Page 107 of Sweet on You
I kissed her again, a long, lingering kiss in the middle of a county jail parking lot. It would have been ridiculous, except… it just felt right.
We finished kissing and I walked her to her car. She paused, turning to face me. “So… now that neither of us is using our savings on bail money… I had a thought about your building…”
I raised my brows. “I’m not letting you buy that property for me. I can afford it on my own.” I groaned. “Crap, I told Nate last night to list the property.”
Ronnie’s eyes widened. “Text him now! Tell him to take it off the market.”
I laughed. “I will in a minute. He made it pretty clear he wouldn’t sell it today. I’m confident he’ll take it off the market for me.”
She pressed her lips together, looking up at me with sparkling blue eyes. “Well, I was also thinking… that apartment is a bit small for you and a baby, even if you do finish the loft space.”
“Uh-huh…” I slid my hands around her waist, waiting for her to continue.
“And I have a three-bedroom house with an exceptionally large kitchen that doesn’t get much use.”
My heart jumped in my chest. Was she suggesting what I thought she was? “Go on…”
“You could continue running Latte Da as is and rent out the above apartment for extra income. We might even consider letting Sarah rent the space when she’s out of jail.”
I grinned, knowing where she was going with this… but she hadn’t actually said the words yet. “And where would Olivia and I live?”
She blinked slowly, those gorgeous eyes of hers sparkling, and I couldn’t help but wonder what the child I hoped we’d have some day would look like. “You and Liv could move in with me. Olivia could have her own room and you and I won’t have to make out like teenagers on the couch or on an air mattress anymore.”
I snickered and dropped my lips to her neck. “But… I mean, we could sometimes, right? For old time’s sake?”
She squealed as I nipped the most sensitive part of her neck and wriggled out of my hold.
She reached into her purse and handed me her phone. “Okay… call Nate,” she said, bouncing on her toes. “Call Nate and tell him now you want to buy the place.”
Her excitement was so adorable, I couldn’t not kiss her. But then I looked down at her phone, and my own excitement morphed into nerves when I saw five missed calls on her screen. “Uh, Ronnie?” I handed her the phone and she hissed in a tight breath.
“Crap. I turned it to silent inside the jail.” Her concern shifted to curiosity. “Huh… it’s my doctor’s office.” She held up a finger and hit the return call button. “Hi, Dr. Stevens. Yes, it’s Ronnie Tripp.”
She’d barely gotten her name out when she froze and stayed silent for several minutes. Her jaw dropped open and the pink color in her cheeks faded rapidly to a ghostly pallor.
“You okay?” I whispered and ran my hand down her arm to her hand.
She shook her head before finally saying, “Yes, I-I understand. Thank you for calling.”
She hung up and fell back, leaning against her car, not saying a word. “Ronnie? What’s wrong? You’re scaring me.”
She shook her head. “That was my doctor. They mixed up the urine samples Kandi and I gave the other day… turns outshe’sanemic. And I’m… I’m pregnant.”
I stumbled backwards a couple steps. “You’re pregnant?” I repeated.
She nodded, still slack-jawed. Warmth spiraled through my body and a smile slowly spread across my face. “You’re pregnant.” Her hand rested on her abdomen and I placed my hand over hers, waiting for her to say something—anything—to give me an indication of whether or not she was happy or sad or terrified or excited or some mixture of everything.
“Ronnie?” I nudged her after another long moment of silence. “Are you okay?”
Anything would be better than her silence. It had me squirming and itching. Was she going into full panic mode inside? My heart ached for her. I wanted to tell her I’d be there for her every step of the way. That I wasn’t going to miss a moment of my future child’s life. Never again.
My stomach was in knots. And just when I thought I was going to pass out from stress… she smiled. Tears fell from her eyes as she bit her bottom lip through her genuine smile, and the knot in my gut unraveled. That smile was like the sun peeking over the lake’s horizon, bringing light and warmth into my world.
I dropped my forehead to hers, kissing her gently. “I can’t wait to do this from the start this time. Withyouby my side.”
