Page 122 of Being Us (Next Generation 4)

Tanner stopped pacing, his stiff body relaxing when his dark eyes landed on me. “Finally, you were gone way too fucking long.”

“You’re as bad as my dad. I wasn’t gone that long.”

He came toward me, cupped my cheek and my belly, and placed a soft peck on my lips. “How’s my boy?” he asked, ignoring me.

I laughed lightly. “Growing and kicking his mama much like the first one you put in me.” I covered Tanner’s hand that was on my swollen stomach. We had found out it was a boy right as soon as we were able.

Tanner chuckled.

We were due any time with our second son.

“Mama!”

I smiled, crouching low as our firstborn ran toward me and threw himself around my legs. “Hi, baby boy. Did you have a good afternoon with Daddy?”

Manuel Horsch had been born first and now we were blessed to be giving him a baby brother.

“Yes!” he exclaimed.

My heart swelled. Running my hand over his dark head of hair, I picked him up into my arms. “I actually have a surprise for you.” I grabbed Tanner’s hand and led him up the stairs to the garage.

“You do? Baby, you know I don’t like surprises.”

“Trust me.” I patted his arm. “You’ll like this one.” When we reached the door to the garage, I turned to him. “Ready?”

“No,” he grumbled, a deep frown settling between his brows.

I laughed.

Pushing open the door, I stood to the side and let Tanner enter.

“I don’t know what I should be looking for,” he said, pushing a hand through his dark hair.

I smiled, checking out my husband. We had married rather quickly. Uncle Greyson called up a minister and we were married within a couple of months of everything going down.

Letting my eyes roam over Tanner, I still couldn’t get over the fact that he was now mine. Officially. He was beautiful and breathtaking. No matter how many times he told me that he didn’t deserve me, the broken mess of a man dropped everything for me and our son and soon-to-be second son. He had told me in the beginning that he did some things that he could go away for. That heshouldgo away for. But no matter what he did, I was able to look past that and see the true man in front of me. He was trying. He was trying so damn hard to right the wrongs he had made.

A soft woof pulled me from my thoughts and brought me back to the present.

My smile widened, my heart jumping to my throat over the surprise I had for him.

Tanner’s head whipped around, just as a puppy came around from the other side of our car. He sat, planted his butt on the pavement, and stared up at Tanner. His tail wagged back and forth, his tongue lolling out the side of his mouth.

“Who’s this?” he asked, looking down at the puppy.

“This,” I moved Manuel to my side and picked up the little ball of fur with my other arm, “is Rex. He’s an American Staffordshire Terrier. His dad died in a dog fighting ring and his mom was hit by a car. Or that’s what I was told anyway but I think she died by something worse than that.” I cleared my throat when a dark shadow passed over Tanner’s face. “Anyway, he’s a rescue and he’s yours.”

“Really?” Tanner swallowed hard. He ran a hand over the puppy’s head, giving him a scratch under his chin.

I placed Rex in his arms and hugged Manuel to my chest, watching Tanner. “He is. I know how much losing Trigger hurt and it’s never been the right time to get a new puppy. I also know you like older dogs, but I found him online and thought he was perfect.”

Rex licked Tanner’s face, making him chuckle. “Where did you get him?” he asked, his voice thick.

“I came across an ad asking for help. They had interviewed hundreds of people, but no one fit what they were looking for. They wanted to make sure Rex would be in a good home. So, I emailed them and told them what happened to Trigger. We met up at a coffee shop in town and ten minutes later, I was driving home with him.”

“That’s where you went this afternoon?” Tanner asked, lifting Rex in the air.

Rex’s tail wagged back and forth, his tongue moving up and down like he was trying to lick Tanner’s face. He snuffed, grunting when he realized he couldn’t reach.

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