Page 83 of Where We Call Home

“We could go sometime,” I suggested, smiling at them. “A girl’s trip—I could show you two around.”

“Yes!” Aspen gasped, clapping her hands in excitement.

“I’m going to start planning. This will be my entire personality for the foreseeable future,” Penny declared. She was a planner to her core, always down to the smallest detail. Thank God for her because I was the opposite.

“Well, it’ll have to wait until after the baby comes,” I said, running a hand along my bump.

“She’s going to be here so soon!” Penny cheered, sipping her mimosa.

“I know! I can’t believe it.”

Time was ticking. Thanksgiving was just over a week away, which meant I was closing in on thirty weeks of pregnancy. Thinking back on everything that had happened since I returned to Faircloud—it was overwhelming.

Thirty weeks. Seven months. Two hundred and ten days.

“How’s it going, living with Rhodes?” Aspen asked, leaning forward slightly.

Luckily, the women doing our nails were occupied with manicures, leaving us free to chat without prying ears.

“Really good,” I admitted honestly, feeling the perfect segue to confide in my friends. “We get along well.”

I looked down at my nails, absently picking at my cuticles.

Aspen cleared her throat, drawing my attention back. She could always tell when I had more to say.

“You slept with him, didn’t you?” she asked, her voice laced with curiosity.

I nodded, unable to hold back the laugh that bubbled up. I hadproof, too. Reaching into my purse, I pulled out my phone and opened my photo gallery. These pictures were supposed to be for my eyes only, but Aspen and Penny didn’t count.

I handed my phone to Penny, the first photo pulled up. “Here’s your proof.”

Penny grabbed the phone, and Aspen leaned so far over I thought she might fall out of her chair. Penny zoomed in immediately—I’d bet good money it was on Rhodes’ abs.

“Oh,hellyeah,” she laughed, nodding appreciatively. “This is hot.”

“Keep swiping,” I encouraged.

“Was he good? I bet he’s so good,” Penny said, practically drooling. “I’d swallow him whole and make sure he knows I don’t have a gag reflex.”

“It was amazing,” I admitted with a grin. “I’d absolutely go back for seconds.”

The pictures had become my guilty pleasure. It was embarrassing how often I’d opened them just to stare.

“I want these framed, please and thank you,” Penny said, her eyes still glued to the screen.

“The smile on your face says it all,” Aspen added, her attention on me.

“I think I might be falling for him. Hard,” I confessed, cringing slightly. “I wasn’t expecting it.”

Saying it out loud felt strange. The truth was, Rhodes had become my person. He was the one I wanted to talk to after a tough day, the one I hoped would be there for my next doctor’s appointment. He was the constant in every scenario I pictured for my future.

“Oh, babes,” Penny said, handing my phone back and touching my arm gently. “Falling in love is scary, and you never see it coming.”

Aspen nodded. “That’s how I felt with Boone. Taking the job on the ranch wasn’t supposed to lead to a relationship, but now? I couldn’t be happier.”

“It’s weird for me,” I admitted. “I always thought I’d live my life on the go. But with Rhodes, he makes mewantto stay. I want to settle down—have a family.”

“Have you told him?” Penny asked.

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