Playing It Safe(92)

“Alex?”

“Julia?”

She smiles then and weaves her fingers through my hair, holding me close to her.

“My tits are going to be f*cking huge after this kid is born in November. Have you ever seen a woman after she gives birth? Seriously ginormous f*cking tits. And the wedding is supposed to be in December on a f*cking beach on some island. What the hell am I supposed to even wear to cover those puppies up?”

“Cover your ears, kid,” I say against her stomach.

“Stop calling our baby kid. She’s going to come out thinking that’s her name.”

“You think it’s a girl?”

She gnaws on her bottom lip for a second, thinking it over before she answers. “I’d be a liar if I didn’t want you to have your own little girl after seeing you with Josie, but I really don’t care what it is because it’s ours.”

I kiss her stomach once more, and all the cursing is forgotten because when she says things like that my whole body reacts to her. And for the record, I really don’t care about the cursing. It’s just a way for her to practice curbing it before our baby is born in about five months.

I change positions and pull her down on my lap so she can straddle me. “Uh-uh, this is how we got ourselves in this mess to begin with.”

“Aren’t you the one who forgot her birth control pills and told me not to pull out?”

“Yeahhhhhh,” she says, drawling out the word and tilting her head to the side. “But you were the one who decided to whisk me away to a remote island where there were no pharmacies around to buy condoms.”

She grins at me as I curl my hand around the side of her neck, pulling her to me so I can taste her. As soon as my lips meet hers, she melts into me. Her tongue, silky soft, darts out and reaches for mine, and I more than willingly oblige, angling my mouth to give her better access. I gently tug at her hair to break off the kiss before it spirals out of control, and she pouts, making me chuckle.

“Don’t you worry.” I press another kiss to her lips. “We’ll pick this up later.”

I help her stand up, and as she’s backing out of my office she says, “You’ve got yourself a deal.”

She disappears toward the bedroom but shouts out a second later to me. “How much time do I have before we have to leave for dinner?”

“Half an hour,” I shout back.

I start to read the wedding invitation she left on my desk, focusing on the date, and I grin to myself because she fell for it. This invitation is really for our wedding in Bermuda. Sabrina and Tyler are getting married in December as well, but in Philadelphia and after us. Julia won’t know until the day it happens. And yes, I’m prepared for the wrath of my beloved. But I’m sure she’ll get over it.

Because you all know how much Julia loves my surprises …





ACKNOWLEDGMENTS


Christian, thank you for being my sweet little boy and warming my heart with every hug and smile you grace me with. I love you, little man.

Belinda, thank you for showing me how to be a mom and a best friend all rolled into one. You constantly amaze me, and I learn something new every day because of you. I love you, mini me.


Kyle, I would not be here were it not for you. Thank you for your unending support, encouragement, and love. Sorry, but this book doesn’t have a hot dog cart scene in it either. Maybe next time …

Dionne Simmons, woman … thank you for being there whenever I need it and for being the bestest friend a girl could ever ask for. Love you so much!

Lisa Chamberlin, thank you for being such a great friend in every sense of the word and for making me laugh whenever I need it. Your loyalty goes beyond the normal bounds of friendship, and I love you for it.

Claribel Contreras, thank you for always being so supportive and for simply being there for me when I need it. Oh, and for sharing your love of serial killers with me too … it makes me feel so much better about myself. Love you!

Sara Queen, you are amazing! You have continued to be a great friend, and your support continues to amaze me. I am forever grateful to have found you in this crazy book world. Love you, SAQ!

Mimi Abraham, thank you for believing in me. Your encouraging words have helped me more than you will ever know. Love you!

Vicky Carballo, thank you for just being you, Void. Your Null loves you no matter the amount of time between talks and visits. Xoxo!

Jessica Carnes, thank you again for taking the time to look at my work and always finding the little things that I would have missed along the way. Without your eyes AND you, I would be completely lost.

To everyone at Montlake Romance who has been so welcoming from the very beginning, especially Jessica Poore in Author Relations and my editor, Maria Gomez, you both have made me feel like I was part of the team and have made all of this so much more worth it.

Melody Guy, thank you for taking the time to go through my story with such a fine-tooth comb. Working with you has been a complete joy.

Kara Malinczak, thank you for all of your time, comments, and suggestions. Your input has been so helpful in getting me closer to the finish line.

Thank you to EVERY SINGLE BLOGGER, big and small, who has helped to get my name out there, supporting me in every sense of the word. Without all of you, there is no way that I would be here right now. I can’t possibly list every one, but I would like to give a very special thanks to Sandy Roman Borrero at The Book Blog, Christine Estevez at Shh Mom’s Reading, Kayla Sunday at My Book Muse, Becca Manual at Becca the Bibliophile, Patricia Lee at A Literary Perusal, Nadine Colling and Tamara McRae at Hook Me Up Book Blog, and last but not at all least, Angie “Squeee” McKeon at Angie’s Dreamy Reads.