Page 48 of The Beast's Baby
“That’s good,” she nodded. “Would have been super awkward if you said you wanted to spend a lifetime with me but only kind of liked me. You know?”
He laughed. “Shut up,” he encouraged, and she smirked
“Why don’t you shut me up?” she asked.
He didn’t need to be told twice. He joined their lips again.
“Hey!” someone called from the deck of the beach house. “Grub’s up!”
It was Michael—one of the rather intimidating brothers and the alpha for that matter—and Isobel raised her hand that they’d heard and were coming.
“Ready to have your first family dinner?” she asked.
“Are you?” he retorted, making her raise her eyebrows.
“Not sure,” she admitted. “But they seem friendly enough.”
He smiled then, in agreement. “That, they do,” he said.
He kept an arm around her shoulders as they headed across the beach to the dunes where wooden steps led up to the deck.
***
“I like them,” he said a few hours later, lying next to her in the guest bed they’d been assigned, hand tracing patterns across her stomach. “Mase is funny.”
“Yeah, he is,” she agreed. “And Diana is adorable. Blake is a little scary.”
He chuckled, nodding. “He doesn’t smile a lot.”
“No, he really doesn’t,” she said.
“But he seems harmless enough,” Jay said. “He really dotes on Marcia.”
“They seem very in love,” Isobel nodded. “They all do. I really like Ella. She’s smart.”
“What about Olive?” Jay asked.
“I definitely like Olive,” Isobel smiled. “I’m so glad she’s alright.”
“Yeah,” Jay said. “Me too. I’m glad we’re all alright,” he added.
They were quiet for a few moments. Then Isobel asked, “What do you think of Milton?”
“He’s a little…” Jay didn’t know quite how to finish the sentence.
“Right?” Isobel asked, sounding eager that they’d had the same thought. “He’s clearly a brilliant man, but he’s very…”
“Unfocused?” Jay asked. “He asks a question and then turns to talk to someone else.”
“Yes!” she laughed. “I don’t know if it’s age or privilege.”
“Probably both,” Jay remarked. “But he seems like he doesn’t want anyone to come to any harm. I know he’ll use those memory stick wisely.”
“I think so too,” she agreed.
Jay flattened his hand over her belly button. “What should we call them?” he asked. “Him. Her.”
“I don’t know. I really lovedHocus Pocusas a kid,” she said. “And I was thinking about Dannie.”
