He smiled. "You do."
"And I have a house."
"That's right." He cleared his throat. "I want babies."
"That sounds nice," she whispered.
He leaned in closer. "It sounds better than nice. It sounds like heaven." Teague cupped her head in his hands and traced her mouth with his thumb. "Marry me, Sabrina."
A heartbeat passed.
"Okay." A simple answer, but it was all he needed. With a groan, Teague pulled her in and kissed her with all the passion and want and need inside him. Everything faded away, everything except this woman in his arms. He tasted the salt of her tears and wiped them away while raining kisses all over her face.
He only stopped when someone tugged on his leg.
"Why are you kissing my mommy?" Harry asked with a frown.
"It's what you do when you love someone," Teague said with a grin.
Harry blinked a few times and then made a face. "That's gross."
"You can kiss me, Tigger!" Morgan shouted, eliciting a round of laughter from his family.
"There'll be time for that," he said, slipping Sabrina's hand into his. "Lots of time."
Teague Simon was finally ready to claim the life he'd always been looking for. And for the first time in his adult life, he was content to stay in one place. To love one woman and her kids. He was looking forward to making some of his own babies-of having a family of his own. And as he held the three of them close the rest of that afternoon, he knew that he was finally home.
And damn, if that wasn't the best feeling ever.
Epilogue
Late November, Lake Muskoka
The snow came early to the north, bringing with it one major storm that dumped nearly a foot of the white stuff in the region. Schools and roads had been closed for two days and so were the local businesses. But that was fine with Teague. It just meant that he had his family and his wife all to himself.
Wife. He grinned at the thought. Man, he liked that handle.
He and Sabrina had decided there was no point in waiting to get married. Once the necessary paperwork was in order they'd had a small wedding with only Sabrina's mother-in-law Louise, Allie and Paul in attendance and Teague's parents in attendance.
That was nearly four weeks ago and he'd had a hell of a lot of fun practicing the husband thing.
"Did you lock up the cottage?" Sabrina asked, snuggling into the blankets he'd pulled from the leather chair. The kids were asleep on the sofa curled up with Bingo and he'd claimed an area on the floor just in front of the fireplace.
"Sure did." He'd taken a ski-doo out to the lake before the snow got too bad to make sure his new photography studio was secure. It was the perfect use of Sabrina's cottage and he'd been happy to set up base there.
The Simon cottage had been in darkness. "Mom and Dad weren't able to make it up because of the storm."
It was thanksgiving weekend in the United States and his parents usually headed north.
"I'm sure they'll be up as soon as the weather permits," Sabrina murmured, digging in with her toes.
"Hey," he said with a chuckle. "Your feet are freezing."
She giggled and rested her head against him. Teague glanced around the room and felt his chest swell with emotion. He'd never been this content. Ever.
Shadows from the fireplace flickered, lending an air of warmth to the room as Harry and Morgan slumbered.
"They're tuckered out," he murmured, pressing a kiss to Sabrina's forehead.
"Three hours outside building a snow fort will do that to you."
"True." He grinned. "That daughter of yours is one bossy little lady. She had Harry running mad getting the damn fort perfect."
Sabrina sighed. "I hope she tones it down a bit."
"Nah," Teague replied. "I like her just the way she is. She's just like her mama."
The two of them cuddled in silence, listing to the wood crackle and enjoying the heat. Outside the wind moaned and ice pellets smacked against the window.
"We might be stuck in here for days," Teague said, hands caressing his wife as he turned slightly so that he could see her face.
She smiled up at him, her eyes shiny and full of love. This woman had no fear. She felt what she felt and it was there for everyone to see.
"That sounds kind of perfect," she whispered.
"What the hell are we going to occupy ourselves with?" he asked, nipping at her neck.
She licked her bottom lip and something in her eyes changed. They got dark and smoky. "I'm sure we'll think of something," she said lightly.
"I'm sure we will." He snuck another taste of the corner of her mouth.
"We could read."
"Uh huh."
"Play cards."
"Sure." God, she tasted better than ever.
"Make up ghost stories."
"Or we could just have as much sex as we can manage until the storm lets up."
Sabrina bit his bottom lip. "Is that all you think about?"
"Pretty much," he responded with a grin.
She was silent for a few moments and then sort of sighed. Teague nudged her. "Hey. Is everything all right?"
She nodded. "Everything is … " Her voice trailed off and Teague sat up straighter, pulling Sabrina onto his lap.
"Bree?" He watched her intently, searching her face for any sign of trouble. "What's going on?"
"Do you like Christmas?" she asked suddenly. "And presents?"
Christmas? He frowned, not understanding. "I do."
Sabrina smiled, a slow sensual kind of thing. "Good," she whispered, moving a bit so that she was able to press her lips to his mouth. It was gentle touch and gone much sooner than he would have liked. "I have an early Christmas present for you."
Okay. He still wasn't getting this.
She took his hand, the one that was currently buried in the thick hair at her nape, and slowly dragged it down her body until she pressed his palm into her stomach.
Teague's throat closed up and for a moment his mind went blank. He felt her warm skin, there beneath her shirt, and he had to work hard to get rid of the lump in his throat.
"Bree," he said. "Are you … what the hell is going on?"
"I'm having our baby," she said.
"How can you be sure?" he blurted. "Those things aren't always accurate.
"Babe I took four of them today and they were all positive." She paused. "But it's early so let's keep this to ourselves for a few more weeks. I figure I'm about six weeks along but won't know for sure until … "
But Sabrina Simon didn't get to finish her sentence. Teague claimed her mouth with a kiss that was passionate and soft and so filled with emotion that he had to stop because he couldn't breathe.
Chest heaving he held her face between his hands. "I love you." They were only three words and he had no idea if she got the depth of what was going on inside him. There were a million words he wanted to say but his tongue wasn't working. Hell, his brain was mush and he was drowning in something called happiness.
"I know," she whispered, dragging her mouth across his. "I know exactly what you mean."
She got him. Totally got him.
"A baby," he said, surprised that he'd been able to vocalize anything at all. A baby. Holy hell.
"Our baby."
Teague pulled her back into his arms and wrapped the blanket around them. He let the silence of the house, the measured breaths of Harry and Morgan, and the feel of the woman in his arms lull him to sleep. He was happy. Content. And loved by a woman he would do anything for.
It wasn't surprising that he slept like a baby.
And that was pretty damn great.
-THE END-