I can’t wait, I almost slipped up yesterday and told him, but I want to wait until we exchange gifts. I know, I hope and I pray he finds it sweeter than any other anniversary gift could be.
“Are you okay?” he asks softly.
I shuffle closer to him. “Yeah. I guess I just want to give you your present.”
“I like the sound of that.”
His hand trails down my front, but he stops just short of my breasts, glancing at the divider. The driver can’t see or hear what we’re doing, but Lukas moves his hand away. He’d never risk another man seeing me. He says it would tear him up and drive him crazy, and he’d never stop thinking about it.
As he gripped my hips in bed last night, still plunged wetly inside of me, he growled, “You’re mine, Lori. Always.”
“Forever,” we said in unison, gasping in joined pleasure.
“It’s not that,” I murmur now. “At least, not just that.”
“Now you’ve got me curious. Call me Lumber.”
I giggle at the reference. Lumber is one of the characters in my book series. I’ve published two books already and they’re doing fairly well, not setting the world on fire, but they’re out there and people are buying them. I’ve got an agent. And they want a book number three.
Pinch me. Sometimes I can hardly believe it.
“The thing is,” I go on, as we move through the night. “I planned to eat dinner and then wait until we exchanged gifts. Because that’s what this is, Lukas. It’s a gift.”
“Mrs. Landon,” he says, smoothing his hands down my shoulders. He grips me hard, in the way he does sometimes like he’s fighting a deep primal instinct to crush me to him.
“Are you saying what I think you are?”
I blink as tears of joy rise in my eyes. That’s been happening a lot lately, ever since I took the last test, ever since it told me what I’ve wanted to hear for so long.
“I was thinking about Seb, how full of life he is. He loves playing with Chirpy, and I know we’ve talked about getting a dog. But what would be better than a little brother or…”
“Lori,” he says, voice cracking. “He’d make the best big brother.”
“It’s the best anniversary gift I could think of.”
He looks down at me with that sharp glint in his eyes, an expression that cuts me deeply as if he’s looking at my rawest and most vulnerable parts. He sees all of me, the good and the bad, and he loves me anyway.
“Tell me,” he whispers.
“I don’t know if I should.”
I try to sound coy, but I’ve got tears in my eyes and my words come out all unsure and shaky. “I mean, we agreed we’d share our gifts after dinner.”
“I got you a first edition of Wuthering Heights and a diamond-encrusted pen,” he says intensely. “There, I’ve spoiled your gift. You might as well spoil mine.”
I laugh and give him a nudge. “That’s not how it works.”
“Lori…”
I nod. “Yes, Lukas.”
“You are?”
“I’m pregnant again. Seb is going to have a little…”
“Brother or sister.” Lukas grins, laughing. “And I don’t care which. He’s going to make the best big brother either way. I love him. I love you. I love this life. I love – I love us, Lori. Me and you, where we started, where we’ve been, where we’re going…”
“Lukas,” I whisper, smoothing my fingers over his cheeks.
He clutches onto my hand, as I press my hand down on the warm tears. “I’m just so happy.” He laughs gruffly. “Don’t tell people big grumpy Lukas Landon has feelings, though.”
“Everybody knows you have feelings. Everyone knows what an amazing man you are. Just look at how you’ve built up that charity.”
He shrugs. “I’m doing it for us, for you and Seb and the little one we’ll be meeting soon. I love you all so, so much.”
His hand slides down over my belly, his touch scintillating.
“I love you too,” I whisper. “Happy anniversary.”
“Happy anniversary, Lori. You were right. This is the best gift a man could ask for.”
Extended Epilogue
Ten Years Later
Lukas
“Another burger, Ethan?” I ask.
Ethan smiles at me over the top of the barbecue. As always, his jet-black hair is tied back in a ponytail. Jamie stands next to him, already munching on his burger, a grin on his face as he closes his eyes to savor the flavor.
“Sure, Lukas. Thanks.”
I hand it over, dropping it onto his plate. Through the steam of the meat, I can see Lorena on the other side of the swimming pool, sitting up with Charlotte next to her. Charlotte was our second gift, and now she’s always got a book in her hand, even at the pool, with wavy hair like her mother’s.
Sebastian is playing with our other two boys, Jack and Mitchell. We agreed we wanted to name one of our sons after Lorena’s dad when he became ill again a few years after recovering. We found out Lorena was pregnant around the same time and she tearfully asked me, and of course, I said yes.