not to let him see my excitement. I traced my finger along his hand that was holding mine.
“What if I told you I didn’t want to work anymore?”
I had only been able to secure part-time teaching since graduation and was doing a lot of substitute work. It kept me busy, but it wasn’t what I had planned for after school. And now, my plans were changing yet again.
He lifted my chin. “Then don’t. I have told you time and again, you don’t have to work.”
“There is something else I want to do.”
“Good. That’s good. Tell me,” he said encouragingly.
I slipped my hand under my pillow and handed him a tiny whisk. “This.”
He looked startled. “Ah, Julia, my love, I don’t think cooking is your forte.”
I giggled. “But Byron, I think you’re wrong. I already have a bun in the oven, and from all I’ve been told, it looks perfect.”
He blinked. Looked at the whisk, caught on to what I was saying, and then his gaze flew to mine. His eyes flared with understanding.
“You’re pregnant?”
“Six weeks.”
I was in his arms in an instant, and his mouth was on mine. “Julia, my darling wife. My girl. A baby. We’re having a baby!”
“Yes.”
He kissed me again, dropping his hand to my stomach and spreading his fingers wide. “Our baby is right here. Right now.”
Tears filled my eyes. “Yes.”
He wrapped me close. “Thank you,” he breathed. “You have made my entire world even better. I didn’t think that was possible.”
I snuggled close. “I love you.”
He kissed my head. “Love doesn’t even begin to cover it. I need a far bigger word for you, Julia.”
We sat, letting the joy of the moment sink in.
“Quit the teaching. I want you home. You can do things you enjoy. Help Lila. Come to the restaurant and spend time with me. We need to decorate the nursery. I get to come to the appointments, right?” He paused to take a breath. “I have to tell Gerard—he’ll be thrilled. I need to borrow his books. I need to buy a bigger car. One we can put a baby seat in like his.”
I reached up and covered his mouth. “One thing at a time, Daddy.”
He melted. That was the only way to describe his reaction to being called Daddy.
“A baby,” he whispered. “Our baby. We’ll be a family.”
“Yes.”
“Can we have more?”
I laughed. “Can we get through one first?”
He laughed at his own eagerness. “I suppose. But I have a feeling we’re going to need a bigger house, Julia. Because I want lots of babies with you. I’ll teach them to cook, you can teach them how to read and love books the way you do. Together, we’ll teach them everything else. Especially about love. We’ll make sure they know how much they are loved.” He ran a finger down my cheek. “Just like their mother.”
I smiled through my tears. “Sounds like a plan.”
He wrapped me in his arms again.
“Yes, my love, it does.”
Chapter 1
Ian
I signed the last of the forms, checked all my patients had been discharged or sent on to other doctors, then stood with a tired grimace. I handed off the final charts to the head nurse.
“I’m out of here, Gail.”
She smiled, glancing at her watch. “Only three hours past shift change,” she stated dryly. “Hot date somewhere?”
I laughed as I slung my messenger bag over my shoulder. “Yep. Me and my pillow. I’m planning a hot make-out session with it for the rest of the day.”
She shook her head. “You need a life.”
I pushed up on the counter separating us and planted a kiss on her plump cheek. “Still waiting for you, Gail. When you’re ready to leave Marv for some hot action, I’m your guy.”
“I’ll meet you at sundown,” she quipped.
“Done.”
Her laughter followed me from the ER. Gail was old enough to be my grandmother, and I had a soft spot for her. She doted on her husband, and I loved teasing her about running away with me. She was a good sport and gave as good as she got, even making me blush with her innuendos. I often thought she was the closest thing I ever got to foreplay anymore. There was simply no time in my life for a girlfriend or even a non-serious relationship. No woman in her right mind would want to take me on. Between my shifts at the hospital, my volunteer work, and my irregular sleeping patterns, I was far too much effort. So, aside from my slightly inappropriate teasing with