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I wasn’t quite sure why I’d broughtthatup.
Maybe because we were getting married and it was probably an important subject to discuss.
Honestly, I’d never given a lot of thought to having kids or whether or not I wanted them.
Not until Chase.
Since I was approaching my mid-thirties, it was a decision we probably shouldn’t wait forever to decide on.
His entire body froze. “Are you sure that’s what you want?” he asked.
I sat up a little so I could see his face.
He didn’t exactly look repulsed at the idea of us having a child. His expression was more terrified than unwilling.
I frowned. “What? You don’t want kids? It’s not something I’ve really thought about until now. It’s not a deal breaker for me if you don’t.”
Chase was always going to be my priority. I’d actually never had an aching desire to be a mother, so it wouldn’t be the end of my world if he was opposed to the idea.
He shook his head. “No, baby. Don’t get me wrong. I like kids and I’d love to have a child with you, but you know it’s painful, right?”
I snorted. “Maybe I haven’t had one, but I’m pretty well aware of the process. I think I could handle it.”
“It’s not just the pain of having the kid. What about morning sickness and the hormones?” he asked, his expression a little less tense.
I let out an exasperated breath. “It’s all part of the final product. A child. Our child.”
“It’s going to kill me to see you miserable, but I’d do everything possible to make it bearable. I’m also not about to promise that I won’t be a concerned pain in your ass throughout the entire pregnancy,” he said earnestly. “Otherwise, I’d love nothing more than to have our child.”
I smiled because he didn’t seem the least bit reluctant to have a baby. He just didn’t appear to like some of the uncomfortable symptoms I’d have to endure in the process.
“You’d be an incredible father, Chase Durand. But we don’t have to make a solid decision right now. We aren’t even married yet,” I murmured before I laid a soft kiss on his lips.
“A problem I’d really like to remedy as soon as possible,” he reminded me.
Truthfully, I really wanted to be his wife, too, so I didn’t mind speeding things up. Especially when I knew how important that was to him. “Give me a little time. I’ll check out how soon we can arrange it without going to Vegas. How many people?”
“I know a lot of people, but not many that have to be at my wedding,” he considered. “I can whittle the list down to a hundred or so. What about you?”
“Chase!” I exclaimed as I whacked him on the shoulder. “That’s not exactly asmalllist. You know I don’t have immediate family anymore, but I have a few from out of state I’d love to invite. And a few friends at the news station. My guest list won’t be nearly as long.”
My husband-to-be was a people person, so the size of his list didn’t really surprise me.
“I can easily cut it down a lot more if it will speed things up,” he said with an irresistible grin. “And most of that list will be family, close friends, and a few of the guys from Last Hope.”
“It boggles my mind a little that you have that many friends,” I said with a laugh. “And I’d definitely never want to cut out anyone from Last Hope.”
He shook his head. “There’s no way I can invite everyone, but I’m close to a few of the teams. Especially Wyatt’s old crew. They live in Michigan.”
“They all came to volunteer for Last Hope?” I asked curiously.
He nodded. “Many of them—as soon as they got out of the Army. Wyatt might be an asshole sometimes in the civilian world, but every guy who was part of his Delta Force team respected him.”
“I’d love to meet them,” I said honestly. “And Wyatt is not an asshole to people he knows or cares about.”
Granted, he was surly sometimes to other people, but I’d never personally been on the receiving end of his sarcasm.
Chase let out a bark of laughter. “Believe me, he can be a major asshole.”
