she smiled then, and it was so breathtakingly beautiful that for a moment he couldn't force air into his lungs.

she gathered his hands in hers and pulled them to her chest, her hands cupped over his as they pressed against her skin. he could feel the gentle rhythm of her heart as her warmth seeped into his fingers.

"apparently you don't need practice at all," she said in a hushed tone barely above a whisper. "it would appear that you're quite the expert. we did it, ethan. we made a baby!"

his eyebrows went up, and his mouth dropped open. he stared at her in complete befuddlement as he tried to collect his scattered wits.

"we did what?" he asked hoarsely.

her smile grew even broader, and tears shone in her eyes, making them a glossy, rich brown.

he raised trembling hands to frame her face, and he thumbed away the tears as they brimmed over her eyelids.

"we're having a baby?" he whispered.

she nodded, her eyes shining like stars.

he was assaulted by a multitude of emotions all at the same time. indescribable joy. gratitude. gut-wrenching fear. overwhelming love and tenderness for the woman he was holding in his hands.

"when? how?"

he ended the sputtering before he turned into a blithering idiot.

"rusty went to buy me a home pregnancy test after she got to the house tonight. i was sick in the bathroom, so she went out for me. she bought two, and i took them both. they both came up positive."

he frowned. "sick? are you all right?"

she leaned into him, nuzzling her face into the side of his neck. "i'm fine. just normal pregnancy stuff. i shouldn't have sipped the wine. i knew... i mean i suspected there was a chance. i've felt off for several days. sick in the mornings and afternoons. overwhelming fatigue. tenderness in my breasts. i think i was just afraid to have it confirmed."

he stroked his hands down her body, caressing, just wanting to touch her in some way. he laid his cheek on the top of her head and cuddled her even closer, his heart about to burst right out of his chest.

"are you okay now? do you need anything?" he asked anxiously.

he felt her smile against his neck.

"right now i couldn't be more perfect. i'm right where i want to be."

he pulled her up his body even more until her mouth hovered precariously close to his.

"have i told you lately how much i love you?"

her smile lit up the entire room once more.

"as a matter of fact, you have, but i never get tired of hearing it."

"a baby," he said in awe.

it was too much for him to comprehend. oh, they'd talked about it. seriously. they'd not made the decision to start trying for a baby lightly. it had taken months for them to talk out all the possibilities, the potential issues that could arise, whether they were ready for parenthood, whether their fragile relationship could withstand the risks involved.

they'd even talked about it in therapy.

nothing about this decision had been made lightly, and yet ethan was gobsmacked now that the reality was staring him in the face.

a baby.

a son or a daughter.

a part of rachel, a woman who meant the world to him. who meant everything to him.

his own eyes burned, and he blinked away the discomfort. his stomach clenched into a ball, and his chest tightened and flexed uncomfortably.

"are you happy about it?" she asked anxiously.

he stared up in stupefaction at the worried glint in her eyes. he gathered her more closely, until their noses touched and their breaths mingled.

"oh baby, i'm over the freaking moon. i don't even have words. happy? that seems such a pussy word for what i'm feeling right now. god, i'm happy, but i'm also scared shitless for you."

her smile was gentle, and she reached up to touch his cheek. "i'll be fine, ethan. i have you now."

that one statement. just those simple words had the power to undo him. he had to close his eyes to prevent himself from completely breaking down and unmanning himself.

"yes, you have me now," he said hoarsely, so choked up that he could barely get the words out.

she hadn't had him before. they both knew it. he'd checked out of their relationship early on. he was never there for her when she needed him. and after her miscarriage it got even worse.

he'd very nearly destroyed the one good thing in his life. the one person he loved beyond reason, and he'd tried his damnedest to push her away.

"you'll always have me, rachel. you and our baby both will have me. i swear it. you'll never have to worry about whether i'm with you or not."

she caressed his cheek with loving hands and then pressed her mouth carefully to his.

"i'm not worried, ethan," she whispered against his mouth, her words swallowed up when he inhaled.

"when do you want to tell the rest of the family?" he asked.

they'd be so thrilled. though most of his brothers had gone on to marry, rachel was still the first. she was dearly loved by his brothers and his parents. by his sisters-in-law as well. rachel's pregnancy would be greeted with so much love and enthusiasm. he had no doubt that when the day came for her to deliver, that every single kelly would be crowded around at the hospital, all holding their breath waiting for his son or daughter to arrive.

she licked her lips nervously as she pulled away. for the first time, anxiety burned in her eyes.

it was automatic for him to reach for her. to take her hands. to reassure her in some way.

she vibrated with unease.

"i don't think we should say anything yet," she said in a low voice. "it's early yet. i honestly don't remember when my last period was. they were kind of irregular after i stopped taking birth control, and i didn't think anything of it. so i honestly don't know how far along i am. i won't know until i see a doctor."

she took another breath and plunged ahead.

"i'd hate to make this big announcement and for everyone to be so happy and excited for us and then for something to happen. like last time," she choked out.

he hugged her to him, stroking his hand over her hair. though her first miscarriage had happened some years ago, for her it was like yesterday because she hadn't regained her memory of the event until recently.

"i don't think i could bear it," she said in a muffled voice. "it would be bad enough that we knew of our loss, but for everyone else to also have to grieve. i'd rather wait until i'm further along before we tell the others."

"i agree," he said firmly.

she swallowed and pulled away to look him in the eye.

"will you go with me to the doctor? i want so much for you to be with me. for you to share every step of the process with me."

he grasped her shoulders with gentle hands, but his gaze was intent and fierce.

"rachel, baby, i'm going to be with you every single minute of the way. i swear it. there is nothing that's more important to me than you and our baby. not kgi, not a mission. nothing. i need you to understand that. no matter what's happened in the past between us, this is the new us, okay? you come first. always."

joy flared in her eyes. and relief. it was a painful reminder of his past mistakes. but they were mistakes he'd never make again.

he slid his hand down the silky bodice of her top until it rested over her slim belly.

"our child," he said in wonder.

she put her hands over his and squeezed. a splash of moisture dripped onto his hand, and he glanced up to see silver trails down her cheeks.

for once, the sight of her tears didn't rip his heart wide open. because these weren't tears of grief or pain. they were tears of extreme joy. her smile was as wide as a mile, and it was the most beautiful sight he'd ever seen in his life.

he'd carry to his deathbed this memory of her on her knees between his legs, his hands covering her belly as she cried tears of happiness.

"we did it, ethan," she whispered huskily.

"hell yeah, we did," he murmured just before he pressed in to devour her mouth.

chapter 5

it was typical for rachel to get up when ethan did, and while he was out for his run, she'd make breakfast. she loved the early morning routine they'd comfortably fallen into.

usually she'd brew a pot of coffee because ethan liked a cup after downing a bottle of water after his workout. but this morning-as with every morning of the past week-the smell of coffee nearly did her in.

perspiration beaded her forehead, and she swallowed huge gulps of air to try and steady her rebelling stomach. unfortunately for her, the typical fare she made for breakfast didn't at all agree with her now that she was pregnant.

eggs made her want to hurl. bacon nauseated her. sweet rolls made her clench her teeth and breathe through her nose. the only safe bet seemed to be dry toast or bread products like croissants or biscuits.

she was leaning over the counter, inhaling settling breaths, when ethan came in from his run.

"rachel?" he asked sharply. "are you okay?"

she quickly twisted around, forcing an appeasing smile to her face. the last thing she wanted was for him to worry. he'd do enough of that on his own without her help.

"i'm fine," she reassured him. "honestly. it's just that certain foods set me off now. particularly breakfast stuff. i'm super queasy in the mornings. less so in the afternoons, but i still have to be careful. eggs and bacon in particular seem to trigger my symptoms."

ethan frowned and then carefully moved her away from the stove where the bacon still sizzled and the eggs were hardening up and becoming fluffy.

"sit," he ordered.

then he returned to the stove and finished the eggs and bacon, plating them while she watched.

"what can you eat?" he asked.

"toast. a croissant. anything dry."

"what can you drink?"

she wrinkled her nose. "mainly sprite but we don't have any. i just got the bare essentials at the grocery store yesterday. i need to do a full blown shopping trip today."

his frown deepened as he popped bread into the toaster.

"we need to talk about the rest of the move. i know you'd planned to go pack boxes and stuff, but i don't like the idea of you being alone at the house packing around heavier stuff. i know you don't want to tell the family yet, so we can't go to them with why i don't want you doing very much."

she started to protest but he shook his head, his eyes glinting with the stubbornness the kellys were famous for.

"it's saturday. we aren't training today so i'll see if my brothers are free to come help pack boxes and get them onto the truck. if we can get it all done in one big push this weekend then we won't be unpacking this crap for weeks."

she nodded her agreement. "i need to go shopping. i have an entire list of stuff we need. i'll call rusty and see if she wants to go."

"good idea."

he lightly buttered the toasted bread and slid the saucer across the bar toward her. her stomach rumbled, and her mouth watered in that icky way it did right before she usually got sick.

she stared cautiously at the bread and then peeked up at ethan. his expression was worried but even she couldn't eat it just to appease him.

"i can't," she said honestly.

"is there anything i can do?" he asked anxiously.

she smiled and shook her head. "i'll be fine. i haven't eaten much of anything in the mornings for the last several days. usually around noon, my stomach starts protesting and demanding something to eat."

"any particular cravings you have? you name it, and i'll make sure you have it for lunch."

her chest ached with the love she felt for him.

"maybe not for lunch, but if someone wanted to break out the grill tonight and dish up some kelly barbeque, i certainly wouldn't complain."

"i'll get van on it," ethan said slyly. "he can't resist anything for you. if i tell him you want some, he'll do it."

rachel shook her head, stifling her laughter.

"okay, so you'll have the guys over to get the rest of the stuff from the other house, and i'm going shopping with rusty."

"yep," ethan said. "unless you need one of the guys to go shopping with you. i don't want you lifting anything too heavy."

she rolled her eyes. "i think i can manage groceries. i'll pick up something for the grill while i'm out too."

ethan nodded.

rachel reached for her cell phone just as it went off. she stared at the incoming number and other than recognizing it as local, she didn't have it in her address book.

"hello?" she said as she put the phone to her ear.

"mrs. kelly. this is principal talbot at the middle school. how are you today?"

"i'm fine, thank you," she said politely.