KAIDEN“It’s so beautiful,” Lily let out a contented sigh as she flexed her fingers, the princess cut ring now sitting on her ring finger glinting in the soft light of the lamp.She was naked, we both were, the sheet strewn around us.After I’d proposed and she’d said yes, I’d dug the ring out of my overnight bag, slid it onto her finger, and then showed her just exactly how much I loved her.Twice.It was late now. Really fucking late. But I didn’t want to close my eyes and go to sleep in case this was all a dream. Or in case, she woke up and changed her mind.“Mrs. Lily Thatcher,” I said, kissing her shoulder as I ran my hand up her stomach, cupping one of her breasts. “I like the sound of that.”“Is this real? It doesn’t feel real,” she said.“Oh, it’s real.” I slid my fingers between hers, interlocking our hands. “You’re mine now.”“You know, we still need to talk about some things.”“I know. But first, I want to show you something.” Kissing her shoulder again, I slipped out of th

XANDER“I hear congratulations are in order,” I said as Lily and Kaiden came into River’s room.She’d been given her own space now she was off most of the machines helping her breathe and regulate her body temperature.“Thanks,” Kaiden said, keeping one hand on his fiancée.Fuck. The pressure was on now. Once one guy in a friend group proposed the rest usually fell like dominoes. But we had our hands full with River. Weddings and all that other stuff could wait.Peyton knew I loved her.I didn’t need to put a ring on her finger to prove that.“How’s she doing?” he asked, tipping his head toward where River slept peacefully.“She’s a fighter.”“She’s growing,” Lily said, going over to the bassinet.“Yeah, she’s gained a few more ounces.”“Where’s Peyton?”“She’ll be—”The door opened and Peyton came inside.“You’re here.” She smiled. “Let me see.”Lily held out her hand and the two of them gushed over the rather impressive ring on her finger.“That signing bonus must have been pretty n

Engaged.We were engaged.And I didn’t know how much it would mean to me until Kaiden had dropped to his knees before me and poured his heart out.“It doesn’t matter now,” he said, kissing my forehead. “All that matters is this. Us. And the life we’re going to create together. Now can we please go inside. I have big plans for you.”A shiver went down my spine at the huskiness in his voice as we reached the front door.Mom and Dad were out tonight, and Poppy was staying over at the Bennets’ house which meant we had the house to ourselves for a few hours. Something I was dying to take advantage of since Kaiden would leave again on Tuesday.But I didn’t want to dwell on that.Not tonight.Not when I was so happy and—“Surprise!” Our family and friends were crammed into the hall, a homemade banner hanging on the wall.“What is—”“We wanted to surprise you.” Poppy beamed.“Oh, I’m surprised,” I said, glancing back at Kaiden. “Did you know about this?”“Nope, I’m as surprised as you.”I saw

“Fine. Steal the cutie.”“Did somebody say cutie?” Miley came into the room carrying a very animated Dexter.I got up and went to them. “Did somebody wake up full of beans?”“He sure did. I’m just about to hand him off to my mom before the ceremony. But I knew you wanted to see him.”“Of course I want to see him.” I squeezed his pudgy little hand. “You be a good boy for grandma, okay? And we’ll have a dance later.” I kissed his soft baby hair, my heart fluttering.Miley had been pregnant on her wedding day, but it wasn’t meant to be. She’d miscarried at nine weeks. They had spent the next two years trying and just when they were about to start looking into their options, Dexter came along and surprised everyone.“Good luck out there,” Miley said. “Not that you need it. This day has been a long time coming.”Three years to the day in fact.After Kaiden had proposed we had every intention of having a spring wedding, but life got in the way.His first season with the Wild had turned into