Chapter 24
Juliette
Three Weeks Later
The sheriff was a freak of nature. He eventually agreed to wait until I passed the three-month mark to break the news about the baby and the wedding. Until then, the engagement ring was to be worn on a chain around my neck—for him to check nightly. He was so crazy that he took my breath away.
I decided to treat him like someone with a disability, which helped me manage him so much better.
The door opened and Cathryn walked in, waving at me in her usual excitement.
I stood to give her a kiss and cuddle before handing her the drink.
She was about to take a sip when she saw it.
She screamed.
Like—an actual, ear-piercing scream.
“You’re engaged,” she accused, shoving the drink onto the table and grabbing my hand.
“Wipe your drool and sit down,” I muttered as everyone turned to stare.
She inspected my ring like a jeweller appraising a diamond.
“Tell me everything,” she sighed, still clutching my hand.
“I’m pregnant.”
Her dreamy expression vanished. She choked, and I handed her the cocktail.
She dropped my hand, bypassed the straw, and drained half the glass like it owed her money.
“Abscess, my ass,” she muttered. “I knew something was up. I have a gut instinct for bullshit.”
I sipped my orange juice, smirking as I set the glass down.
“Will you be my maid of honour?”
Her mouth opened. Then closed. Then opened again.
She looked like a stunned goldfish—and with that red hair, the comparison to Harry was almost too perfect.
“You’re enjoying this,” she said, pursing her lips. “And yes, I will.”
“You’d have done the same. If not worse.”
“I suppose,” she admitted, then grinned. “When are you due?”
“Five months and three weeks,” I said, patting my still-flat belly. “I’m waiting for the bump to pop.”
I didn’t mention the sheriff checked my body daily like he was charting the lunar cycle. If he wasn’t obsessing about me, it was about the baby.
“You didn’t last long in Farrows End. We claimed you—and there’s no escaping now,” she chortled. “Baby and all.”
I smiled at my friend, heart full.
“Who said I wanted to escape?”
“I think you two are perfect for each other. So five months and three weeks, huh? By my calculation—”
“Shhh.”
“I knew it!” she crowed. “I was right about you. A raging nympho disguised in God-awful granny cardigans.”
For all the negative things that could be said about small towns, there were far more positive aspects—genuine care, a sense of community.
Things I’d never truly found in the city.
My family would get a wedding invitation, but whether they came or not was up to them. I was learning to let go. We both were.
We couldn’t keep looking back when we had so much love—and life—ahead of us.
As Cathryn fired off a million questions, I did my best to keep up with her excitement. This was exactly why I’d taken a nap before meeting her.
We talked about the wedding, which Kade had wanted to happen a week ago.
Yeah—no.
He had Operation: Secure the Wife scribbled in his police notebook.
I couldn’t exactly tell Cathryn about his disability, so I embellished a few details here and there. Hopefully, she was none the wiser.
It was a while later when I heard the door open. Conversation quieted, and I knew he was here.
I glanced up just as Kade cut through the bar, eyes locked on me like a heat-seeking missile.
“Told you—big dick energy,” Cathryn muttered before hiccuping into her glass.
His hat came off as he leaned down to kiss me, and then came the wolf whistles and heckling.
Of course, Cathryn was the loudest.
His hat dropped onto the table as his hands came up to cradle my face.
I gripped his forearms, parting my lips for him as he deepened the kiss.
“Now you’re just showing off,” Cathryn hollered over the din.
We ignored everyone. Kade didn’t pull back until he was good and done.
“You look sexy as fuck, little mama,” he murmured against my lips.
I stared at the smear of my red lipstick on his mouth.
No doubt something he fully intended.
“Still full of red flags, Officer Kade,” I whispered, touching his lips with my fingertips.
“Only for you.”
I returned his smile.