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Sophie was such a lucky little girl to be surrounded by so much love.
But I noticed a strange look in Keely’s eyes when she glanced at her husband. Yep, husband. The two of them had had their Hallmark Christmas wedding a few months ago and the whole damn town had shown up to their Edgewater property to celebrate. She’d given me hell for eloping at the courthouse with Sierra on a whim, but honestly, I wouldn’t have had it any other way.
We’d stood before the judge and said vows we made up on the drive over. It was pouring down rain, the streets starting to flood. I’d worn my best Wrangler jeans and she’d worn rainboots and a flowy dress with a knit sweater over the top, her hair pulled into a bun on the top of her head and soaked with rain.
I thought she’d never been as beautiful as she was then, but seeing her now… Flushed with color and all kinds of out of sorts after bringing our daughter safely to the world…
I was the luckiest man alive, and I’d spend the rest of my life doing everything in my power to deserve Sierra and Sophie.
Keely wiped her eyes, sniffling. George ran a hand down her back. That’s when I noticed it. I stood up, crossing my hands over my chest.
“What’s going on with you, Keely?”
Keely looked up at me with sheer determination in her eyes. “What do you mean, Pete?”
George paled a bit but said nothing as my sister and I did our usual standoff.
“You didn’t eat anything,” I said, tilting my head toward the cooler in the corner of the room. “And you’re a little green—”
“I am not green, Pete,” she hissed, but there was an unmissable glimmer of joy in her eyes that made me throat contract.
“Are you pregnant?” I blurted. I knew it was fucking rude, but I couldn’t stop myself.
Moira dropped her fork and screeched when Keely’s mouth twisted into a smile. Grant called out, standing up and looking from Keely to George. Sierra burst into tears, and Sophie’s eyes opened wide, her little lower lip trembling at the sudden rush of noise and excitement.
“We didn’t want to steal your thunder,” Keely said softly to Sierra.
Sierra’s mouth dropped open and she scoffed, “Are you kidding me? Keely, I am so excited for you!”
I took Sophie from George’s arms and handed her back to Sierra before I pulled George and Keely into a hug.
Grant and Moira came next, everyone talking over each other.
I stepped back, sitting on the edge of Sierra’s hospital bed. I brushed a kiss over her lips and then we watched our friends—our family, share in not only our joy, but Keely’s.
It was a beautiful moment. One I’ll never forget.
“Wow,” Sierra mused as we walked along the dirt driveway leading to the space where our future house would stand. “We officially have a foundation.”
“We do,” I breathed, looking around the cleared area and imagining our future home and our wide, green lawn. Sophie, now three months old, was bright-eyed and bushy-tailed as she glanced around, her tiny fists clutching my shirt.
“It’ll be a while before it’s done with just me and the boys building it.”
“I understand why you’re doing it this way,” she said softly, the sunset bathing her in gold. “I don’t mind the apartment either, you know. I guess I’ll be a little sad when we move out. We brought Sophie home to it.”
“It’ll always be there,” I said, wrapping an arm over her shoulder.
I was building this place by hand, by myself. It would be two stories eventually, a log home built using local pine trees I was chopping down myself. All of the stonework and tile would be local too. Grant was helping me build, and so was George. We planned to at least get it framed before winter set in.
One day, maybe next year or the year after, we’d move into a home built by the hands of our family and friends.
I still had to pinch myself on occasion to remind myself that this was real, and I wasn’t just dreaming it up.
Sometimes I wondered if I’d wake from this dream and be back at the bar the night I met Sierra. I imagined I’d opened my eyes and be watching her walk away, disappearing into the night.
But no, this was real. I fell asleep beside her every night and woke up to both of my girls in the morning. Exceedingly early in the morning lately, because Sophie liked to be up with the birds and sun.
“We’ll build the barns first, those will be easy,” I said absently, turning in a little circle.
