It had been six weeks since their wedding, and there were still moments Drew stared down at his wedding band, amazed and damn happy he’d been blessed to call her his wife. He hadn’t wiped the stupid grin off his face since the honeymoon.
There were days they stayed tangled in bed and never left the room. He wouldn’t change one minute, but as expected, their families and the entire town were not happy they’d been excluded from the celebration.
Solution: have a huge party to celebrate with those they loved. There were tents with twinkling Christmas lights set up in the field on his parents’ farm with their spot on the river as a backdrop. They’d have dinner, cake, and dancing. Drew hadn’t yet gotten a first dance with his bride, and he intended to make that happen tonight.
Speaking of his lovely bride…they should’ve left for the party fifteen minutes ago.
“Anna, sweetheart, we really need to go,” he yelled across the house. “I get that we’re the guests of honor, but we’re going to be late.”
No response.
Drew found her in the bathroom, her back to him in the same white dress she’d worn when they exchanged vows on the beach. His mind flashed back to the way it fell to the floor, and he reined in the insistent part of him that wanted to carry her back to their bedroom.
“We should probably be on time for our own party,” he urged her, leaning against the doorframe.
Her reflection stared down at the countertop.
“Sunshine…”
She spun to face him, biting her lip.
“Honey, I’m late,” she whispered. It was so quiet he almost didn’t hear.
Drew laughed, gesturing with a sweeping motion of his hand for her to leave the bathroom. “Yeah, babe, I know we’re late, so let’s go.”
“No, I mean, I’m late, late.”
He tilted his head and stared. Confusion lingered for at least a minute before the meaning of her words set in.
“Oh, come on.” He laughed, pushing off the doorframe. “There’s no freaking way. I’d have to be, like, Superman or something.”
Anna smiled, that gorgeous full ear-to-ear smile, reaching behind her to the counter. She picked up a long strip he hadn’t noticed there before. Squeezing it in her hand for the briefest second, she opened her palm and handed it to him.
It looked a hell of a lot like a pregnancy test.
Pregnant.
The word stared back at him, and his gaze shot to her face.
“Are you kidding me?”
“Nope.” She smiled again, taking a step toward him.
“Are you serious right now?” They were having a baby. “But I thought…”
Anna was having his baby…
“Are you ready to be a daddy?” she whispered. A single tear escaped and took a path down her cheek.
Drew looked back and forth from the test to his stunning wife.
He was going to be a father…
Anna walked the remaining step to him. She ran her fingers gently through his hair. “Drew, are you okay?”
Was he okay?
“More than okay.” He looked down to her stomach. The only woman he had ever loved, ever wanted to spend his life with, was carrying their child.
He reached one hand up to cup her cheek, the other caressing her stomach. “It’s perfect. I didn’t know there was room in my heart to be any happier than I already was, but this, this baby. I…” He paused, clearing the emotion from his throat. “She’s the greatest gift I’ve ever been given.”
“She?” Anna smirked with a raised brow.
He covered Anna’s lips with his in a mind-numbing kiss. “Yeah, she. One just like you.”
How could he be completely freaked out and so damn full of happiness all at the same time?
“Seriously, are you guys ready yet?” Luke shouted from the living room. His footsteps approached down the hallway. “Damn, can’t you put your clothes on and pull yourself away from each other for a few hours to be with other people?”
Eyes narrowed and hands on his hips, Luke glared at them from the bedroom doorway.
“Sure, Uncle Luke,” Anna said, her laugh the sweetest sound he’d ever heard.
Drew held up the test, and shrugged as Luke’s eyes widened to saucers. He rushed forward, squeezing them all together in a hug.
“If it’s a girl, can we name her after Allison?” Luke whispered as they celebrated.
Drew smiled, kissing Anna’s forehead as his best friend smirked at him over her shoulder.
This girl, this moment, this life together. It was all worth waiting for.