Sage curled against him and murmured, "So...did you have an agenda when you fixed my gate?"
"Of course," he said, utterly shameless. "To fuck your brains out."
She smirked, tugging the blanket higher. "Well. Mission accomplished."
Euan had become a fixture in their lives before Sage realised it. He was there most evenings, drifting into the house with a bag of groceries or a bottle of wine, insisting on cooking. "It's yer day off, lass. Leave it tae me."
He could effortlessly manage her bad moods with ice-cream and as he called it ‘sexy times’. Sometimes together, sometimes not. He was the one who held he through the night when Callie passed away in her sleep at the hospice. And somehow, not having to plan every meal down to the last detail, not always being the one who kept the house turning was amazing.
David adored him. The boy, half-geek himself, liked that Euan could discuss patch notes and boss fights with the same seriousness as team formations and free kicks. Sometimes, David even asked him to come along to his matches, and that was interesting as Ronin insisted on coming along as well.
Euan had quickly learned something about her. Sage was a grade-A procrastinator. If she didn't want to think about something, she'd laugh it off, tidy it away, or bury herself in tasks. He knew it and, unlike most, he didn't let her get away with it.
One night, they lay sprawled across her bed, the sheets already a tangle. Euan held her steady, his rhythm deliberate, steady thrusts drawing her closer and closer until, just as she tottered at the edge of that precipice, he stopped. He did it again, over and over, until she was clawing at him, nails digging demandingly into his backside as she rocked against him, tipping them both over the edge.
He leaned down, lips closing around her nipple, and she gasped. He lifted his head, eyes dark and curious. "Your nipples are verra sensitive."
She tensed, heart stuttering.
"And you've not had a period in four weeks."
"Have you been counting, Aunt Flo?" she snapped crankily, knowing full well what he was up to. "I'm...very irregular."
He sighed, firming his grip around her. "We're doin' this."
She squeaked as he scooped her up and carried her into the bathroom, plonking her down on the toilet seat.
Then he vanished, only to return with three different boxes in his hands. "I've never had tae pee on a stick before, so...I just chose one in each colour."
Sage looked up at him incredulously. "Alright," she said finally, pointing at the door. "Out."
"But—"
"Euan."
He huffed. "Fine. Out."
Silence stretched as he paced outside. Then, just as he leaned his head in, a roll of toilet paper smacked him square in the chest.
He ducked back out, wide-eyed. "It's positive, ain't it?"
Sage sat with her face in her hands. "Oh God, Euan, I cannot believe this. Forty-five, accidentally pregnant. Ronin cheated, David's fifteen, and now this? It's like some cruel cosmic prank."
Euan grinned, trying to calm her. "Ach, love, if the universe wanted tae prank ye, it'd gie ye triplets. Then ye'd really ken what frequent pee breaks are."
"Don't even joke! My bladder's already staging protests. I can't get through a cup of tea without planning a bathroom evacuation strategy."
"We'll just fit ye with a permanent Reserved sign on the loo. David can unveil it for ye, like a wee ceremony. Like the pun?"
She gave a watery laugh, not really listening as she continued her spiral into a full-blown panic. "And the breastfeeding. Just the thought makes my nipples twitch. They've still got PTSD from the last time. It was like a baby piranha hanging off me."
His eyes went wide. "Piranha, eh? Well at least it means the wee one'll be strong. We'll save a fortune on teething toys."
"Babies don't get teeth straight away, Euan."
"Wait—really? I thought they came oot ready tae gnaw like wee hamsters."
"No!" She laughed in spite of herself. "But trust me, when they're hungry, and the milk's not coming fast enough... Well, let's just say they've got jaws that could qualify for your Highland Games."
