Page 98 of Matching Marlowe

A smile erupts on my face, hurting my cheeks as I close the gap between us. I wrap my arms around her waist and lift her up, spinning her in a circle. My heart is beating so fast I feel like it’s going to burst, and goosebumps have surfaced on my skin.

She squeezes me tightly, crying into my neck as I sway her from side to side. I slowly slide her down my front, my hands landing on her hips as I rest my forehead against hers. She laughs, the sound wet from her tears, but her smile mimics my own.

“We’re going to have a baby,” I whisper again in disbelief.

“Yeah,” she breathes, nodding as she pulls back to look up at me. “We’re going to have a baby.”

I bend down and crash my lips to her, a little more forceful than I had intended, but excitement is pouring out of me. She cups my face in her hands and kisses me back just as fiercely.

“You’re happy?”

“Are you kidding me?” I shake my head as I tuck the loose tendrils of her hair behind her ear. “I’m the happiest man in the world, Lowe.”

She releases a shaky sigh before she chuckles again. “I thought you’d be worried about becoming a dad at thirty-nine.”

“Baby, I became one at thirty-five.” Another tear slips down her cheek, and I brush it away with my thumb. “I’m ready to be wrapped around another girl’s finger.”

“We won’t know if it’s a girl for a couple months,” she tells me, humor lacing her voice.

I press a kiss to the tip of her nose. “Trust me, it’s a girl.”

If someone had told me ten years ago that I’d meet the love of my life, and that it’d take another five years for me to find her again, I would’ve told them they were crazy. But I’ve always believed everything happens for a reason, and I know, without a shadow of a doubt, I was destined to fall in love with Marlowe Reyes.

At the end of the day, I don’t want to love anyone else the way I love her.

Except our children.