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Coop nodded, then turned back to Rhett. “You’re good to get the drinks?”

He patted his pocket, where he kept his “purse,” and nodded.

It was different, seeing Rhett through Cooper’s eyes and Maggie’s eyes. Cooper thought Rhett was the best friend in the world, always there for him when his back was against the wall. Maggie knew him as the guy who promised her forever and then broke her heart. And I was getting to know him too, as a good man and a good friend.

But I couldn’t think about it now, with Cooper’s large, calloused hand enveloping mine. I led him past the dance floor and out to the back patio. There were still people out here, but not as many as inside. We found a private corner, and he smiled down at me.

“If you wanted to get me to yourself, we could just go out to the truck,” he hummed, leaning down and grazing his lips, his teeth over my neck.

My body shivered with desire, and a part of me wanted to take him up on the offer. Make love until the responsibilities of our future faded away, but I couldn’t hold on to this secret any longer.

“Cooper,” I said as he continued dropping kisses along my neck, my jaw.

“Yeah?” he asked against my cheek.

I reached up, tangling my fingers in his hair and then palming his cheeks so he could see me. I searched his pale green eyes, hoping like hell he was the man I thought he was.

“I need to tell you something,” I said. “And I’m not sure how you’re going to react.”

He tensed under my hands and studied my face. “What is it?”

I rolled my lips between my teeth, knowing the words were simple but the aftermath was anything but.

“I’m pregnant,” I breathed.

His eyes widened, much like Maggie’s had.

I continued, unable to stop the spill of words because I didn’t want him to be disappointed; I didn’t want him to leave me. “I know it’s a lot, but I want to keep this baby. I want to raise it with you and have a crazy, passionate, fast, fun life full of sex and laughter and happiness and everything in between. And if you don’t want that I understand, I’ll raise this baby on my own, but I really—”

He covered my mouth with one hand, holding the nape of my neck with the other as he studied me, a small smile playing along his lips. “Will you shut up for a sec?”

I let out a small laugh through my nose.

Slowly, he removed his hand from my lips and held my face so carefully in his hands, you’d think I was made of gold. “Camryn Childers, I loved you the second I laid eyes on you. Some people will think that’s crazy, impossible, or just plain dumb. But you know what I say?”

I looked up at him.

His lips quirked. “I say that’s none of their goddamned business.”

I smiled up at him. “You love me?”

He nodded. “And I love the hell out ofourbaby. You just try to raise it without me. You’ll get so fucking annoyed by me sitting on your porch and offering to change diapers and mix bottles and shit.”

Despite the tears falling down my cheeks, I was grinning like a fool.

He kissed me hard and then pulled back, taking me in, his eyes shining with joy. “I’m going to marry the shit out of you.”

I let out a tearful laugh. “Are you proposing?”

“Shit. Right.” He got down on one knee in front of me and looked up, a crooked grin on his lips. “Camryn, can Ipleasemarry the shit out of you?”

I laughed, happier than I knew I could feel. “Yes, Cooper Lawson, you can marry the shit out of me.”

46

MAGNOLIA

I foundRhett still waiting in line at the bar, Cooper and Cam nowhere to be seen. But he wasn’t alone.