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“I figured. Am I’m gonna have to grovel?” he asked, though it didn’t sound much like a question.
“Hardcore.”
He was silent for a long moment. “But we’re staying married?”
“Yeah.” I didn’t even need to think about it.
The tension seemed to drain from him, and he pulled me closer. “What about the bookstore you’ve always wanted? Will that be a start?”
I turned my head and raised a brow at him then looked away without a word, silently telling him he was barking up the wrong tree if he thought it would be that easy. I didn’t want things. I wanted Axel.
Stepping clear of him, I directed a smile at his brothers and dad.
“Hey, we have dinner,” I announced, lifting the bags I carried.
“That’s a no then,” Axel muttered under his breath beside me. “Okay. Well, wife. I’ll figure it out.”
I had no doubt he would.
Twenty-Five
Axel
It was well after two in the morning—probably edging closer to four—by the time we got back to the apartment. This time, I’d driven, and though the trip took mere minutes, Bristol fell asleep.
“Axel,” she murmured, barely stirring when I lifted her from the car.
I brushed my lips over her forehead while I kicked shut the door and pressed the lock button on the fob. “I got you, baby. Let’s get you into bed.”
“Still mad at you,” she muttered, burrowing into my neck.
“I know. It’s late. I’m going to put you to bed.”
While I hurried through the cold to the complex’s front door, her fingers tightened where she held onto my shirt. The temps might be unseasonably warm during the day, but right then, it felt like winter. However, the heat from Bristol’s body burned into me, especially when she tried to snuggle closer.
“M’kay,” she murmured. “You staying with me?”
“Are you going to let me hold you all night?”
“Yes.” Her lips pressed into my neck, traveling toward my ear. Clearly, she was coming awake while I carried her up the flights of stairs.
“If you want me with you, there’s no chance I’ll be anywhere else.”
“I want you with me. I’m really glad your mom’s going to be okay, Axel.”
“Me, too.” I had to silently chuckle. My mother had been kind of annoyed when she’d woken to find us all there, but I could tell she was touched, too. Maybe, it wasn’t the norm in most places that we’d all be allowed into her room, but in a small, close-knit place like Cherish Cove, things were different.
“Hey, Molly,” Bristol had said, cutting through my mom’s bluster. “Axel has something really important to tell you.”
“I do?” I’d asked, glancing at my wife. God, I loved thinking of her that way. Now that she knew, I couldn’t get the moniker out of my head. She was Bristol, my wife. Bristol Pendleton. Randomly, I wondered if she’d change her name to that, keep Donovan or hyphenate both surnames.
“Yeah,” she’d said, the mischief written all over her face. She knew I was about to be in trouble with my mother. “Axel’s been keeping abigsecret from everyone.”
“What secret?” my mom demanded, trying to sit up. My dad had kept her in place with murmured words and a hand on her good shoulder. When he’d glanced at me, though, he couldn’t hide his amusement at my predicament.
“Well, thing is… I mean—”
“What?” she’d asked, annoyed by my dithering.
