Page 38 of Unbound

Sterling pulls me right up next to his hip, his arm wrapped around me. I settle into him, allowing myself to be pulled into the story about the blue aliens and the human who falls in love with one of them.

After an hour, Sterling shifts beside me.

“How’s she doing?” he asks, his hand cupping my belly.

I turn up to him, smiling softly. “I think it’s a boy. He or she is okay.” I lay my hand on top of his. “I was nervous he would, but he didn’t … he didn’t hurt me there.”

Sterling nods, shifting his arm that’s wrapped around me to slide it under my butt and scoop me onto his lap. He sighs, presses his nose to my hair, and inhales.

He rubs the top of my belly, kissing my ear. “You have no idea how scared I was. I was … I was terrified. I’ve faced men with machine guns in the dead of night in war-torn countries, but walking through this door and realizing you were gone had my heart racing in a way I’d never felt before.”

My chest aches. I trace circles over the back of his hand. “I’m sorry … sorry that I brought such a mess into your life.”

“I’m not sorry at all.”

I peer up at him for a few moments, searching his face and only finding sincerity. I press a kiss to his lips before I nuzzle into his chest and shut my eyes.

13

STERLING

Aweek later, I catch Eden staring at the sealed envelope from the doctor. She’s showing more every day, but she’s still tiny, and she looks more like she ate a big meal.

The next day, I take the envelope to a bakery and tell them to make her a gender reveal cake. After work, I stop back by and pick it up, along with a few more items, suggested from a video I saw about how to throw an intimate gender reveal.

When I walk through the door, she’s scrubbing the kitchen countertop. She’s going at it so intensely that she doesn’t even see me walk in. She finally looks up when I set the cake down on the island.

Her cheeks are flushed red.

“Hey,” I say.

“Hey,” she replies before returning to the task.

The counter is already spotless. I walk up behind her, pressing a kiss to her cheek. We’ve been sharing a bed ever since what happened with Michael. We’ve had sex a few more times, but I’ve mostly spent the time holding her close while she sleeps.

“Are you okay?”

She nods, continuing the task.

This has to mean something.

I feel the urge to call my older brother, Holden. He’s married, and his wife is a redheaded spitfire who gave him hell before he finally got her to fall in love with him. I only have one sister, who I generally avoid when I can tell she’s in a mood.

I don’t want to avoid Eden. I want to figure out what’s wrong and fix it.

“I have a surprise for you.”

She looks up, and I can see in her eyes that she’s interested.

“You have to get your shoes on and come with me.”

Her eyes narrow on me before dropping to the cake. “It’s not my birthday.”

“I know.”

“Then what’s the cake for?”

“It’s a surprise.”