By the time I’m running out the door and across the field—oh crap, can pregnant women run? So much to learn—I’m absolutely giddy.
Moose comes darting over to join me, bouncing up on his huge legs and wagging his long tail.
“Want to know a secret?” I whisper to him. “I’m pregnant.”
He looks thrilled with his wide eyes and long tongue hanging out, but that’s the way Moose always looks. In my next life, I want to come back as a dog living on a Montana ranch.
My sexy man is riding a horse, looking hotter than ever as he herds some cattle in the field. I stop and stare at him for a few minutes, watching with complete gratitude and love as he gets down from his horse to help a calf who fell.
He’s such a big strong alpha of a man, but he also has the most gentle soul when it comes to the ones he loves and protects. I feel so lucky to be in that small group.
“Hey, cowboy!” I shout as he hops back onto his horse.
He spots me at once and the biggest smile cuts across his face. The sight of it makes my chest feel like it’s expanding as my heart swells.
I watch him as he turns his horse and bounds over here.
With Cameron, I always catch myself trying to catalog the little things so I can remember them forever. The way his hair bounces as he’s riding over, the tautness in his forearm as he grips the reins, the fierce protective look in his eyes as he watches me. I want to remember everything. Every moment. Every look he gives me. Every kiss, every touch, every word. I hate that some of it disappears into the cracks of my memories, but what gives me comfort is that there’s always more coming.
“Hello, pretty lady,” he says as he pulls the horse up, its hooves kicking up dirt as he stops. “You’re looking stunning this morning.”
“I have a surprise for you,” I say as I hold the pregnancy stick behind my back.
“You’re already a surprise,” he says as he hops down from the horse with a thud. “I don’t need anything more than you.”
“You’re sweet, but you’ll like this one.”
I pull the stick out, but that mangy mutt Moose grabs it and runs off.
“No!” I shout in a panic. “Moose!!”
Cameron is quick to the draw. He grabs his lasso, spins it in the air, and tosses it at the fleeing dog. It wraps around Moose’s thick neck and he pulls him back as my heart pounds.
So far, I’ve had one job as a mother—to tell the father he has a baby on the way—and I’m already a disaster.
Cameron grabs Moose’s head and pries the pregnancy stick out of his jaws.
“What’s this?” he asks as he wipes the slobber onto his jeans and looks at it. “Wait, is this—?”
He stares at me in shock. Eyes wide, mouth hanging open. I start to giggle.
“It is.”
“You’re pregnant?”
“We’re pregnant.”
He leaps forward and picks me up in his big arms, hugging me tightly as he spins us around in joy.
Moose tries to get in on the love, but Cameron pushes him away with a stiff arm.
“Careful, boy. Our girl is carrying a precious package.”
“Are you happy?” I ask, even though I know that he is. He’s been trying to get me pregnant for months with all of the talk about breeding me every time we’re intimate. I always love hearing that coming from his mouth. It’s such a turn on.
“Are you kidding me, Mary?” he asks as he drops to his knees. His hands are gripping my thighs and he kisses my stomach. “We’re going to have a family. I’ve never been happier in my entire life.”
I hug his head as he wraps his arms around my butt, holding me like he’s never going to let go.
“You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me,” he says.
I smile as I hold him tight, not wanting to let him go either.
I know those just aren’t words… because I feel the same way.
He’s the best thing that’s ever happened to me too.
Epilogue
Cameron
Fifteen Years Later…
“You guys ready?” I ask as I kick the soccer ball over to them.
“We were born ready,” Mary says with a fierce grin on her adorable face. She’s flanked by our whole crew of kids, all six of them.
“We’re going to beat your ass, daddy!” our littlest, Sydney, says in a squeaky voice.
“Hey!” Mary says, shooting her a warning look. “Language!”
“Sorry,” Sydney answers. “We’re going to rip off your head and shit down your neck!”
“That’s way worse!” Mary shouts. “Who’s teaching her that kind of language?”
Our two oldest boys, twins named Jeff and Paul, look away as they giggle.
“Let’s just get started,” I say as I roll my shoulders. “Let’s see if your feet run as good as your mouths do.”