Page 78 of Nine Month Contract
“I can’t?” I ask, feeling a bit triggered by that controlling tone of his rearing its ugly head again. It’s like he’s taking my car keys all over again.
Wyatt’s eyes widen knowingly at me. “It’s almost sundown.”
“And what…she’ll turn into a vampire?” Calder laughs and glances over his shoulder when he sees an SUV pull up to Wyatt’s cabin. “That’s Max, and he’s going to be pissy that we’re not ready.”
He marches over to Wyatt and presses his hands to his shoulders as he walks him toward the door. “Wyatt, let’s go. Trista, come join us whenever you’re free. We’ll take you in your vampire or human form.”
“I’ll be there in thirty,” I call to their backs. “I just need to take a nice hot shower first.”
Wyatt shoots me one last scathing look that I know I’m going to pay for later. But no one tells me what to do. Not even grumpy-mountain-man Wyatt.
“Fuck my life,” I murmur to myself as I watch Trista stride into my home almost an hour later, looking way too hot for how sexually frustrated I am right now.
“Trista!” Everly squeals, and her chair groans on the hardwood as she bolts toward the door to greet my lucky number thirteen.
She’s a cow, she’s a cow, she’s a cow. I repeat Trista’s mantra to myself to try to get control of my thoughts as she moves into the room, giving me a full view of her curves as she greets my niece.
My eyes drink her in as I clutch my poker cards so tight they start to bend. She’s wearing this summery black dress with little straps that show off her tan. And her cleavage. Cleavage that I know intimately after the past couple of weeks. One breast has a beauty mark right by her nipple. It’s the bigger of the two breasts, so it’s become a favorite of mine.
She’s still not showing in her abdomen, as far as I can tell. And the past couple of weeks, I’ve made a conscious effort not to discuss the pregnancy because it seems easier to live in this little vacuum of sex we have going. For now, at least.
“Sit by me,” Everly says, dragging her over to the table. Our eyes meet as she lowers herself into the seat across from me.
Everly sets about introducing Trista to the whole crew here tonight. It’s honestly a lot of Max’s friends from Boulder, who have become my friends as well throughout the years. They all have kids and shit, but they seem to enjoy whatever it is my brothers and I represent to them…reliving their single days, maybe?
There’s Dean, Max’s financial adviser turned friend, then his friends Miles and Sam, who I know well because the two of them run Tire Depot in Boulder, and we do all our truck service work through there. And finally, there’s Max’s closest childhood friend, who I’ve known forever, Josh. These guys’ wives are also super close, and they all have more kids than I can even keep track of these days.
“This one is a doctor,” Everly adds, pointing at Josh.
“What kind of doctor are you?” Trista asks curiously.
“Family medicine,” Josh adds with a polite smile. “I have a private practice with my wife in Boulder, who does more mental health stuff. We have three daughters as well, which means…I drink a lot of whiskey.” He sips the amber liquid from his rocks glass and shakes his head.
Jesus. I’d forgotten Josh had a third kid. There is no way I could handle three kids. And three daughters? Forget it. I already struggle to say no to Everly. If I had three girls, it would be mass chaos on themountain. Luckily, Trista is only pregnant with the one baby. That’s all I’m interested in.
A thought strikes me that I hadn’t considered before. My lawyer asked me about it during our first meeting, but I brushed it off, certain I was making the right decision. He asked if I decide someday that I want another kid, would I want Trista to be the surrogate again? Obviously, it’d be nice because then the babies would be full siblings, but I felt pretty certain that as a single father, one would be all I could handle.
But if I changed my mind, would she be up for it? Would we conceive the baby the old-fashioned way then? My dick stirs in my jeans at that thought.
“Dr. Richardson’s niece Claire is one of my best friends,” Everly says with a smile, ripping me out of my crazy mind. “She’s a year younger than me though, so she won’t graduate until next year. Maybe she’ll join me in Ireland!”
“I’m afraid she’s already decided she’s going to University of Colorado Boulder like her auntie,” Josh says with a wink.
“Wouldn’t that be nice,” Max interjects, shooting a flat look at his daughter.
Everly shoots me a sheepish smile, clearly looking for a lifeline, but I’m not going to be the one to save her. I’m just as miserable as Max over this Ireland move.
Everly’s voice is soft when she replies, “At least it will be easy for me to visit her when I come home in the summers.”
“And at Christmas,” I press, my eyes narrowing on my niece.
“And any other holiday breaks they give you,” Luke adds with a scowl.
Everly rolls her eyes. “We’ll see how it goes. It’s a long flight.”
“Your dad can afford first class,” I snap, my jaw clenching with irritation. This niece of mine seems far too eager to get out of Boulder, and I fucking hate it.
Everly smiles nervously and then directs her focus back to Trista. “Have you felt the baby kick yet?”
