Total pages in book: 102
Estimated words: 95393 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 477(@200wpm)___ 382(@250wpm)___ 318(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 95393 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 477(@200wpm)___ 382(@250wpm)___ 318(@300wpm)
“Can you, like, shut up?” I tell Dylan, who pretends to zip his mouth. “This house has four bedrooms. One of them is your office.”
“Okay?”
“Baby, where are our kids going to go?” I ask. She steps back, and even Dylan hears the gasp out of her mouth because he mimics it.
“Our kids?”
“Well, yeah.” I look at her. “I mean, not now, but like when we have them.”
“Imagine she is pregnant right now and you just said that,” Dylan pushes. “How is she going to feel?”
“She’s not pregnant now,” I tell him, then look over at Koda. “Are you pregnant?”
“Are you insane?” she shrieks in a whisper so as not to wake the girls.
“Yes,” Dylan answers right away, “he is.”
“I’m not pregnant.”
“Yet,” Dylan adds, and I smirk.
“Exactly,” I agree, “and when we have our babies, where are they going to go?”
“You want me to have your babies?” she whispers, pointing at herself.
“Well, our babies,” I correct. “I want you to have our babies.”
“I bet the first one is a boy,” Dylan says and even Koda smiles.
“How many babies do you want?”
“Whatever you do, don’t fucking say eight,” Dylan advises. “Cooper is going to be bald soon with all the kids he has.”
“I don’t want eight kids.” She shakes her head.
“We already have two.”
“You want to have six more?” She gawks at me.
“No, I’m good with two more, maybe three, if it’s two boys and try for a girl and vice versa.”
“That’s how it starts, Koda,” Dylan chimes in. “Don’t fall for that. Erika started with Cooper’s two girls, and now she has a minibus full.”
“Would you shut up?” I tell Dylan.
“Hey, I’m talking to my sister-in-law,” Dylan quips.
“Sister-in-law?” Koda questions, looking at the phone and then to me.
“Well, after you get married,” Dylan says, “but it’s close enough. He’s living with you, mooching off your food. Does he even get groceries?”
“Goodbye,” I say and hang up while he’s laughing.
“We should talk.” I look at her as her face fills with a panicked look.
“I would say,” she agrees, while I walk to her and put my hands on her hips.
“Do you want to have dinner at my house tomorrow?” I smirk, and she pushes me away.
“No.” She turns to walk away from me, but I grab the loop in her jeans, pulling her back to me.
“My brother is right.” I wrap my arms around her waist.
“About what?”
“Me staying here and not paying.” My hand is flat on her stomach. “First thing I need to do is get the girls to decorate their rooms.” She doesn’t say anything. “Then slowly we start leaving things there until it’s all there.”
“B-but,” she stammers.
“You go in tomorrow, and we’ll get rid of anything you don’t like,” I tell her. “Couch, bed, fridge, don’t give a fuck. You don’t like it, it’s out.”
“That’s crazy. I’ve been to your house before.” She turns in my arms. “It’s perfect. A little bachelor but—”
“You come in and make it a home,” I say. “It’ll be our home.”
“With our kids, apparently,” she jokes.
“With our kids,” I agree. “Also, you should know that after that phone call, my family will be coming down.”
“What?”
“It’s their way of getting to know you and the girls. Making sure we know if we need them, they are there.”
“I’ve been around your family before.” She chuckles. “I just haven’t done it as, you know.”
“The girl I love.” The minute I say that, she almost stomps her foot.
“Dammit, can you let me say it once?”
“No.” I bend to kiss her lips. “I think we do a sleepover at my house this weekend.”
“Okay.” Her voice is soft as I start to walk her over to the couch, my mouth attacking her. “Have to make a list”—she fumbles with my shirt to get it off me—“of the places we have to do it in your hou—”
“Our house,” I cut her off, “it’s going to be our house. And I can tell you right now, there isn’t a surface in there that won’t be used.” I fall on the couch. “Also, I already have my list.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
dakota
The doorbell rings, and the girls spring out of their seats on the couch to run to the door. “Don’t open that door,” I tell them when they disappear into the hallway. I nervously look over at the clock and see they’re early.
“Oh my God,” I mumble. “Don’t freak out.” I take deep breaths as I walk toward the front door. Every single step feels like there is concrete in my shoes.
“It’s Justin,” Rain announces, “and Caroline.”
My heart speeds up when I hear this. “Christopher,” I hiss up the stairs, waiting for him to stick his head out of my bedroom, but he doesn’t and the front door is opened.
“Hey,” Justin says, stepping into the house and squatting down in front of the girls to give them hugs.