When he’s done, he stays inside me and drops a kiss to my shoulder. It’s this moment I always live for. The moment right after, when he lingers. I’m not sure why I love it so much, but I think it’s because it’s the calm after the storm. The relief for him after he works that dark energy out of his system.
I clean up in the bathroom after he collapses to the bed, and when I come back, he’s watching me intently.
“What are you thinking?” I ask as I move next to him.
His arm comes around me and he pulls me tightly against him. “I’m wondering why you’re feeling nostalgic. You didn’t tell me.”
Angling my face up to his, I say, “I’ve been thinking about how you used to come here for a long time before we got together, and about how happy you’ve made me.”
He watches me silently for a beat. “And?”
I smile. He reads me so perfectly. Always. “And about how much you’ve wanted us to have a baby.”
His eyes search mine. Again, he’s reading me perfectly. “You’re pregnant.”
I nod. “I’m pregnant.”
He’s silent for the longest moment, but only if we’re talking about actual words, because in every other way, he’s louder than ever. Donovan doesn’t always say a lot, but his energy vibrates all around me. Some days it’s a low thrum, others it’s a roar. Today, it’s the kind of energy I live for.
He’s happy.
Like, the kind of happy I would pay all the money in the world to see him experience.
“You could have started with that,” he finally says.
“Where would the fun have been then?”
He shakes his head before sliding his fingers through my hair and pulling my face to his so he can kiss me.
“I’m going to be a father.”
“Yeah, you are.”
“Fuck.”
I smile. “I’m not sure I’ve ever seen you lost for words.”
“Well you have now.” He kisses me again.
Donovan has wanted us to fall pregnant for a while, but I’ve made him wait while I got my bar to a more profitable state. He’s waited patiently, but I know it wasn’t easy for him. I’m not surprised he’s speechless.
“I love you, Donovan. Thank you for letting me take my time with this.”
“You know I’ll always give you what you need.”
“I know, and that’s everything to me. I couldn’t have asked for a better husband.”
He kisses me before saying, “Just so you’re aware, I’m almost certain you’re not going to like how protective I get during this pregnancy.”
“Oh, I know, and I’m ready for it.”
“As in you’re ready to tell me to back off, or you’re ready to accept it?”
I lean in close and kiss him. “As in I’m ready to accept it. You gave me time, I’ll give you this.”
“I don’t fucking deserve you, Layla, but I’m fucking keeping you and never letting go.”
“You better not let go or I’ll find ways to hunt you down and bring you back.”
