“You forgot the sound of tiny little feet on the flooring we’re putting in.”
My heart froze, and I think my balls crawled into my spine. “What?”
Wasn’t it too soon? We weren’t ready for that kind of life, were we? Hell, it’d only been twenty-four fucking hours, what type of pregnancy tests did they do nowadays that told you that quickly?
“I can hear your heart racing,” she snickered, patting me on the chest. “I meant Zeus and Skippy.”
I had to let go of her as I sagged down until my back hit the ground. “Oh, thank you, great porn palace in the sky.”
Layla’s head appeared hanging over mine, her hair trailing down until it hit my chest. “You don’t want to have kids with me?”
Grabbing her by the back of her head, I pulled her down until her eyes were level with mine. It wasn’t easy to do, given that we were upside down because of our noses, but we could make anything work.
“I absolutely want to have kids with you, but our families are still adjusting to us being married. Adding a baby to it will likely end up with me buried under the concrete planter we’re hiding Mr. Mitchell’s place of death with.”
Layla winked at me. “I don’t want to have kids yet. Imagine them touching the walls in that house before we’ve painted them all or put the new flooring down.” I made a gagging noise and smiled when she giggled, and I felt it on my forehead. “Plus, I think we need more time just the two of us, for ourselves, not just our families.”
“So we wait for kids?”
“We definitely wait for kids.”
I tipped my head back and used my chin to move her head so I could reach her mouth. “Good. Now kiss me, baby, and let me give you your belated birthday presents.”
This time a year ago, there was no sign of Layla moving home. Then, four months ago, I’d heard she might be moving back and that rumors were circulating about her working at Delicious Divas. I’d been too scared to get my hopes up, so I’d ignored it until I saw her walking around with a big smile as she said hello to people. While she’d been away, I’d invested time and money in arranging things like the house and smaller plans we’d discussed, but it’d always been a case of ‘what if’ instead of ‘when.’
I now had my ‘when,’ and as she opened the first box with her official key to the house along with deeds which had both of our names on them, the house finally changed into a home. Granted, not one we could live in just yet, but it wasn’t just something she’d always wanted anymore, it was going to be the home we built our future in.
Each gift that she opened was a link to our past, from a framed penny we’d put into a machine at Disneyland when we were kids that’d been stamped with Minnie and Mickey, to the pink princess ring she’d lost when she was little, and I’d found at the bottom of my closet when I’d moved out of my parents’ place. Then there were the tickets I’d booked to Bimini in three weeks so we could spend a week together. That’d been where we’d had our first kiss when we’d gone with our families, and I’d even booked us into the same hotel we’d stayed at the first time.
Layla stared at them all laid out on the blanket in front of her, and promptly burst into tears.
“I hate crying,” she wailed, throwing her arms around my neck and almost choking me.
“Then why are you doing it?” I wheezed, wondering if she’d realize what she was doing to my airway without me having to pull her arms away first.
“Because there’s no way I’ll ever be able to get you things that even come close to what you’ve got me. I tried with the underwear—”
“Which I love.”
“But it’ll never come close.”
She was underestimating herself on that one. As a man, let me tell you something, when your woman goes out and purchases numerous pairs of underwear in silk and lace, matching bras, and an assortment of lacy, silky nighties, she most certainly has come close to a dog and a vacation to Bimini. In fact, I’d award her bonus points exceeding the two gifts if she brought them and some bikinis with her.
Then it clicked. “That’s why you’re choking me, isn’t it?”
Finally she released me and sat back on her feet, tears still trailing down her beautiful face.
“Just stop doing it, okay? I need a chance to catch up.”
I did everything I could to smile genuinely and reassure her, but I knew the moment she picked up that I was lying how badly I’d done.
“What did you do?”
“It’s nothing big. We’ve got to get to your party.”
Pulling her to her feet, I decided to wrap the gifts in the blanket and put them in the car like that instead of picking each item up individually. We were only about fifteen minutes from where the party was being held, but Layla quizzed me the whole way, almost driving me out of my mind.
Would she hate what I’d set up? Would she love it? Would she try to choke me again?