Page 58 of Patch's Bride
Beth wakes up still wrapped in my arms. She stirs a little, shifting under the blankets, then turns her face towards mine.
“Hey,” she says, voice rough with sleep. “Did you sleep well?”
“Of course. I’ve got my arms around my loving wife,” I tell her teasingly.
She smiles, tracing a slow line across one of my chest tattoos with her fingers. I love lying in bed with Beth. I’d stay right here forever, if I could.
I know this is the right time to bring up the thing I’ve been wanting to ask.
I slide out from under the covers and reach into the nightstand drawer beside the bed. A small box has been there for weeks, just waiting for when the time was right. When I turn back, she’s sitting up, the blanket pulled to her chest.
“What’s that?” she asks curiously.
I sit up as well, then open the box. Inside is a new ring—gold, simple, but a little weightier than the first one.
“I want to get married again,” I say. “The right way this time. I want to give you the wedding you deserved from the beginning.”
She doesn’t speak. Her eyes well up, and her lips press tight together like she’s holding everything in.
“I’ve got twenty acres of yard that haven’t been used for anything but target practice and cookouts. We could get one ofthose big white tents, long tables, and a million chairs. Maybe string up lights in the trees. We’ll have live music, a huge wedding cake, and the prettiest wedding dress you can find. We’ll have everything we didn’t have before. I want to give you the wedding of your dreams—because you deserve it.”
She leans forward, hands gripping the edge of the blanket.
“And the brothers?” she asks, her voice soft. “What about them?”
“They’ll be there,” I say firmly. “All of them. The whole damn club. You can pick one to walk you down the aisle. Any one of them would consider it an honor, because you’re one of us now.”
Her chin trembles, but she nods, and she answers without hesitation. “I want all of it.”
I slip the ring onto her finger. Her hand shakes, but she doesn’t pull away. She leans forward, presses her forehead to mine, and breathes deep.
“I never thought I’d get a real wedding,” she says.
“You’ll get more than that,” I tell her. “You’ll get everything I’ve got. I’d give every lost thing I own and everything I am to make you happy.”
She kisses me because she loves me. Not because she wants my property, cut, or my money. Beth is too innocent to be deceitful like that.
The worst is behind us. Now, we get to build the life we want. Building a life together has got to be easier than what we’ve been through already. I never realized how much I wanted those things until Beth came along with her big blue eyes and sharp mind. I know I’ll never want another woman for as long as I live. I’m too obsessed with Beth to think of anyone else.
Chapter 18
Beth
I’m working on cleaning up Patch’s appointment calendar. I stare at the screen, trying to focus on anything but how strange I’ve felt all day. It’s not just today, though. The last eight weeks have been difficult. I keep telling myself it’s leftover stress from everything that happened. But the queasiness lingers even when I haven’t eaten. This morning, I had to sit down halfway through making coffee, because I felt lightheaded. Of course, I didn’t tell Patch. He’d just hover over me, start running tests. I’m not convinced it’s anything serious.
The front door opens, and a familiar voice fills the space. “I got a double helping of pickles on the side. My cravings have been wild lately.” Sharon waddles into the office, all smiles even though her belly is ginormous. Her arms are full of two takeout bags, a drink tray, and a little white paper bag that she drops on the desk in front of me.
I glance from the bag back up to her smiling face. “What’s all this?”
“Lunch,” she says, breathlessly. “And I made a little pharmacy run.” She lowers herself into the chair across from me. “Don’t look at me like that. I’m overdue, uncomfortable, and trapped in the body of a blimp.”
I laugh, because I wasn’t looking at her in any kind of way.
“Okay,” she says, changing the subject. “I’ve noticed something you haven’t.”
I blink at her, trying to wrap my head around what she’s saying. “What on earth are you talking about?”
“Don’t play dumb. You’re doing that hand-on-the-stomach move. I know that move. It means you’ve got something going on in there.”
