Total pages in book: 97
Estimated words: 94072 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 470(@200wpm)___ 376(@250wpm)___ 314(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 94072 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 470(@200wpm)___ 376(@250wpm)___ 314(@300wpm)
“What about your friend Janet?” Alex asks. “Bryan told us she had moved out there with you.”
“She bought a charming little cottage half a mile down the road,” I say. “I need her by my side—she’s been a rock so far. Janet uprooted her entire life to do this with me. I even invited her to stay in the farmhouse—there’s plenty of room—but she figured we should have the place to ourselves. The cottage she’s settling into is already in great shape.”
Kellan smiles, his gaze wandering back to his brothers. “We can help Janet with whatever she needs for the cottage—expenses covered by the winery.”
I let out a grateful sigh. “You’re amazing.”
He laughs. “No, what we are is… well, kind of rich. We’ve got plenty of disposable income, and investing in you, my darling Makayla—and in those who support you—makes perfect sense.”
“So we get the family homestead?” Alex asks, pulling me into his lap.
“Yes,” I say, my heart full of joy. “There are currently only two bedrooms, but we really don’t need more than one. I was thinking we could knock down the wall between the two existing bedrooms and make one big room on the second floor. Then we’ll have our own bathroom and we can get an enormous bed so that we can all sleep together.”
“I love every bit of that,” Oscar says. He’s still holding my hand, and he lifts it to his lips even though I’m perched on his brother’s lap.
I kiss Alex and then Kellan before leaning over to finish up with Oscar. Kellan gets up off the floor, brushing his knees clean.
“And besides, we could always expand the farmhouse. In fact, I know a good architect who can help us out.”
“I’m open to anything as long as we’re happy… and together,” I reply.
He flashes a goofy, oversized grin before ducking into the shower. I sink into Alex’s chest and watch in sweet serenity as Oscar takes a seat on the coffee table. He draws my feet into his lap and starts a slow, delicious massage.
This is the life. I’m wrapped in the safety and love of not one, not two, but three wonderful men. If, for a moment after learning about my pregnancy, I worried about how I might fare, the Anderson brothers kiss every doubt away.
We’re good.
We’re golden.
36
OSCAR
“Should you be out in this heat?” I ask, keeping a close eye on Makayla as she works the soil, tugging weeds from around the young vines.
I find her out here after tinkering in the barn for over an hour, trying to sort through the mountain of farm equipment stashed in the rafters. My darling Makayla and her friend Janet had no idea what sort of treasure trove they were sitting on until my brothers and I moved in.
“I’m okay,” she says, wiping sweat from her brow with the back of her hand. It’s June, and she’s seven months pregnant. “Feeling heavier every day, but I can manage. This isn’t exactly backbreaking work.”
“You may be getting heavier, but you’re still the most beautiful woman I’ve ever met.”
“Keep talking like that, mister, and I’m going to jump you.”
I laugh. “You’re not done with that patch yet, ma’am. You swore you’d finish it by sundown.”
“Look at you, keeping me honest.” Makayla giggles, then rises to straighten her back and stretch her arms.
This farm life is something else. And it’s doing us nothing but good, both physically and emotionally. Among the three of us, we juggle the city business with Bryan while keeping the vineyard running. We go to bed tired but happy every night. With all the lovemaking and the hard labor, nobody misses the gym. Granted, we’re always making sure that Makayla doesn’t overwork herself. The mother of our child is our priority. Always.
“Kellan should be back soon,” I tell her.
“Everything okay in the city?”
“Let’s just say he doesn’t regret keeping our apartment. It’s practically a waystation for whichever unlucky bastard has to go back and face the music once a week,” I reply.
She nods slowly. “It’s a good thing you’re doing this in rotation. That way, there’s always at least one Anderson on-site.”
“And no one gets the short end of the stick,” I chuckle.
It’s Friday afternoon, but that doesn’t mean what it used to. There’s work to do every day, not just Monday-Friday. Saturday and Sunday are just as busy—Mother Nature never clocks out.
“Hand me that water, please, babe?” Makayla reaches out.
I pick up the bottle from the ground and pass it to her. “Bryan and Callie are coming over this weekend,” I tell her. “Alex is handling the shopping for both lunch and dinner, and Kellan says he’ll drive them back to the city afterward.”
“It was about time,” she says, half-smiling. “After he proposed to Callie on her birthday—frickin’ finally—we never got around to actually celebrating that milestone.”