Claimed As His

Lucy grinned and felt her heart jump into her throat. She looked over at Ian and saw that he already had a big smile on his face. She didn’t care if it was a boy or a girl, and she knew Ian didn’t either. As long as the baby was happy, that’s all they cared about.

But a little boy. A little Ian. She felt tears well up in her eyes and lifted her hand to quickly wipe them away. But before she could drop her hand back down to her side Ian had it in his much bigger one and brought her fingers up to his mouth, kissing each one, taking her tears onto his tongue, lips.

“A little boy,” he whispered and closed his eyes, and she could see that he was struggling with emotion. He wasn’t the type of man to show things like that, and kept things hidden, this wall up around him. But with her he let his guard down. With Lucy he showed her exactly how he felt with his touch, with his words, with the very expression on his face.

“A little boy,” she whispered back and looked at the screen, knowing that she’d never be happier than she was right now, with Ian by her side and their baby growing inside of her.

Five years later

Life had no meaning for Ian without the love of a woman and the laughter of his children filling his head. And that’s what he had, in spades.

He pulled Lucy in closer to him, buried his face in her hair, and closed his eyes as he inhaled. She smelled incredible, like warm vanilla and honey. Ian slipped his arm around her belly, feeling their third child kick. They both chuckled.

Their son Jax and daughter Molly were asleep in their rooms, and it was during this time, when the house was quiet and peaceful, that Ian reflected on his life. His family was no longer in the picture, and as angry as he was over everything they’d said and done to Lucy, he could never forgive them. It didn’t matter anyway, since they hadn’t shown any kind of interest in having them or their grandchildren in their lives.

But truth was, Ian didn’t want his kids around that negativity. He didn’t want them to be subjected to the shit he had been while growing up.

But none of that mattered, because Ian had his wife and children, and he was happy and content. Lucy had changed him so much, and then when their children came along he became an even better man, seeing the errors of his way, the fact that he’d been such an asshole all those years. He’d missed out on so much by being the person he’d been. But Lucy, his angel, his queen, had opened his eyes to love.

It was sappy as hell, but God, he loved it.

“I love you,” he whispered against her temple. She shifted, her sleepy sigh having him smile. There was nothing more important to him than the woman in his arms, his baby in her belly, and the children she’d given him. Who knew signing up for a mail order bride could have brought him his soul mate?

This was his world. They were his world.

The End