Iceman Ten Months Later
I recalled earlier glancing over at my wife, who was dozing in the lounge chair next to me. We’d been in Maui for four days so far. We were here for our ten-day honeymoon. We’d gotten married last Saturday in Tennessee with all our friends and family and then flew out to Maui the following day. It was somewhere Meadow had dreamed of visiting, so I arranged the trip for us. I’d always wanted to visit Hawaii, so it was no hardship.
We chose here because it wasn’t as large as the Big Island, as fast-paced as Oahu, as small as Lanai, or as quiet as Kauai, or so my research said. We wanted something relaxing yet with attractions if we wanted to go out sightseeing. Yes, a lot of people came there for their honeymoon, but not in December. The weather was still nice enough to enjoy the beach. We liked being active, so hiking was attractive to us. I planned to take her to a t raditional luau tonight, and we’d already eaten a ton of fresh pineapple. I was stunned at the difference in the taste.
We’d already explored Haleakala, which was touted as the world’s largest dormant volcano. It was unbelievable. However, today, I had a surprise for her. We’d gotten married close to the first anniversary of our meeting, which was today. That day would always be an anniversary for me because it was the day my life became complete.
Our wedding was very nice without going overboard, which neither of us wanted. Her sisters stood up with her, and I had Loki and Renegade stand up for me. The past ten months have seen many great things happen, like Meadow agreeing to marry me a couple of months after I made her my old lady and the wedding. Our house was complete, and the whole family lived on the compound, although the twins and the dogs stayed in one of the townhomes to give us privacy. Meadow’s new job was going great. The company was healing from what happened with Scott and Joni. My woman was more than happy with her work. I always loved mine, so no worries there.
That’s not to say there hadn’t been challenges and dark moments, but we survived them as a club. And while the revelations those brought were unexpected and undoubtedly unwanted, there had been a great one, too. My brother Loki had found his forever ride woman. It wasn’t in the way any of us had expected, but we were overjoyed to see him happy. I still wanted my other single brothers to settle, especially Renegade, but we’d have to see how that went.
Hands slipped down my chest from behind me as I sat on the couch, waiting for Meadow to be ready to go. Those hands told me that she was there. I leaned my head back, and she kissed me. It made me want to say we’d stay home, but I couldn’t.
I grunted in disapproval as she lifted her mouth away. I tried to chase it to recapture it, but she moved back further.
“Jake, we can’t. If we keep that up, we’ll miss the luau, and you know how much I want to go to one.”
“I know, and I promise we’ll get there. Come here for a minute. There’s something I want to give you.”
“You don’t need to give me any more gifts,” she protested, but I didn’t listen. She came around and sat on my lap.
“Today is our real first anniversary, babe. I let this feisty PT into my life a year ago today, and you’ve changed me in so many ways. I can’t say how grateful I am enough times that you’re mine and that you love me. However, I wanted you to have a reminder. I see you’re wearing the necklace and earrings that Bull gave you at the wedding. They look beautiful.”
“I know they’re too dressy for tonight, but I love them and wanted to wear them. He shouldn’t have done it, but I adore them,” she said as she touched the necklace.
It was made of diamonds with a few scattered rare sapphires called padparadscha. They are an unusual salmon color, so they have hues of pink, yellow, and orange mixed. I’d never heard of them until he showed me what he had planned for her. I knew they were expensive and hard to get, and having a necklace and earrings cost him. I knew this because of what I was about to give her.
I took the box from under the pillow next to me. I watched her face as I flipped the lid open so she could see. Inside was a bracelet with the same design—diamonds and padparadschas. She gasped.
“Jake, this is too much. I know how rare these are. I hate to think of what Bull paid for the other pieces. You bought me a gorgeous engagement ring, and then we had the wedding and this trip. It’s too much.”
“It isn’t. And I know you. You’re worried about the cost. And then there’s the house, too. I assure you. I can afford it. I don’t go talking about it, but my mom must’ve known one day my dad would kill her or she’d die young because somehow she paid for a life insurance policy. It was a sizable one. When she died, I discovered it in her papers. I was the sole beneficiary. I’ve let that money grow in investment accounts for over fifteen years. We’re not filthy rich, but we’re very comfortable. Here, let me help you put it on.”
I took it out of the box and secured it to her wrist. She held up her arm, admiring it. After a good minute or more, she glanced at me. Her smile was blinding.
“I have a confession. I have a gift for you too. I was going to wait until we returned to give it to you, but I think I should do it now. Wait here.” She stood and rushed from the room. She returned quickly, holding a small, pretty box wrapped in silver paper and a bow. She retook her seat on my lap and handed it to me.
“I hope you like it. What’s in there costs a small fortune.” I was mystified by what it was. I didn’t wear jewelry besides my wedding band and a few knucklebusters occasionally. I unwrapped it carefully since the bow and paper were too pretty to rip to shreds. When I got it off, I lifted the lid off the box. Inside were two keychains. On both were bikes like a Harley, except they were made for someone small. One was pink and the other blue. It wasn’t until I read the words on the first bike that it registered. The blue one read My Son, and the pink one read My Daughter .
My breath caught. We’d talked about starting a family. She was ready, and so was I. All we wanted was to get the wedding out of the way. I glance over at her. She was watching me closely.
“How?” I croaked. My hands were shaking.
“Well, you see, a man takes his c —” she cut herself off and grinned before she got serious. “I might’ve gone off the birth control after our last talk and didn’t tell you. I wasn’t sure how long it would take for me to get pregnant. When I suspected I was, I decided to wait until our honeymoon to tell you, which almost killed me. Plus, things happen in the first trimester. I was scared to get both our hopes up. Anyway, there you have it. You and I make a fertile combo, Jake. I wasn’t expecting twins, although I should’ve because of my sisters.”
“Jesus, I’m speechless. Two, and do you know for sure it’s one each, or is that just a guess?”
“It’s real. There are tests they can do that are chromosomal now that tell you the sex earlier than ever. They assure me it’s a boy and a girl. I have the sonogram pictures if you want to see them.”
“Hell yeah, I want to see them. Oh my God, I’m gonna be a dad. This is the best fucking honeymoon and gift ever. It puts mine to shame,” I choked out moments before I brought her to me and claimed her mouth. Maybe we’d be a few minutes late to the festivities. But this was so much better in my book, anyway. Iceman and his Killing Frost were about to have two snowstorms.
The End Until Loki’s Spellbinder Book 14 Hunters Creek Archangel’s Warriors MC