Wrangling the Cowboy (Circle B Ranch #3) - Kennedy Fox Page 0,86

am,” she says with a gleeful smile. “I can’t wait to show off my hot house-building husband.”

I scoff. “I helped, but I’m definitely not taking all the credit. The crew did the hard shit. I basically pointed and made sure nothing got messed up.”

“That’s pretty sexy in my book.” She waggles her brows while lowering her eyes down my chest.

I chuckle, shaking my head. Another symptom of pregnancy is raging hormones that make her want sex all the time. Not that I’m complaining, but we have a party happening in three days. We’ve invited the whole damn town, it seems, but I don’t mind. It’s a potluck, so Maize isn’t stuck preparing food for a crowd since her catering business is booming. Kenzie helps on the side, but Maize does all the cooking. Her doctor has warned her to take it easy with the stress of extra work since it’s likely she’ll go into preterm labor.

Moments later, my phone vibrates with a text, and I see it’s Connor.

Connor: Would you mind if I brought someone with me to your party this weekend?

I read the message to Maize, and her smile drops. “He’s bringing a date?”

I’m not sure what’s happened between him and Elle, but their work relationship hasn’t been the best as far as I've heard.

“I guess.” I shrug.

Gavin: No problem. The more, the merrier.

“I hope you told him absolutely not!” she pouts.

I snort. “Why not? Elle isn’t dating him.”

“Well, she could be if he wasn’t such a jerk. And now she’s gonna have to see him with another woman. It’s a dick move.”

I’m not sure how to reply and don’t wish to get in the middle of whatever’s going on, so I stay quiet.

“Whatever. I’m gonna tell her to bring someone then. Ha! See how Dr. Dickhead likes that.”

I narrow my eyes in confusion. “Thought you called him VetDreamy?”

She scowls. “Not anymore.”

That doesn’t sound good, but I also don’t ask. Connor and I see each other at least once a week at the ranch, and if there’s drama, I stay out of it.

“There,” she says as she sets down her phone. “Now it won’t be awkward, and she won’t be alone when he’s hanging on some other woman.”

After the clothes are done, I sit back and pull Maize into my chest. “Any kicks today?”

“I feel a little fluttering on my right side,” she tells me, and I move my hand around.

“You’re gonna be the hottest pregnant mama-to-be when you’re ready to pop. I can’t wait.” I smirk.

“Ugh, shut up. I’m fat and only gonna get fatter.”

“You’re growing two babies,” I remind her. “I can’t wait for a houseful of girls.” Smiling, I press a kiss to her cheek. Due to Maize being high-risk with twins, they took a bunch of bloodwork, and we found out the genders early on. “Which means we’re gonna have to try for a boy next.”

She relaxes against me and laughs. “I thought of what I want their names to be,” she says, then looks up at me. “Madison and Bailey, the middle names of my biological mother and my mama. Then their middle names should be Rose.”

“After my mom?” I ask, honored.

“Yes, and it’s Grandma Bishop’s first name too.” She beams. “I thought it was a perfect tribute to the amazing women in our life.”

My heart beats with pride and excitement. “I love them. It’s a great idea, sweetheart. Mila’s gonna love that you named one of the babies after her.”

“I wanna surprise her, though. Announce it after the babies are born.”

“She’s gonna cry.” I chuckle, and Maize does too.

“Oh, she definitely will.”

* * *

MAIZE

I can’t wait to see everyone today. Though I frequently see my family, I’m usually too busy working to visit for more than five minutes. Plus, I’ll get to spend more time with my cousins and sister without being interrupted by guests. Not that I mind, but a break is definitely nice.

Now that I’m pregnant with twins, I need to slow down, which is hard when I’m trying to keep up with my catering business too. I book parties for up to fifty people a couple of times a month, and it’s rewarding for me. I hope I can continue after the twins are born, but I’ll hire someone if not.

One of the best things about growing up with a ton of cousins is that our kids will get to grow up together just like we did. My grandparents are in their late seventies and want to be more hands-off