Page 71

I nod, my heart aching for him as memories from the day of my parents’ funeral flashes through my mind and the ache I’m so used to intensifies. With all of the things going on and how happy I’ve been, I’ve been thinking about them a lot lately, wishing they could be here to see what I made of myself and the wonderful man who always has my back.

“How is your sister holding up?” Wyatt asks and Kodiak clears his throat again, nodding. He looks thankful for the distraction and I can’t say that I blame him. I’m pretty fucking thankful for it, too.

“She’s doing okay. As soon as she gets all Mom’s stuff taken care of, I told her I want her down here with us.”

I scowl.

Is he not going to go to her funeral?

“You’re not going to head up to Alaska?” Wyatt asks, beating me to it and Kodiak shakes his head, glancing over at Tate, who rolls her eyes.

“Nah. Mom wanted to be cremated and have her ashes thrown into the ocean and we can do that here. Besides, I can’t leave Tate right now.”

“For the of God, Lincoln,” she growls, pinning him with a glare. “Women have been having babies since the dawn of time. I’ll be okay alone.”

His gaze snaps to hers, hard and determined. “I’m not going.”

“I swear to God…”

“Just keep the taser in your purse, woman,” he growls and they stare at each other for a second before she rolls her eyes and turns away from him.

“I’m not going to break, you know.”

He shakes his head again, completely ignoring her comment as my gaze bounces between the two of them. Wyatt told me that Smith’s wife, Quinn, and Moose’s wife, Juliette, we're pregnant but he never mentioned Tate.

“You’re pregnant, too?” Wyatt asks like he’s reading my mind, glancing between the two of them and they share a look before Tate turns to us, fighting back a smile.

“Yep. We’re going to tell everyone today.”

The doorbell rings again and Wyatt release my hand to go answer it as I watch Lincoln and Tate share another look full of love. When Wyatt told me he wanted to introduce me to everyone, I didn't really know what to expect but if these two are any indication, I think I'm going to like them. I was already leaning that way, though, after hearing Wyatt talk about how they gave him a purpose when he was lost and became like a second family to him.

I just hope they don't judge me too harshly for the past.

Three more couples pile into the living room and Wyatt walks back to my side and introduces me to them.

“Babe, this is Storm, his wife, Ali, and their baby girl, Magnolia.” There is a hint of humor in his tone as he says the baby’s name and I scowl at him but he just ignores it as he points to the second couple. “This is Chance and his wife, Carly, and this is Moose and Juliette.”

“Hi, it’s nice to meet all of you,” I tell them as my belly flips and my heart jumps into my throat. God, why am I so nervous?

“Well, it’s real nice to meet you since Fuzz here didn't even tell anyone you existed until like a month ago,” Chance says and my head jerks back before I turn to look at Wyatt with a scowl.

“Fuzz?”

“Yeah, you know, ‘cause he was a cop for a hot minute,” Moose says and my eyes widen as I study Wyatt’s face but he just shrugs. Oh, that’s definitely something we will be talking about later. Actually, now that I think about it, I could see Wyatt as a cop but he would be one of those cops who straddles the line of right and wrong, the one that goes too far to find answers and put the truly bad guys away.

The doorbell rings again, pulling me out of my fantasy of Wyatt in a police uniform and he kisses my cheek as he releases my hand and walks over to the door.

“Where is my best friend?” Eden asks, her voice booming through the room and I shake my head as Wyatt stands back to let her in. She points a finger in his face. “You've been keeping her from me.”

“She’s my wife,” he growls and I sigh as everyone else looks on in amusement. I wouldn't say that Wyatt and Eden’s first meeting didn't go well but there is some definite tension between them and as hard as they are both trying to get along for me, they tend to butt heads. Eden dismisses his comment with a flippant hand wave as she turns to me and smiles.

“Pip-squeak!”

A few chuckles fill the room and I roll my eyes as she wraps me up in a hug. “Hey, Edie.”

“I love the place,” she says as she pulls away and glances at Wyatt as he walks up to us. “You did all right, I suppose.”

“Will you be nice?”