Epilogue
Hannah
Two Months Later…
“W here do you think we are right now?” I asked Tanner excitedly.
Tanner grinned at me as he climbed into bed with me completely naked. “Probably the same place we were when you asked five minutes ago. Somewhere over the Pacific Ocean.”
I sighed, my heart and soul so full of joy that I could barely contain it.
We were finally on our honeymoon.
And on our way to Australia.
We were in his private jet, getting ready for bed, winging our way across the world for the honeymoon I’d been dreaming about for years.
We’d left directly from Vegas after spending a few days there in the city after our wedding.
I sighed again as I thought about the beautiful wedding ceremony and the reception that had taken place just a few days ago.
It had been…perfect.
It was strange that I’d once envisioned anything different as my dream wedding.
Kaleb, Devon, and Wyatt had stood up for Tanner.
Anna, Lauren, and Reese had stood up for me.
We’d been married outdoors, and the grounds we’d been married on had been like something out of a fairytale.
Beautiful flowers everywhere…check.
A breathtaking gazebo that had been built custom just for our wedding…check.
The most handsome, thoughtful, and incredible groom on the planet…check.
Everyone I loved present to listen to Tanner and I say our vows…check.
Anna singing a song she’d written just for us…check.
Just thinking about that day almost brought tears to my eyes all over again.
In the end, I hadn’t needed to pick out a wedding dress.
Tanner had commissioned a designer to do my dress because I hadn’t been able to find anything that felt just right for a pregnant bride who might end up having a baby bump on her wedding day.
That baby bump had never shown, but I’d had the most beautiful wedding gown I’d ever seen.
Everything about that day had felt like it was always meant to be exactly the way it had happened.
“That’s an awful lot of sighs coming from you, sweetheart. Everything okay?” Tanner asked as he pulled me close so I could rest my head on his shoulder.
We were both naked, and I savored the skin-on-skin contact.
I’d probably never take for granted just how good it felt to be this close to Tanner.
“I was just thinking about how perfect our wedding was,” I told him honestly.
“As good as the one you planned years ago?” he questioned.
“Better,” I said emphatically.
Tanner and I might never forget our past, and I’d decided I really didn’t want to forget all of it.
We’d spent so many good years together.
But we had put the bad parts behind us now.
“Are you feeling okay?” he asked.
He’d asked that question more than once today.
He was still a little anxious about taking me far away when I was pregnant, but he wasn’t quite as panicked as he’d been two months ago.
My morning sickness was gone.
My energy levels were just as good as they’d been before my pregnancy.
And I felt pretty fantastic compared to the beginning of my pregnancy.
I looked up and met his gaze. “I feel fabulous, and I’ve never been this happy in my entire life. We’re married, we’re on our way to a honeymoon in Australia, and we’re going to have a child.”
It was still hard to believe how much my life had changed in a pretty short period of time.
“I think you’re almost as excited about this trip as you were about our wedding,” Tanner said as he winked at me.
God, I loved this man.
I knew he still had his reservations about this honeymoon, but he was going to do everything possible not to spoil my excitement.
“We’ve wanted to take this trip for well over a decade,” I explained. “It feels almost surreal that we’re actually going now. Honestly, everything feels surreal to me right now, Tanner. We’re actually married.”
“Thank fuck!” he said emphatically. “I think this has been the longest two months of my entire life. It wasn’t easy knowing that you were pregnant with my child and we weren’t married yet.”
“You wanted to be married because I was pregnant?” I teased, knowing full well exactly why Tanner had wanted to marry me.
“I wanted to be married because I wanted you to be mine,” he corrected. “But you being pregnant made it even worse, which I didn’t think was even possible.”
I smiled. “I think I’ve been yours since the day we met. I couldn’t imagine being married to anyone else.”
Tanner adjusted our bodies until I was on my back, his warm body covering mine. “You’ve always been the only woman I’ve ever loved, Hannah,” he said solemnly as he looked down at me. “Now that we’re married, you’re stuck with me. I’m never letting you go.”
I wrapped my arms around his neck. “I’ve loved you almost my entire adult life, Tanner. You’ve always been my everything. Do you think I’m crazy enough to let you go? Did I tell you that you’re the hottest man on the planet today?”
His solemn expression suddenly transformed into a wicked grin. “Yeah, but it doesn’t hurt to hear it again.”
I moved my body against his suggestively. “How about if I just show you how hot I think you are.”
I could feel how hard he was, and my body was aching to be intimately connected to him.
“Hannah,” he growled in that warning voice I adored. “It’s been a long day for you. You need to rest.”
He’d gotten over his hesitations about making love to me because I was pregnant, but he was still incredibly protective about my well-being.
“I’m not the least bit tired,” I argued.
“I’m trying to be considerate,” he said in a voice that told me his control was slipping.
“And I’m trying to seduce you,” I answered, amused.
“You don’t need to seduce me,” he said in a self-mocking tone. “All you need to do is stand in the same room with me and I’m screwed.”
“Make love to me, Tanner,” I said, my voice heavy with desire. “We’re on our honeymoon, and I need you.”
“Fuck!” he cursed. “You know that hearing you say that makes me crazy.”
I loved the way that Tanner always wanted to protect me and take care of me, but that wasn’t what I wanted from him right now.
We were always honest with each other, and I did need him.
“I love you,” I said, my heart so full of happiness that I couldn’t hold those words back anymore.
“Now you know you’re in trouble,” he rumbled, his eyes blazing with heat as he held my gaze.
“God, I really hope so,” I answered as I fell into his gorgeous blue eyes.
“You know I want you, Hannah,” he said in a tormented voice. “But I also want to take care of you. You’re pregnant with my child for fuck’s sake, and we’ve been up since early this morning.”
“Take care of me by making love to me,” I suggested. “I’ll sleep much better.”
I could feel it the moment his control snapped and he capitulated.
“I love you, too, Hannah, but I’m not sure I’m going to make it through this pregnancy a sane man,” he growled. “My protective instincts and my carnal instincts are constantly going to be at war with each other.”
I let out a final sigh against his lips as they came down on mine.
I loved Tanner’s fierce protectiveness, and he would make it through this pregnancy with his sanity intact because I loved him the same way that he loved me.
Eventually, he’d realize that he could have both of those instincts at the same time without them fighting against each other.
“I love you so much, Tanner,” I told him when he finally released my mouth. “Just love me. That’s all I need right now.”
I’d make him happy and sleep…later.
“I’m going to love you for the rest of our lives, Hannah,” he said hoarsely as he trailed his lips along my jawline. “That’s who I am and what I do now.”
My heart tripped because that heartfelt declaration meant everything to me.
I was going to love him for the rest of our lives, too, and I was going to savor every moment because it had taken us so long to get to our happy ending.
“We’re taking this slow tonight, Hannah,” Tanner said in a muffled voice because his mouth was pressed against my skin.
I smiled as I threaded my hands into his hair.
He said that almost every night, and he always tried, but Tanner and I usually didn’t do slow and easy all that well.
Honestly, I didn’t really care how it was going to happen.
As long as we were intimately connected, I was going to be ecstatically happy.
All I wanted was to be close to Tanner.
Moments later, Tanner passionately proceeded to give me exactly what I wanted.
~The End~