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I smiled and pulled her against me for another kiss, my tongue parting her lips, washing through her mouth.
Bailey
A Year Later
I grabbed the last bag of groceries from the car, resting it on my hip as I shut the door. I was just about to head into the house when Jackson pulled into the driveway and cut the engine.
“Hey, sweetie, let me carry that for you.” He climbed out of the car and came around, taking the bag from me, then pressing his lips to mine. “How are you feeling today?”
I rested my hand on my barely protruding belly and smiled. “Fine. A little tired, but good.”
We’d been married for six months and had found out we were expecting a month later.
Jackson leaned in to kiss me again, this time placing his hand on top of mine just in time to feel the baby kick.
“Did you feel that?” he questioned, and then laughed. “My son’s already trying to bust out of there.”
“Your son? What if it’s a girl?”
Jackson looked at me as if I were being ridiculous. “Not a chance. Did you feel that kick? That’s all boy in there.”
“Come on, we should get inside. The ice cream is in that bag, and I’ve been craving it all day. I’d like it not to melt by the time I sit down to have some. You can help me put the groceries away.”
“Just what I want to do.” He winked, kissing my cheek and led me inside.
After we put away the groceries, I made us each a hot chocolate while Jackson fired up the barbeque. He loved to grill, even in the winter. I sat at the table and began reading the newspaper I’d picked up.
“Just going to get the potatoes on the grill,” he said, kissing the top of my head.
The doorbell rang, and Jackson ran out front to get it. I could hear him laughing and knew immediately it had to be someone from work. I listened as he chuckled, but then his voice turned serious. I hated it when I heard that tone in his voice and did my best to shut it out.
I’d just flipped open the newspaper to the next section and was about to read the next article when Jackson stepped back into the kitchen.
“One of the guys?” I questioned.
“It was Ryan.”
“Oh, Cara said he was working tonight. That’s odd, he’d be stopping by. Is everything okay?” I looked up to see a serious look on his face.
“What is it?”
“They arrested Garrick Barton this afternoon. He apparently jacked a car at gunpoint. Ryan said they just went and picked him up. He’s in custody.”
Jackson had eventually told me all that he knew about Garrick. He told me how the bullets at my brother’s shooting had matched the one the doctors had removed from him. He had told me that Dorian had cracked under pressure the night they arrested him, and he had turned Garrick in, giving the police everything they needed to know. The only problem was Garrick had run and hadn’t been seen again.
“What?” I asked in disbelief. I didn’t know what to do or say at this news. Finding the man responsible for my brother had been something I’d been praying for since the day he died.
“They got him, babe. It’s over,” Jackson said, coming up behind me and wrapping his arms around me.
I tried hard not to cry, but with all the hormones that were flooding my body, it was impossible not to. “We’ve got to go tell Mom,” I said, standing up.
“Better yet, we’ll cook all the food and take dinner over.”
* * *
I lay in bed reading the first chapter of a new book when Jackson walked in, towel wrapped around his waist. I couldn’t help but peek over the top of my book as my fiancé dropped the towel from his body and made his way over to the bed.
“Give it up, would you?” He chuckled. “I know you’re pretending to read, but in reality, you’re checking me out.”
