Page 23 of His Little Pumpkin
Eldon growls again as his eyes sparkle. “Ourhouse. That spare key isn’t temporary, baby. I want you to redecorate and reimagine this place until it feels like yours as well.”
When his deep eyes meet mine I feel like I’m falling, even though he’s holding me securely. “I feel like wherever we are is going to be home now,” I whisper, swallowing hard to get control over my happy tears. “I love you.”
“And I love you, pumpkin.”
He reaches into his pocket, pulling out a small box. “I bought this online the day after we met. It arrived today.”
My heart is racing. It couldn’t possibly be… I breathe a huge sigh of relief as I open the box to reveal a stylish gold chain with a delicate pumpkin charm made of orange glass.
“Do you like it?”
“It’s adorable! And very fall-like. Thank you.”
He fastens it around my throat, then kisses my neck on either side of the charm. “It’s from a glass artist upstate. Maybe I’ll getyou something for every season.” His lips graze my forehead. “Holidays. Days that end in a Y. Whatever.”
“I feel like it’s a symbol of you claiming me.”
“Would that be so wrong?”
I grin. “Nope.” My eyes flick to the clock on the stove. “But it would be wrong for us to be late for work during our relaxation movie week. Let’s go.”
Everything with Eldon is sexy, even the way he wraps a thick sweater around me and takes my hand just to walk to the truck.
Most people wish upon a star.
Maybe I accidentally made a wish upon a pumpkin. Because all my dreams have come true.
EPILOGUE
ELDON
* Three Years Later *
Ienter the house quietly, listening closely. There’s soft clicking coming from the spare bedroom that has become Laura’s office. It’s also a reading room where we hang out together now and then.
Laura likes to keep up with her freelancing work a few afternoons a week so she still has her own money. Not that I generally let her spend a penny of it. It was even difficult to stop myself from paying for the lip balm she picked up at the drugstore last week, but she waved me off.
I know she squirrels her money away in a savings account, and I get why. Having her own money gives her a feeling of security, reassuring her she’ll never be broke or between homes again, even though it’s been clear from the start that we’re together forever.
I putter around in the kitchen for a bit, not wanting to disturb Laura while she’s in the middle of a project. About ten minutes later, she comes out of her office and hugs me from behind.
“So,” I say, slowly turning to wrap my arms around her. “Our two-year wedding anniversary is coming up in a couple of months…”
Laura blinks in surprise. “Wow. Really? That was fast.” She grins, stretching out to give me a quick kiss. “But good. Fastandgood. Ugh, you know what I mean.”
“I do. But our honeymoon only lasted a week. I was thinking… We could take off for another week? Call it honeymoon part two?”
“I dunno… That’s a lot of frozen meals for the guys,” she laughs.
Before our wedding, I prepared a bunch of meals ahead of time, leaving detailed instructions on how everything was to be reheated that even ranch hands who had never cooked a day in their life could follow. I also hired a sweet older lady from down the road to bring pastries in the mornings and check on the kitchen to make sure nothing had exploded.
“But the men loved having their cheeks pinched by Mrs. Abernathy,” I chuckle. “Honestly, I think her blueberry scones are better than mine.”
“Fair. Okay, where do you want to go?” she asks. Last time we drove through the Irish countryside, stopping in at every unique restaurant and pub.
As I snuggle Laura against me, I’m happy to note that she’s back to what seems to be a normal healthy weight for her. I can’t be sure, but I think she’s put on at least ten to fifteen pounds since we met. We don’t have a scale, but the bottom of her ass is now beautifully rounded and filling out her old jeans perfectly, and her boobs are even more luscious, if that’s possible.
I just adore seeing Laura so healthy and comfortable in her own skin. As I suspected right from the start, being a homebody agrees with her: she’s always making little improvementsaround the house – a shelf rearranged here, a closet painted and organized there.
