I sat beside her on the bed, pulling her into my arms. “If we have more kids, great. If not, I’m perfectly happy with our family as it is now.”
“I know,” she said. “I just know how much you’d love to be a dad.”
“I’m already a dad,” I said, and I meant it. Kai might not be my biological child, but he was my son. And I felt honored to be a part of his life.
“I didn’t…” She blew out a breath. “I’m sorry. That came out all wrong.”
I brought her hand to my mouth for a kiss. “I know what you meant. Sometimes I hate that I missed out on so much of Kai’s life, and I’d love to experience everything with you.”
She nodded, and my phone pinged with an alert from the delivery driver. They’d arrive in five minutes, so I texted Tim from Hudson Security to let him know to expect it.
“Do you want to open your gift?” I asked, determined to ground us in the present instead of spinning out with thoughts of the future.
Right now, we were together, and that was enough. More than enough.
Besides, today was supposed to be about Halle. We were celebrating her birthday, and I’d wanted to give Halle her present while it was still just the two of us.
“You’ve already given me so much.” Halle’s lips were a tender caress against my jawline.
“I love to spoil you.”
She reached for the gift, carefully tearing away the brown wrapping paper. When she saw what was inside, she gasped.
“Oh my god, Jasper.” Her attention bounced to me, then back to it. “Seriously?”
I nodded, smiling the entire time. I loved seeing how she lit up as she opened it.
She peeled off the rest of the paper, revealing the painting in its entirety. “How? Dimitri told me it had sold.” She ran her fingers along the edge of the frame, her expression full of longing and awe.
“It did.” I grinned, knowing how disappointed she’d been when she’d tried to purchase it for our home. “To me.”
“What?” she gasped. “When?”
“I purchased it the day we went art shopping for the Golden Key Penthouse and the presidential suite.”
She blinked a few times. “Are you serious? All this time, you had it?”
“You want to see the receipt?” I teased, though there was no way in hell I was letting her see how much I’d paid. She’d try to return it.
She shook her head. “I’m not sure I want to think about how much it cost.”
“Then don’t.” I wrapped my arm around her shoulder. “It’s a gift. It’s meant to be enjoyed.”
“Oh, I will definitely enjoy it,” she said, holding it in her lap. “Thank you.” She turned to kiss me. “I love it.”
“I’m glad,” I said, just as my phone pinged again. “I’ll be right back.”
I kissed her temple and then dashed down the stairs to grab the tests from Tim. When I returned to our bedroom, Halle was still sitting on the edge of the bed where I’d left her.
I held up the paper bag, grateful for the discreet packaging. “You ready to do this?”
She nodded. “I need to know.”
I’d figured as much, and it was a relief. But still… I couldn’t deny that I was nervous. What if it was negative? What if it was positive? My heart started racing at the possibilities.
I leaned my hip against the sink, reading the instructions while she took the test. She returned and placed it on the counter before washing her hands. I set a timer, and then I pulled her into my arms while we waited.
I rested my chin on the top of Halle’s head, and we just…fit. My eyes fluttered closed, and the longer we stood there, the more settled I felt. The more aware I became of her body. The feel of her chest pressed to mine, our hips kissing. The way it felt to hold her in my arms—with tenderness and reverence. The sense of peace that washed over me.
