I pushed him away. “Baby, we have company. You can have me later.”
“Do I get to tie you up tonight?” he whispered huskily against my ear, and I felt his dick poking against my stomach.
“Maybe, but you need to get that thing out of here.”
He laughed as he adjusted his shorts. “Sorry, sweets, you know what you do to me.”
“Horny!” I teased.
He reached a hand up and caressed my cheek, his thumb sliding across my bottom lip. “Don’t be a brat.”
“You like when I’m bratty.”
“Fuck yes, I do.”
“Get out of here before we have to escape upstairs, and you burn the food for everyone. I need to check on the mac and cheese.”
I darted back into the kitchen before he could say anything else. I loved my boyfriend, but I didn’t need to get all hot and bothered in front of our friends. I checked the baked mac and cheese and started working on the salad.
I turned my head at the sound of the back door opening, and I smiled at Lily coming in with her little girl in her arms.
“Hey! Did you relax for like thirty seconds?”
She jostled Rosie onto her other hip. The baby started crying, and Lily sighed. Lily recently weaned her off breastmilk, and her soon-to-be toddler was cranky lately.
“Honey, you need help,” I said.
She bounced her daughter again. “Hang on, I’m gonna put her down for a nap in the guest room. She was up all night last night; she’s probably cranky.”
I waved her off as I whirled around the kitchen, making sure we got everything done. Max ended up coming inside and saw me looking stressed.
“Oh gosh, tell me what you need,” she offered.
I shrugged and took the mac and cheese out of the oven. I let it cool while I instructed Max on what I needed last-minute touches on. Dinah mentioned Max was a whiz in the kitchen. Maybe I should have enlisted her sooner.
Lily came back into the kitchen. “Okay, what do you need from me?”
I poured her a glass of wine and handed it to her. “Drink this and relax. Max is helping.”
Lily slumped into one of the kitchen chairs and drained her glass. Max and I shared a concerned look.
“Everything okay, Lil?” I asked.
“No.”
“What’s wrong?” I asked.
Max bit her lip, and I could tell she felt uncomfortable.
“This single mom thing’s hard.”
“You looked pretty cozy with Logan,” I teased. “Noticed you decided to sit next to him when you got here.”
She shook her head. “It was the only open seat. We were just commiserating about how hard it is. I can’t believe he’s raising a kid. He’s so young.”
I laughed at her. “Um, so are you.”
I handed Max platters to take out to the backyard, and I think she was grateful to get the escape. I sat down next to Lily and pulled her into a big hug.
“Thanks, I needed that,” she said.
“I could tell. Listen, Seth straight-up sucks, but you know Blaise and I are here for you. I’ll babysit whenever you need. You have a team to lean on. And you can still move in here.”
She shook her head. “Thanks for the offer, but no. I can’t do that. Some days it’s just hard.”
“I can’t even imagine, but you’re so strong, and your little girl’s gonna grow up kicking ass and taking names.”
She wiped her eyes. “V, I’m glad you don’t hate me and that we became friends.”
“I could never hate you; you didn’t know. Worked out for me, and it will work out for you someday soon.”
She sighed. “I hope you’re right.”
I knew I was right. I saw the way she and Logan looked at each other today. If that wasn’t love at first sight, I didn’t know what was. They might need a push about it, though. And yes, Logan was exactly the teammate I had in mind for my friend. He was a gentleman, and he knew how to take responsibility. They were both single parents, too; it was a perfect match.
The rest of the afternoon went off without a hitch, and by the time we were crawling into bed, I was too tired for anything but sleep. I laid across Blaise’s chest, and he played with my hair.
“Sweets?” Blaise asked.
“Hmm?”
“I want a baby.”
I looked up at him in surprise. “What?”
He sighed. “Sweets, we see Lily’s little girl and Logan’s nephew all the time, and I want that. I want to hold my own baby in my arms and give them the world.”
When we got back together, we talked about wanting kids eventually, but we weren’t in a rush. So this was a surprise.
“Okay…”
“If you’re not ready yet, that’s okay.”
“Blaise, I have baby fever. And every time you hold Rosie, I think about what a good daddy you’re gonna be. It does something to me.”
I felt his chuckle vibrate across my whole body, and then he shifted me so I was straddling his thick thighs.
He reached up and caressed my cheek. “Yeah, what does it do to you?”
“Makes me want to have a baby with you. I want to see you holding our baby in your arms.”
“How long have you felt this way?”
“A while…”
“You want to start trying?” he asked.
I nodded.
He pulled back and reached over to the bedside table. I thought he was about to pull out one of my vibrators. Instead, he pulled out a black box.
“I guess I should give you this then, huh?”
“What, a cock ring?” I joked because I was a brat.
He slapped my ass. “You’re asking for punishment tonight, huh, brat?”
I nodded. “Spank me. It’s the only way I’ll learn.”
“Veronica, stop distracting me!”
I laughed. “Okay, what do you need to give me?”
He opened the ring box, and I gasped at the massive rock he offered me. The ring had a round aquamarine gemstone at the center, but a halo of tiny diamonds surrounded it. The band of the ring was also encrusted in tiny diamonds. It was so flashy, but it was perfect, and he remembered I said I loved that Dinah and Fi had unique gemstone engagement rings instead of a traditional diamond.
“Veronica O’Malley, I planned this to be romantic as shit—”
“Yes!” I squealed, not letting him get in another word.
“Let me ask!”
“The answer’s still yes.”
That got me another slap on the ass. “Will you let me ask, you brat?”
I shook my head and laughed as he slid the ring onto my hand. I pulled my hand back to examine it. Something had never felt right about the ring Seth had gotten me. It was fine, but this ring felt right to me. And it wasn’t just because Blaise paid a fortune for it. Or that it was a gigantic rock on my hand. He listened to me, and he knew aquamarine was my birthstone. He was so thoughtful about what to buy me.
“We don’t have to get married to have a baby, Blaise,” I told him.
“I know, but I want you to be my wife.”
“Okay, let’s have a baby and get married.”
“Don’t you need to stop taking the pill?” he asked.
“Yes, but practice makes perfect.”