Present
Bright sunlight filters in through the plantation blinds, rousing me from my peaceful sleep. Rolling over, I find the star of my sweet dreams lying on his stomach, hugging his pillow, three days’ worth of stubble covering his jaw as he snores lightly.
I smile to myself, slipping from the bed and reaching for one of his shirts.
Floating on a cloud of pure bliss, I make my way to the kitchen and start a pot of coffee then call my mother to speak to Caroline.
“Hey, sweet girl. How was your weekend?”
“Hi, Mom, it was great! We went to the movies and Nana took me to the bookstore.”
The excitement in her voice is contagious. “Wow, that all sounds wonderful. I wanted to let you know that I’ll be staying a little longer than I planned.”
“I know. Nana told me. That’s okay, Mama.”
“I miss you so much, sweet girl.”
“I miss you too, Mama.”
We spend the next ten minutes chatting about her weekend and what activities she has going on for school this week before she lets me go. I don’t want to hang up. It’s only been a couple of days and I miss her like crazy. I’ll be a mess by the end of the week.
When I hang up, I turn around to find Linc standing in the doorway of the kitchen wearing nothing but his boxer briefs. He walks toward me, scratching his chest, his bedhead making him look incredibly sexy.
“Morning, baby,” he greets in his sleepy voice, taking me in his arms.
“Morning.” I smile, melting into him.
After a long hug, he drops another kiss to my head before picking up one of the mugs sitting in front of the coffee maker. Then he pours himself a steaming cup. “How’s Caroline?” he asks quietly, his voice still thick with sleep.
“She’s good.”
He takes a drink from his cup before setting it down and rounding the counter. He wraps one arm around my waist, pulling me close. My hands rest on his chest, warmth invading my entire body. “You okay?” he asks, concerned.
“Yeah, I just miss her, that’s all. I’ve never been away from her this long.”
Tucking a strand of hair behind my ear, he kisses my forehead. “I know it’s hard for you but you need this time for yourself. We need this time. For us.”
“I know. I just feel so selfish taking it.”
“Don’t. You’re an amazing mother. You’ve dedicated your life to her. There’s no reason to feel selfish about this.”
“You’re right. I shouldn’t. I’ll try not to dwell on it too much.”
“How about I keep your mind and body so occupied you don’t even have time to think?”
“That sounds lovely.”
His hand drifts down to my backside and he groans when he finds me bare underneath. “Jesus, woman. You tryin’ to kill me this morning?”
“Maybe.” I laugh and he captures it with his mouth. After a long, sensual kiss, his eyes find mine once more. “So when can we get married?”
“I don’t remember saying yes,” I tease.
His lips are still feathering mine. He tilts his head from one side to the other, dropping tender kisses to my lips, his hand still gently kneading my heated flesh.
“Hmm…you are a good kisser,” I tell him and he plunges his tongue deep into my mouth.
He walks me backward until I bump into the table where he lifts me to sit. Nudging my legs apart, he takes up residence between them, never once breaking our kiss. I wrap myself around him, clinging to him as he devours me. “When we get home next week?”
“Huh?” I ask, confused by his words.
“We’ll get married when we get back home.”
“You haven’t even given me a ring yet.”
His lips morph into a mischievous smile. “I thought you’d never ask.”
Lifting his hand between us, he wiggles his pinky at me before slipping the small vintage ring off and reaching for my hand. I gasp, wondering how I didn’t notice it there before. It’s perfect and looks oddly familiar.
“This was Mama’s ring.”
Tears sting my eyes. “Linc.”
“Dad took her to the top of the water tower in town, where he spray-painted her name and got down on one knee. I thought about doing something romantic like that but I couldn’t come up with anything that I thought would impress you so here I am, a man standing in front of a woman”—he slips the ring on my finger then looks deep into my eyes—“asking her to marry him.”
My heart flip-flops in my chest as my eyes fill with tears. “Yes! Of course I’ll marry you.”
“I knew this would seal the deal,” he says, sliding it onto my trembling finger.
His hands frame my face before his lips brush mine. “God, I can’t believe we’re finally starting our life together. I wanna marry you before I go on tour.”
“Linc, we have plenty of time. I think we should wait.”
Pulling back, he tilts his head. “Haven’t we waited long enough?”
“Yes, but I want to make sure Caroline is okay with this. We need to give her time to adjust.”
“Babe, I’ll be on the road for months at a time. I don’t wanna wait. I’m tired of waiting. I’m ready to build our life together. I wanna make you my wife.” His hand drifts to my belly. “And if you’re not pregnant already, I want you carrying my child as soon as possible.”
“What makes you think I would be pregnant already?”
“Because we haven’t been using protection and you haven’t mentioned birth control.”
“I have an IUD. I had it put in a couple years back to make sure Dean and I wouldn’t have any more children, and I could never remember to take my pill.”
His brows furrow. “Do you want more?”
I smile. “Of course. I would love nothing more than to be the mother of your child.”
“Children, babe. I want more than one.”
“Wait…how many are we talking about here?”
“At least two more.”
“Two huh?”
“Yes, a boy…so he can carry on the Matthews’ legacy.” He dips his head, bringing his lips to rest upon mine. “And a little girl who looks just like you.”
My heart swells, bursting at the seams with so much love and adoration. “I want that, too.”
His arms wrap tighter around me, holding me close. “I can’t believe you’ll be gone for six months.”
“I’m gonna fly home every chance I get and you’ll come out to see me. Then, after this tour, I’m done.”
“Linc, you can’t quit.”
“Not quit, but do things my way. I think I’ve earned that. I don’t want to be away from you, Caroline, or our babies when they come along. If I weren’t tied to this damn contract I would tell them to shove it up their ass, but I’m a man of my word and I have to see this through. This is the last bend in the road for us though. Then it’s all downhill from there.”
“Sounds like you have it all planned out.”
Linc’s face turns serious when he brings my left hand to cover his heart. I can feel the thundering heat beneath my palm, so strong and steady. “You are the most certain thing I’ve ever known.”
“I’m just as ready as you are to begin the next chapter of my life, of our life together, but I have to consider Caroline here, too.”
“So if we talk to her and she’s okay with it, can we get married next week?”
“Next week? Like elope?”
“Not necessarily, but I’m open to that if you want to skip the formalities. I was thinkin’ something quiet, simple. Just us, our family, Rach and Will, maybe even Kacey.”
My heart flutters in my chest. “You’ve given this some thought.”
He shrugs, a shy grin tugging the corner of his mouth. “A little.”
The question isn’t whether or not I will marry him but when. We have two months together before he goes back on the road. This is not how I wanted to do it. I thought we would have more time, but nothing about us has ever been easy, except well, loving him.
Loving him is the easiest thing I’ve ever done.
It’s as simple as breathing.
“Give me a month. That will give Caroline time to get used to the idea and time for me to plan.”
His smile is brilliant, brighter than I’ve ever seen. “You know what this means, don’t you?”
“I’m going to be Mrs. Lincoln Cole Matthews?”
“Damn, that sounds good coming out of your sweet mouth,” he says, kissing my lips. “But I was thinkin’ more along the lines of our honeymoon. Someplace warm, with white sandy beaches and lots of privacy.”
I smile against his mouth, draping my arms around his shoulders and pulling him in closer. “Sounds like heaven to me.”