Page 96 of Reclaimed

Juniper purses her lips and leans back against Lee’s shoulder. “Okay, that’s acceptable, but now you have to spill. Do I get another niece or nephew?”

Suddenly the center of attention, my heart skips a beat. I wet my lips. Aiden drops into the chair beside me and takes my hand. “Tell them what we’re having, starshine,” he murmurs in my ear.

I search his gaze, but all I find is a strong contentment urging me to do as he asked.

“We’re having a boy.” The words are loud enough to be heard around the room, but I can’t take my eyes off of Aiden. For the first time since this silly arrangement began, I admit to myself that I wish the words were true. I wish Aiden was this baby’s dad.

How pathetic does that make me? Falling for this man while I’m pregnant with someone else’s baby? He can’t know. He’ll think I’m trying to trap him, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. The truth is I’m falling hard, and I don’t know how to stop the freefall.

A desperation surges in me so strongly that I wrap my palm around his neck and tug him to my lips. I kiss him with an urgency like the sand timer’s been flipped, and one by one, I’m watching the tiny grains counting down.

“Sorry,” I mutter, pulling away.

Aiden thumbs away a smudge in my strawberry lip gloss, eyes soft. “Never say sorry for kissing me.”

“All right, move over, Aiden. I need to hug my best friend.” Juniper bounces on the balls of her feet. Aiden kisses my cheek once more before releasing me with his palms held outward.

“I can’t help it if she finds me irresistible.” He smirks. Nobody laughs. The silence in the room is so profound I could hear a pin drop.

Quietly, from the corner, Jude says quietly, “There he is. Happy for you, Aiden.”

“Thank you.” Aiden’s voice is gruff. I want to see his face, but before I can get a good read on how Jude’s words affected him, Juniper yanks me up from my chair.

“I’m so excited for you!” she squeals in my ear. My arms tighten, gripping her like a sudden lifeline I didn’t know I needed until right this second.

“Thank you.”

“Is the baby here?”

We break apart at the newcomer. Cortney stands at the edge of our little group, her face serious as she studies her family members.

“Not yet.” Aiden engulfs her in a hug, spinning her once.

Her face breaks out into a brief smile before she smacks his shoulders. “Put me down!”

Aiden lowers her back to her feet but keeps his arm tight around her upper back. “Isla just announced that she’s having a boy.” His eyes meet mine, but I find them unreadable.

“Oh my god, congratulations!” I’m swept up into another tight hug. “I can’t believe I’m going to get two new babies to love on.”

My heart clenches so hard I nearly grab my chest. I find Aiden over her shoulder, his attention on the two of us.

Tell them,I mouth.

He tucks his hands into his front pockets and shakes his head no.

I open my mouth, my mind working on the right words to put the truth out in the open, when the door to the maternity ward opens.

“We have a baby!” Jack announces, his face split in a radiant smile.

Everyone stands and shuffles closer to the beaming Powell brother. Jude reaches him first, clapping his twin’s shoulder in anticipation of the news.

“Whitney is doing great. She’s getting cleaned up and having a rest before she tries nursing. Once she’s ready, we’d love for you all to meet our little boy, Soren Jude Powell.”

“Fucking hell, man,” Jude croaks and yanks his brother into a crushing hug.

“Damn,” Aiden says quietly at my side, his hand finding mine. His voice is thick when he says, “That’s nice.”

“That’s such a sweet gesture.” I squeeze his hand.

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