Page 30 of Falling Stars (Wild at Heart #2)

BAYLEE

After nearly hyperventilating in the nursery, I jump in the shower to have a good, private freakout. I don’t want to hurt Maverick’s feelings. My mind is absolutely blown by how thoughtful his surprise was today, but I’m also overwhelmed.

Part of me hates that I can’t provide those things for my son, but the other part of me is so grateful, I could fall to the floor at Mav’s feet.

Once I have my emotions under control, I dry off and get into my jammies, which are some loose flannel sleep pants and a t-shirt.

I tiptoe into the living room to find Leo passed out on Maverick’s broad chest. Holy freaking swoon. Mav’s watching a baseball game while he gently rubs Leo’s back.

When Mav sees me, he smiles. “He did tummy time like a champ. Think that wore him out.”

“You’re so good with him.” I motion behind me. “Should I put him in the crib tonight? It’s going to be weird not to have him with me.”

Mav’s eyes soften. “Paige just emailed me that the bedroom furniture is arriving sooner than she thought. What if we drag the crib into our room? At least for a while?”

Our room? God, I love the sound of that. “You won’t mind?”

“If it’ll make feeding him at two a.m. easier, why would I mind?”

“Thank you. That would be great.”

“In the meanwhile, we can keep him out here with us if you want.”

I smile. Mav is such a good man.

My heart pangs wildly, and I press my hand to my chest. I can’t pretend I don’t love Maverick. He stole my heart when I was a girl, and he’s had it in his pocket ever since.

But loving him will make the end that much harder.

I won’t think about that now. We have a few weeks, and I need to make the most of that. Because when the time comes, he’s going to choose football, and that’s okay. He’s worked his entire life to have this career, and I won’t be the one to derail that.

Leaning over, I run my hand through his hair and kiss him. “Are you hungry? I can make us some dinner.”

“If you take Leo, I can whip us up something.”

“I don’t mind. Let’s get him in his basket, we’ll ice your neck and shoulder, and I’ll make some pasta. That okay?”

“Sounds great. And don’t worry about the dishes. I’ll take care of them since you’re cooking.”

I nip his bottom lip. “You’re a damn good boyfriend, Maverick.” Holy shit. I’m dating Maverick Walker. And I just called him my boyfriend! I wait with bated breath to see how he responds.

With amusement in his eyes, he tangles his fingers through my hair before he kisses me back. “You’re a damn fine woman, Baylee. You make it easy.”

I replay those words in my mind the entire time I cook .

We enjoy a quiet dinner, and then I get Leo ready for bed. “Who’s Mama’s big boy?” I coo at him.

That gets me a half grin. I use my finger to lift the other side, and he giggles.

My eyes widen and I turn to Mav. “Did you hear that?”

Mav scoots closer. “Bro, do you have a permit for that? Pretty sure you can’t just giggle whenever you want.” Then he pokes Leo’s little belly, and my son lets out a peal of laughter.

“Yay! You laughed!” I clap.

We spend the next ten minutes trying to make him giggle again. Mav and I make goofy faces and fart sounds and hop around like monkeys. We probably look insane, but Leo’s into it.

I kiss my son’s neck, hoping for another giggle, but he yawns. “I guess I should nurse him and get him to bed. Should I use the bottle or breastfeed?”

Mav thinks on it a minute. “Maybe breastfeed for your bedtime routine. I can do his two a.m. feeding with his bottle, but that way you have your special time with him and still get some sleep.”

Not having to drag myself out of bed in the middle of the night sounds like a dream. “I like that idea. If you don’t mind doing that for me, I’ll be your slave for life.”

His eyes go mischievous. “Does this include a slave girl outfit?”

“Like Princess Leia in Return of the Jedi ?”

“With the bikini top and everything?” he asks as his eyes heat.

“If you dress like Han Solo for Halloween, it’s a deal.” That man was hot back in the day.

Mav winks at me. “I can do Han, and then you can play with my lightsaber.”

I choke on a laugh, but then he grabs my hand as his expression grows serious. “I’m teasing. You don’t owe me anything. I’m happy to help. And I can’t take credit for the feeding suggestion. I read that on a mommy blog.”

I fold my lips to contain my amusement. “Why were you reading a mommy blog?”

“When I talked to Paige about the baby supplies you needed, she suggested checking it out because this blog focuses on how partners can help new moms. And one of the articles talked about balancing bottles with breastfeeding. It said it might be hard to give up that time with your baby because that’s when you bond, but you can use bottle feeding strategically to get the mom more sleep or a shower or a chance to run errands. It seemed smart.”

Wow. Just when I think I can’t love this man any more, he offers insightful advice on breastfeeding. It’s been a long time since I fantasized about having kids and a family with Maverick. I may have always held a torch for him, but after high school, I kept those dreams in check.

I fiddle with Leo’s hair. “Mav, I don’t know if this is too much to talk about, but do you want kids?”

He tilts his head. “If you had asked me that a few years ago, I would’ve said no. I had friends in college who had baby scares, and a kid can change the trajectory of your life fast.”

“That’s true.”

“But I love my nephews and Ella. And I love Leo. He’s great.”

He loves my son. It’s bittersweet to think about. “Except you’re not a hundred percent sold on the idea of children.”

His brow furrows. “I’m conflicted because I heard my mother couldn’t handle the pressure of having kids. I just wouldn’t want to put that on anyone, you know?”

“I hear what you’re saying.”

It’s dumb of me to bring this up when I’m not sure if we have any kind of future together. I change the subject before I get too worked up about this. “Are you excited to meet up with your physical therapist tomorrow?” I ask as I put Leo in his basket and tuck him in for the night.

When I sit back down on the couch, Mav shrugs. “I’m apprehensive. It’s tough to focus on rehabbing when people keep telling me I’m lucky to be alive.”

Maverick almost died. That’s another thing I won’t think about.

I curl up next to him. “Life is so much harder than I thought it would be.”

He opens his arm, tugs me to him, and kisses my forehead. “You’re telling me. I thought I’d make it to the NFL, and it would be all about making the highlight reel every weekend and going to cool parties.”

“And now you’re changing diapers and burping a baby. Not sure you’ve leveled up there,” I tease.

He grabs my chin and gently tilts my head up. “I love doing those things for Leo, and I’m happy as a clam vegging out here with you.” His brows furrow. “Listen, I need to apologize for something.”

“What?”

“I feel bad that I wasn’t able to get your baby shower gifts to you in time for your party.”

I run my fingers through his hair. “It’s okay. If you had, they would’ve gotten destroyed, and I wouldn’t have that beautiful nursery now.”

He nods. “Those gifts are actually why I broke up with Kira. She cancelled my order. She must’ve seen an email or something on my laptop. I was really pissed about it.”

Oh, wow. “That was really shitty of her, but maybe it worked out for the best. ”

He pulls me closer. “I wish I could’ve been there when you went into labor to hold your hand.”

I give him a watery smile. “Thanks. I would’ve loved that.” I want to say “maybe next time,” but that’s crazy. We just got together.

Mav threads our fingers together. “I thought I’d come back to Wild Heart and miss my life in New York, but I don’t. In fact, I’m realizing how much I hated living there. Nothing against New Yorkers, but it ain’t Texas, you know?”

“Let me guess.” I run my finger over the bridge of his nose. “You missed my sweet tea.”

Leaning closer, he kisses me, just a graze of his lips against mine. “And all your sweet sass.”

“Mm.” I brush a strand of hair out of his face. “You call it sweet sass, but my sister calls it my bitch mode.”

“Well, I like a little bite in my women.”

Dragging my finger over his bottom lip, I chuckle. “You should talk. I think you’re the biter.”

He nips my finger, and I gasp. “I’ll admit that if your ass is in front of me, I’m gonna bite it.” He holds up his hand to pretend it’s grabbing my butt. “It’s just, grrr. Bitable.”

“Did you just growl?”

He slides me on top of him. “Maybe.” We kiss until I’m panting and aching everywhere. “Should we make the bed?”

I nod. Because hell yes, I want to roll around with Maverick.

Oh my God. We’re going to have sex. Like, full-on, p-in-v, sex. Don’t freak out.

Once we get the sheets and blanket on, I take a good long look at him as he stands on the opposite side of the bed. My heart thrums wildly in my chest as I pull off my shirt, which leaves me in a bra and jammy bottoms. I lift a brow.

He chuckles and strips off his t-shirt. Sweet baby Jesus, he’s handsome .

This next part takes a bit of courage. I try not to think about my mommy body and instead focus on how Mav’s looking at me right now. Taking a deep breath, I wiggle out of my pajama bottoms.

His eyes darken as he takes me in, but he follows suit, unsnapping his jeans and sliding them off.

Keeping my eyes on him, I slip under the covers where he joins me. I thread my fingers through his hair. “Do you have a condom? I’m not on birth control since I’m breastfeeding. And you… well, I wasn’t expecting you.”

He brushes his nose against mine. “I know the feeling. One sec.” He slides out and returns a minute later with a gold foil.

Holy crap. We’re really doing this.

“You okay?” he asks as he pulls me into his arms.

Looking into his eyes, I confess the truth. “Just freaking out a little because you’re you, and this is us.”