I watched her in silence, amazed that we’d come so far in a matter of months. I thought about where I’d been last December. Miserable. Broken. Lost. Now I’d never have to spend another Christmas alone.
She was lying across the mattress instead of the usual way. But I took my jacket off and lay beside her, staring up at the ceiling. My feet were hanging off the edge, and I still had my shoes on.
“I’ve waited for you my whole life,” she whispered. “And now you’re here.”
I looked at her face, seeing the tears in her eyes. “Sweetheart,” I cooed. “Why are you crying?”
“I don’t know.” She glanced my way as I wrapped an arm around her waist, curling her body into mine. “I’m just so happy.” She fiddled with my bow tie. “That you finally found me.”
I caressed her cheek with my knuckles. Her eyes grew heavy, but they never left my face.
Leaning down, I covered her mouth with mine. It was a slow kiss at first. Her arm came around my back as I kissed my way down her neck. She was very responsive, returning every kiss and touch. So I sat up and began unbuttoning my shirt. She helped me out of it as we kissed, anxious to be together.
“Wait.” She got off the bed and looked over her shoulder at me. “This was my mother’s dress.”
I guess that meant we weren’t allowed to rip it. With a crooked grin, I stood up and carefully undid the buttons. As her back became exposed, I ran my hands over her skin and pressed my lips to her spine.
When her dress fell to the floor, I trailed my fingertips down her arm and kissed her shoulder. She took a sharp breath and turned around slowly, looking like an angel in a lacy white night set. I traced my thumb over her lips as she closed her eyes. We’d been together before. But tonight, it felt like the first time.
I cupped her cheek and she leaned her face into the palm of my hand. Then she lowered her head and pressed a kiss to my chest, right over my heart. It was pounding for her. Just like it would be until the day I died.
Losing my patience, I lifted her head and kissed her the way I’d wanted to the night we met. She clung to my body, digging her nails into my back. Her lips were sweet like honey. One taste was never enough.
As she wrapped her body around me, I laid her down on the mattress and kissed her all over. Bailey opened herself to me in a way she never had before. In that moment, I realized that she was completely mine. Maybe she always had been, and I’d just been too stupid to see it. Whatever the reason, I was glad she was here with me now. And I had no intention of ever being apart from her again.
“Carter,” she sighed, running her hands down my back.
I looked deep into her eyes and kissed the hollow of her throat, knowing that this was the way it was supposed to be. Bailey deserved all the love in the world. I was lucky enough to be the one to give it to her.
After we made love, she cried. I didn’t understand it. So I turned down the covers and pulled her under them with me. She buried her head in my chest and wrapped her arms around me, squeezing tight.
“I love you so much,” she whispered, mesmerizing me with those blue eyes.
I kissed her and ran my thumbs over her dimples. “I hope our children have these.”
She smiled and hooked her arm around my neck. Then she lay beside me and dozed off, clinging to my body in the night. I held her close and thought about something that felt like a weight on my shoulders.
Bailey was still so young, running a business she loved. I would never take her away from her dreams. But I had a few of my own. And even though we’d tied the knot, I wanted more.
While my angel slept peacefully, I wondered how I should tell her. Was it easier to tread lightly or just lay on the truth? I may have been a man. But I was pushing thirty now. And my clock was ticking.
I touched her cheek as she slept, hoping it wasn’t too soon to ask. She was only twenty-five, which meant she probably didn’t want kids now. But I’d reached a point where I couldn’t wait anymore.
To be honest, I’d have as many kids with her as she’d let me. I hoped they had her blonde hair and sweet smile. I saw a million little girls running around in my head. They all looked like Bailey.
When she stirred in the middle of the night, I was worried she was having a bad dream. But she just put her head on my chest and placed her hand on my ribcage. That’s how I fell asleep—with my beautiful wife sleeping on top of me.
I took her hand just before I drifted off, reeling at the feel of her fingers laced through mine.
THE NEXT MORNING, BAILEY woke me up with a kiss. She was wearing my shirt from the night before.
“Are you hungry?” she asked, giving me a seductive stare.
I cleared my throat as she handed me a cup of coffee. We talked and ate breakfast in bed, cracking jokes about the day before. Everything had been so hectic. But it was all worth the stress if it meant I got to hold her like this for the rest of my life. I’d do anything to never have to give her up again.
“Savannah was so cute,” she said. “I love that little girl.”
“I want a little girl.”
Bailey cocked her head to the side. Almost like she couldn’t believe what she was hearing.
“Don’t you?” I asked.
“Someday.”
I felt out of control as she walked into the bathroom. I ran my hands over my face and thought about how impatient I was being. We’d gotten married in six months and now I wanted babies?
It sounded crazy. Was I crazy?
I didn’t know anymore or care. All I knew was that I was crazy about her.
When Bailey didn’t come back, I looked for her in the bathroom. She sat on the edge of the tub and leaned over to turn the faucet on. “Do you want to take a bath?” she asked, showing me those shy blue eyes.
I held her gaze as I undressed. She bit her lip and stood up, lifting her arms over her head. With a smirk, I slipped my hands beneath my shirt and pulled it over her head. She put her hands on my chest as we stared at each other. Then I leaned down for a kiss, nearly losing myself in the smell of her hair.
After we got in the tub, Bailey poured something in the water until bubbles rose to the surface. Before long, we were covered in white foam. She blew bubbles my way, acting like a kid. And it came right back to me like a boomerang—my urge to procreate. The thought of her pregnant with my child drove me wild.
She washed my back while I sat there in silence, enjoying it. Then her fingers were in my hair, and there wasn’t much hope left for my sanity. I groaned and pulled her into my lap, catching her off guard.
She giggled when I nipped at her neck, wanting to brand her with my touch. Would she like a hickey? Because the thought of leaving a mark on her neck—a love bite—made me stir with passion.
Finding her balance, Bailey built a beard out of bubbles on my face. I probably looked like Santa Clause. But she was laughing, so I couldn’t help joining in on the fun.
I put my hands on her, feeling all of her ticklish spots. She bucked and squealed as water lapped over the edges. When she tried to get out of my grasp, I dug my fingers into her hips.
“You’re a bad boy,” she teased. “I’m gonna punish you for that.”
“Is that a promise?” I put my hands on the small of her back, loving her soft, smooth skin.
She lowered her lashes and pretty soon we were back in bed, twisting the sheets. I’m not going to lie—I was really liking marriage so far. But I couldn’t deny the heaviness on my heart.
It stayed with me on the flight to Australia. December was the beginning of summer Down Under. So we were looking forward to the tropical weather, especially since it was snowing back home in New York.
When we landed, she took my hand and I tried to forget about baby fever for a while.
I WAS NERVOUS. IT WAS the third night of our honeymoon, and I was waiting for Bailey in bed.
I turned off the TV and paced the floor, looking out at the ocean. Australia was beautiful—everything she’d told me
it would be. Today, we ventured out of our room to a private waterfall. I won’t deny the fact that we were in paradise. But laying out in the sun by day and making love by night was just the beginning. For some reason, I couldn’t get past the throbbing ache that it wasn’t enough.
I wanted more. Deep down, I’d known it would be this intense when we got married. But I didn’t want to scare her. We had a bad history of saying the wrong things and tripping into a black hole of misunderstandings.
Tonight couldn’t be like that. Because I’d been putting this off for the past two days.
Bailey walked in wearing a sexy red nightgown. When I saw her, my emotions went wild. She climbed on the mattress and crawled her way towards me. She was so distracting. I almost forgot where we were.
“Wait.” I leaned back. “I want to talk about something first.”
“Okay.” She sat down on her knees, looking up at me in that adorable way she always did.
“We both want children, right?” I asked.
“Right.”
“Well, I’ve been thinkin’ and when would you like to start a family?”
She opened her mouth and closed it, hesitating. I hoped I hadn’t asked for too much too soon.
“I want to have a baby with you,” I blurted out. “Whenever you’re ready. If that’s tonight or five years from now. I would never try to rush you. I just wanted to let you know, whenever you’re ready.”
“Can we talk about it later?” she said, soft and sweet.
Her hands were on my chest. And I couldn’t think when she touched me like that.
“Sure.” I kissed her and fell onto the mattress, lost in her world.
These past few nights had been amazing with her. She was a goddess. I don’t know what she saw in me. But whatever the reason she’d chosen to stay by my side, I felt like the luckiest guy in the world.
As we lay in the night, I thought Bailey might fall asleep. But then I heard a quiet voice in the dark.
“I’m ready,” she whispered.
“What?” I froze, thinking I must have imagined it.
“I want to have a baby with you, too. I don’t want to wait.”
“Are you serious?” I asked. “We can wait.”
“No.” She kissed my sternum. “I don’t want to wait.”
“But I thought you said—”
“I said someday,” she whispered, touching my hair. “That day is now.”
I rolled her over so she lay beneath me, taking her by surprise. “Are you sure?”
“Carter, yes!” She got up and turned on the light.
“What are you doin’?” I sat up. “Sweetheart, where are you goin’?”
She went in the bathroom and came out with the box of condoms I’d bought for our honeymoon. Then she marched across the room, opened the window and tossed the whole box. It took my breath away.
“There,” she panted, out of breath. “Is that serious enough for you?”
I crawled down the bed and pulled her into my arms. “How soon can we get started?”
She kissed my cheek and whispered in my ear, “How about right now?”
Hearing her say those words did strange things to me. She didn’t just want a child. She wanted my child.
“Are you crying?” she asked when I teared up.
“No.” I felt tears burn the back of my eyes.
“You know, I think about that night all the time.”
“What night?” I wondered, jarred by the subject change.
“The night we met.” She stroked my jawline. “What did you really want to do to me then?”
“I wanted to hold you close, like this.” I rubbed her arms. “I wanted to smell your hair.”
“I thought you just wanted to kiss me.”
“Sweetheart.” I pushed her hair behind her shoulders. “I wanted to do a lot more than that.”
“Show me.” She bit her lip. “Show me what you wanted to do to me.”
“If I do, you have to promise me somethin’.”
“What?” She looked curious.
“Promise me that you’ll spend every night for the rest of your life in my arms.”
She parted her lips and gazed at me with a sweet smile, tearing up.
I stuck my hand out. Just like the night I’d agreed to help her find the man of her dreams.
She took my hand in hers and shook it lightly. “Deal.”
It was the best decision I’d ever made. The night I’d agreed to help her find him. The man she planned to be with for the rest of her life. Funny thing is, I never told her that I wanted to be him all along.
But that can be our little secret.
FREE DOWNLOAD
Join the author’s newsletter and
get a free novella regularly priced at $2.99!
CLICK HERE TO JOIN TODAY!
Thank You For Reading!
IF YOU ENJOYED AN AGREEMENT, I invite you to head over to Amazon and leave an honest review (no spoilers please). Reviews are so important to an author’s career, because they help new readers like you discover the book. Even if you didn’t enjoy An Agreement, I’d still love it if you could take three minutes to let me know what you think of the book. I thank you in advance!
CLICK HERE TO LEAVE A REVIEW
About the Author
Lindsay Marie Miller was born and raised in Tallahassee, Florida, where she graduated from high school as Valedictorian. At sixteen, she started writing her first novel after being inspired by Stephenie Meyer's International Bestselling Twilight Saga.
After graduating Summa Cum Laude from Florida State University, she put her B.A. in English Literature to good use and published her debut novel, Emerald Green.
An author of over a dozen romance titles, Lindsay currently resides in her hometown where she is always working on her next novel.
VISIT THE WEBSITE
https://www.lindsaymariemillerauthor.com
NEWSLETTER SIGN UP
http://bit.ly/2wHeWsR
FOLLOW ON BOOKBUB
https://bit.ly/2rtMMzd
LIKE US ON FACEBOOK
facebook.com/LindsayMarieMillerAuthor
JOIN THE VIP GROUP
http://bit.ly/2EKmZcn
FOLLOW US ON TWITTER
twitter.com/Lindsay_MMiller
FOLLOW US ON GOODREADS
https://bit.ly/2JpmRAK
An Agreement (Summer in New York Book 3) Page 31
