Total pages in book: 90
Estimated words: 87005 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 435(@200wpm)___ 348(@250wpm)___ 290(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 87005 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 435(@200wpm)___ 348(@250wpm)___ 290(@300wpm)
I smile.
For the first time since reading that damn letter, the same one that’s shoved in my back pocket, I smile. These are my people, and tonight, spending time with them is exactly what I need.
Stepping into the room, I see that the gang’s all here. Roman is sitting in the recliner with Emerson on his lap. Forrest and Lachlan are on the couch, and Maddox is in the other recliner. Monroe is sitting on the love seat and laughing at who knows what with this crowd. It’s always a good time when we get together.
“What did I miss?” I ask, stopping next to the love seat.
Monroe wipes at her eyes. “Nothing, really, but these two”—she points to Forrest and Lachlan—“made the mistake of looking up a labor and delivery video.”
“Don’t do it, man.” Lachlan shudders. “You’ll never see pussy the same way again.”
“La-la-la-la,” Forrest says, placing his hands over his ears. “I’m not talking about this shit. She’s my sister,” he grumbles.
“And she’s my wife, and trust me, the pu—” Rome starts, but Emerson manages to slap her hand over his mouth before he can finish what we all know he was going to say.
I laugh, because how can you not? That shit’s funny. Forrest is Emerson’s big brother, but with the age difference of ten years between them, he helped raise her, and well, he did more for her than their deadbeat parents ever did. So, in a way, he’s her father figure. I don’t have kids, but yeah, if I had a daughter—hell, if I had a sister—I’m certain I’d feel the same way as Forrest does right now.
It’s still funny as hell.
Monroe taps the cushion next to her on the love seat, and I plop down next to her. “What got this started?” I ask her.
“So, Maddox asked Rome if he was nervous about the delivery. Then I spoke up and said that Emerson would be doing all the work. One thing led to another, and they ended up on their phones, and it all went downhill from there.” She wipes another tear caused by her laughter from her cheek.
“Well?” I look over at Rome. “Are you nervous?”
“Yes.” He nods, his face sober. “It’s going to be hell on my wife, but I’ll be there every step of the way, for every single one.”
Emerson’s eyes widen in surprise as she turns to look at him over her shoulder. “How many?”
Roman presses his lips to her nose. “At least two, but I’m down for a houseful. We can add on if we have to. Or, we can just do lots of practicing until we decide.” He winks at her and her cheeks turn pink.
“Let’s get this one here and see how we do as parents, and then we can talk,” Emerson replies.
“You’re going to be great. Both of you,” Monroe tells them.
“What she said.” I point at Monroe. “And you have a room full of babysitters.” I wave my hand around the room.
“You going to do diapers?” Monroe asks me.
“Sure.” I shrug. “We all have to shit.”
She cracks up at my reply, making her big blue eyes sparkle. Monroe is a knockout. She’s fucking gorgeous with those electric-blue eyes and all that dark curly hair. It’s long and thick, hanging down her back. It’s the kind of hair a man can’t help but think about wrapping around his fist. That includes me. I’ve thought about it—more times than I care to admit.
Monroe is a flirt, and she lays it on thick with the guys and me. Well, that’s not true. She never flirted much with Roman, if at all. It makes more sense now that the truth about Roman and Emerson is out. She wasn’t going to flirt with her best friend’s man, and yeah, he’s always been hers. It just took them a while to get there.
None of us has ever made a move on Monroe. Lachlan, Maddox, and me. We flirt back relentlessly. Forrest doesn’t, but he’s more of a brother to her. Monroe has just always been around. She was always with Emerson, who was always with Forrest. I’ve watched both of them grow into the women they are today.
Monroe leans her shoulder into mine as she laughs, and her warm vanilla scent invades my space. She’s gorgeous and smells good enough to eat. This one, she’s dangerous.
“I finally heard from the realtor on that plot of land on the edge of town,” Maddox speaks up.
“And?” Roman asks.
Maddox whistles and shakes his head. “It’s pricey. The land and the cost of a new facility would strap each of us financially.”
My gut twists. We’ve all wanted this for so long. “What about other locations? Buildings that we can renovate to suit our needs?” I ask.
“No luck.” Lachlan shakes his head. “We all agreed that we want to stay in Ashby, and there just isn’t anything on the market that’s better or bigger than our current space.”