“Yes.”
“Forever.”
“Yes.”
“Say it, Zoe,” I snarled.
She sighed and cupped my cheeks, leaning back to stare into my eyes. “I’m yours forever, Landon.”
Satisfied, I kissed her deeply, wishing I had the time to fuck her before my appointment. I needed to leave so I had a chance to talk down my erection.
“I’ve got to go, baby,” I grumbled. “When I get back, we’ll head home and order dinner. Then I’ll have you for dessert.”
Zoe shook her head as she hopped off my lap. “We have dinner with your parents tonight.”
Fuck. I’d forgotten about that. I considered cancelling, impatient to have a talk with Zoe and get answers about her mood that morning. But, that would only further piss off my mom and facing her wrath tonight was already a frightening thought.
“Right,” I grumped. With another lingering kiss, I left her in a daze. I retrieved my cell and keys, then headed out. But before I reached the door, Zoe called my name. I halted and did an about face.
“Why did Weston joke about your—um”—her cheeks turned adorably pink—“virginity growing back?”
I laughed but to my surprise, I also felt my face heat. Shit, I was totally blushing. “He was referring to my dry spell,” I admitted. “It had been a long time since I was with anyone, hell since I’d even gone out on a date, before you.”
Zoe’s face was maddeningly blank, leaving me with no clue what she thought about this information. “How long?”
I cleared my throat and shifted my weight from one foot to another, thinking. Honestly, I hadn’t been keeping track so I had to think about my last date and do the math. Twenty-nine years old and she was the first woman I’d been with in... “Three years? I think?”
“Okay,” she answered simply, her face still void. Then I saw it. One corner of her mouth ghosted up and a smug satisfaction blazed in her eyes.
Chuckling, I shook my head and resumed exiting.
As expected, my mother lectured me for a good ten minutes about sneaking off and leaving her out of her only son’s wedding. But, not before she lavished all kinds of love on my wife. She got hugs and kisses, while I got a hug and a smack upside my head. Quite a feat for my mom since she was barely five foot one. My sisters and I got our height from my dad.
My other sister, Amelia, was home on break from college and she and Stephanie both watched as I got my ass handed to me. Their amusement was duly noted and would be retaliated against. I didn’t care how old you are, you never stopped being a big brother.
It came as no surprise that Zoe fit right in with my family. They adored her and it became clear that they would help to fill a little of the hole in her heart from missing her own family.
As much as I loved my parents and sisters, I was counting down the minutes until I could take my wife home. At last, it came time and we said our rounds of goodbye before taking off.
The car ride was comfortably silent, and I laced my fingers with Zoe’s before resting our joined hands on my thigh. Once I pulled into the driveway and had turned off the car, I got out and went around to open her door.
“Your family is awesome, Landon,” she announced as we entered the house.
She was walking ahead of me and I stretched my arm to take hold of her hand, keeping her from going any further. We were in the living room, so I led her to a comfy recliner and sat, then yanked so she tumbled into my lap.
“They are, but this family”—I put my hand on her stomach—“you, me, and our children. Nothing can compare.”
Zoe’s whole countenance softened and she put her arms around me, hugging tight. I returned the embrace, but then guided her to sit back a little so I could see her face.
“This morning, after Spencer left, something was on your mind. I want to know what.”
Her eyes darted away and she started to fidget, chewing on her bottom lip, cuing me in to her nerves. I sighed and pulled it from between her teeth. “Talk to me, baby.”
“Why do you want to stay married to me?” she blurted out.
My eyebrows shot to my hairline. “Are you serious?”
She nodded, watching me uncertainly. “You tell me I’m yours and you’re keeping me. And, you’ve done your best to freaking knock me up. But...you’ve never told me why?” Her eyes weren’t shuttered and I could clearly see her insecurity.
It suddenly hit me like ton of bricks. Well, fuck. How could I have over looked it?
“Because I love you, baby.”
Chapter 11
Zoe
“I love you,” I whispered against Landon’s chest. It felt so good to say the words, knowing he felt the same way. Not a single morning had passed all week without me blurting them out shortly after waking up. I think there was a small part of me that felt guilty because Landon was the first to say it, and I might have been overdoing it to make it up to him. But he didn’t seem to mind since every time I said those three little words, he lit up like a kid at Christmas. And this morning, I was hoping to have the perfect present for him.