Chapter 36 – Clay
“What did you bring this time? And it better not be your rabbit food lettuce with holes in it,” Wylie’s voice rings out from across the yard at Cameron Ranch as Dallas and I make our way around the house.
Dallas, completely used to my older brother’s antics, shakes his head, and holds up a wooden crate packed full of snap peas and frozen blueberries. “That was over ten years ago, and you know my kale has been excellent every winter since.”
Wylie lets out a hearty laugh as he takes the box from Dallas and heads inside where the rest of the volunteers and our family are busy preparing a Valentine’s Day meal for the Nourish Co-op members.
“What did you bring?” Dallas asks, turning to me.
“My charming smile, handsome good looks, and winning personality.”
Dallas snorts. “Your personality has been shit ever since Maggie left for Spain.”
“Three more weeks,” I respond, trailing off and wondering what she’s doing right now. It’s around nine at night her time, usually the time when I’d call to check-in. I turn to tell Dallas I’ll be right back, but he cuts me off first.
“So, since you bailed on the summer tournament, are we submitting you for the spring one? You’re starting to look soft and could use the competition.”
I scoff, knowing he’s just teasing. With Maggie out of town, I’ve been training relentlessly every single day at Golden Farms alongside him.
I’ve also been winning every fight that I’ve participated in San Angelo.
I’m in the best shape of my life, but the thrill of fighting no longer excites me.
I’ve achieved what I set out to prove to myself, and honestly, without Maggie there to watch, I’ve lost the fire that once drove me to perform.
“Not this spring, I plan on spending every day with Maggie once she’s back.” Plan on proposing to her, too.
He chuckles, tells me he’s happy for me and heads inside, but not before Nash and Wylie make their way back to the deck, two beers in hand.
“How've you been little brother? It’s been a while since we’ve seen you,” Nash asks as he leans against the deck’s railing.
I know that they’ve been piecing things together for a while now. You can only show up to so many family gatherings with black eyes, bruised ribs, and limping before these two start acting like the Hardy Boys. With them, it’s better to just be upfront and get this over with.
“I’ve been busy participating in underground MMA fighting in San Angelo. Dallas has been training me at his farm in exchange for free, manual labor.”
Nash’s jaw tightens as Wylie rolls his eyes, propping one booted foot over the other while leaning against the side of the house. His signature smirk never wavers as he fixes his gaze on me.
“I always knew we didn’t beat you up enough as a kid. Nash, you think we can make up for that now or is he too old?”
I snort and take a sip of my water. “I think you’re both too old to take me on.”
Wylie barks out another laugh while Nash rolls his eyes exasperatedly and for a moment, I’m transported back in time to a decade ago.
The three of us living and working together.
The memories will always be there, but we’ve all grown a lot.
I’ve enjoyed seeing them become husbands and parents to their wild kids, and I hope that for myself someday. With Maggie, of course.
“How’s your girlfriend feel about your fighting? Or does she not know?” Wylie asks now wearing a wicked grin.
“She knows about it.”
Nash steps forward, patting me gently on the chest before he and Wylie begin to leave the deck, “That’s good, because she’s standing right behind you.”
I turn, momentarily confused, until my eyes land on Maggie standing three feet away.
She’s dressed in a pair of fitted, dark blue jeans, a white sweater layered over a cream shirt and worn brown combat boots.
Her hair’s swept up into a messy bun, and in that instant, I’m hit with the undeniable truth—she’s the most breathtaking sight I’ve ever seen.
“Is everything okay?” It’s the first thing out of my mouth. I wasn’t expecting her for another three weeks, and the panic starts to set in, thinking something might be wrong with her health that has her returning early.
I rush toward her, wrapping her in a hug, scanning her from head to toe, looking for any signs of trouble. She seems fine—she smells like fresh soap, like she’s just showered—but there’s something in her eyes, a nervousness that doesn’t sit right with me.
“Everything’s fine, really,” she says quickly, “but... can we go somewhere more private to talk?”
I nod, leading her inside Cameron Ranch, down the hallway, and into my old bedroom. Once the door’s shut, I sit on the edge of the bed, watching her as she fidgets with the hem of her sweater.
“You’re scaring me. What’s going on?”
Her eyes lock onto mine, and this time they look different—brighter, almost glowing. “There’s no easy way to say this, so I’m just going to blurt it out... I’m pregnant.”
The words hang in the air, and it feels like the wind’s been knocked out of me. I blink, trying to make sense of it. “What?”
She nods, launching into a nervous ramble about the failure rate of condoms, that I’m the only one she’s been with in over a year, how she found out yesterday at a hospital in Spain and hopped on the first flight to tell me.
She’s already two months along. And then, she says something that makes my heart race and not in a good way: she doesn’t expect me to want this, but she’s keeping the baby—and she’s really, happy.
I cut her off mid-sentence. “What?” I ask again.
She blinks, taken aback. “Were you even listening to anything I just said?”
“I heard every word. But why would you think I wouldn’t want this?”
“I don’t know... we never talked about this. It kinda feels like I trapped you into having a baby.”
“Trapped me?” I growl, standing up and stepping between her legs, dropping down on my knees in front of her.
Her eyes widen as she tilts her face downward. “Maggie, you’re only twenty-one years old. You haven’t even started your career yet. I’m the one who feels like I’ve trapped you. Are you sure this is what you want?”
She doesn’t hesitate. “Yes. I never thought this could happen for me, and it’s the most amazing news I could’ve ever received.
There might be risks because of how close I am to my transplant, but the doctors in Spain said everything looks good.
The kidney’s strong, it's been six months, my symptoms are under control. I want this, Clay.”
I nod, leaning in to kiss her because it’s all I can think to do. “Then I want this with you, Maggie. Because I want it all. Marriage, babies, forever. I felt this way before you told me this. The pregnancy just expedites things.”
She exhales softly, her arms wrapping around my neck, fingers tangling in my hair, as my hands move to the waistband of her jeans.
In one swift motion, they’re sliding down her hips, followed by her underwear, pooling on the floor.
And then I’m there, between her legs, my lips and tongue worshiping her again, tasting every inch that I’ve missed, while murmuring how much I’ve craved her, needing to remind her just how deeply she’s been etched into my very being and always will be.
Her fingers glide through my hair, then gently press on my sides, guiding me to stand so she can remove my shirt. Seated on the edge of the bed, she looks up at me as I shed the last bits of clothing, revealing the small, five-centimeter scar near my hip for the first time in the daylight to her.
Silence surrounds us as her eyes notice it, fingertips reach out to gently trace the scar. I'd kept it hidden after her procedure and she'd been too distracted with her healing to notice it.
Her lip’s part, as if she’s about to say something, but I shake my head, holding her gaze with a silent plea to not speak.
Not now.
She closes her mouth, her eyes glistening with unshed tears that start to pool in the corners and drip down her cheeks, the emotion between us thick and unspoken as she realizes what I’d done.
I kiss each tear away as we make love, reminding her with every touch that she is full of life—my life, her life, and the life growing inside of her that’s a part of both of us now.