertainty or joking edge, he’s telling the truth.

My heart stutters. “That’s… a big step.”

“It is.”

“And you’re just casually suggesting it now? When Briggs could still walk.”

His mouth curves down slightly. “My timing could be better. But then there’s never a perfect time. Plus, Briggs isn’t getting out, I know it.”

He says it with such conviction that I almost believe him. I want to believe him. I don’t respond for a moment, I’m still processing. I feel the need to clarify that I haven’t misunderstood him. “You’re talking about… another baby.”

“We are.” He gestures between us and over at the others.

We. He’s right, it’s something we have to consider, all of us. I’m about to ask if the guys have discussed it, but I know the answer is yes. The idea isn’t overwhelming or impossible, just unexpected, something to consider. After Jessy, I didn’t think I’d have another, not once Connor left, anyway. My hopes for a big family, for Jessy to have siblings, died with my marriage. Now, Rook is offering that future.

I glance out toward the water, where Jessy is now trying to boss Boone into building a bigger tower, and Cruz deliberately sabotaging it just to hear her protest. I imagine what it would be like if there were another little girl, or a little boy, for Jessy to play with, for the guys to be dads to. I think of what the future might look like with more of this. The idea doesn’t scare me the way it should. That’s what surprises me most.

“I didn’t think you wanted kids,” I admit.

Rook’s hand rests lightly at my side. “I didn’t think I would either.”

“And now?”

His gaze doesn’t waver. “Now I know what our family would look like. I know the kind of life our kids could have.”

My chest tightens. Am I really considering this? Could we even raise a baby with three dads? Would they want to know who the biological dad is? Would they want one each? Would I? I try to calm my racing mind.

Perhaps sensing my turmoil, he quickly adds, “I’m not saying we decide right now,” Rook assures me. “I’m just saying it wouldn’t be a bad thing.”