Page 59 of Forbidden Cowboy

“I’m pregnant, Wyatt,” she said seriously.

“Yeah, no shit,” I laughed, and the sound was a little hysterical.

While I hated myself for the small wince she gave, I was still in disbelief.

“Whose is it?” I asked.

I wanted her to say mine, so desperately. Because then everything could be solved. We could work this out. If there was another man, though, I wasn’t sure how I would handle that.

“Yours, obviously,” she all but scoffed. “All three.”

I thought I was going to faint as my brain tried to catch up to what my already racing heart was comprehending.

“Three?”

“Yeah,” she said, and took her seat again. “Why did you think I was so big?”

I stood, and paced around the room. The more I thought about it, the faster my heart went, the sweatier my palms became, and then, without any kind of fanfare, I realized I was panicking.

“Three?!” I asked, turning to look at Sierra.

She was sitting, watching me with concern and—was that fear? My entire body stopped its panic, reacting to her concern like it was the only thing in my world.

“Three,” she replied weakly. “Triplets.”

And her eyes filled with tears, overflowing without any warning. I crossed the small space to hold her face with my hands, and she still had that strange mix of concern and fear on her face. It was strange, because was she really afraid of me? Didn’t she know I would never hurt her? That I could never hurt her?

“Hey, hey,” I said softly, past the pounding of my heart. “Shh, it’s okay.”

She gently pulled her face from my hands and looked away.

“You don’t have to be involved,” she said quietly, “with me or the babies, I mean. I really did just come here to make sure Beau didn’t kill you. I’ll get out of your life again.”

“Sierra,” I said, pulling her face back so she had to meet my eyes. “Please don’t leave, I don’t think I could survive trying to get over you again. If you don’t want me, that’s one thing, but please don’t shut me out again, and please,pleasedon’t keep our children from me.”

Somewhere in the back of my mind, I realized this was a defining moment of our relationship. What followed this would be our framework for the rest of our lives. Even if she didn’t want me the way I wanted her, we were now tied together forever.

Three.

One baby had been enough to try and wrap my head around, butthree? Every time I thought a little too hard about it, I thought I was going to vomit.

“You’re such an idiot,” Sierra said, and she was crying again, “I’ve always wanted you. I haven’t stopped loving you since I was fourteen, and I found out a month ago that I’m having your children. I thought you didn’t wantme! You and Eliana—”

“Eliana is nothing to me past being Anna’s mother, and a poor excuse for it as well,” I interrupted. “Youare the one I’ve wanted since I was young and dumb enough to let you go.”

Her mouth fell open, and then she closed it, her eyes continuing to overflow. I was still holding her precious, precious face, and I used that to my advantage to lean forward, and very deliberately kiss her.

All of our other kisses had been stolen moments where neither of us was willing to admit what we meant to one another, but all of that was out of the window now. I had been a fool not to admit how much she meant to me, and I was intent on her knowing that. She was Sierra. She was funny and smart and so good with Anna. She was attractive and fit and loved my ranch because we had grown up together on it. I wanted to grow old, sitting in the Adirondack chairs on the back porch with her and watching our children and grandchildren play in the pool or zip around the property on the ATV or on horses I taught them to ride.

So, we kissed slowly, with all the time in the world, in the middle of the night in my smallest living room.

“I love you,” I said, pulling back.

“You’ve never said it before,” she pointed out, pressing her forehead against mine. “You told me youlovedme, past tense, and I—I was so stupid, Wyatt. God, we were both so stupid.”

“Then say it,” I urged, “if I can say it, you can too.”

“I love you,” she whispered into my lips as we met for another kiss.