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  Gavin was still smiling. “At least you two would be in a much better position to have kids than we were. Being teen parents sucked. Not that I don’t love you,” he tacked on for Kyle.

  He snorted and looked up from his phone for all of two seconds. “Hey, I get it. I wouldn’t want to be a dad right now. Maybe I’ll fall in love with someone who was...” He pursed his lips and looked to me. “Is born a guy okay to say?”

  I knew what he was getting at, and I really appreciated him trying as hard as he was, and also asking me. “Assigned male at birth,” I told him gently. “And thank you.”

  Kyle nodded. “Yeah. I could fall for someone who was assigned male at birth and then we wouldn’t have to worry about IUD’s and condoms and stuff as much.”

  I wanted to interject, but it wasn’t my place. Thankfully Gavin said what I was going to anyway. “You’re still using condoms, even with someone who doesn’t have a uterus. You’re using condoms with everyone for the rest of your life. And that’s assuming you’re ever allowed to date. Ever.”

  Kyle rolled his eyes, and I sensed that this was an ongoing debate. But I loved how they were being careful about their assumptions of who had a uterus and who didn’t and what that meant for their gender. “Thank you everyone,” I quietly said.

  “For what?” Cindy asked me. “This is how we normally are.”

  I looked to her. “You’re not being overly sensitive about gender because I’m here?”

  She shook her head. “Not at all. We’ve always been really open and honest with each other and made sure that we’re as correct as possible with how we talk about other people. I won’t say that we’re perfect, but we don’t have to do a lot of catch up here either. Just let us know if we misstep. Any of us. How you corrected Kyle, that was totally fine. I want you to feel free to do that with anyone in our family.”

  I was getting so teary eyed that I was worried my mascara would start running. “Thank you,” I mumbled. I leaned over to kiss her, and caught Gavin smiling at us out of the corner of my eye.

  “Back to the baby discussion, though,” Cindy said. “No one is getting pregnant right now. Gavin’s just being wishful. He likes kids. So do I. He always wanted more, and none of his brothers or cousins seem to be giving him any to play with. And, Lyssa, you’re the first person I’ve brought around to meet him in a long time.”

  “Mom dates, but not anyone special,” Kyle tacked on for my benefit. He shrugged once I met his gaze. “You’re special.”

  I was starting to get that impression, and there was enormous pressure not to screw this up for either of us. Especially since her kid seemed to like me.

  “I want kids,” I quietly admitted. It terrified me to even say those words out loud. It had never been a possibility before.

  Cindy gave me another gentle kiss and then squeezed my hand. “I like kids too. But first, let’s eat pizza. And maybe get a cat later. And live together. And actually have a plan this time around.”

  She was right. Of course she was. Planning to have a child would be good. Still, I held the picture of her holding our kid in my mind for the rest of the night.

  Long after we’d said goodnight to Gavin and Kyle and she and I lay in her bed together, I stroked my hand over her belly.

  “One or two?” she asked me.

  I didn’t have to ask her what she meant. “One.”

  She sighed. I couldn’t see her face since I was looking at the back of her head, but to me she sounded happy. “I always wanted another. Not with Gavin. He’s great with kids, but we were both so stressed out and miserable. I know I can be rash and impulsive, so I’m not a good guide to judge things by, but are you freaked out by the talk of us having a kid, even though we haven’t been together for years and bought a house together and all the other adult stuff people plan to do before they have kids?”

  Maybe I should have been, but I wasn’t. The idea of having a child with her, of seeing her holding our child and spending a life with her and our child...that didn’t scare me at all. I wanted that. I couldn’t explain it and I had no idea why I wasn’t completely freaked out, but I did know that I wanted to have a life with her, and I wanted our kid to be a part of that. “I’m not scared at all. I believe that someday I’d like to have a baby with you.”

  “Me too,” she said.

  I kissed the back of her head and held her close. “I love you.” I’d never fallen this fast, or this hard, for someone in my life, but I knew absolutely that I loved her and that we would have a future together.

  “I love you too, Lyssa.” Her voice was soft and warm. She turned over in my arms and I kissed her.

  The End

  You may also enjoy the following from eXtasy Books Inc:

  The First of May

  Caitlin Ricci

  Excerpt

  “Welcome to Paradise,” Melody read as she waited for the automatic gate to open and let them in. “Where we let it all hang out.”

  Beside her, Evan giggled. “Crazy old Mack’s got a new slogan.”

  “At least he didn’t illustrate his meaning with bananas on a wood slab again this year,” Melody replied as she pulled into the exclusive resort community. They had a small cabana they rented in the beginning of May each year, and though they hadn’t visited since last year, Melody remembered how to get there easily.

  “Think the girls will be okay with Brice?” Evan asked. “Maybe Daphne’s getting too old to go to the zoo. Maybe—”

  Melody put their little sedan in park and killed the engine. Sliding in her seat, she turned to face her wife. “Evan, baby, you’ve gotta stop worrying about her. Brice is a great uncle, he’ll take care of them. And she’s not too old to go to the zoo. I actually wish we went more. Now, can we please have the great anniversary here that we always do?” She took Evan’s hands and ran her thumb over the lines in her palms. “Please?”

  Blushing, Evan looked away from her. Melody loved that even after all these years, after everything they’d been through together, she could still get the pretty little pale girl she met in college to blush.

  “Yeah, let’s go enjoy ourselves. Hopefully, Mack made his awesome sangrias again,” Evan said, getting out of the car.

  Melody followed behind her and walked up the narrow path to their cabana. She kicked off her turquoise sandals outside and then slipped out of her long dress. Laughing, she flopped down onto the nearest chaise and smiled into the bright sunlight.

  “You are so amazingly beautiful,” Evan said, taking off her clothes as well and joining her on the chaise.

  Melody sat up and gave her wife one of the red fruity drinks she loved so much. “You’re sweet to say so, considering my wrinkles, the gray hairs I know are coming in and my chipped nail polish. And look, Mack even left us some chocolates.”

  “Mmhmm.” Evan took a long drink of her sangria and sighed, sounding relaxed as Melody popped one of the little chocolates into her mouth. It was peanut butter flavored and the good stuff. She could kiss Mack for splurging on nice chocolate for his clients. Curling up next to Evan, she kissed her wife’s neck, then trailed her lips over her freckled shoulder and down her spine.

  It was supposed to be sweet and romantic, until Evan ruined it by giggling loudly and squirming away from her. “That tickles!” she cried, grinning wildly.

  About the Author

  Caitlin Ricci has been writing professionally since 2012 and since then has released over a hundred stories including some award winners. Though she writes in many genres, all of her stories are about finding love and happily ever after. She lives on a small farm in Missouri with her dogs, goats, and husband.

  [email protected]

 

 

 
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