Page 121 of The Merger

“Guess my grilled cheese isn’t what made you sick,” he says, teasing me. “That’s a relief.”

I smile. “I’m glad you find this funny.”

“Oh, there’s nothing funny about it. But it’s not the end of the world.” He presses a kiss to the top of my head. “As a matter of fact, it might be the start to a whole new one.”

I sag against him. “Aren’t you worried, even a little, that this will go wrong? When Tatum said she was pregnant, you did the right thing, and it burned you in the end.”

“Do you plan on burning me?”

“I have a shovel for those people.”

“Then I have nothing to worry about.” He sighs, pulling me even closer. “Tell me what you said about Tatum a moment ago. Repeat that for me. When she said she was pregnant, what did I do?”

“You did the right thing.”

He brushes my hair off my face so he can see me. “I did the right thing. That’s correct. I married her and built a house for her because it was the right thing to do. But I’ll marry you today and build you a house on the moon tomorrow if that’s what you want because I love you, Carys Johnson.”

I gasp, my eyes widening. I pull away to face him, needing to watch him say those words.

“I love the hell out of you, dammit,” he says, grinning at me.

My hand goes to my mouth, pressing against it to hold back a sob.

“I love you and you’re having my baby.”

I fall into his arms again and hold him tight. “I love you right back.”

And I’m having your baby. Our baby.

Oh, my God, we’re having a baby.

The sound of those words passing my lips is wild, and the sound of them makes me laugh. But there’s no fear, no second thoughts. Because I do love him. I love him with all my heart.

“You’ll need some time to figure out what you want to do,” he says. “But I want to help you with whatever you need.”

“A doctor, I guess, because I should get checked out while it’s still early, right?”

He takes a breath and holds it, as if willing me to continue that thought.

“I want to keep the baby,” I whisper.

He falls backward, pulling me with him. His chest bounces as he laughs happily.

“I also have to fill out that life insurance thing,” I say. “Just in case I die. That way my baby won’t be poor.”

He snorts, turning his head to look at me.

“What?” I ask.

“You do realize that money isn’t a problem, right?”

My face falls. I hadn’t thought about that, actually.Holy shit.

“You’re having a realization right about now, aren’t you?” he asks.

“I … yup. I can’t process that today.”

He chuckles. “Don’t think about that. Money is boring. Let’s t hink about …we’re having a baby.”