4 Months later

“Are you sure this is going to be alright?”

It was the fifth time in less than an hour that Michael had asked her, and this time, instead of answering him, Rose merely glared at him in warning. Michael, despite his intimidating size, knew when to take a hint from his fiancée. He shut his mouth and nodded, merely taking her hand to help her up from where she lounged in her seat.

Their flight was about to start boarding, and it seemed as if they’d been at the gate for hours. Of course, before that, they went through the long journey back from the small village they’d spent the last four months in back to Bangkok – no easy feat. Of course, when Rose had arrived at the beginning of the summer, she thought very little of the grueling journey.

Things were a little different when she was five months pregnant.

Mind you, she hadn’t transformed into a complete whale just yet, but it was harder to get around with her newly rounded tummy, aching feet and protesting bladder. There were a few points on their journey where she was sure Michael was going to lose his temper with her. She must have asked to stop for bathroom breaks at least eight or nine times during a three-hour car ride.

But he had never risen his voice – never gotten irate with her. Not once had he even sighed in exasperation. The man was a marvel, and when Rose remembered that she would soon be marrying him, her heart all but floated out of her chest.

Marriage. She had once viewed the concept with such contempt, certain that it was just a ploy to tie women down in their prime – but Michael had taught her otherwise.

Even if he was a tad bit overbearing. When Rose suggested that they return to London for a few months, she surprised him. The young woman knew because she had surprised even herself. Even after learning of her pregnancy, she had been bound and determined to remain in Thailand – to give birth in Bangkok before returning home.

But things had changed once she and Michael told their families about their plans. Neither set of parents had attempted to manipulate them – they learned the hard way just how well that worked out for them. Instead, they apologized thousands of times over for their behavior and begged to be present for the momentous occasion of their grandchild being born. Michaels mother assured him that she had steamrolled through the committee that had opposed his becoming a full-fledged Tate unconditionally and that he was always welcome at the Estate. She did not, however, impress on him the stress of his status as heir – and for that, she earned Rose’s respect. Michael would do as he pleased and, in time, he would cooperate with his family – this much he made clear to her.

But he would do it on his own terms.

And Rose couldn’t be prouder of him.

So, it was off to London for the last trimester of her pregnancy – and she had to say that, for the first time, she found herself excited by the prospect. When she and Michael returned to London, they would be doing so of their own volition. They would face no pressure from their families to marry or act accordingly.

In a way, by finding one another, they had finally won their freedom.

The irony didn’t escape her.

The flight back to England was pleasant enough – Rose slept almost the entire way under Michael’s watchful eye, only coming too groggily half an hour before they landed. It was another caveat of pregnancy, she discovered, that she was literally tired constantly. It was quite annoying for someone who was used to keeping busy every moment of every day.

Their parents didn’t greet them at the airport. Rose knew better than to expect that. Both the Lithgalls and the Tates were too high profile – and too busy atop that – to welcome them on their grand re-entry. Instead, they received a decidedly more modest welcome from Cat and Liam.

Upon spotting them near the baggage claim, the raven-haired woman made her way other to embrace Rose warmly, shifting Liam to her hip. Rose barely got a chance to kiss the little cherub before Cat was gushing over her own swelling belly and congratulating her and Michael on their coming bundle of joy.

Rose, for her part, was caught up in cuddling Liam until Michael came over with their bags and redirected her with a gentle kiss. “Don’t monopolize him, darling. We’ll soon have one of our own, don’t you worry.”

At the reminder, Rose’s lips turned up into a dreamy smile. It seemed like her days lately were marked by bliss. Everything Michael did only made her want to kiss him – or else tumble him into bed. Another thing pregnancy had done to her ever-changing body was increase her sex drive.

Dramatically.

Not that her fiancée was complaining. Michael gladly took everything she had to give and returned in tenfold. In fact, the way the man currently eyed her promised her that, once they returned to his flat, he would have his wicked way with her.

She couldn’t wait.

“I certainly thought it would take longer for you lot to get through customs. I’m lucky I made it on time!”

Rose’s head swung around in surprise at a very familiar, posh accent, and she immediately grinned. Alice stood not ten feet away, looking magnificent as always. Though Rose had never been overly concerned with wearing the latest fashions, she was keen on trying some of the maternity clothes Alice promised to design for her.

“Alice!”

“Don’t you dare run, I’ll come to you.” Alice closed the space between them in two elegant strides to pull Rose into a hearty embrace. “Welcome home darling. So good to see you again.”

“Likewise.” Rose beamed as Alice stepped back to touch her swelling stomach gently. “And hello to you too, little princess. Your auntie is going to spoil you rotten, never you worry.” The blonde didn’t doubt it for a moment. Alice spoiled everyone in her immediate vicinity. She was already going on about how many clothes she planned to buy for her niece.

“Nice to see you as well.” Alice feigned disinterest as Mike and Cat approached, choosing to first hug the dark-haired woman and her son before all but flinging herself at Michael. The enormous man caught her without any hesitation, grinning as he hoisted her into his arms.

“Michael, please, you’ll wrinkle the Gucci!”

“To hell with the Gucci. I’ve missed you.”

Alice’s returning smile was warm and genuine as her brother lowered her to the ground. “I’ve missed you too.”

Alice was, Michael informed Rose, the only one in his family who he could ever really trust. The one who stuck by his side through thick and thin – and the one who had snapped him out of the funk he was in before he chased her to Thailand. Rose was sure she’d never be able to thank her enough. As for Michael, his gratitude was evident in the love in the adoration in his gaze.

“Come now, we’re having dinner downtown.”

“We?” Michael inquired wryly. “I got us a reservation at Pendleton. No easy feat, let me assure you – not for ten people at least.”

“Ten!?” Rose’s eyes widened in surprise.

Alice grinned in amusement. “Of course, silly. Michael, myself and you. Elias, Cat and Liam, and our parents.”

She had actually gotten both the Lithgalls and the Tates to take a break from their busy social lives to have a family dinner?

Alice truly was a marvel. Rose realized that she probably didn’t give her enough credit.

As Alice picked up one of their bags to prance off as if it weighed nothing, Michael sighed, shaking his head in amazement. “She’s a gem, that one. Almost as lovely as you.” When he kissed her neck, she sighed in contentment.

She couldn’t agree more.

**

Dinner was a large, but intimate affair. Of course, with so many world-famous personalities gathered in one place, the restaurant all but shut down at the number of paparazzi trying to get inside. It wasn’t until Elias threatened to sue half of them that they backed off, and Michael had a good chuckle into his aperitif.

As much as he had loved Thailand, it was good to be home.

It was strange, however, seeing all his friends and family sitting at a table, being cordial to one another. Usually, they skated around each other, making appointments when they should be interacting seamlessly – but just now, it seemed effortless. Lady Lithgall chatted with his mother over their wine, while the Duke and the Earl smoked cigars – well away from the children and Michael’s pregnant fiancée.

Elias expounded on the quality of his steak, stopping every now and again to take Liam from Cat and bounce him on his knee. Michael didn’t think he’d ever seen an expression as soft as the one Elias used with his son. Liam was the final chink that undid his armor completely, and he couldn’t imagine the architect having any regrets.

For half of his own meal, Michael couldn’t eat much. He was entirely too transfixed by the woman at his side. As Rose spoke and laughed with Catherine and Alice, he took in every inch of her – from the glowing tendrils of hair across her hair to her lovely eyes and pert mouth – to their child growing slowly inside her.

He hadn’t known it was possible to love someone so much. Rose filled his heart as no woman ever had before her – and no woman would after her. When he was with her, nothing else mattered – not his titles, his money, or even what he was doing the next hour. She was everything he could have wished for – even if he had to fly halfway across the world to get it.

Rose accepted him for who he was – marveled at his medical skills without implying they were the product of anything other than his own determination. She admired his drive without attributing it to his family name, and she loved him regardless of how much he was worth, or where he had been born.

It was the kind of love he was convinced only existed in children’s stories and yet, here it was, in the palm of his hand.

“Oh, bloody hell,” Elias griped, after trying to engage him in conversation for the umpteenth time. “If you’re up for a round with her, go on then. You’re spoiling my meal.”

Michael merely rolled his eyes at his friend’s antics. “I’ll make sure to remember that the next time you ogle your wife from across the room.”

Elias had very little to say to that particular comment, and so, Michael thought it was an excellent time to make a toast. Clearing his throat, he stood from the table and raised his glass. “I’d like to propose a toast: To family, past, present and future.”

On that, it seemed, everyone on the table could agree.

“To family!” Alice smiled, raising her glass as the others followed suit.

As Michael sipped his wine, he caught Rose’s eye. Though she had no wine, she raised her water glass, and the moment she put it down, he tugged her to her feet to kiss her soundly before everyone present. In that moment, he didn’t care who was watching. Rose was his – and she and their child would be his entire world.

Once, Michael had never imagined that his title would garner him anything but strife. But now, with the woman he loved in his arms, he was willing to admit that maybe, just maybe he owed his mother a thank you.

After all, it wasn’t every day that your salvation dropped into your lap, and filled the void in your soul.

THE END