Page 45

CHAPTER

TWENTY-FIVE

EMMA

Yesterday was a whirlwind. By the time we got back to the shack, I could barely keep my eyes open. But Archie was worn out too. I think between the emotional roller coaster and keeping up with conversation, we were both exhausted. We pretty much stripped and fell into bed with barely a kiss.

The sun is coming up, and I’m sitting at the little kitchen table, looking out the window.

It’s so pretty here. Peaceful. I’m so glad my baby will get to spend time on the ranch.

And by the looks of the nursery, Alicia plans on having Nugget here a lot.

But I love it. She planned a baby shower for me this weekend, too, since a lot of family will be around anyway, so my friends are coming down tomorrow for the weekend.

I can see horses grazing in the distance and cows in a pen outside of the barn.

A thought hits me when I see Archie’s dad riding up from the south of the property.

He’s got a cowboy hat on, and he’s riding alone.

I get a flash-forward of what Archie might look like when he gets older.

And in that thought, I decide I don’t want to wait to marry Archie .

He has to leave in a few hours to go to Arlington, but I think we need to have this conversation now. I pad back to the bedroom and crawl in next to him. He’s naked, like usual, so I run my hand up from his stomach up to his chest and rest it on his heart.

I’m propped up on my elbow and watch him stir. “Arch.”

“Hmm? What’s wrong?” He opens an eye and looks at me. “You okay?”

“Yeah, I’m good. I was just thinking, what if we just get married this weekend while everyone is here and my friends are coming for the baby shower? I mean, I don’t really see a reason to wait, and I would like to have your name when the baby is born.”

He sits up and props his back on the headboard. A slow smile forms, and it’s incredibly unfair for a person to look this good first thing in the morning. “You wanna marry me, darlin’? This weekend?”

“Well, I mean, I feel like it just makes sense. Everyone is already here, and the baby is coming sooner rather than later. And after the baby is born, will we even have time to plan a wedding? Effective time management is key here, babe.” I feel like I’m rambling a little, but now that the idea is rolling around, the more it feels like the right thing to do.

“I don’t want to deprive you of your dream wedding.

Don’t you want to walk down the aisle in your dream dress that you picked out months before and have everyone you know dance with you at a party that has everything you ever wanted because you’d been thinking about the flowers and music and all the other stuff that girls think about with weddings? ”

“That’s the thing. I have everything I’ve ever wanted right here. I’ve never dreamed of my wedding, so I have nothing to compare it to. And as for dresses, I’d marry you in the T-shirt I stole from you the night we first met.”

“I wouldn’t argue with that.”

I grin .

“But seriously, I don’t want you to wake up in five years and wish you had done this differently.”

“Archie, I think we’re a little late on wanting to do things on a traditional timeline. What do you say? Make an honest woman out of me and make me your wife this weekend.”

“Darlin’, I’m gonna marry the shit out of you.”

We both laugh, remembering when he said the same about dating me.

“Tell me what you need, and I’ll make it happen. We have the big bucks now, so let me know how you want to do this.”

I shake my head. “No, I don’t want to spend a lot of money or anything. I just want to get married here. On the ranch. Simple, easy. I just need you.” I lean in to kiss him.

“Okay, baby. Let’s do it. But I want my friends to be here too. I can’t wait for them to meet you and, of course, to tell them about the baby. Your friends are coming tomorrow?”

“Yes, you’re right. I do want them here if they can be.

Let’s call them all today and see if we can make it work.

Should I ask your mom to help with the wedding too?

I mean, we should probably ask if we can get married here first, right?

Or do you think a wedding is a lot to put on her on top of the baby shower stuff? ”

He barks out a laugh. “Oh, baby. You are gonna be the favorite in the family. She’s going to push me and my brothers aside, maybe even Dad, just so she can have you all to herself. You’re gonna make all her dreams come true.”

I can’t help but laugh because it’s funny, but also, I can actually see this and don’t hate the idea. I really like her, and I think we’ll have a good relationship.

“Okay, then let’s do this! Yay!” I lean in to kiss him again, but his alarm goes off.

“Shit, I need to get up and get ready to go. Did you eat yet? We should probably eat before we shower and get in the car.”

“I had a piece of toast because my tummy was rumbly. But I can definitely eat more. Do we have an agenda for the day, or do we just wait until we get there?”

His parents and I will be going up with him to tour the facilities and meet the coaches and staff.

“I don’t have anything yet, but maybe something will pop up when we’re on the way. Either way, let’s just plan on not eating for a while and maybe have my mama bring some snacks.” He jumps out of bed, and his tight ass is on full display.

“You wearing your boots and hat today, babe?”

He turns to look at me and smirks. “You want me to wear my boots and hat?”

“I mean, I don’t hate it when you do.” I can’t help but smile.

“Okay, baby, I’ll wear them for you.”

He winks, and I can’t deny that he can still make my stomach flutter. And the sex, even though I’m getting bigger every day, I still want it all the time.

But right now, we need to go meet the Cowboys.

On the way up to Arlington, Alicia, my mom—on the phone—and I pretty much mapped out the whole baby shower, then wedding, including a small reception for after the ceremony on the ranch.

I gave my mom some ideas on what I wanted for the cake so she could place the order for that, and we talked about what I would wear, so we’ll probably shop while we’re in the city before we go back this evening.

The cake is ordered, and the food … I left to Alicia.

The local pastor is a family friend, so she called him, and he can marry us.

So, everything is pretty much set. The only thing left for us to do is call our friends and get them down here.

Although I think Archie already texted Liam—since he’s the farthest and would need more time to make arrangements.

The rest of his friends and mine can make the three-hour trip easily.

As for the tour, it’s been incredible. We saw the facility, and Archie got to see his locker. His nameplate was already on it, and his jersey, with his number sixty-nine, was hanging in it. We took a lot of pictures, and Archie took some video of what he was permitted to share.

Now his parents and I are waiting for him to finish up with a few meetings. They have us sitting in a lounge that overlooks the practice field. The whole operation of this place is impressive. My dad would love to see it.

“Emma?” A woman, perfectly manicured, walks into the room.

“Yes, ma’am?” I stand and rest my hand on the top of my belly.

Shane and Alicia stand, too, almost in a protective way. I nearly laugh, but hold it in.

“On behalf of the Dallas Cowboys, we want to welcome you to the Cowboys family. Congratulations to y’all!” She hands me a small box wrapped in silver paper, a big blue bow, and a star with the words Baby Griffith on it.

“Oh, okay. Thank you so much.”

Alicia comes to stand next to me when the woman walks out.

“Emma, sweetie, open it.” Her hands are folded and tucked under her chin.

I’m pretty sure she’s more excited than I am, but I tear into the paper anyway.

When I lift the top of the box, I see a Cowboys blue onesie with the number sixty-nine and Griffith on the back.

It’s just like the Walker one I bought for Archie for Christmas, but this one probably cost a bit more. He’s gonna love it!

“Oh! That is just precious. My word. Shane, come look at this. Emma, pull it out so we can see it.”

I set the box on the chair I was sitting in and pull it out of the box and hold it up. It’s adorable, I have to admit.

“It looks like there might be something else in the box.” Shane lifts it and pulls out white pants with a blue stripe running down the sides. The whole ensemble looks like a tiny uniform.

“Well, if it’s a girl, we’ll add a big bow for her hair.” Alicia giggles. “I just remembered the cutest thing I saw on the Pin network.”

“Pinterest?” I question.

“Whatever, yes. The place you can find recipes and whatnot? That one. Anyway, I saw the cutest idea, and since the cat’s out of the bag about the baby, with you being on national TV and all, we should do it!”

“Okay, what is it?” I ask, but we’re interrupted by Archie coming into the room.

“I think we’re done for the day, but I’ll need to be back up here by Monday. Which means, Em, we will need to start looking for a temporary place to stay until we can come up and look for a house.”

“Wow, this moves fast. Okay, well, let’s make a stop at one of the stores I found for a dress. Arch, you and Dad can just wait in the car or something. I don’t think it will take long. I just want to show Emma a dress, which looks exactly how she described the one she wants for the wedding.”

“All right, let’s get a move on it then. We have a lot to do, and I’m beat. I want to get Emma off her feet and rested too. The next few days will be a little hectic.”

Once we leave the complex and make our stop at the store Alicia found, which did indeed have the perfect dress, we make our way back to the ranch.

We eat with the family before heading back to the shack, where we once again practically fall into bed.

The next morning, I hear Archie talking in the other room.

“So, your flight leaves in an hour, which will put you in Dallas around two p.m. Central. We’ll be here.

I’ll order a car for you so you don’t have to get a rental.

” He pauses. “No, dumbass, I’m calling an Uber for you.

” I hear a loud cackle from the other end of the call. “Later, man. Thanks for coming.”

“Hey, who was that?” I walk into the room and hug him.

“Mornin’, darlin’.” He kisses the top of my head.

“That was Pitz. He just got to the airport in Detroit, and he’ll leave soon.

I spoke with Beck this morning, and he, Charlie, Casey, and Callaway are heading down in a few hours.

Beck said if he wakes Charlie up now, she might cut him.

And I’m not sure if it was a joke or not. ”

“I should probably text the girls then to get an ETA, huh?” I walk back to the bedroom and send out a text to Livi, Mia, and Peyton.

They all respond immediately, which is surprising since it’s so early. They’ll make their way down after eleven a.m.

Archie comes back into the room, looking down at his phone. “My mama wants us to come up to the house. She gave me instructions to not dillydally or fool around.” He gives me an annoyed look.

“We’d better get moving then,” I say, laughing.

Once we get to the main house, Alicia takes us up to the nursery.

She must have grabbed the box with the onesie in it from the car because it’s sitting on the changing table.

I kind of forgot about it just because I was so tired when we got back.

Sitting next to it are two white T-shirts and two baseball hats.

One says Mommy , and the other says Daddy .

Does she just have this stuff lying around?

“Okay, I need you two to change into these T-shirts and holler when you’re ready.” Then she bustles out of the room.

Archie grabs both shirts from the table and hands me mine. “Do you know what this is about?”

“It might be the Pinterest idea she had, but I’m not sure.”

Once we’re dressed, Archie yells out to his mom.

After about twenty pictures, she lets us see the photos.

I have to admit, it’s so freaking cute. I love it.

It’s a picture of Archie and me, our backs facing the camera.

Our hats are on backward, also facing the camera, and we’re each holding a shoulder of the onesie we got from the Cowboys, with his name and number.

Archie, well, he’s eating it up, and he quickly posts it on his social media. The caption is simple though. It says, My life, my love .

Gah, this man. I just love him.