Page 113 of By the Letter

“Yes, Rome, we are.”

“Then we better get all your stuff moved over here tomorrow so we don’t have to deal with it after he comes.”

“Tomorrow?”

“I’m not feeling much like wasting time.” He turned his head to kiss my wrist. “You?”

“No more wasting time.”

With a deep groan, he moved behind me, wrapping his body around mine. His hand roamed over my belly and the slope of my hip before spending a generous amount of time on my breasts.

When it was time, when we were breathless and needy and had shed our clothes so our skin slid together, I lifted my leg, and Roman thrust into me.

We made quiet, lazy love, rolling hips and greedy hands. He kissed my shoulder and throat, then turned my head to take my mouth. In my ear, he whispered his happiness to have me in his bed permanently. I wove my fingers between his and sighed my agreement.

There was a part of me that was afraid—we were facing the unknown, after all—but then I remembered all of this was unknown.

Except Roman.

We had been connected by a letter since I was nineteen years old. Iknewhim. Not every one of his stories, but who he was at his core.

He was mine.

He traced the curve of my belly and rocked into me, planting himself deep. Mouth beside my ear, he nibbled my lobe, then said, “This part I’m going to miss. Do you have any idea how sexy you are right now, Shira? You’re in full bloom, baby.”

My insides quivered, pulling him even deeper. “Then you’ll have to work hard to get me this way again.”

“It won’t be hard work. It’ll be my favorite pastime. Fucking you to get you pregnant and round with our baby. Dripping tits and pussy. God, you sure seven is off the table? Not sure I’m going to be able to stop at a reasonable number.”

I tilted my head to nip the underside of his jaw. “Move, honey. Make me come, and you can probably convince me of anything.”

With a growl, he snapped his hips, hitting a spot inside me that made my eyes roll back. And he kept hitting it until I was shaking all over and moisture dripped from the tips of my breasts. Once he felt that on his palms, Roman followed me over, then methodically cleaned every last drop of milk.

Then he took my face in his hands and traced the slopes with his fingers while studying my features. The part of me allergic to attention squirmed, but the sureness that Roman adored every bit of me, including my face, pounded my insecurities back.

He pressed a kiss on each of my eyelids and the tip of my nose. “I adore you, Shira.”

“I feel that.” I lifted my head to kiss his lips three times, then once more for good measure. “I adore you too, my Rome.”

For once, Roman fell asleep before me, holding me snugly against his chest. It might’ve been the persistent ache in my back keeping me awake or the thoughts of all the things I had to get done before Beanie arrived.

The bright side? I had at least a week.

I smiled to myself. I hadn’t done that in a while, searching for a bright side when it had once been a habit. Looking at the man sleeping beside me in the dark, I knew why. My days with him were all light. There was nothing to search for or sort through. I was living in the bright side.

The backache persisted all night. I slept off and on, the waves of pain waking me. The following morning, the ache spread around to my front, tightening my belly.

It wasn’t consistent, so I decided to keep it to myself. I knew Roman. He would cart me off to the hospital before I even got the word “contraction” out of my mouth. Fortunately, he was distracted with the task of moving my things to his house. He’d recruited his brothers to carry what they could by hand, including my beloved dining room table.

Adrian scratched the side of his head. “Rome has a table. Why are we moving yours?”

I pointed at Roman’s dining set. It was fine, but it had no personality. He’d probably had a designer choose it for him while I’d fallen in love with my table and chairs. “Because this one is going to my house.”

Since the decision for me to move in with Roman had been officially made last night, we hadn’t decided what to do with my house. I assumed his brothers would be around even more when Beanie was here, Ben especially, and they’d need a place to sleep if they wanted, so for now, I’d keep it.

Nate rolled his shoulders. “Is there any reason you couldn’t hire movers?”

Roman patted his back. “Last minute decision. If there’s anything too heavy for you, I’ll hire professionals.”

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