Page 37

Beth

“ I can walk to the fridge, you know?” I grumbled as Cullen brought me another soda.

“I know, but you need to rest,” he said as he sat next to me on the sofa, pulling me into his arms.

All I had been doing was resting. After the debacle with my family, the guys had gone into overdrive, making sure I rested.

I hadn’t cooked or cleaned or even gotten my own drink since I came back.

It was kind of nice being spoiled, but I was so used to doing things myself that it was a struggle at times to adjust to this new normal.

I was spending a lazy Tuesday on the sofa, watching TV with Cullen while Gideon worked from home. He had hardly gone into the office since I’d returned home. His presence was comforting, but I hoped he wasn’t slacking at work or falling behind because of me.

Jensen had picked up another ER shift, but he had checked with me several times before accepting the shift, not wanting to leave if I wanted him to stay. It took a lot of assurance, but he finally left. The guys were probably going stir-crazy stuck in the house with me.

I snuggled into Cullen’s side, subtly pressing my nose into his chest so I could get a hit of that bourbon and oak scent.

“How are you feeling?” Cullen asked softly, running his hands through my hair.

“Good. Just tired,” I admitted. “The nugget is sapping my energy.”

Cullen chuckled. “Little thief. You should try and get more rest, but I know that advice is going to fall on deaf ears.”

I looked up at him, cocking an eyebrow. “That’s rich coming from you, Mr. Workaholic.”

A warm, rich laugh emanated from his chest. “That’s fair, but you’re growing a human being.”

He had a point there…but I didn’t want to admit it.

“We need to tell Joey soon.” I sighed. “I want to get her involved before I pick out many decorations or furniture.”

“She’s going to love being a big sister. You know she’ll be begging you for more as soon as you give birth?”

Giggling, I shook my head. “She’ll have to make do with the nugget for now!”

We stayed curled up on the sofa for an hour, simply basking in each other’s presence. Even though we hadn’t outright said what we were, it was clear that they were more to me than just the pack who had gotten me pregnant.

“Hey…Cullen?” I looked up at him with big, round, pleading eyes.

A smile spread across his face. “What do you want?”.

I bit my lip. “Do we have some stinky cheese here?”

His eyebrow rose. “Stinky? That’s specific.”

I shrugged, squeezing him slightly. “I can’t explain it, but I’ve been thinking about stinky cheese all day, and even last week, I had a hankering for it, and I don’t know why. All I know is I really want some stinky cheese.”

“That sounds like a pregnancy craving.”

“Then it’s your fault!” I giggled.

“How so?”

“The nugget is the reason I’m getting these cravings. You are the one who potentially put said nugget inside me, so ergo, it is your fault!” I was giggling at my own absurd logic.

Cullen cocked his head to the side, his dark hair flopping over to the side as he did so. “Well, I’m not sure I can refute that logic, though the blame may also sit with Jensen or Gideon.”

“If the baby comes out with a briefcase or more energy than humanly possible, we’ll know who is to blame.”

A loud, rambunctious laugh echoed throughout the room. The mental image of a little baby holding a briefcase was oddly adorable.

“I don’t think we have anything here, but if you feel like going on an outing, there’s an Italian deli not far from Joey’s school. We can go get some, then pick up Joey.”

I sat up straighter, a smile tugging at my lips. “That sounds really nice,” I said. “We can even take Joey for an after-school treat.”

Cullen smirked. “Let me guess, you also want chicken nuggets, and you’re using our daughter as an excuse?”

My mouth dropped open in mock outrage as I lightly shoved him. “I despise that insinuation, Mr. Noble. Even though the assumption is correct, I merely thought that Joey could also benefit from my rampant cravings.”

He shook his head, unable to contain his grin. “Get dressed. We have cheese, a child, and chicken nuggets to get.”

I hopped up, clapping my hands excitedly before scampering over to the stairs, shouting up toward Gideon’s office. “Cullen and I are going to go buy stinky cheese before we get Joey—you want to come?”

I took the chuckle that emanated through the house as agreement.

“How much longer?” I whined, bouncing on my heels as we waited outside the school.

Gideon laughed, pulling me into his side, pausing my movements. “How many times have you picked Joey up from school now? You know it’s a few more minutes.”

“I know.” I pouted. “I’m just excited.”

We were going to the local park. Cullen was waiting in the car with my stinky cheese, and Jensen was almost finished with work and would be meeting us for our family outing. Joey was going to love it—she lit up whenever she got all her dads at once.

“Gideon!” a sickly-sweet voice called out from the crowd, making me still. I immediately recognized that voice.

The snotty-looking blonde woman who had been so insistent that the Thanksgiving festival setup was only for mothers was approaching us, an overly friendly smile directed right at Gideon.

“Mrs. Lowe,” Gideon greeted as she approached with a nod.

“How many times do I have to tell you to call me Jennifer?” she said, playfully batting him on the arm. “How are you? I haven’t seen you at pickup for a while.”

I took a step back, no longer clinging to him as much. Technically, I was the nanny. Though a large part of me wanted to cling on tighter and stake a claim on Gideon because the way she was looking at him was downright desperate.

She wanted him.

Maybe she was hiding it well, but I could tell.

“How is Lillian?” Gideon asked.

“Good. She needs to have a playdate with little Joey soon.”

Not if I had anything to say about it.

My hand went to my flat stomach for a moment before dropping it. Thankfully, Jennifer hadn’t noticed. After the way she had spoken about Joey at the fall festival, there was no way in hell I was going to encourage her child and Joey to have a relationship.

Even though, technically, her child was innocent, I could almost guarantee that some of the mother’s toxic, vile behavior had rubbed off on her.

“Sure.” Gideon nodded, his face unreadable.

I swallowed. Was it my place to say anything? My role in Joey’s life was becoming more and more complicated by the day. There was no way I could let her around Joey, though. That was just asking for her to get hurt.

When she placed her hand on Gideon’s forearm, giving him that simpering look, I nearly lost my mind.

“Here, why don’t I give you my number?” she asked, pulling out her phone.

Gideon smiled, turning to me. “It may be best if you take Bethany’s number. She’s far more involved with picking Joey up than me.”

Jennifer’s face dropped. “I am more than happy to take the nanny’s number, but I would also like to talk to you occasionally. We all know staff doesn’t always last.”

My hands were itching to reach out and tug on her perfectly styled hair as she gave me a disapproving look.

Staff.

Was that all I was?

Oh no, what if Gideon agreed?

Gideon frowned, wrapping his arm around me again as he pulled me into his side. “Bethany isn’t a staff member. She’s part of our family.” His words were firm, leaving no room for misinterpretation.

My insides turned to mush as I smiled up at him. It was the first time he’d declared that I was family, and hearing that felt good.

Jennifer’s face reddened. Before anyone could say anything else, she waved at another one of the moms and scurried away.

“We don’t like her,” I muttered at Gideon as she left.

“She’s flirty but harmless. There’s no need to make drama where there is none.”

“I didn’t tell you this at the time, but she just happened to be a bitch about Joey not having a mother at the fall festival. She was trying to get me kicked out for helping Joey in that passive-aggressive way that makes me want to throttle her.”

Gideon’s eyebrows rose. “Are you serious?”

I nodded. “As a shark attack. I dealt with it at the time, and Joey didn’t see or hear anything. You can blame it on the pregnancy hormones if you want, but I will throw hands if she’s mean to our Joey.” As I spoke, I glowered in the direction Jennifer had gone.

Gideon’s hand rested on my lower back as he kissed the top of my head. “Stand down, killer.” His words held no heat. In fact, they were almost affectionate and…proud.

“When do you want to tell her?” Jensen asked as we watched Joey and Gideon playing on the swings. Cullen was over at the ice cream truck, grabbing cones for all of us.

“I don’t know,” I said as I rubbed my belly. I was into my second trimester, and I was going to be showing soon.

“Maybe over the holidays would be nice, especially considering you’re going to be with us. We should probably tell her before you move in full-time…”

“Who said I’m moving in?” I asked with a frown.

Jensen chuckled. “You’ve been sleeping at our place more than your own. Joey loves having you around, as do we, and we know full well you can’t live at the dorms when you have a baby.”

“I could get my own apartment.”

Jensen pursed his lips. “I suppose you could, but that seems kind of silly when you have several helping hands at our place. Maybe you should have this conversation with Gideon.”

I snorted. “You know full well that wouldn’t be a conversation. Gideon will steamroll it.” I took a deep breath. “Maybe staying more wouldn’t be the worst.”

Now it was Jensen’s turn to snort. “I’m too snuggly to resist!”

I doubted I would be able to resist for long. After all, it made more sense to be there once I gave birth, and easing Joey into it was probably the best solution. It also helped that I simply wanted to be there around them all.

“We’ll see.”