“I love you, darlin’,” he whispered as he crawled over me and lowered his body against mine.
“I love you,” I said breathlessly.
“I want more kids, Amber.” He hovered above me, staring down at me. His words shocked me. We had once talked about filling our home full of the laughter of kids and used to tease Olivia that she would have ten brothers and sisters, but that was the extent of the conversation.
“You do?” I asked.
“Yeah,” he replied. “I know our time is limited, and I know at times we feel like we’re going crazy with the hectic days and nights. But every time I look at Rory and Rogan, I just get this overwhelming need to have more. I want a little girl with your eyes and your smile. I want Olivia to have the experience of having both brothers and sisters.”
“You do know we don’t have a say-so in the sex of the child?” I asked as he continued to watch me. “I mean, we could have another boy.”
“I know, but then we’ll just have to keep trying.” He wiggled against me, and I parted my legs.
“Is that so?” I said before I bit down on my lip.
He began rotating his hips, pressing his hardness against me. “That’s so.”
I was just about to keep teasing him when he lifted his hips and thrust forward. My back arched, and I closed my eyes tightly.
“I’m ready, baby,” he whispered against my throat, his voice strained and husky. “And I think tonight we should get a good start on that baby-making goal.”
I was too far gone to protest, not that I would have, even if I’d had a clear mind. The idea of carrying another one of Ryan’s children made the love I had for him grow even stronger. I hadn’t thought that was possible.
***
Jackson
“Woman, you are asking for it.” I swear, to this day Bailey still tested me at every turn.
“Just move, you stubborn ass. I said I got it,” she argued, and I wanted nothing more than to bend her over my knee and swat that plump ass of hers. Just the idea was making me hard.
“Yeah, I know you said you got it. That doesn’t make it any better.” I grabbed the hammer from her hand and held it high above her head. She glared at me, and fucking hell if it didn’t have the opposite effect she was hoping for.
I took a step closer and grinned when she took in a deep breath. I knew she was feeling it too.
“You may want to prove me wrong. I also know you feel the need to be independent, which is fine, sweetheart. But over my dead body am I gonna stand back while my very pregnant wife attempts to climb up on a chair to hang a damn picture on the wall.”
My determined, hardheaded wife placed her hands on her hips, and her nostrils flared with irritation. “You, Jackson Sawyer, are a stubborn fool. I’m only pregnant, you ass, and in no way does that mean I can’t fend for myself.”
I tried not to laugh, because that would only make matters worse. And let’s not forget the last time I pissed her off. Hell, sleeping on the couch sucks when you have a sexy woman sleeping in the next room. That was the longest three days of my life.
“Baby, I am not saying you can’t do it,” I assured her in my best forgive-me voice. “I just don’t want to see you slip, sweetheart. The safety of you, and our son, means more to me than some picture on the wall.”
The hardness in her eyes softened. I, of course, took things one step further and placed my hand over her protruding belly. She was just over seven months pregnant with our second child, and seeing her carrying my child always gave me this sense of domineering possession. She belonged to me, and every man in town knew that.
The front door opened, and the giggles of Isabella, our three-and-a-half-year-old, filled the house. My ma followed close behind, wearing a smile that only her grandkids seemed to bring out. She truly loved every moment she had with each of them.
“Hey, baby girl, did you have a good day with Granny?” I bent down to wrap my arms around my blonde-haired beauty. She looked just like her momma.
“We made cupcakes,” Bella announced proudly as she held up a small container. The cupcakes had tipped sideways, leaving icing smeared along the side.
Being a father had really changed something in me. Yes, I was still a knucklehead, and I still had wild, random sex with my gorgeous-as-sin wife whenever the mood struck. We still got caught getting busy around the ranch, or, hell, even in our own backyard, but that was unavoidable. I mean, come on, who wouldn’t act like a horny teenager when they had a good-looking woman at their side? Bailey was my happiness, and I wasn’t about to let anything or anyone change that.
No, what had changed was I now understood that need to protect. I had watched Ryan struggle with it for years when it came to Olivia and wondered why the hell he felt the need to smother his daughter, keeping her from going out and enjoying her teenage years. But now that I had a daughter of my own, I understood it. The thought of someone hurting my family ignited a rage inside that scared me. Hell, thinking about Bella being old enough to date made me want to tuck her away in a safe, secluded spot and stand guard at the fucking door. No little punk boy was getting anywhere near my sweet angel.