Drilled - Jayne Rylon Page 0,17

more time before rolling toward Joe, who helped her climb out of the enormous, comfortable bed in the guest suite of the house he and Morgan were renting.

“This is incredible.” Mike whistled as Joe and Morgan showed them around. It was becoming more and more obvious that this had been a one-way trip for the couple, even if they weren’t ready to admit that to themselves yet.

“Land and material costs are so much less expensive out here, we could build something like this and cover the mortgage with what we could get in rent for Morgan’s apartment back home.”

“No shit.” Mike wondered if they might need to consider some similar options. After all, with a baby on the way, a freaking baby, they were going to have to rebuild a nursery and set up a room separate from his two older kids, which they didn’t have space for in their current house.

Maybe if they renovated the attic…

“Yeah, it’s pretty sweet, right?” Joe turned toward him. “Imagine what we could do if we built a place like this ourselves. All the little details we could add and how special we could make it. I talked to Uncle Tom about maybe scoping out a bit of the Hot Rods land I could buy from him. You know that sweet spot down near the lake?”

“Oh, hell yeah.” Mike was getting more envious by the second. “So that means you’re really considering staying, right?”

“Just trying to weigh the options.” Joe glanced away, guilty as fuck. It was easy to see where his heart was. And though it might be torn in two, he was leaning this way. If his bio family and his family by choice were equal weights on the scale of his life, then something like a house like this, better pay—with college not too far off for his kids—and a long-term plan for his retirement, could be what tipped him in favor of Middletown.

Mike couldn’t blame the man for pursuing happiness. It sounded pretty damn good to him too.

“Check this out.” Joe ushered them through the showroom-worthy kitchen into a glass four-season room. Hedges surrounded the yard and rosebushes bloomed along the entire perimeter. Every possible shade of green and pink was reflected off the walls. It was calming and serene.

Mike instantly felt better. He sank onto one of the loveseats and pulled Kate into his lap. “Mind if we just sit here for a few minutes? It’s so peaceful.”

“Yeah, of course. There’s still the whole lower level to see too, but it’s mostly a play area for the kids. A hangout spot to watch movies, and games, and stuff. Or, you know, to have crew meetings. There are a bunch of couches and wide-open space.”

“Damn, I see why you like it here.” Mike stroked Kate’s side, sighing when she melted into him. “It would be a great place to raise a family. It’s a lot newer than our houses and way less cramped. I guess we need to start thinking about logistics too.”

Kate stiffened as if she hadn’t considered that. Hell, this had to be as much of a shock to her as it was to him.

“It’s okay, we’ll make it work even if we need to get creative,” he promised her.

“So you’re happy about the baby? Really?” Kate whispered to him while staring into his eyes, as if to detect even the faintest flicker of doubt. There was none to spot.

“Of course I am.” He kissed her so that she could taste his enthusiasm even if she doubted what she saw. “I love you. Our family is the most important thing in the world to me. Making it bigger… Well, I didn’t expect it, but yeah, I’m thrilled.”

“Then what’s this frown about?” she murmured before she kissed the side of his mouth gently, soothingly.

“He’s worried about you,” Morgan answered for him. And she wasn’t wrong.

“Yeah. I mean, Morgan is your best friend, and we’ve always had each other to rely on. Kayla and Dave and Devon, James and Neil are awesome. But they’re not kid people and I don’t want to lean too much on them. This isn’t what they chose for themselves, so why would they want to deal with our family all the time?”

“Don’t let them hear you talking like that.” Joe snickered. “Someone will knee you in the nuts.”

“Well, don’t fucking snitch then.” Mike rolled his eyes.

“It’s just different.” Morgan reached out and put her hand on Mike’s. “I know what you mean. I’m worried about