Page 56 of Bound Hearts

Finishing placing the elastic in my hair, I hold my hand out to look at the engagement ring on my finger. “I am. Figured that I don’t need to hide it if our friends know. I’ll have to take it off when I’m in the office, but I’m getting good at hiding behind clothing. I figure as long as it buys me time. Facing HR is not what I want on my agenda this week, but we don’t have much choice.”

He softly grabs my wrist to bring my hand closer to him for inspection. “The ring looks good on you. Actually, you’re pretty sexy when my ring is on your finger.”

“Am I? Good, because I plan to wear it every day. Speaking of every day, my closet needs should be discussed,” I joke, turning the conversation.

“Yeah, about moving in. I’ve arranged help and a designer for the baby’s room. I’ll leave all choices to you,” he says coolly.

I snicker and pull my hand away from his grasp. “Sure. I’ll be the carrier vessel for this baby, gain the weight, and prepare the nursery.” I’m for sure amused.

“I mean, I don’t need to arrange it. It’s just, I have no imagination and don’t want us to get into debating color swatches. Plus, I travel more for work. You can keep the project moving.”

I stretch my neck, pretending to inspect him and his intentions to play along. “Believable.”

He wipes his hand across his forehead. “Phew.”

The good news: I’ve been quietly migrating my things to his place, so there’s no need to dash home for work essentials anymore.

“But I do kind of have a surprise for you already.” He slides off the bed and offers me his hand.

Gladly, I accept, and he pulls me off the bed. I point out, "The word surprise around us isn’t exactly a tiny thing."

His cunning grin tells me he doesn’t care. “Come on.”

He leads me out of his room and down the hall to a closed guest room door. I glance at him, raising an eyebrow. “Am I being demoted to the guest room?”

His chuckle tells me not. “No, but open the door.”

Obeying, my eyes remain suspiciously locked with his. When the door opens, I abandon him and step inside, where I stop dead in my tracks as my jaw hangs low.

“Thought you might need a space.”

In front of me is a room that no longer looks like a bland spare bedroom. The bed is there, but there’s new wallpaper on one wall, a dark turquoise to complement the white bookcases where the shelves are filled… with my law books.

“I remember you never unpacked your boxes, even though you love them. I managed to convince your building super to let me in and had someone handle this while we were at the office.”

My smile grows. I nearly lunge to the shelves, my hands trembling with excitement as though this is a dream. “It’s the sweetest thing someone has ever done for me.” I run my fingers along the spines of the books, needing to feel their texture to check my disbelief, but it’s all real. My gaze lands on the Newton’s Cradle—a new one, not the one from Foster’s office.

He notices. “Figured you could use one. Every sophisticated person needs one.”

I glance over my shoulder. “In case they need to fucking calm down,” I repeat what he once told me, keeping the playful tone.

His eyes are heavy on me with a tint of cockiness, knowing very well that he just played a grand move.

I don’t care about his smugness; I throw my arms around him. “I love it. It’s honestly perfect.”

“Good.”

“I can’t believe you did this. I’m… Wow.”

His finger lands on my lips. “Say no more. I get it.”

I nod gently, mesmerized by him, basking in the quiet surrounding us.

“You deserve everything, Sutton. Now, if you are satisfied, then let’s go grab a shower.”

“Very satisfied. The shower is tempting, but I’m going to go to the kitchen to make some tea. I found some special pregnancy tea at the store and figured why not if it helps me sleep.”

He hums a sound, agreeing that I might as well try.