Page 25 of Bossy Bred

Jake pulls me close, planting a kiss on my forehead. “Anything for you, Leta. I’m proud of you.”

His words send a warm flutter through my chest. “Thank you for being there. It means the world to me.”

“I’m going to use the bathroom real quick,” Jake says, heading down the hall.

I nod and make my way to the kitchen, intent on scrounging up a meal for us. As I rummage through the fridge, my mind drifts to the past few months with Jake. Our relationship has blossomed into something I never could have imagined when we first met. The way he looks at me, supports me, loves me—it’s everything I’ve ever wanted.

I’m so lost in my thoughts that I don’t hear Jake’s footsteps. His voice startles me.

“Leta?”

I turn, a container of leftover pasta in hand, and freeze. Jake is standing a few feet away from me, holding the pregnancy test I took earlier. My stomach drops.

“Is there something you want to tell me?” he asks.

“It’s negative,” I blurt out. “I’m not pregnant.”

Jake’s brows dip as he looks from the test to me. “Did you think you might be?”

I take a deep breath, trying to calm my racing heartbeat. “I’m a few days late, but I’m pretty sure it’s just stress from planning the fundraiser. I wanted to be certain, that’s all.”

Jake nods slowly, his eyes fixed on the test. His expression is unreadable, and a knot forms in my stomach. We’ve come so far in our relationship, but what if this false alarm is too much for him? What if all his talk about commitment flies out the window at the mere thought of a baby?

I swallow hard, knowing I need to ask the question that’s burning inside me.

“Jake,” I say carefully, “what would we do if Iwaspregnant?”

He looks up at me, his face serious. I hold my breath, waiting for his response, terrified of what he might say but needing to know how he truly feels.

To my utter shock, a slow smile spreads across his lips.

“You know, Leta,” he says, his voice warm and steady, “a few months ago, that question would have terrified me. But now? It doesn’t scare me anymore. In fact, I’ve been thinking a lot about what it would be like to start a family with you.”

It feels like the wind has been knocked out of me. My mouth opens, but no words come out.

“You’re serious?” I finally manage to say.

Jake nods, his eyes never leaving mine. “Completely.”

My heart is pounding so hard I can hear it in my ears. I take a shaky breath, trying to process this unexpected turn of events. Although, the more I think about it, maybe it’s not so shocking.Everything about the past few months have shown me how supportive and caring of a man he is.

“Are you saying you actuallywantthat?” I ask. “A family? With me?”

“Yes,” Jake says without hesitation. “I do. What do you want, Leta?”

I bite my lip, thinking about that fleeting image of a little girl with Jake’s eyes that had surprised me earlier.

“I’ve been daydreaming about the same thing,” I admit. “Having a family with you.”

“Should we start right now on making that dream come true?”

A surprised laugh bubbles out of me. “Are you serious?”

Jake’s eyes stay locked onto mine, his gaze intense and unwavering. “Very.”

I’m at a loss for words again, but I haven’t lost my ability to nod.

He sets the pregnancy test aside, the plastic clattering against the counter. My breath hitches as he closes the distance between us. His hands slide around my waist, and with a surprising gentleness, he hoists me up onto the kitchen counter.

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