Pierced Hearts (Southern Charmers 1)

“She brought me back, too. We’re living the life meant for us.”

This time, his grin takes over his whole face. “Guess you are. I’m going to go find Annie and see if she’s ready to dance.” He pats me on the shoulder, heading toward the pack of women.

I zone in on Darby, who’s right in the middle. Today is my parents’ annual July Fourth celebration, and the party is in full swing. She’s lying on the new lounger I bought for their patio specifically for her. It’s the size of a queen bed with a retractable canopy. One look at it, and she rolled her eyes, telling me I was ridiculous and that my parents’ furniture was fine. She is right. Their furniture is top of the line, but the lounger allows me to lie next to her while we watch the kids swim. And next year, she will have a comfortable place to hold our son if she wants to be poolside.

Darby was right. We confirmed yesterday that she’s having a boy. Another son. The thought sets my heart racing. She keeps reminding me that, when he gets here, we’ll be outnumbered. I can’t fucking wait.

She catches me watching and pats the spot next to her. I start her way and feel a shot of cool water soaking my side.

“You coming in, Dad?” Cole shouts from the pool, spraying me with his super soaker. Scottie is next to him, taking aim at me as well.

“I’ll jump in after I check on Darby.”

“She needs to come in, too. The baby needs to cool off.”

“I’ll mention it to her,” I chuckle, making my way around the pool.

Maya and Cole didn’t blink when we told them Darby was having a baby. She was nervous they’d be upset, but it was the opposite.

I wade through the group and bend down for a quick kiss.

“Fair warning, we’re baby crazy over here,” Stephanie tells me.

“Got it.” I settle next to Darby, right as Runner hops on her other side, laying his head on her barely-there baby bump. He’s been doing this a lot lately, and Darby swears his dog intuition knows she’s carrying a baby.

“Want to fill me in on what baby crazy means?”

“Well, between Mom, Jill, and Lynda, we’re covered on childcare when I go back to work. Maya has chosen the room for the nursery, and Stephanie and Renee have planned the baby shower.”

“Don’t forget me. I’m all about planning a party,” Andi pipes in.

I give her a grateful nod. Andi still works for Kendrick Construction, but we promoted her to the project management team a few months ago. She was a great assistant, but she is a hell of a project leader.

“I’m going to help Darby paint the nursery.” Maya smiles wide.

“We’ll do it together. Darby’s not painting anything.”

“Told you that’s what he’d say.” Maya directs this to Darby.

“We’ll talk about it when we don’t have an audience.” Darby pokes my side.

“Talk all you want. You try to lift a finger, and I’ll lose my mind. “

All the women find this humorous, except for Darby, who scowls. “We’ll see.”

The music starts, and Edward leads Annie to the dance floor.

“I’m going to get another margarita,” Stephanie announces.

“That sounds good,” Mom agrees, and the crowd breaks apart, everyone going in different directions.

“I’m going back into the pool.” Maya runs off, jumping with a splash big enough to spray us.

I drape an arm around Darby, tugging her close and kissing her again.

“You taste like beer.” She licks her lips.

“Does it bother you?”

“No, I like it. The thought of drinking a beer isn’t appealing, but the taste on your lips is delicious.”

“I’ll remember that.”

“You also smell like summer.” She nuzzles into my neck.

“You do, too.”

“Hmmm,” she sighs.

“You still feel like taking the boat out tonight?”

Her head pops up. “Of course, it’s our tradition.”

Our tradition. A tradition we got back. This year will include Miller, Evin, Stephanie, Scottie and his partner Billy.

“Cole and Maya are staying here tonight, and Runner can stay, too. I thought, once we drop everyone off at the dock, we could spend the night on the boat.”

Her eyes glimmer with excitement. “I’d like that, but we need to make a deal.”

“Anything.”

“This year, we have to get to the bed. I’m not sure it’s safe to drop naked and have sex on the deck in my condition.”

I roll to my side and smile wide. “You’ve got a deal.”

•—•—•—•—•

I lean on the railing, sipping my whiskey and staring at the band on my finger. My wife and unborn son are tucked into the bed below deck, sleeping soundly.

There was a time I thought this was impossible, but now, my life completely makes sense. It was a hell of a ride, but Darby and I finally made it full circle.