14. Nash
Lily’s dark-blueeyes glittered as I entered the house. “I love you, baby.”
“Again,” she commanded breathlessly, wrapping her arms around my neck.
“I love you.”
Having already discovered the layout of the cottage-style house—because, she was right, I had searched everywhere for her before checking the beach—I carried her into the bedroom.
“More!”
“I like you greedy. I love you, Lily.” I started to throw her down on the bed but stopped before I could let her go. Glancing down at her, I gulped. “Did Winston tell you what Joseph had that bitch do?”
She tilted her head to the side, her teeth sinking into her bottom lip as she considered me for a moment. “Sam mentioned taking out a restraining order on my behalf and why. But I kind of already knew my birth control failed. I was going to tell you. That morning I overheard you and Nicole—”
She made a gagging noise as she said the other woman’s name. “When I heard the two of you talking. Things kind of took a wild turn after that. I’m not going to apologize for keeping my pregnancy to myself, because I’m not the least bit sorry. You can’t exactly throw stones, given the secrets you kept from me.”
Tears I wasn’t used to stung my eyes, the full realization of what she was saying hitting me so hard it knocked the air from my chest. “You’re pregnant.”
“Yes,” she confirmed, her eyes locked on mine. “Twelve weeks now, give or take a few hours for time zones.”
Dazed, but with my heart overfilled with so many emotions, I turned and carefully sat on the end of the bed with her arms and legs still wrapped around me.
“Nash?” she murmured softly.
“I just… I need a minute, Lily.” Closing my eyes to fight the tears that I couldn’t stop, I pressed my forehead to hers, breathing raggedly. From the moment I’d realized those assholes had tampered with her birth control, I’d been half holding my breath. Worried for her but, at the same time, afraid to hope.
I knew this woman was my future. That she would be my wife. Even before I fell in love with her, it had been a given that if I ever married, it would be to Delilah Royal. But loving her changed the way I saw our endgame.
Not once, however, had I considered what marriage meant. At least, not until recently. I wanted everything that came with it. Holding hands and kissing her long and sweet anytime, anywhere I wanted. Growing old together.
And raising as many babies as she was willing to give me.
This girl, this amazing, beautiful woman with her sweet soul and kind heart. She was mine. And she was going to make me a daddy.
“I love you so much, Lily. All my life, I never understood what giving my heart to someone meant. Not until these last eight months. You make everything right in the world by simply existing. By being your strong, beautiful self.”
She gently stroked her fingertips over my cheeks, dashing away my tears as they fell. “Nash, I love you too. More than anything. I want to spend my life with you. But I also need you to understand that if you ever keep anything from me again, I’m going to go from being your sweet Lily to demonic Lilith, and I’ll cut your balls off.”
A smile teased at my lips. “Okay, beautiful girl. You have my vow to always be open and honest with you about everything. Big or small. We’re partners from this day forward.”
“In business and in life,” she stressed. “Husband and wife. Mommy and daddy. Fifty-fifty hotel owners.”
“God, yes. I want all of that. Especially the husband and wife part. Parents. Everything.” I kissed the corner of her mouth, moving across her jaw to her ear. “Marry me. You’re the only true happiness I’ve ever known.”
“As soon as we get back to Vegas, we can make it official,” she assured me, not even a flicker of hesitation in her eyes.
I pressed my hand to her belly. “How are you feeling? Have you seen a doctor? Is everything okay with you and our little one?”
“Stef assured me everything is going well. Strong heartbeat. Growing as expected. My nausea has mostly passed.”
I couldn’t help the way my lip twitched into a half sneer at the sound of the other man’s name. That fucking asshole had known Lily was pregnant before me. He got to look at her pretty pussy and reassure her that she and our child were okay. I hated that he was her gynecologist, that his fucking job gave him the pleasure of looking at and touching all of her soft, perfect pink places that were just for me.
“Nash,” she soothed, nuzzling into my neck, her sweet lips brushing over my skin.
My cock went from semi-hard to steel pole in a heartbeat, the tip already beginning to drip. This woman had a special kind of power. One that gave her the ability to twist my heart into a million different knots with just a look. While also rendering my cock uncontrollable, always hard, constantly begging for her attention. Sometimes all it took was the faintest scent of her hair and my dick was at full attention.
“I know he’s your friend. And that he’s with Sam. But I can’t help being jealous. I’ve never experienced that with anyone else. Never wanted them enough—let alone loved them to the point that every man with a working cock looked like a threat to me.”
Pressing my forehead to hers, I blew out a heavy breath. “But I’m going to try to work on that. Because I know Stef and Sam are important to you. Making you happy is my only goal in life. Second to nothing and no one else. Not even this precious little one we created, whom I already love more than I ever thought possible. I’m so sorry I ever made you feel like anything less than my number one priority, Lily.”
She stroked her fingers through the hair at the back of my head. “I understand what you were trying to do. We’re just going to have to work on your communication skills going forward.”
“I promise I’ll do better.”
She made a humming noise in the back of her throat. “Well, you are already going back on promises.”
I jolted at that, sweat beading on my brow. Fuck, was I already messing up? “Which promise?”
Mischief glowed in her eyes. “The one you made about getting on your knees for me.”
“I’m going to rectify that right now, beautiful girl.” Carefully, oh-so carefully, I flipped her onto her back and dropped to my knees between her legs. My come was painted on the insides of her thighs. “Such a pretty mess we made together.”
“Nash!” she cried my name as I swiped my tongue up her slit before sucking her clit between my lips. “I love you.”
“I’m going to show you just how much I love you, Lily. For the rest of my life, I’m going to show you.”