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“Huh,” I murmured, my gaze flitting back to Jack. “I’m surprised it was that long ago. We didn’t know each other very well back then.”
“It wasn’t what he said but how he said it,” she explained. “You were working a case together and his eyes lit up when he mentioned your role in helping to save the patient. The way he looked when he said your name, combined with how complimentary he was about your surgical skills put you on my sisterly radar.”
“He’s not exactly known around the hospital for offering praise to other doctors.”
Bailey’s soft chuckle turned into a belly laugh, drawing Jack’s gaze our way. “This doesn’t surprise me. I love my brother dearly, but he can be a bit arrogant. Remind me to tell you the story of how he reacted to Wyatt’s and my relationship some time.”
Jack glared at his sister before looking back down at the baby in his arms. “Your mommy is being a brat, buddy. But it’s a good thing, because she reminded me that you and I need to have a talk about what it means to be a big brother.” He stood up and walked over to the crib decorated in pink where Julia slept peacefully.
“See your sister down there?” He leaned over so he and the baby could look at Julia. “Your toughest responsibility as her big brother is going to be to protect her from all the boys out there. You’ll have a lot of help from your daddy and me, but there will be times when you’re the only line of defense. Doesn’t matter if the boy is your friend or not, a good guy or a bad one—you’ll know he isn’t good enough for Julia. None of them will be.”
“Oh, for goodness sakes, Jack,” Bailey huffed as she walked over to take her son from his arms. “He’s too young to understand a single word you’re saying.”
“Hey, you can’t blame me for giving him a head start.” He threw his arms up defensively. “I just want to make up for the late one I got.”
The look that passed between brother and sister brought tears to my eyes—Bailey’s too.
She settled baby Jack into his crib before moving back to give her brother a hug. “You better not make me cry or Wyatt will try to kick your ass,” she mumbled into his shirt.
“Nah,” Jack answered. “He’ll forgive me when I tell him his baby boy is about to get his first tooth and doesn’t need to see the doctor tomorrow.”
“What a relief,” Bailey sighed, leaning back and beaming up at him.
“Besides, it’s not like he could kick my ass anyway,” Jack drawled, dropping a kiss on her head. “And we won’t be here when he gets home.”
He crossed the room, pulling me to his side and whispering in my ear. “We need to get home so I can make sure my reminder from this afternoon stuck, and give my swimmers another chance in case they didn’t do their job earlier.”
Jack didn’t get any arguments from me. If I’d been wearing panties under my scrub pants, they would have been drenched.
Life with Jack moved lightning fast. One week we’re work colleagues who flirt and the next we’re friends who are practically joined at the hip. In one night, we moved from being firmly in the friend zone to an exclusive relationship. Then, I felt my biological clock ticking and the next week my period was late. It always came every twenty-eight days, like clockwork, and should have started two days ago. There was no sign of it starting anytime soon. I was pretty sure Jack had gotten his wish and knocked me up, which is how I found myself hiding in his bathroom first thing this morning while he was making breakfast. I’d peed on the stick three minutes ago and was trying to get up the nerves to look at the results.
“You can do this,” I murmured softly. “No matter what the test says, you’re a strong woman and you’ll figure out the right thing to do.”
My little pep talk wasn’t doing anything to stop the flutter of butterflies in my belly. Taking a deep breath, I picked up the stick from the bathroom counter and flipped it over.
Not pregnant.
The air left my lungs with a heaving sigh. The emotion I should have felt was relief since I wasn’t sure I was ready for babies, let alone to have them with Jack. Although I’d known him through work for two years, we’d only really been a couple for two weeks. Plus, I still needed to decide what to do about the job offer from Children’s Minneapolis. My brain knew this was probably for the best, but it seemed my heart had a different perspective because I felt like it was breaking.
Logic didn’t factor into what I was feeling. I’d spent the last two days thinking maybe he’d been right and he’d gotten me pregnant. How was I going to tell him I wasn’t? He didn’t even know my period was late because I hadn’t been ready to talk to him about the real possibility of me being pregnant. It seemed like the right decision at the time, but I wished I’d said something because then I wouldn’t be facing this alone. Sitting on the side of the tub, sobbing into my hands, I came to a few realizations.
I loved Jack Halston.
I couldn’t take the job in Minneapolis.
And I wanted to have his babies, all four of them.
My tears shifted into a chuckle snort at the irony. Back in my undergrad years, I’d been a little judgy towards the girls who were there for their “Mrs. Degree,” but I was going to turn down a promotion because of a man. Not just any man, though. I had a feeling my fellow nerd girls would make the same decision if given a chance with Dr. Jack Halston. Too bad for them he was all mine.
9
Jack
I placed a bowl of strawberries on a tray along with pancakes, syrup, and orange juice. I wanted to make sure my woman had a good breakfast because I had plans to wear her the fuck out today. It was rare for us to have a day where we were both off and I intended to spend it in bed.
Lifting the tray, I carefully walked to the bedroom and was surprised to see the bed empty. There was light coming from the bathroom door, so I set the tray on the dresser and padded over to the closed door. I turned the knob, and as it opened, I heard soft crying. Alarmed, I raced the rest of the way inside to see Ellison sitting on the edge of the tub, her elbows on her knees, her face buried in her hands.
I scooped her up and took her seat, settling her on my lap, tucking her head under my chin, then rubbing her back in slow circles.
“What’s wrong, baby?”
She sniffled for another minute before lifting her head, her brown eyes watery with tears.
“I didn’t think I wanted it,” she whispered as more tears tracked down her cheeks.
I gently wiped them away with my thumb. “Wanted what?”
“The life you were planning for us, the one with four kids, two surgeons, one house, and a partridge in a pear tree.”
Her words sounded wistful and I took it as a good sign. “Baby, I’d really prefer a dog, but if this is your way of telling me you’re pregnant, we can have whatever fucking pets you want.”
She began to cry in earnest, burying her face into my chest. I started to panic and wonder if I’d gotten it wrong. If she was trying to tell me she had decided to take the job in Minneapolis, I’d chain her to my bed until I convinced her she didn’t belong anywhere but here with me. I knew her, though. No matter the amount of time we’d been together, she was a part of me and I had no doubt that we wanted the same future. It was up to me to make her see it.
My eyes suddenly caught sight of a white, plastic stick sitting on the counter. Still holding Ellie close, I reached out one long arm and picked up the pregnancy test. I stared at it from the back for a moment, a little nervous. Are you sure you aren’t the one with the vagina, dude?
Holding my breath, I flipped it over and the air came whooshing out in a rush.
; Not Pregnant.
Chained to the bed it is.
I stood with her cradled in my arms and tossed the test into the garbage. Taking her to the bed, I lay her down and covered her body with mine.
“I told you before, Ellie. You’re mine. I won’t let you leave me. If you want to wait to start a family, I’ll give you whatever you ask, except let you go. I love you and I know you love me. We were meant to be together and I’m going to keep you right here until I’ve convinced you it’s true.”
Her chocolate brown eyes widened as she stared into my face. “You—you love me?” she stuttered.
It dawned on me that I’ve laid myself bare to her, opened up my chest and gave her the ammunition to rip my heart out. Not for one second did I regret it, though. She was worth it. She was everything.
I brushed my lips over hers then leaned back to gaze at her beautiful face. “Yeah, Ellie. I love you. I’m sure I’ve loved you since the moment I first met you. It took me a while to realize you were everything I never knew I always wanted. Once I understood my feelings, I decided there was no other recourse but to make you mine. I know you love me, Ellie.” I took a shuddering breath and made the last step into complete vulnerability. “Right?”
She glided her hands up my chest and neck until she was cupping my face. “I love you more than anything in this world, Jack. You’re right, you own me. And, I don’t want to wait. I want to have a family with you, now.”
The relief I felt was overwhelmingly acute. Obviously I’d been more nervous than I’d thought. I grinned at her and melded our mouths together, pouring all of my love into the kiss.
