Page 31 of Room 1017

“The poor boy had been at the shelter for ages, but he’s the goodest boy. He even knows some tricks. Wanna see them?” I asked.

Peter looked up at me with his drool-covered cheeks. “No need to sell me on him quite so hard. You had me from the get-go cause I’m a sucker for a pretty face,” he said with a gooey grin. I wasn’t sure if he meant me or the dog, but did it matter? Either way, he wasn’t mad I’d sprung a dog on him. I was calling that a win.

“I know it’s a big responsibility, but I’ll be here to help. I already stopped at the pet store on the way home and got everything he might need—a dog bed, toys, food.”

“You know,” Peter drawled, “it might be easier for you to help look after him if you lived here too. Although, maybe we should look for a new house instead, someplace with a big yard.” He looked thoughtful, his mind working.

I lowered myself to the floor beside them, and Hurley tried to alternate kisses between us. “I’m so glad you suggested it, because I was just thinking about how we might need a bigger place, withmorebedrooms.” I held my breath, waiting for his reaction.

When Peter didn’t react from the small hint, distracted by the wiggly dog demanding his attention, I decided I’d better drop a bigger hint. I cleared my throat loudly. “You know, the woman I talked to at the shelter said Hurley is really great with kids.Babies, even.”

Peter’s hands stilled on Hurley’s scruff, and I watched as his brain stalled, thinking over what I’d just said. “Did you say… babies?”

I tried to act like it was no big deal, shrugging casually while I lavished some attention on Hurley, but meanwhile, my heart was pounding, my stomach doing backflips. “Well, one baby for sure, anyway. Unless twins run in your family?” I felt like that was something I should know, like now.

When he didn’t say anything, I chanced a peek up at him, and I took in how still he’d gone, the color draining from his face. “Are you okay?” I asked, reaching for him. Was it really that much of a shock? It wasn’t like we’d been careful. He had to know this was a possibility… maybe even a hope? I thought we’d been on the same page, but maybe I was wrong. Gods, I was going to be sick.

“A baby…mybaby? You’re pregnant? Really?” Was that hope I heard in his voice or dread? It was hard to tell the way my brain was spinning. Maybe I was just hearing what I wanted to hear.

“According to the test I picked up at the pharmacy last night, but I haven’t officially confirmed it at the doctor yet. I kinda thought maybe you… might want to come with me. But if you don’t—I mean, I know it’s a surprise, and it’s a lot of big life changes, and if you don’t want—”

Peter cut me off with a hard kiss. “I want, I want, I want,” he said, before trying to drag me into his lap with an arm around my waist, exhibiting a surprising amount of strength. That weight training was really paying off.

As I fell onto him, though, he tipped back at a dangerous angle. We might’ve been able to save it from there, but that was before Hurley decided this looked like a great game of pile-on and climbed on top, front paws on my shoulders.

Peter’s eyes widened in alarm as we passed the point of no return, collapsing into a heap on the floor, arms and legs, fur and slobber. I immediately worried that Peter would be hurt, but he was laughing so hard there were tears streaming down his face. His arms tightened around me, stopping me from trying to climb off.

He brought his hand up and tangled his fingers into the hair at the nape of my neck, dragging me down so he could kiss me again, his tongue sweeping through my mouth with enough force to dominate me, even though he was pinned beneath me and Hurley both. Hurley, meanwhile, was having the time of his life, oblivious to the momentous occasion beyond finding himself in this new home. He rolled over us, licking and barking in doggie delight.

When Peter finally loosened his hold enough that I could draw back and catch my breath, a serene expression of contentment had smoothed out the creases that had been etched into his face since the first time I’d met him. For the first time, I knew he wasn’t dwelling on the past, but instead, looking forward to a future much brighter than he could’ve hoped for.

“Thank you,” he whispered fiercely, holding my face between his palms. “You and this baby—and Hurley too—you have given meeverything. You really are my angel. Without you, I would’ve been lost. I love you so much.”

I kissed him deeply, hoping to convey just how much I loved him and that I’d been lost without him too.

The three—four—of us lay there on the floor for a few minutes in a cuddle puddle, before I finally forced myself to stand up, groaning. Lying on the hard floor couldn’t possibly be good for Peter’s back. “Come on. Let’s get Hurley settled and then we’ll all go for a walk. How does that sound?”

“Like heaven,” Peter said, and tail wagging, Hurley seemed to agree.

20

Peter

“Areyoureadyyet?”Casey called. His voice was muffled by the bedroom door, but not so much that I couldn’t pick up a note of his anxiety over being late.

I was staring at myself in the mirror, second-guessing this entire evening. “No. You can’t rush perfection,” I called back. Honestly, I’d been ready to go ten minutes ago. Except for the crippling doubt, of course. I never should’ve agreed to this.

“I’m sure you look great. Do you need help tying your bow tie? Can I come in?” When I didn’t answer, the door cracked open, and Casey’s head poked through the gap. “Wow,” he gushed, his eyes widening as he took me in. He pushed the door open and stepped fully into the room, his jacket unbuttoned so I got a view of his small baby bump. “If I’d known you were going to look this sexy in a tux, I would’ve lied and told you the wrong start time, just to give myself an extra hour to have my way with you first. Now I’m going to be horny all night.” He reached down and adjusted himself through his dress pants, because, yeah, pregnancy hormones were no joke.

I met his gaze in the mirror. “I could always give you a quick blowjob…” I teased with a tight smile. I was actually glad for the distraction from my fraying nerves, but of course, Casey picked up on the slightest hint that something was up.

His smile dipped as he crossed the room. “What’s wrong, Peter?”

“Nothing’s wrong,” I lied, avoiding his eyes as I focused on straightening my bow tie yet again, but I knew better. He took me by the shoulders and turned me to face him, and I knew he would wait as long as I needed to spill my insecurities—even if that meant we would be late for dinner.

I sighed and tilted my chin down to stare at my shiny black dress shoes. My feet looked like they belonged on someone else’s body, one that wasn’t already so worn out. By all accounts, I should’ve been happy to accompany my boyfriend to this charity event, but… I groaned, my eyes flicking over to where my cane lay on the bed next to Hurley’s sleeping form, small snores coming out with each breath. “I’m going to look stupid, limping into that ballroom full of rich politicians and philanthropists.” I’d heard there was even going to be some big-name movie star at the fundraiser. “My tux doesn’t fit right, and everyone is going to be staring at my cane.”

I thought I’d moved passed this self-consciousness about my mobility aids, but I guessed that was just around average people.Famouspeople didn’t count.

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