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Removing the top, I looked inside, seeing some sort of unfamiliar contraption.
“Read it,” she instructed.
Pregnant.
Holy shit.
I spun around, searching for my beautiful, magical wife. “We’re pregnant?”
“We’re pregnant,” she repeated, her green eyes watering with the words.
“You made me a baby,” I practically purred. “Is that why you baked?” It was a stupid question, but it was the first thing I’d thought of. Dove wasn’t typically a baker.
“The cravings are real, baby daddy. Already. Give me all the chocolate,” she said, licking her fingers, and I was instantly hard again.
“I’ll build you a fucking house made out of it,” I said before reaching for her body and kissing her senseless.
She tasted like sugar and cocoa, and I wanted to eat her up from head to toe. Literally.
“You know how they say being pregnant makes you horny?” she whispered against my ear, and I wondered if it was a trick question or not. I must have taken too long to respond because she answered for me. “Well, it’s true. So horny. All the time. Take me upstairs. Now.”
She turned to walk away, and I was set to follow her perfect ass, but she turned around, pointing, “Bring the cookies!”
And I grabbed the whole damn tray.
EPILOGUE
DOVE
FIVE YEARS LATER
It was our sweet girl, Willow’s, fourth birthday today. How had four years flown by so quickly? I could barely remember all the sleepless nights and dirty diapers; they seemed so long ago now. Next year, she’d be starting “big-girl school,” as she called it. Some days, I couldn’t believe it. Where had the time gone?
I stood in our beautiful backyard with decorations hanging from every tree, watching my husband jump in a horse-themed bouncy house with our daughter. She was laughing, her straight brown hair flying all around her with each jump. Dominic was smiling, too, his hands holding both of hers as they hopped together before falling dramatically to the inflated floor before getting up and doing it all over again.
“How are you holding up, sweet pea?” my dad asked as he wrapped an arm around my middle and gave me a side hug.
He knew that I’d been planning every detail of this party for months. No one had ever told me that being a mom was so tiring and downright stressful. I constantly second-guessed everything I did and felt like nothing was ever good enough.
“I’m just happy today is finally here and that Willow loves it. You should have seen her face this morning. She was so surprised. How’s work?”
I looked at him, grateful that the tiredness he’d worn the past few years seemed to be wearing off. He actually looked well rested and healthier than I’d seen him in a long time.
“Calm,” he said before giving me a grateful look. “It’s bizarre.”
A small laugh escaped from my lips. I understood the feeling completely. There had been so much chaos in town after the Firenzi arrests that the peace that followed the end of the trial was unnerving. It was almost like we didn’t know how to function in serenity anymore, but trust me, we were all trying.
I glanced across the yard toward the chairs positioned underneath one of our trees in the shade. Dominic’s mother and father both sat there, looking relaxed as they sipped on wine. They were watching Willow and Dominic jump, too, smiles on both of their faces.
The fences between us weren’t completely mended, but everyone was truly trying. Dominic’s father had retired, claiming that it was time to focus on his family needs instead of the town. And his mother embraced their newfound life, finally free of obligation and constant scrutiny as a politician’s wife. I never expected such a drastic change from her. She’d always come across so cold and calculating to me in the past, but I guessed I’d never really known her. She was much kinder than I remembered. And I found myself enjoying the time we spent together.
“Hey! We’re here!” Kristina’s voice rang out as she walked into my backyard, holding hands with her boyfriend, Jacobi Firenzi, and a massively wrapped present for Willow.
She and Jacobi had been together for years now, and I couldn’t have been happier for her. He’d turned out to be a really good guy who had gotten a bad rap simply because of his last name. But now, everyone in Hopetown seemed to love him.
I directed Kristina to the gift table and then gave them both hugs before my incredibly sweaty husband appeared at my side, his lips pressing against my temple.
“I need to talk to you,” he whispered, and I got a little nervous at how serious his voice sounded.
