“I thought you said you were poor when we were younger?”
Jensen looked over at Wren as they drove down the long driveway that led to his parents’ house. “I was.”
She looked back at the house that was in the distance before scoffing. “We have two very different views on being poor.”
He laughed. “When I was drafted, I used my bonus to rebuild my parents’ house.”
“Oh,” she drawled, and he looked back out the window, taking in the beauty that was his parents’ home. It used to be a two-bedroom cabin, but now it was three bedrooms with bigger rooms and much more space for his parents. With his father’s diabetes and his immobility, it was good to have the room for his wheelchair and then the pool in the back for exercise. Jensen loved his parents’ home, and thankfully, they did too. “It’s big.”
“Yeah, my dad is in his wheelchair more than he isn’t.”
“That sucks.”
“It does,” he agreed as they pulled in beside his mom’s van. “But he doesn’t let it get him down. You ready?”
She looked over at him and let out a shaky breath. “Nervous.”
“So am I,” he admitted as he reached for the door. “But they’re excited to see us.”
She didn’t look sure of that as she got out and he did the same, going to the back for their luggage. Meeting him by the trunk, she ran her hands down her belly, fixing her shirt as she looked around. “What if she’s still mad? Your mom?”
He looked over at her as he lifted up one of her bags. “She wasn’t ever mad. She was just annoyed.”
She gave him a dry look. “Same damn thing.”
“I beg to differ, but either way, she won’t say anything. She isn’t one for confrontation.”
“When it comes to her son, she is just fine with confrontation. I’ve heard her go at it with your coach plenty of times. Remember how my mom would put her on speaker? Man, she would go off.”
Jensen’s mouth quirked. His mom was a firecracker when she needed to be. “That’s different. It wasn’t my wife.”
She pressed her lips together as she looked toward the house. “Still. Makes me nervous.”
Reaching out, he cupped her by the back of her neck before pulling her toward him. “We’re good, okay?”
Before she could answer, he pressed his lips into hers, and she stepped toward him willingly. She wrapped her arms around his waist, and his heart skipped a beat. At first, he wasn’t convinced by the list he had found. He knew how she was. She made lists, and most of the time, if she didn’t like the outcome, she would ignore it. But that was the second list that had to do with him, and he didn’t think she was ignoring it. It felt a little like a dream, but he really did think she was trying. That she was letting go and trusting him. It had only been a few days, but he swore he felt closer to her in that time than he had in the three weeks they had been together.
It was either that, or he was making it something it wasn’t.
He wasn’t sure, but he wouldn’t deny that he enjoyed the way she clung to him or leaned into him as she kissed him.
Pulling away, he kissed the side of her mouth and then her nose. “Everything is going to be fine.”
She nodded as her eyes met his, and damn it, she was beautiful. Her eyes were so green, that pretty makeup on her eyes that made his insides feel all crazy. Her lips were glossed up, and her hair was down in big curls along her shoulders. She was wearing a pair of shorts and a long, very thin long-sleeved shirt that hugged her belly in the most delectable way. As much as he wanted to wait out the sexual connection between them, he had to admit he was struggling more and more lately.
He wanted her.
Every single part of her.
Exhaling hard when she turned out of his arms and looked back at the house, he closed his eyes and prayed that his mom didn’t say anything. Surely, she wouldn’t, but his mom was a mama bear to the extreme. Shutting the trunk, he carried the bags while Wren walked beside him toward the house. Before they could even step onto the walkway, his mother was yelling out, “Mon chou!”
His mom was wearing one of her trusty house dresses, and her dark hair that had a wide silver streak through the middle was up in a big bun. She had aged since he had seen her last, but he still thought his mother was beautiful. Wren looked up and plastered a grin on her face as his mom made her way down the stairs to them, wrapping Wren up first. “Look at you! Ah! My grandbaby!” Taking Wren’s belly in her hands, she cried out as she started speaking very quickly in French. Wren’s eyes widened as she looked back at Jensen, and he smiled, “She said he’ll be as big as I was. I was eleven pounds.”
Wren’s mouth dropped. “No wonder you had only one.”
His mom laughed as she nodded. “You have no clue.”
“You’re a strong woman, Mrs. Monroe.”
His mom waved her off quickly. “Mum.” She took Wren’s face in her hands. “I’m so happy to see you. So beautiful,” she gushed, kissing Wren’s cheeks before hugging her tightly.
“You too,” Wren somehow muttered between kisses before his mother was on him, knocking the bags out of his hands. But his grin was unstoppable. As he held his mother, his eyes fell shut as she cried into his shoulder. It has been so long since he had seen her, at least eight months. She felt the same, crying in French as she held him, kissing him over and over again.
“You’re too skinny.” He scoffed as she lifted his shirt. “You don’t feed him, Wrenya?”
“Wren,” he corrected and she nodded.
“That’s what I said,” she said with a look before shaking her head, and he knew not to correct her. “You’re hungry, let’s go eat.”
He laughed as she turned, wrapping her arm around Wren before leading her toward the house. They didn’t get far before his father was hollering at them. “Who is that? Is that my son? His wife?” Jensen’s stomach dropped as he picked up the bags again. Surely, his father hadn’t forgotten what he looked like. “Come closer, my sight is going.”
Wren looked back, surprised since they both thought it was only his legs that were failing, and Jensen found himself unable to breathe before his mother shook her head. “Stop it, Ant.”
His father laughed loudly as he waved them off. “I kid. Come here, son. I really can’t walk, and I’ve missed you.”
Rolling his eyes, Jensen made it up the stairs swiftly before dropping his bags and wrapping his arms around his father. He was in his wheelchair, his legs bandaged up as he clung to Jensen. “My boy,” he muttered into his shoulder, hugging him tightly. Jensen’s eyes burned as he held his father. It had been so long, longer than seeing his mother, and he regretted that. He should have come sooner. After smacking Jensen’s back, his father pulled away and grinned up at him. His face was sunken in from the massive amount of weight he had been losing, but his dark brown eyes shone like he wasn’t a day over sixteen. “Too long, you know.”
“I know,” Jensen agreed before he gave him a smacking kiss on the cheek.
“Now move. Let me see this wife of yours, Lord!” After he pushed Jensen out of the way playfully, his father widened his eyes as he shook his head. “Man, you married up, didn’t ya?”
Jensen chuckled as he looked back at Wren, who flushed deeply. With a wink, he said, “I sure the hell think so.”
“Yeah, the last one, Wren, was skinny as all hell and not that pretty. But you, you’re gorgeous.”
Wren smiled. “And not a skinny bone on me,” she teased before coming up the stairs and holding out her hand. “It’s wonderful—” But before she could finish, his father pulled her into a big hug.
“Family doesn’t shake hands, girl.”
Wren’s lips were still curved as she hugged his father. Pulling back, he held her hands, looking her up and down. “I don’t remember you being this pretty. Em, was she always this pretty?”
“I was thinking the same. She’s gorgeous now. Looks just like Elaine.”
“She sure is. Goodness. Here, have a seat right here beside me. Son, go put everything up. Let your mum fuss over you a bit.”
Looking to Wren, Jensen smiled. “You good?”
“Why you asking that? Of course she is. Go,” his father scolded, his hands still holding Wren’s. She sent him a nervous smile, but she didn’t look panicked, which he took as a win. He knew she was nervous about his parents liking her, and he was glad they were making a fuss over her. Not that they wouldn’t have, but he had been nervous too.
Leaning over, he pressed his lips to her temple. “I’ll be back.”
“Okay,” she said as his dad took her attention.
“Now, hit me with some names. He needs a strong name. Antoine is a good one.”
Jensen’s mom laughed. “Please don’t do that to my grandbaby.”
As his mom led him inside, Wren’s laughter ran down his spine. His mom directed him to their room, which used to be his old bedroom until it was completely redone with an added bathroom. She had decorated it with all the memorabilia from Jensen’s youth in hockey. All kinds of pictures of him growing up with his stick in his hands adorned the walls, along with photos of all the major moments. When he had won the cup when he was a junior, which was awesome since he had beaten out Wells and Vaughn on the US team. They had talked so much shit, but Canada wasn’t one to mess with. A big picture of the day he was drafted made him smile because it wasn’t just him, it was his parents along with Vaughn and Wells. Then one of them and Wren too. She looked so small next to all of them as they all cheesed for Elaine. That was a good day, and he couldn’t help but grin ruefully as he took in Wren and him.
How the hell hadn’t she known?
His hand lay on her hip, and she was basically clinging to him, her face so bright, her grin so big.
They were so young.
With a smile as he set the bags on the end of the bed, his mother asked, “Good trip in?”
He nodded. “Great. I’m glad to be home.”
“We’re glad to have you two here,” she said, coming to him and taking his biceps in her hands. “You look happy.”
His lips quirked as he nodded. “I am.”
“And seeing you with her. The way she looks at you. My goodness, it’s breathtaking.”
He rolled his eyes gently at that. “Mum, we’ve been here ten minutes.”
“And you two haven’t taken your eyes off each other at all.”
Patting his face, she turned, demanding in French that he follow, but he didn’t move. A stupid grin came over his face as he shook his head. He wanted to believe his mom, he wanted to believe what was in his heart, but he could still hear Wren’s words of uncertainty in his head. Man, he hated them, but he knew they were just words. Things were changing.
He could feel it.
* * *
“I feel, in my heart, that this can count as my exercise.”
Looking down at his wife as she swam in a circle in his parents’ pool, Jensen laughed, shaking his head. “We’ll walk when the sun goes down.”
She let her head fall back. “You’re ruining my life.”
His father laughed beside him. “Why do you have to exercise?”
She held her hand out to him. “Exactly.”
Laughing, Jensen shook his head as he took a long pull of his beer. “Her doctor is advising her to since he thinks she’s putting on too much weight with the pregnancy.”
Antoine scoffed. “Please, she’s perfect.”
“That’s what I said,” Jensen said when he looked back to her, and her lips pulled up a bit. “But I want to make sure she’s healthy.”
“Ah, well, ya gotta stay healthy, Wrenya, or you’ll end up like me,” Antoine pointed out, shaking his head. “And this hurts. I refuse to have you ever be like me, you hear me?”
Her lips pressed together. “Yeah, I’ll go walking later.”
“Good girl.”
Jensen shared a grin with her before leaning back, his feet in the water as she swam around, letting the sun kiss her face. She looked carefree, happy, her hair spread out in the water as her belly peeked out. She was wearing a black bikini that hardly covered her ass, but he wasn’t complaining. Her breasts were swollen and delectable and were the main reason he had a towel over his lap. “How’re your parents, Wrenya? I haven’t talked to your dad in months.”
Wren laughed. “Because he’s hiding. He hardly talks to me.”
“Me either,” Jensen added. “But he’s doing well. Try texting him.”
“Ah, I hate texting,” his dad said, waving him off. “But I’ll try. And your mum is good?”
Wren smiled. “She is.”
With a nod, he asked, “Wells won’t be upset that we can’t make it to the wedding, will he?”
“No, not all at. He understands, honest.”
“Okay, good. We were worried, but he said the same. Such a good boy.” Letting out a pained sigh, he shook his head. “Damn legs.”
“Just get healthy, Dad, that’s all we want. Vaughn said the same.”
“Ah, my Jo. I love that kid. He’s so damn cocky.”
“Beyond. You know his girlfriend is pregnant too.”
“Yeah, he called and told us. I hear she’s a good girl.”
“She is, really good,” Jensen agreed. “They’re completely into each other.”
Antoine chuckled loudly, filling the backyard with his laughter as he leaned back in his chair. “Funny, I remember when all you boys were here that summer, and no one could even talk to a girl. Wells was the worst—we all know why now—but still, I remember just laughing at you guys. I tried so hard to help, pushing girls at you, but all of you would just shut down. Even Vaughn.” Antoine shook his head as Jensen laughed while Wren smiled.
“Were they awful?”
“Yes, so bad. Elaine told me they were just as bad at home.”
“They were,” Wren teased, smiling. “Jensen was my first kiss, and he was so awkward about it.”
Antoine laughed hard, from the gut. “I don’t doubt it. But now, I don’t think he’s awkward at all when he kisses ya.”
Wren’s face deepened with color as she met his gaze. “He’s all right.”
He scoffed at that as she swam backward. “Either way, look at all of you. Getting married, married, and engaged. Babies coming, it’s nice. I’m a proud papa.” Reaching out, he squeezed Jensen’s arm. “The happiest for you though, after that awful divorce.”
Jensen shrugged. “It wasn’t that bad.”
“It wasn’t that good either. Her mum is always asking about you when we see her at the market. Mum’s chest puffed up the last time we saw her. She goes, ‘Jensen got married to a beauty, and they’re having a baby. Plus, he’s bringing the Cup home.’” He laughed, shaking his head. “We’re damn proud of you.”
“Thanks, Dad.”
“And you’re a shoo-in for the Vezina.”
Jensen made a face. “Not sure yet.”
Wren laughed at that. “You broke records this year, and you’re the best. So yeah, it’s yours.”
He looked over at her and smiled. “Yeah?”
“Yup. I know it.”
“So I guess I gotta dedicate it to you two, then? Since you both know?”
His father looked over at Wren, and they both nodded. “Seems legit,” she said as his father said, “I agree completely.”
Shaking his head, Jensen laughed along with them as the sliding door opened and his mum’s voice filled the back. “Ant, love, time to change your bandages.”
His father’s shoulders drooped as he waved her off. “Em, later.”
“No, honey, we can’t mess up the schedule because the kids are here. Come on now,” she said, coming to his chair and taking the handles in her hands.
Covering her hand, Jensen asked, “Mum, you need help?”
She shook her head, reaching out to cup his face. “No, honey, stay out here with your bride. We’ll be out in a jiffy.”
Grumbling, Ant shook his head. “Make sure you exercise, Wrenya, you hear?”
“Yes, sir,” she called as she leaned on the side of the pool, her chin on her hands.
“Dad, you know her name is Wren, right?”
He shrugged. “That’s what I said.”
His mom clucked her tongue. “He said that to me yesterday. Probably needs his ears checked. Puck probably shattered his eardrum or something.”
Wren snickered as they made their way inside, and he shook his head. “They’re calling you Wrenya, right?”
She smiled as she shrugged. “They are. But it’s nice. Leave it.”
He glared. “Make me crazy, those two.”
“They’re amazing.”
He smiled as she came close, leaning her chin on his shin. “They are.”
“Your mom is a cooking machine. Vaughn and Wells weren’t kidding.”
Leaning back on his elbows, he nodded. “Yeah, that’s all she does when I’m here, cook and feed me. I had to tell her last night to take it easy on you.”
Wren glared. “Why would you do that?”
“Because I care about your health. I gain an easy ten pounds when I’m home.”
“That’s rude,” she decided, and he scoffed. “I love food.”
“I’m aware.”
She glared, and he sent her a wink as she shook her head. “So, you haven’t been home in a while?”
“Nope, almost ten months. But I saw my mom about eight months ago. She came to see me before I left Colorado.”
“Wow, why?”
“Busy. I knew I wanted to be traded, and when it went down, I knew I had to put in a crazy amount of work to get noticed by the Assassins.”
“If they hadn’t noticed you, they wouldn’t have brought you to the team.”
He shrugged. “Maybe, but I knew I had to work harder.”
Moving her finger along his calf, she smiled. “You’ve always been the hardest worker.”
“I have. I don’t give up easily,” he said, and she looked up at him.
“Well, I know that firsthand,” she teased, and his lips curved wide.
“Damn right, you do.”
Holding his gaze, she pressed her lips together. “Wanna get in?”
He shook his head. “Rather just watch you.”
She pursed her lips at him, her eyes flashing with mischief. “Like watching me? All wet and slippery.”
“You’re evil.”
She giggled as she kicked off the side, going under the water before coming up, running her hands down her face. “It’s super nice in here.”
“It’s even better from right here. Every once in a while, I get a nice peek of that ass.”
She rolled her eyes as she held his gaze. “But if you’re in here, then you get a closer look.”
He thought that over. “You could be right about that.”
“I am right, always right.”
He laughed hard. “We both know that’s a lie.”
She glared. “I am!”
“Sure,” he said before he moved the towel that was on his lap and slowly slid into the pool. “Man, it does feel good in here.” It was a hot day, hotter than he expected, but the water was nice and cool. He had put the pool in for his father, for his therapy, but since his legs were so messed up, he hadn’t gotten to use it that summer. But he would. His dad was a fighter and didn’t give up, which Jensen guessed was where he got it from.
“Told ya,” she said, swimming toward him. “Oh, I have to tell you something.”
His brow furrowed since she looked so distraught at that moment. “What?”
Stopping in front of him, she said, “We might have to go shopping if my dress doesn’t fit for the party.”
He laughed. “I thought it was something bad.”
She gave him a dry look. “Shopping is bad.”
“Eh, not too bad when I’m with you,” he answered, and her face broke into a grin before she reached out, wrapping her arms around his neck and then her legs around his waist, like a koala. Her belly pressed into his as his arms came out, holding her close. But then she paused.
“Is this okay?”
His face wrinkled. “Why wouldn’t it be okay?”
She shrugged, her fingers dancing along the top of his back. “I don’t know.”
Leaning his nose into hers, he closed his eyes. “It’s perfect.”
When she pressed her lips to his, his heart slammed into his chest as he kissed her back, holding her as close as he could. She felt damn good in his arms, and soon he was harder than the steel pipes he stood between most of his life. As her mouth moved with his, his body shook with need, but there was no way he was taking her right there in his parents’ pool. Even if he had paid for it, that was disrespectful. But man, he wanted her. Sliding his hands down her back, he cupped her butt as she pulled back, her dark eyes meeting his. “Well, great hand placement, Jenny.”
His lips quirked against hers. “I mean, you said I can get a closer look at this fine ass.”
She was trying not to smile as she ran her fingers up the back of his neck. “Are you saying I have a great ass?”
“The best I’ve ever seen, and that’s no damn lie.”
He fully expected her to ignore his comment. But instead, her grin grew as she pressed her lips into his top one. “Well, thank you.”
“You are very welcome,” he muttered against her lips, his hands sliding lower on her thick ass, squeezing her as his body shook. “You’re entirely too sexy in this bikini, by the way.”
Closing her eyes, her face broke as she giggled loudly. “Stop.”
“Never.”
“You’re making me blush!”
“Good, I love the color,” he said as their eyes stayed locked. “I love it all.”
Her lips pursed as she leaned into him, holding his neck tight, and just as she was going to kiss him, they heard his mother say, “I love newlyweds.”
But then his father added, “No hanky-panky in my pool!”
And with that, they were both falling over each other laughing.
He hadn’t felt more alive in his entire life.
* * *
“I can’t get over how beautiful you are, Wrenya.”
Wren looked up from where she was cutting up carrots and smiled. Jensen’s mom, Emma, couldn’t say her name right at all, but Wren wasn’t correcting her, and she wasn’t letting Jensen either. She found it endearing. But even she had to admit that everyone calling her beautiful, at every turn, was making her feel all kinds of ways. She wasn’t used to it. It wasn’t like her family told her she was beautiful all the time, but the Monroes never stopped reminding her. “Thanks, Emma.”
“Ma chou, Mum,” she said, patting Wren’s back as she walked behind her, getting some water. Wren had no clue what ma chou meant, but she was going with it. Since they had arrived in Jensen’s home country and then traveled the two hours from the airport to a rural part of Canada, Wren found Vaughn and Wells hadn’t been joking when they said Jensen was from the backwoods of Canada. The sheer number of moose she had seen in the matter of hours of being there was a little outstanding. And awesome. She loved every second. But she loved Emma Monroe and adored Jensen’s dad, Antoine, or Ant, as he insisted she call him, more than ever. When she had met them so long ago at Jensen, Vaughn, and Wells’s draft day, they hadn’t paid her much attention. But from the moment she’d stepped into the house, they’d both showered her with love, and she realized why Jensen was the way he was.
Because he was his parents’ world.
“Mum,” she repeated, and Emma beamed at her. “I’m done.”
“Good, good,” she said, taking the carrots and throwing them in the pot. “Potatoes next.”
Wren got to work, a little unsure of herself since she wasn’t much of a chef, not that she would tell Emma that. She’d already complained that Wren wasn’t feeding Jensen enough, and Wren wouldn’t dare tell her that Jensen was the one who usually got the food. Apparently, it was her job, and she would try to do that. Though, Jensen had already joked that he didn’t trust her cooking. A grin pulled at her lips as she looked back to where Jensen sat in the living room with his father, hanging out while the ladies worked in the kitchen.
He was lounging on the sofa as his father sat in the recliner, his legs up since Emma had just changed his bandages. The men looked like two peas in a pod, and Wren knew Jensen was beyond happy to be home. And so was she. Especially with Ant, he was funny, and she could see so much of Jensen in him. While she enjoyed and loved Emma—she was a good woman, very sweet—Wren couldn’t help but feel there was a little animosity toward her. She couldn’t blame Emma. Her son got married and was having a kid, and she only found out about it a month ago. She hadn’t mentioned it, nor brought it up, but Wren felt it coming.
“I bet you’re excited to see your mom next week. It’s been a while, yes?”
“Yeah, I am. It was before I got pregnant, and she keeps saying she’s ready to get her hands on my belly, whatever that means.”
Emma laughed. “I should tease her, tell her I got to go first.”
Wren met her with a smile. “Yeah, she wasn’t too pleased we came here first. She wants to see us. But this was planned first, and we’ll be there for almost two weeks with the wedding and all.”
“Yeah, she told me the same.” Emma looked up, a smile tugging at her weathered face. “It’s all a surprise, I’m sure. Especially with my Jensen. She probably didn’t expect that.”
Wren shrugged. “I don’t think anyone did, really.” She laughed then. “Especially us.”
She shouldn’t have said that. Emma’s brows pulled together. “So you didn’t have a crush on him before? He’s always had one for you, ma chou.”
Wren chewed on her top lip as she slid the knife along the potatoes. “I mean, I’ve always thought he was a very attractive man, but I never thought he had a crush on me. I didn’t find that out until after we—”
When she paused, Emma waggled her eyebrows. “Got it on? That’s what you call it, right?”
Wren sputtered with laughter as she choked on an inhale. “That.”
Emma nodded. “He is so damn quiet and shy, at least around you, he was. But he used to tell me that he was going to marry you.”
Wren’s mouth dropped open as a nervous laugh left her lips. “No!”
“Yes! He came home one summer and said ‘When Wrenya is old enough, I’m going to tell her how I feel.’ I waited and waited, and nothing. Then that other girl comes home, and he’s marrying her. I was very confused.”
Wren’s heart was in her throat. “Wow.”
“Very upset. I didn’t like her.”
“You didn’t?” Wren asked with a grin.
“No, not like I like you. But then, what did I expect? If he weren't going to go after you, someone would snatch him up. He’s so handsome, obviously from my side of the family.”
Wren giggled as Ant called from the living room, “Lies, Wrenya. Don’t listen to her. He’s my boy, and that baby will take after my side.”
Wren smiled as she looked down, praying to God that the baby came out looking just like her and nothing like Bradley. Just thinking of him made her gut hurt. It worried her to no end, but there was really nothing she could do about it. Though, the more she thought about leaving the safety and comfort of the Monroe home, the more she realized she’d probably see him when they went back home. She wasn’t sure if Wells had invited him to the wedding, and she couldn’t ask, but more than likely, he’d show up for the party for the Cup. It was huge for Vaughn and Jensen, and the whole town would all be there. Maybe she could skip?
That was an idea.
“Obviously, he’s delusional, and we know Jensen takes after me.”
Wren winked at her. “Of course.”
“You’re my favorite.” Wren beamed but then instantly felt bad. Was she Emma’s favorite under false pretenses? Or was it real? Shit, this wasn’t supposed to be this hard, but it was. She loved Emma and Ant. The last three days had been a blast. Once they got there, the two of them spoiled them, laughing and eating, just being together. Ant couldn’t walk much, but he tried. Though Emma wouldn’t let him go on the stupid walks Jensen was forcing on her. While it was sweet that he was taking her doctor’s orders, and she knew she should have felt bad for sneaking candy when he fell asleep at night, she didn’t.
Maybe she should reevaluate.
Bad life choices. She did that a lot.
Other than that, her time with the Monroes was going great. Every morning, they enjoyed the beautiful summer weather in the backwoods of Canada before spending the afternoon in the pool, and she felt like she was at home. Ever since getting there, she had been herself. Things were good between her and Jensen. Great, even. She felt herself letting him in somehow. Though, maybe she wasn’t. She wasn’t sure, but she was trying. She was. She knew that, but she had an inkling that he was still upset about their fight. Maybe she was overthinking it because when they were close, or even in the same room, he looked at her like she was the sexiest piece of cake he had ever seen. It was mind-blowing, and she loved it. His quick smiles, his sweet looks, and his caresses… God, she yearned for them and more, but she wasn’t thinking too much about that. Just him. And her. And his family.
“So, how far along are you now? Almost seven months? Yes?”
“Yes,” Wren answered, slowly chopping as she chewed on her lip. “I’m due in September.”
“Oh, good month. Maybe Ant will be better by then, and I can come to America for the birth. I want to see my grandbaby when he makes his debut.”
“We’d love that, and if not, once everything is settled because preseason will be starting, we’ll come here,” she promised, and she meant it. They had been so good to her, accepting her from the moment she stepped on their land. She was thankful for that because once they got home next week, it wouldn’t be as easy as it was here. She knew her family would be full of doubts and questions once they arrived.
“That would make my day, but I understand, which is why I’ll try to come there. Hopefully, Ant can come,” Emma said as she stirred the pot of meatballs she was cooking.
“We’ll work it out.”
They shared a smile before Emma reached out, squeezing her hand. “You’re a good girl, Wrenya.”
Guilt flushed through Wren as she looked back down, cutting the potatoes and feeling like anything but a good girl. She felt like a fraud, like she should tell them the truth, but she couldn’t. The baby was Jensen’s, and that was that. She wasn’t lying. This was their normal, and they were good with it.
Everything else was a bit up in the air, but that was certain.
The kid was Jensen’s.
“You two have been married almost a month?”
Running her tongue along her lips, she nodded. She had been waiting the last three days for this conversation. They hadn’t been alone, she and Emma, they were almost always with Ant or Jensen. So she knew it was coming, that Emma was upset about it, and that worried her. “Yup. A month tomorrow, actually.”
Emma nodded as she reached for the bag of pigs’ feet out of the sink, and Wren quickly covered her mouth as she watched her mother-in-law begin to clean them. “Well, at least you two are married before he comes. Though, nowadays, things are so different. No one cares about having babies out of wedlock.”
Dropping her hand, Wren shrugged. “Jensen does.”
Emma looked up and smiled. “Because he’s a good man. A gentleman.”
“My mom said the same thing.”
“’Cause she knows. We did well with him.”
That made Wren’s smile grow. If her mom were there, she would have gushed all over Emma. There wasn’t a moment when Elaine didn’t worry that she was doing right by Jensen, but Emma always said that Elaine Lemiere was the best thing to happen to their family. “You guys did.”
Emma looked up, meeting her gaze, and then she looked away. “I need to admit something.”
Wren watched her as she looked out of the kitchen toward the living room where Ant and Jensen were. “Okay?”
She looked back to Wren. “Yeah, I was very upset with you, with how my Jensen didn’t find out until much later. I felt you lied to him, and I didn’t like that.”
Laying the knife down, Wren leaned into the counter. “I completely understand, and you’re right. I did, and I’m so sorry for that. I didn’t mean to hurt him or you—”
But Emma held her hands up, and Wren’s mouth slammed shut. “But I was wrong. And the reason I say that is because Jensen knows you best of all, and he told me you do things in your time. While I didn’t like that one bit, I have to say, it doesn’t matter that it took you so long to tell him, because you did, and my baby hasn’t ever looked happier, Wrenya. Ever. Even when he was with that awful girl before, I have never seen him look at someone the way he looks at you.” Breathless, Wren looked away as a smile tugged at her lips, her heart jumping up into her throat. “I always knew he cared for you, that he even loved you, but seeing it, seeing you two together… Goodness me, your love for him and his love for you, I swear it’s deeper than an ocean. I’m amazed, truly amazed.”
Her love?
His love, yeah. But hers?
Had she been lying the whole time she had been there? No, she had been herself. But she didn’t love Jensen. She cared for him, a lot, and maybe she’d fall. But what was Emma talking about? She didn’t look at him like she loved him.
Did she?
Wait, did she love him?
No.
You don’t fall for someone in a month. That was dumb.
Biting her lip, Wren looked up and smiled. “He’s amazing.”
“Damn right, I am.”
She looked over her shoulder as Jensen came into the room toward her, wrapping his arms around her waist and holding her belly in his hands. Before she knew it, she was leaning into him, and he kissed her beneath her ear. Then he said, “I’m sure you’re talking about me.”
Wren scoffed as Emma shook her knife at her. “Mon chou, I tell her, you two are adorable together.”
“Of course we are,” he said, kissing Wren’s jaw before he leaned his hip on the counter beside her.
“Everyone has been telling me that,” Emma said.
“They have?” Wren looked puzzled.
“Yes, everyone in town says you two should never stop having babies.”
Wren laughed as Jensen looked down at the ground, kicking it with his toe as he shook his head. “I don’t know, Mum. Wren doesn’t like being pregnant much.”
She nodded. “I don’t.”
“Why? It agrees with you,” Emma said, dumping the pigs’ feet in the pot, causing Wren to gag.
When Emma turned to the sink, Wren looked at Jensen with wide eyes, and in a very low voice, said, “I’m not eating that.”
His face lit up, the biggest grin coming across his mouth. “What? It’s the best part!”
“I swear, I’m not.”
“Fine, I’ll eat yours.”
She made a face. “I’m not kissing you, then.”
He laughed at that before taking her in his arms and nibbling on her jaw. “Like you’d deny me kisses,” he whispered in her ear before biting her lobe. “I’ll kiss you with my pigs’ feet breath.”
She gagged, and he laughed as she pushed him away. “You’re disgusting.”
He stuck his tongue out as his mother turned, shaking her head. “Jensen, don’t do that. It’s rude. She’s your chou.”
He shot her a cheesy grin as Emma left the kitchen. “She keeps calling me that. What is that?”
“My cabbage.”
Her face wrinkled. “What! She’s calling me a cabbage?”
He laughed. “It’s her favorite food.”
Wren shook her head. “I don’t know how I feel about that.”
“Feel good. She never called my ex-wife that. Ever.”
Wren grinned at that. “So I guess that means she doesn’t hate me?”
He shook his head. “She can’t.”
“Yes, she can.”
“Nope.”
“Jensen!”
“Really, she can’t.”
“And why is that?” she asked, holding his gaze, and she loved the smile on his face. Being home opened him up. He was so much happier, so full of life, and it was beautiful to see.
As he leaned toward her, his eyes sparkled as he said, “Because I love you, and she loves what I love ten times over.”
Kissing her jaw, he left the kitchen, and all she could do was watch him in complete awe. In that instant, she was jealous. She wanted to feel that. To be so confident in them.
She wanted it.
She did, but she didn’t know how to get it.
Inside, she wondered if she already had it, but she was too stubborn to see it.
Why was being an adult so hard?
* * *
The windows were open, the curtains drifting with the cool night breeze, and the moon was the only light in the room. Watching as the curtains floated, Wren held her stomach as her son moved around like he was trying to rip out of her. It was insane how much he had grown and how hard he could kick. She loved it.
God, she loved him.
Beside her, Jensen lay on his back, on his phone as she watched the night sky, the silence so peaceful and perfect. She loved sleeping there. It was still and serene. Letting out a sigh, she whispered, “It’s beautiful here.”
Jensen chuckled beside her. “I used to hate it until I came to Colorado and it was loud as hell there. Now, I swear, I sleep the best when I’m home.”
She smiled into her pillow, her hand moving up and down her belly. Her back was to him, but his body warmed her in more ways than one. “I bet.”
“Are you enjoying yourself?”
“I am,” she admitted. “It’s amazingly beautiful, and your parents are so hospitable.”
His hand came to rest on her ass, his thumb moving along her skin, causing her to break out in gooseflesh, before he said, “Good.”
Silence fell between them once more, and she felt calm. Even if in one second she felt her life was falling the fuck apart, being in that room, the window open with Jensen’s deep breath filling the air, his thumb moving along her, she felt tranquil. It was an insane feeling, something she didn’t feel a lot, but God, she welcomed it. She ached for it. She’d move here in a second, a nice little cabin, just her, Jensen, and kiddo.
“I love it here.”
“I can tell.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah. You don’t think. You’re just enjoying. Except when I make you walk or when you’re trying to sneak those Kit Kats.”
Shit, he saw that? Her laughter shook the bed. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
When she heard a wrapper opening, she glared. “Yeah, and this isn’t one of your Kit Kats either,” he said to her, and she laughed.
“You’re a pain in my ass.”
“You’re the epitome of a pain in my ass, Wrenya.”
Her face broke into a grin as her eyes fell shut and the summer breeze kissed her face. “Are you going to start calling me that too?”
“I think so. I like it.”
Her smile didn’t falter as he squeezed her hip. “We should move here.”
He chuckled beside her. “Considering we both have really great careers, that would be a waste.”
She smiled. “True. Can we vacation here?”
“If you want.”
“I do.”
He leaned over, kissing her shoulder. “I love the sound of that.”
“Me too,” she answered as he rolled back over, her heart picking up in speed. Things were going really well. She loved the flirty and sweet side of them. Yeah, he had always been charming and polite, but she felt like maybe she was being the same. Well, in her own way, but it was meshing. They were meshing. Even if his mother’s earlier observation sort of freaked her out, she felt good.
She couldn’t help but think maybe being in love with him wasn’t such a crazy thought.
She rolled over slowly, and his phone went into his lap as he looked over at her, a smile on his face. “Can I ask you something?”
“Of course,” he said, his eyes on hers.
“Are you still mad at me?”
His brows drew in. “About what?”
“Our fight.”
“Oh,” he said, thoughtfully. “I wasn’t ever mad, Wren. I was hurt. Big difference.”
She looked away, moving her hair out of her eyes. “So, are you still hurt?”
He chuckled. “I mean, not like I was a few days ago, but it still stings.”
She nodded as she chewed on the inside of her lip. “I feel like things are still a bit tense between us.”
“I don’t think so.”
“I do,” she said, looking at him. “And that’s me and my many issues.”
He shrugged. “I’m not tense. I promise. I think things are going great. We aired out what we felt, and we’re moving on. I just want this to work, and I know you’re trying. I do, and I feel it. It’s nice. We’re good.”
Holding his gaze, she felt her lips started to tremble. “We are?”
“We are,” he whispered before going up on his elbow and reaching out, taking her face in his. “The fight had to happen, you had to know how I was feeling. That I wasn’t fucking around with you. That, to me, this,” he said, running his thumb along her bottom lip, “is real. That we’re real, and I’m not giving up on it.”
Leaning into his hand, she held his gaze as she bit down softly on his thumb, his eyes widening in surprise. Letting him go, she whispered, “I don’t want to, either.”
“Then don’t,” he said, dropping his face to hers. “Don’t give up.”
With her heart beating so hard her ears ached, she nodded. “I don’t want to.”
“Then there is nothing else I can ask for.”
But she was pretty sure there was more. Swallowing hard, she held his gaze. “Does it hurt when you tell me you love me and I don’t say it back?”
Licking his lips, he shrugged. “I mean, it doesn’t feel good, but I wouldn’t say it hurts. It just sucks.”
Her face turned serious. “I’m sorry.”
“Sorry for what? Not loving me when you had no clue I’ve loved you for over fifteen years? That’s not your fault. I should have said something.”
“Yeah, you should have,” she answered, holding his gaze. “Because then maybe I wouldn’t have gotten knocked up by some asshole because I would have been with you.”
His lips quirked at that. “Because you would have wanted to be with me? Come on, Wren, don’t tease me.”
But she shrugged. “I don’t know, maybe.”
His smile dropped off as he held her gaze. “Everything happens for a reason.”
“It does.”
“And we’re here, in this moment, for a reason. For him,” he said, taking her belly in his hands, running his thumb along her belly button. “So yeah, maybe we didn’t get to do this earlier, but we have forever now, and I like that a lot better.”
Her breath caught as she held his gaze. “So you still want forever?”
He nodded. “With my whole soul.”
Breathless, she leaned her nose into his, but before she could say anything, his lips were on hers in a heated, tantalizing way. Her fingers tangled in his hair, and his mouth moved with hers. His body pressed against her side, and shit, she could feel every inch of him as his leg hooked over hers. Her hands fell to his shoulders for a better grip as his hands held her tightly in place. He was so strong, so fucking sexy, and when his tongue swept into her mouth, she swore she came right then. Arching against his leg, she gasped into his mouth, and she could feel his body vibrating against hers.
Was this about to happen?
Holy shit.
Pulling away, he closed his eyes, his nose pressing into hers as she gasped for breath. She held on to his shoulders, her body shaking with want. “I can’t handle you,” he muttered, trailing kisses down her jaw. “I can’t.”
Speechless for a moment, she nodded. “I get that you want to wait, and yeah, cool, but those kisses are going to be the death of me.”
His lips broke into a grin against hers. “You’re already the death of me, Wren. Completely, and it’s killing me. Honestly.”
Her lips parted as she held his gaze. “I’m basically Little Caesars. Hot and ready, big boy. Take me.”
His eyes lit up, and then he was laughing, hard. Soon, she couldn’t hold it in, she was laughing too. Falling off her, he cuddled her into him, and he was thick and hard against her, taking her breath entirely. Placing a kiss to her shoulder and then her neck, he inhaled deeply as his nose tucked against her ear. “Well, Caesars, I pride myself on my restraint.”
She laughed out loud. “I’m mean, you could basically pass as a priest at this point.”
He chuckled against her neck before placing a kiss against it softly, his hand sprawling over her belly. “Well, just so you know, I want you. Badly.”
Her eyes fell shut as she leaned into him, her hand coming over his. Turning her head, she took his mouth with hers in a hot embrace that made her insides tremble. As their tongues played, her heart was pounding in her chest. She knew she shouldn’t, but she found herself guiding his hand down her belly to where she wanted him most. When his hand covered her right where she was throbbing, he hissed out a breath against her lips. “Wren.”
Just her name. A simple word, but she swore it shattered her. “Jensen,” she whispered, her lips moving with his. “I’m right here.”
Moving his nose along hers, he found her lips with his once more before his hand slowly slid her panties to the side, taking her whole pussy in his hands. She arched into him, her center throbbing as her body shook under his touch. When his finger ran up her swollen lips, she cried out against his mouth before she held her breath, unable to handle his touch. When his tongue entered her mouth, his finger entered her too, just one, slowly finding her bundle of nerves. She squeezed her eyes shut, unsure what was happening. Never in her life had she been that wet, had she wanted someone as much as she wanted him. She gasped against his mouth, and he moved only a little bit before she shattered against his hand.
Pathetically.
Crying out, she squeezed his wrist as her orgasm took over her whole being, her body clenching as he continued to kiss her. Pulling away so she could breathe, she sucked in a deep breath as she slowly shook her head, fully shocked at herself for coming apart so quickly. She had been waiting months for him to touch her, and she couldn’t even handle it.
And she wanted to have full-on sex with this sexy guy?
God help her.
“Well,” she muttered as his teeth raked over her jaw. “Pretty sure you got the fastest time for making a girl come.”
His lips quirked before he kissed the side of her mouth. “And you got the fastest time for a guy,” he answered back before kissing her again and getting out of the bed. Her brows rose as she sat up on her elbows, watching as he went to the bathroom.
“Really?”
He laughed as he shimmied out of his boxers. The moon kissed his sweet ass, his huge cock only a silhouette as he washed his hands. “Really.”
She laughed. “You know that’s pathetic.”
He nodded. “I’ve dreamed about touching you like that for years. And yeah, it was better than I thought.” Her face flushed as he pulled up another pair of boxers before coming back to the bed, crawling in, and cuddling up beside her. “I think the last time I came in my boxers, I was seventeen.”
“I’ve never done that.”
“Good to know.”
She met his gaze with a grin as she shook her head. “I’m disappointed in us. I wanted hot, crazy, sexy times.”
He shrugged. “Instead you got us coming for each other like teenagers.”
When he met her look with a grin, she smiled back. “Yeah. Might be better, though. The anticipation.”
“Agreed. I think it’s a good addition to our little story.”
Leaning into him, she kissed his jaw. “It is.”
As he wrapped his arm around her neck the way she truly loved, his lips pressing into hers, she realized their story was a story she didn’t want to end.
And she thought, maybe, just maybe, she could get a happily ever after.