Page 125 of All Our Ghosts

She nods and pulls back to look at me again, the tears gone and replaced by that soft smile. “At least we did things in the right order.”

I let out a soft laugh and nod. “At least we have that."

KADENCE

“No, you aren’t going.” Holden folds his arms across his chest glaring down at me.

“It’s just the store, Nash,” I say, slipping his sweatshirt over my head.

It desperately needs a wash, but for some reason I can’t bring myself to let it mix with my other clothes. It still faintly smells of leather and motor oil, of him, and it quickly became my safety blanket. I’m thankful that the morning sickness hasn’t ruined his lingering scent.

He shakes his head. “First it’ll be the store, next it’ll be the diner and then Blake will want to go on some shopping spree for the baby.” Holden groans before taking a step towards me, wrapping his strong arms around my waist. “You aren’t supposed to leave the compound.”

“And you promised not to be a helicopter,” I counter back, raising a brow at him. “I can’t stay cooped up here for the rest of my life, Nash.”

“I’m also not going to put you or our baby in danger by letting you do something the prospects are capable of doing.”

He has a point, but it’s been a week since Holden returned home and no one has seen any signs of Stokes or Watson. It’s comforting and yet not at the same time. Cole has been on edge all week, pulling the guys into Church every night to come up with a plan to get rid of our problems. Holden and I decided to keep the pregnancy to ourselves…and Blake until after everything dies down. Even with it being a tiny sliver of happiness that we all so desperately need, I don’t want it to distract from what we need to do.

My heart flutters though when he mentions the baby. When we’re alone, he finds every excuse to bring he or she up in conversation. His fingers dance across my stomach and it’s like I can see the images he plays over and over in his mind of us as a family.

“You said our baby,” I say softly with a smile, looking up at him.

“Because it is.” Holden’s lips press to the tip of my nose. “Don’t distract me with our child.” He chuckles, dipping his head to kiss my cheek and jaw. “What is at the store that you need so badly I can’t send a member for it?”

“I wanted to try remaking the dinner I was going to make for the guys while you and Cole were gone.” I smile, the words coming out more sheepishly than I meant. I haven’t admitted to making dinner and things have been so busy it seems like everyone has forgotten.

He drops his forehead to mine and sighs. “We don’t deserve your heart, Sunflower.”

“Does that mean I can go?” I grin, peppering his jawline with soft kisses. “I’ll make it up to you tonight.” I waggle my eyebrows at him, forcing a chuckle from his lips as he tilts his head back and laughs. “Please,”I groan, dragging out the word.

“Alright, alright.” He laughs. “Just take Wyatt with you. Cole needs me.” The last few words trail off and I can see the guiltflicker in his eyes as his arms tighten around my body for a moment.

“I know, Holden.” I smile, cupping his face. “You both need to be focused on finding Stokes and Watson. It doesn’t mean you love me any less if you need to take care of club business and you don’t have to feel guilty for it.”

He sighs and drops his head to kiss me. A soft lingering kiss that makes my toes curl in the fuzzy socks I'm wearing. He always seems to do that, with one kiss showing me how much he truly cares. Pouring every ounce of love he can into each one. It's a testament of how different this relationship feels. How all of our dark shadows are outshined with every touch and kiss we share.

“Go,” he whispers softly, his warm breath tickling my skin as he moves to bury his face into the crook of my neck, “before I change my mind and keep you in bed for the rest of the day.”

“If I hadn’t already promised Wolfe a remake of the chili I made, it’d be a very tempting offer.” I laugh.

“I’m going to ignore the fact that you’re leaving me to do a favor for him and pretend I didn’t hear that,” he grumbles, pressing a kiss to my temple as he grabs his cut off the bed.

I slip into my combat boots and shoot him a look. "He's a friend, Holden, and he took the brunt of Watson's torment the other night protecting me and Blake. It's a thanks, not an offer."

"I'm pretty sure he's in love with you," Holden mutters, shaking his head, slipping his old worn baseball cap over his buzzed hair.

I let out a soft laugh. "He's not in love with me."

Our eyes meet and the look in his eyes gives me pause. "You didn't see the way he looked at you the night--"

Raising a brow I stand and wrap my arms around him. "The night of the bridge?" I ask gently knowing it's still a touchy subject for both of us.

He swallows hard and nods. "He looked just as scared as I was that we'd lose you."

My hands slide to his chest, gripping the edges of his cut. "He's the one that told me not to give up on you, not to walk away from us."

His brows furrow.

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