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The house she’s renting is cute and looks perfect for a family. I instantly hate it. From the looks on the faces of Scope and Viper, they’re right there with me.
By the time we make it to the grocery store, I’m filled with nervous energy that needs an outlet. We found her and saw her, but we still need to convince her to come home with us. How difficult is it going to be? How will we do it?
“At 25 weeks, the baby is the size of an acorn squash,” Scope lays another pregnancy fact on us, true awe in his voice now.
His face as been fucking glued to his phone throughout the entire trip and he’s filled us in on things both horrific and heartwarming. I’m not sure I’m ready to know more.
My head is swimming. Heather has had three months to get used to this news, but we haven’t even had three hours. I know Scope is just trying to make sense of it in any way he can.
I can hear him audibly swallow. “That’s a lot smaller than a watermelon. Her belly already looks huge.”
Viper barks out a laugh and shakes his head at Scope. “I might not know a lot about pregnant women, but I’m pretty sure you shouldn’t say that to her.”
Scope’s eyes are wide as he nods. “You’re probably right.”
A woman’s giggle not far down the aisle has us looking toward her. She’s a beautiful woman with brown skin and curly hair that kisses her shoulders. She has a little girl in the front part of the cart who looks to be around a year old.
The woman slaps a hand over her mouth which muffles her words, “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have been listening to your conversation.” She drops her hand and smiles. “I will say that you should not tell a pregnant woman her belly is huge.”
“Can confirm,” comes a man’s voice as he rounds the corner of the aisle, his eyes filled with love as he looks at the woman and the little girl. He shoots us a grimace which has me biting back a laugh. I’m pretty sure stifling my laugh is the right choice considering the glare his woman shoots him. He wraps an arm around her shoulders and kisses her temple. “You good, little bird?”
She rolls her eyes and huffs, “Of course. You were gone for about thirty seconds.”
He looks at us again and gives us a chin lift in greeting. There’s no animosity there or judgement. It takes me a little bit by surprise. “You guys just passing through?”
“No, we’re here for our woman,” Scope lays it out there without hesitation before crossing his arms across his chest.
The woman’s eyes roam over us like she’s trying to put a puzzle together. “Your woman is pregnant?”
I nod and her face lights up with a big grin. She leans against her man’s side and stage whispers, “Wanna bet they’re here for Heather? I told you she was too nice and too heartbroken to not have someone out there looking for her and wishing she was with them.”
“That’s because you’re a romantic, Lark,” he says with so much love.
“It’s a hazard of the job,” she says dismissively before looking at us again. She points a finger in our direction in a way that only a mom can. “I haven’t known Heather for very long, but if I’m right and you’re here for her then it’s my duty to warn you. If you hurt her then you’re going to have to deal with me and a whole town that’ll round up some pitchforks and torches. We take care of each other here.”
I find a big smile stretching across my face at this woman’s sass and her fearlessness while her man runs a hand down his face and looks up at the ceiling like he’s looking for deliverance. “We might have fuc--,” I cut myself off and look toward the little one babbling to herself in the basket before correcting myself, “messed up, but we never wanted to hurt her. She’s ours.”
“In that case, it’s a pleasure to meet you. I’m Lark and this is my husband, Maverick. He owns The Goose, which you might have seen when you were on your way into town. If you’re looking for a good burger or a beer, it’s where you want to go.”
Maverick kisses the top of her head and murmurs, “My little marketer.”
She winks at me and then smiles at her husband. When the baby fusses she shoots us an apologetic smile before giving us a little wave. “If you need anything, go to The Goose and they’ll give you our information. Heather needs a good man,” she looks us over, her smile widening, “or men in this case, to take care of her and the little one she’s growing.”
I’m a little surprised at how well she’s taking the three of us claiming her. It seems I’m not the only one because Viper blurts out, “You don’t have a problem with her being with the three of us?”
Lark giggles and shrugs one shoulder. “I’m a romance author. I should warn you that I’ll be going home and starting on a motorcycle club reverse harem as soon as I sit down at my computer.” My brothers and I chuckle along with Maverick. “Love is love,” she tells us, and it makes me smile, “and if you’re happy and not hurting anyone then you should live your life.”
Her little one’s voice is demanding, “Mama. Dada.”
“See you around and welcome to Sweetwater Valley.” She looks in our cart as she pushes hers past and calls out over her shoulder, “You should grab some ice cream as well. You can never go wrong with ice cream.”
I watch the little family leave the aisle and my heart feels lighter somehow. We continue our shopping, making sure to grab some ice cream when we get to the frozen food section. Since we don’t know which flavor, we grab a couple of classics and hope for the best. I don’t even give Viper shit when he tosses in some sprinkles from the display at the end of the aisle.
When we get in line to check out, Scope whispers, “Wow. At 25 weeks, the baby can hear voices and recognize them. And they can stick out their tongue.”
A pang of regret hits me because of everything we’ve missed already, but there’s still time and so much more to experience. That’s what I’m determined to focus on because I don’t want to lose any more time with our woman and our baby.
CHAPTER 9
