Page 111 of Dublin Charmer

She takes a deep breath. “I was almost five months along before I even realized. My cycle has always been glitchy and with my focus on Gio I missed it. I figured the weight was all the stress eating, and feeling tired and a bit nauseous was a result of everything I was going through. But then he started to wriggle.”

I chuckle. “That’s how you figured it out?”

She nods. “Talk about being freaked out, I didn’t know I was pregnant and then something was moving inside me.”

As if he knows we’re talking about him, Nyx’s belly bulges with a slow-motion wave of shifting density. I stare at where my hand is riding the rolling of her tummy. “That’s fucking weird.”

“Imagine how I feel.” She laughs, pressing her hand over mine. “And by the way he kicks, I think he’s going to be a professional footballer.”

I grin. “Aye, that’s my boy.”

Her grip tightens. “So, you’re happy, then? I didn’t totally cock it up?”

I meet her gaze. “Och, you cocked it up, but if you’re here with me and we’re going to make a go of it with our boy, I’m happy. I’ve never been happier.”

The relief in her eyes pierces me to my very soul. I pat the mattress beside me. “Come here to me, luv. I need to hold you.”

It takes a bit of careful shuffling to get the rail of the bed down and for her to climb on next to me, but we manage. I wrap my good arm around her and pull her to my chest, pressing my face against her hair to breathe her in. “I haven’t felt alive since you left. And when you stopped talking to me... I needed something. The danger. The adrenaline. Just to feel anything at all.”

“I’m so sorry.” A tear slips down her cheek. “But that’s over now. We’re here and we need you. So, if you ever pull a stunt like this again, you won’t have to worry about whether your recklessness kills you, because I will.”

I laugh, then wince at the pain. “I would expect nothing less.”

“I’m serious, Finn. You could have died. Nothing is worth that, not even me.”

“We’ll have to agree to disagree on that, but it’s a moot point.” I press a gentle finger under her chin and lift her gaze to meet mine. “The point to focus on is that you’re mine, Emilia Farina and I’ll never let you walk out on my life again. You’re a Quinn now and Quinns are in it for the long haul.”

“The long haul,” she confirms. “Forever and always.”

“Forever and always,” I murmur, the drugs pulling me back toward sleep.

The last thing I feel before drifting off is her lips pressing softly against mine, and a nudge against my side from my son practicing for his Premier Division tryouts. A son. Nyx is back and she’s given me a son.

For the first time in months, I can breathe again.

EPILOGUE

Nyx

Six Weeks Later - October

The Quinn compound’s massive front door swings open, and I hesitate on the threshold. Finn’s hand at the small of my back guides us inside, steadying me—and our son.

“Welcome home, little one.” Tag is first in the line of family waiting in the foyer, his voice warm and quiet. “How did our boy like his first car ride?”

“He slept through most of it,” Finn says, grinning. “Then, I’m pretty sure he shit his pants.”

Laine laughs, holding out her arms to take the baby carrier from me. “We can take care of that, can’t we girls?”

Nora, Piper, and Harper all nod, gathering around to take their first looks at our boy.

“Oh, he’s a Quinn all right,” Harper laughs. “What is it about the boys in this family?”

I know exactly what she means. Even at two days old, it’s obvious who his papa is.

“And do we have a name?” Brendon tugs at the fluffy blue carrier cover to get a better view.

“Antonio Noah Quinn,” Finn says.