Total pages in book: 69
Estimated words: 69424 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 347(@200wpm)___ 278(@250wpm)___ 231(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 69424 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 347(@200wpm)___ 278(@250wpm)___ 231(@300wpm)
I knew exactly how he felt.
Squeals had us all turning to find Anders making her way to us.
I let my husband go in just enough time for Anders to hit Searcy and me.
She squeezed us in tight, and Koda and Kent followed suit.
We were one big Hodges huddle.
“So proud of you, And,” I said into her hair.
She squeezed me a little bit tighter. “Couldn’t have done it without y’all.”
Mr. Winthrop manned the dessert table, arranging cookies just so.
Silver and Aella manned the drinks, shooing away every underage kid that tried to sneak the alcohol meant for the adults.
Baker and Dru were next to the grill that Webber and Doc were manning, holding out platters as the men piled high burgers, brats, and hot dogs.
Searcy was bent down talking to the horde of children—some grown, some not so grown—running wild through the backyard.
Sutton, Copper, and Audric were hanging up streamers.
Then there was my husband, who was standing off to the side, watching the chaos, as his family chattered along next to him.
Sophia’s husband, Haggard, was grinning at whatever his wife was saying to her brother.
And, like always, my feet carried me toward the man of my dreams.
I could be gone for twenty minutes, and my feet would still carry me his way.
He turned his head as if he could sense me coming and winked when he saw me.
He held out his arm, and I expertly curled myself underneath his arm and burrowed close.
“You’re wearing my sweatshirt again, and it’s eighty degrees out.”
I was.
But I had a secret, and I didn’t want to announce it to the entire club on Anders’s special day.
I’d been trying to keep it a secret for longer, hoping that my first pregnancy would be like everyone else’s and hide it until I was pretty far along. But the child in my womb had laughed and said, “I will not be denied.”
The doctor had said that I was carrying in the front, and the way the placenta was positioned made me look bigger than I actually was. Pairing that with my thinness, and I had no hope of hiding it.
Twelve weeks was enough to make me appear at least five months pregnant.
Jasper’s hand slipped up underneath the sweatshirt, and he rubbed lightly against my belly.
Our son danced inside my belly. It felt like a flutter of butterflies.
And though Jasper couldn’t feel it yet, he pressed harder as if he could sense it.
“Get a room.”
I looked over to see my big brother, Koda, walking up with a woman on his arm.
The newest girl who had caught his fancy.
“I haven’t seen him in days,” I said. “And he’s not doing anything inappropriate.”
“Yet.” Koda winked at me. “Calli, I want you to meet Ginger.”
Ginger held out her hand to me, and I didn’t miss the eight-inch-long fingernails.
My brows rose, but I took the hand.
She gave me a delicate squeeze, and I wanted to laugh.
Jesus, was my brother in for a rude awakening.
The girl looked like she fell right out of Vogue.
Meanwhile, he was the grunt of the Air Force, and liked it that way. Rough, dirty, and tough. There was nothing my big brother couldn’t do.
Except keep a woman who looked like the one on his arm.
“It’s nice to meet you,” I lied.
Jasper bent down and whispered into my ear, “Liar.”
I covered my smile with my hand and stepped back onto Jasper’s foot.
He grunted, barely containing a laugh.
“Calli!”
I looked up to find the horde of kids heading our way.
They all converged, and the woman’s dress sustained a blow as a cone of chocolate ice cream drug across the pale lavender linen.
“Oh my god!”
I bent down and brought Dalton’s ice cream to my lips.
He tried to shove half of it down my throat.
“It’s good, isn’t it?” His eyes gleamed.
“The best.” I kissed his sticky cheek. “Thank you for sharing.”
He took off like lightning, never still for a second, and darted across the yard to rejoin the hoard.
I stood up and licked my lips as I did.
When I turned, Jasper caught my face in his hands and pressed his mouth against mine.
“Best taste ever.”
I winked. “Best man ever.”
He winked. “Love you, Cal.”
“Love you more, Jas.”
“Oh my god!” I heard someone yell. “Calli, you didn’t!”
I pulled back to see an eighteen-wheeler pulling up.
My face flushed.
Jasper’s hand tightened around my cheeks, and I looked up to him to see his eyes dancing. “Is that a massive T-Rex with a Santa hat?”
“It was too big to bring home,” I grumbled. “So I brought it here. I think it’ll make the clubhouse more festive.”
Jasper burst out laughing. “Only you, Cal. Only you.”