When Constellations Form (Light in the Dark 4)

First came marriage…

Then came love…

Now comes baby in a baby carriage.

So, at least we did one thing in order, right?

It’s been three years since Xander and Thea’s impromptu Vegas wedding. Since then, they’ve dealt with family drama, his grueling NFL schedule, and her college classes. Now that Thea’s graduated from college, it’s finally time for them to move out and start their life together.

Things couldn’t be any more perfect.

And then a curveball is thrown their way.

Midnight feedings and a screaming infant wasn’t a part of Thea’s five-year plan, but, suddenly, it’s very much her soon-to-be reality. Xander is thrilled at the prospect of parenthood while Thea can’t wrap her head around it.

But, ready or not, here comes baby.

Thea

“I’m going to kill my husband.”

My best friend, Rae, looks up from the box she’s packing as I flop onto her bed with a groan.

“Why? What’d he do?” she asks, folding a shirt neatly before putting it in the box.

The four of us—Rae, her fiancé and my brother, Cade, and my husband, Xander, have lived together in this house since the summer before Rae and I started our sophomore year of college. That was three years ago, and in that time, so much has changed. Rae and Cade got engaged, my mom lived with us for a while, Xander surprised me with a car of my own … So many more memories, but the four of us decided that with Rae and me graduating this year, there was no need to keep living here. Rae and Cade are getting married later in the year, and Xander and I are already married. In other words, it’s time for all of us to move on.

“He just kicked me out of our room, because he needs to pack.” I roll onto my stomach and lean over the bed to watch her.

“What’s so bad about that?”

“Oh, no.” I wave my hand. “Not pack our stuff to move—no, he needs to pack our stuff for the honeymoon we’re going on.”

“You’re going on a honeymoon?” Her nose crinkles in confusion, and she sets down the shirt she was folding.

“Exactly.” I snap my fingers. “Apparently, he planned a honeymoon, since we never had one, and now he has to pack my bag since this is a surprise and he doesn’t want me to know where we’re going. But you know how I feel about my clothes. He better pack the right things.”

“I’m sure he’ll do fine.” She shrugs and resumes her packing, like my meltdown isn’t important to her.

“He’ll probably only pack lingerie,” I grumble.

She laughs. “Like you’d complain about that.”

I crack a smile. “True. I hate surprises, though. I wish he’d given me more warning, but we leave tomorrow after graduation.”

“That’s probably exactly why he didn’t tell you—he knows you’d try to find a way out of it.”