I turned around and just glared at her. “Really, Tori? What part of fuck off don’t you get?”
She threw her head back and laughed. “You really mean to tell me that you two…” She looked us both up and down. “Are happy being married? Just being with one girl all the time? Somehow, I don’t see it.”
“Well, look harder. Honestly, Victoria, begging doesn’t become anyone, not even a dog,” I said.
Victoria’s smile faded, and she tilted her head as she gave me a go-to-hell look. “You weren’t that great in bed anyway. Neither of you were.” She turned and walked away.
I shook my head as I turned back to Gunner.
He was watching her walk away. “Fuck.”
“What? I think she might leave us alone now,” I said.
Gunner shook his head and turned to me. “Yeah…but I wanted to know which one of us was better.”
My mouth dropped, and I just stared at him. “What?”
“You or me. Which one of us was better? I mean, I’m sure she would say I was.”
What a bastard! “Dude, please. I think you’ve got that backward. I’m pretty fucking sure she would say I was better…way better.”
Gunner just smiled. “Okay, I’ll let you have it.”
“Oh no! There’s no letting me have it, you bastard. We both know I’m way more experienced, and—”
“More experienced in what?” Heather asked as she walked up from behind Gunner.
“Um…” I looked at Gunner for help.
“Uh…” Gunner said as his head snapped over toward Ellie.
Ellie came up to Gunner and let out a sigh. “I’m exhausted. Can we go pick up Alex and head home?”
When Gunner glanced back over at me, I could see his body relax instantly.
“Sweetheart, I’m taking you to The Driskill for the evening. Your mom is going to watch Alex for us.”
Ellie’s face lit up as she jumped up and down. “Oh god, Gunner! I love you so much!” She slammed into his body and kissed him.
As he pulled back, he pushed a piece of her hair behind her ear.
I had to laugh because he did that all the damn time.
When I looked over at Heather, she was watching the whole thing with a smile on her face.
I walked up to her and whispered in her ear, “Baby, I made reservations at Hotel Ella for the night.”
She smiled and pulled me off to the side. “I love you more than anything, but I’m not feeling very well. Can we just go home?”
My heart started beating faster. “What’s wrong, princess? Do I need to call the doctor?”
She let out a small laugh. “No. I just want to be in my own bed. Is that okay? I mean, I love you so much for doing that. I just really want to go home.”
I smiled as I pulled her to me. I leaned over to give her belly a kiss. “Whatever makes you happy…makes me happy.”
We went back to Amanda’s room and said good-bye to everyone before we walked out with Jeff and Ari.
I helped Heather into the truck and then ran around and jumped in. By the time we got out of Austin, my princess was sleeping peacefully. When I looked over at her hands resting on her stomach, I felt tears building in my eyes.
In a little less than four months, we would be parents to two babies.
Holy hell. I sure hope I don’t drop one!
Chapter Forty-Eight
I sat on the porch, drinking my ice water. I swear if it gets any hotter, I’m going to melt. This has to be the hottest July ever in Texas.
Amanda and Brad had left a few hours ago with Maegan. She was already two months old. Josh had made a crib for her It was breathtaking, and I was so proud of him.
I had laughed at him though when he was holding Maegan.
Josh had kept asking Brad, “Have you ever almost dropped her?”
Shaking his head, Brad had just laughed each time.
Why is he so afraid of dropping one of the babies?
I watched as he came running up the street from his evening run.
Oh. My. God. He looks sexy as hell, dripping in sweat, with his white T-shirt plastered to his body. Oh Lord…I want him so badly. Too bad I can hardly move.
That was when I saw Mindy walking up to her little fence, waving for Josh to stop.
Bitch! I just want to slap the hell out of her for her stupid excuses to get him to talk to her all the time.
I watched as he ran his hand through his hair while he laughed at something she’d said. When she motioned for him to follow her into the house, I instantly sat up.
“You make one move to go inside that house, and you will regret it!”
I looked around when I realized I had just said that out loud.
Then, he started to walk up to her front porch.
What in the hell is he doing?
Just then, one of the babies kicked me so hard that I had to suck in a breath of air.
“Oh, not now, sweet babies. Mommy has to watch your stupid-ass Daddy flirt with the pretty skinny neighbor.”
I watched as he lifted up a huge plant and moved it from her front porch down to her walkway. Mindy placed her hand on Josh’s arm and laughed as she said something to him. Josh shook his head and waved good-bye as he turned and started to head over to our house. I stood up and put my hands on my hips.
Mindy kept her eyes on Josh as he walked away. She finally looked up and saw me standing there, and she smiled and waved. I really wanted to give her the finger, but I picked up my hand and forced myself to wave and smile back.
Then, she called out, “Thanks again, Josh! Next time, stay for some tea!”
Oh no, she didn’t. She. Did. Not. That twatface bitch of a whore! It doesn’t take a gynecologist to pick out a cun—
“Hey, babe! You look pissed. Is everything okay?”
I just looked at him. “You enjoy your run?”
He smiled up at me and nodded. “Yeah, but it’s hot as hell. I should have taken Mindy up on that tea.”
“Uh-huh. Well, it’s not too late.” I turned and walked into the house, slamming the door behind me. Prick. I stomped into the kitchen, opened up the refrigerator, and pulled out a beer. I was just about to open it when I realized what in the hell I was doing. Oh god. I need these babies out. I can’t make it another month. I’m going to explode. I looked over at the watermelon and smiled. I started to take out a knife as Josh came into the kitchen.
“What in the hell is wrong with you?”
I turned around and looked at him. “Me? What’s wrong with me? Oh hell, Josh, I don’t know. I’m tired, I’m hot, I’m being beaten to death from the inside out by two very strong babies, you’re flirting with the cute skinny neighbor almost every night after your run, we haven’t had sex in almost a week, and even if we did, you’d probably be wishing it was with someone who didn’t have a huge stomach in the way, and…and…I just want some damn watermelon and a fucking beer!”
Josh was just looking down at the knife in my hand. I had pointed it at him as I shouted. When my hands started to shake, I dropped the knife. Josh reached down and picked it up. He walked over to the sink and cleaned it off before he started to cut up the watermelon. I just stood there and watched him as he cut up the whole watermelon, put it in a giant bowl, and then cleaned up the mess. He turned around and set the bowl in front of me before dropping the knife in the sink.
He looked at me and let out a long breath. “I don’t know what to tell you about the beer, Heather. As far as sex, I happen to love making love to you while feeling our children moving in your stomach. It’s probably one of the most amazing things ever. I’m sorry I’ve been working late every night, but I wanted to finish up your surprise. While you were visiting with Amanda, Brad helped me with it. I didn’t realize it was causing you to think that I didn’t want to be with you.”
When he ran his hands through his hair, all I wanted to do was walk up and kiss him. Oh god…what’s wrong with me? Why am I being such a bitch?
“I’m going to go take a shower and go to bed. I’m tired.” He turned and headed out of the kitchen.
I just stood there and watched him walk away. I closed my eyes and felt tears building. I wasn’t even sure how long I stood there.
Shit! I hate being so moody and then taking it out on him. I looked down at the watermelon, picked up the bowl, and put it in the refrigerator. I started to make my way to the babies’ room. I opened the door, and as I looked in, my heart dropped to my stomach. I put my hand up to my mouth and instantly started crying. The cribs.
Two almost identical wood cribs were sitting in the room. They were breathtaking. Josh had used tree posts for the four corners and wood slates for the rails. The front right posts had a branch that extended up and over the crib. Josh had made six wooden stars that were hanging from the branch. One crib had six blue stars, and the other crib had six pink stars.
I walked in and ran my hand along the beautiful smooth wood. They were amazing, nothing like I could have imagined they would be. I’d never seen anything like them before in my life. I smiled, knowing that he had designed and made these cribs by hand just for our little buggers.
Oh my god. I was such a bitch to him, and he had been working so hard all week to finish these. He didn’t even get to see my face when I saw them. I started to cry harder.
When I felt his arms wrap around my body, I instantly relaxed.
“Breathe, princess,” he whispered in my ear.
I turned around and fell into his arms. “I’m so sorry! Oh, Josh. I’m so sorry. I love them. They’re so beautiful!”
He held me tightly as he laughed. “I’m glad you love them. Dad helped me build them. He’s been in town this week, helping me finish them up.”
I pulled back and looked at him. “What? Your dad was in town this week? Why didn’t he stop by?”
Josh smiled as he wiped the tears from my cheeks. “Dad cut the trees down for me. They all came from my parents’ property. He helped me strip and stain them, and we worked on putting them together. He also brought them to the house earlier this week. I had them in the garage, and for the last two days, I was just praying you didn’t have a reason to go out there.”
I reached up and kissed him as I let a moan escape my mouth. I slowly pulled away from his lips, leaving only enough space just so I could talk. “Josh…I want you so much.”
He grabbed me by the back of the neck and pulled me to him. He kissed me with so much passion that I thought I would explode.
“I’m going to make love to you princess.” As he led me upstairs, my heart was pounding. Every time with him was like the first time. He always made me feel so special.
As he slowly undressed me, he knelt down and started talking to the babies. They began going crazy, moving all around, and we both laughed.
“Alright, y’all. I’m going to make love to your mommy, so settle down now.” Josh stood back up. “Lie down sideways on the bed, Heather.”
Good Lord. Something in his voice just sent me over the top. I wanted to come so badly that I could hardly stand it. I slowly made my way onto the bed, lying down sideways, while he got behind me. The moment he lifted my leg and started to touch me, I knew it wouldn’t be long.