Good Twin Gone Country

by Jessica Lemmon

  She pulled into her driveway, smiling at the small Christmas tree glowing in the window of her apartment. Last night she’d thought it looked lonely there, but she woke in higher spirits today. Reusable tote slung over her shoulder, she stepped from her car and into the crisp winter air.

  She refused to feel sorry for spending Christmas Eve alone. Gram had invited her to a party and Hallie had been the one to say no. She wasn’t in a partying mood.

  Hannah had gone to the Sutherland house for dinner and had tried to convince Hallie to come with her. Hallie politely refused. She was too fragile, the breakup with Gavin far too fresh. The last thing the Sutherlands needed was a Banks sister crying on their holiday ham.

  Besides, she and Hannah would go to Gram’s for Christmas breakfast tomorrow morning to exchange gifts and sing carols. Will would be there, of course. Wherever Hannah was from now until the end of time, Will would be there, too. Just seeing him would remind Hallie of Gavin, or maybe Will would bring him up. That was something she’d have to get used to, as well.

  And who knew, it might work out for the best if Hallie and Gavin grew accustomed to not being together before she broke the news about the pregnancy. She didn’t want him to agree to be with her under duress. She wanted him to love her. As much as she loved him.

  He’d sent several texts over the last few days, each some version of “can we talk?”

  She’d admit, they did need to talk. And they would. As soon as she decided the best way to tell him he was going to be a father. The delay wasn’t only for him. The longer she waited, the more time she’d have to bandage her broken heart when he ultimately told her he couldn’t stay with her and raise their child. She almost hated how much she wished he’d say the opposite.

  As much as she’d favored her independence in the past, though, now it made her incredibly sad. She was in love with Gavin, and she didn’t want to fall out of love with him. She was carrying his child, for goodness’ sake. Of course she loved him.

  The pregnancy had been a shock, but the prospect of having a child—of having his child—excited her. Their baby would be beautiful if it shared even a single strand of his DNA. And maybe she and Gavin would be great at raising a child together but separately. She and Hannah had been raised in an unorthodox manner, and they’d had a wonderful childhood.

  Last night, their mother had called Hallie to say Merry Christmas. Their conversation was warm and loving. She told her mother she had news to share but preferred to share it in person. Her mother hadn’t pressed for Hallie to tell her right away. She’d said she respected Hallie’s choices and they could do a video call tomorrow night if she was available. Hallie had felt better instantly.

  Her heart would mend on its own time. She was strong and could do anything she set her mind to. Ironically, it was Gavin who had helped her understand that.

  Tonight, she’d spend Christmas Eve alone watching a holiday movie with her arm elbow-deep in a bag of sweet potato chips. There were worse ways to spend an evening. Just when she’d convinced herself, a truck pulled in behind her and blew her plans to smithereens.

  She stood in the doorway of her apartment as Gavin stepped out of his gray F-150. He looked good, dressed in dark blue jeans and a button-down shirt open at the collar, hat perched on his head. The leather jacket was doing wonders for him in the “bad boy” department. It wasn’t hard to see why she’d asked him to help her break rules. It was as if God had crafted him to be a rebel.

  But that had been an excuse, she admitted to herself as he approached her in a few long-legged steps. She had wanted an excuse to be close to him. It’d been all she’d wanted for as long as she could remember. And now that he was walking toward her, her porch light illuminating his handsome face, all she wanted was to be close to him again.

  The question was, should she let herself?

  Twenty-Three

  Gavin tried to read Hallie’s mind as he approached but came up empty. She could be preparing another lecture. He worried it might be a loud one ending with her telling him to go home, but maybe—just maybe—she’d invite him in.

  If he made it inside, would she let him down again, this time wishing him a lovely Christmas by himself, or would she hear him out, and reconsider her decision to leave?

  There was only one way to find out.

  “Hey,” he said, which was not the best opener. He hadn’t exactly crafted a plan. He’d driven here like a bat out of hell, straight from his parents’ house, when he should’ve taken a long, slow drive on a dark country road while he thought about the best way to approach her. Instead, here he was, with a half-baked plan that involved nothing less than wearing his still-beating heart on his sleeve.

  He prayed that was enough.

  She looked beautiful—and more vulnerable than he’d ever seen her. She wore jeans and a soft pink sweater, cowboy boots and, like him, a leather jacket.

  “I like your coat.” He offered a nervous smile. “Does this mean I’ve made a rule-breaker out of you after all?”

  “You have no idea,” she replied with a cautious smile. Cautious or no, he’d take it.

  “May I carry that for you?” He reached for the tote resting on her shoulder.

  She handed it over, giving him an excuse to follow her inside. Not quite an invitation, but again, he’d take it.

  In the kitchen, she made short work of unpacking the groceries. She left out a bag of chips.

  “I’d ask you to stay for dinner, but I assume you already ate.” She lifted the chips. “This is my dinner. Far from gourmet.”

  “I didn’t come here for dinner,” he confessed. Hannah was right. Presley was right. Cassandra was right. He’d had his head in his ass. It was easier to see all the things he loved about Hallie when she was standing in front of him. It was also impossible to accept her friendship alone when he knew they were capable of so much more.

  “I screwed up the other night,” he said, pulling his hat off his head and resting it on the kitchen table. Here went nothing. “I let you believe you were a pastime instead of telling you what you mean to me. To be fair, I thought it was heartburn and not heartbreak.” He put his hand on his chest and her eyes followed the movement. His heart thumped hard against his palm, kicking his rib cage when it should have been kicking his ass. How could he have been so clueless?

  “Speeding on a back road, skinny-dipping in the ice-cold lake, PDA on the boardwalk. Those things, I did for you. But not only for you. I benefited, too—probably more than you did. Definitely more than you did,” he corrected, clearing his throat. This wasn’t easy, but he wasn’t giving up. Not this time. “You might not know this, Hals, but while I was helping you break your rules, you were busting my heart out of the prison cell I was keeping it in. I have never allowed myself to feel deeply for a woman before. I was convinced loving someone meant missing out on life. You taught me being in love made life better. How could I possibly miss out on life when you’re the one who makes my life worth living?”

  She continued staring at him, her expression giving away nothing. He took a deep breath and willed himself to keep going.

  “You made me a better person in the weeks we spent together. You made me fall in love with you, too. And trust me, Hals, I have no clue what I’m doing when it comes to being in love. I’m the biggest risk you could take. I love you. I love you, and if you still want to dump me, you better have a damn good reason. Because I’m not giving up on us anytime soon. You might’ve sent me for a spin a few days ago, but I’ve recalibrated. I know what I want. You.”

  Her eyebrows bent in sympathy.

  “I’m about to break the biggest rule in my world and beg you for forever.” His hands shook, but not because he was scared or nervous. They shook because he knew she was his future. He was willing to fight for her. He was willing to beg—on his knees.

  He lowered onto her floor and took one of her hands
in his. “Will you take me back? Will you come back to my bed, back to my house, back into my life? I vow to be the best boyfriend you’ve ever had. And eventually, if you want, more than that. One day I’ll be down here with a diamond ring in my hand, and you’ll say yes because you’re so in love with me there’ll be no other answer. You won’t be able to believe the man I’ve become—the man your love changed me into.”

  She was frozen, staring down at him, her mouth open softly. He was starting to sweat. He wasn’t sure what her reaction would be, but he thought he’d at least see a smile. He’d hoped she’d sling her arms around his neck and kiss him senseless.

  Instead she put her hand to her forehead like she was checking for a fever. “Remember what you said about having a family? About having children?”

  “Uh...” Well, damn, that threw him. He kept hold of her hand, his other hand on the kitchen counter as he stood. Her eyes tracked his movements, her chin tilting up. He didn’t dare let her go. Now that he was touching her, he didn’t want to stop.

  “The night you asked if twins ran in my family, and I asked you if you wanted a big family,” she reminded him.

  “Right. Yeah.” He remembered. He’d said something about being a bachelor, about how settling down wasn’t for him. “Not my finest moment.”

  “What changed?”

  He didn’t have to think about his answer. “You. You changed everything. You changed me. It might have taken me a minute to absorb what was all around me, but Hallie. Honey.” He smiled down at her. “I’d settle down with you. It wouldn’t even be settling. I’d have a family with you, no question. You and I would make beautiful babies.”

  Her eyelashes fluttered. He’d surprised her, which seemed only fair since he’d surprised himself. He imagined their future child and a grin took over his face. A baby girl with her golden eyes, or a baby boy with his wavy hair...maybe one of each. Yeah. Hell, yeah.

  She cocked her head to the side, her gentle vulnerability shining through. “Do you mean it?”

  He cupped her sweet face in his palms. “Yes. I’d have everything with you. I would have anything with you. I’m considering things I never considered before I was with you. My brain was in the way. Fear was in the way. Now I know better. I had a trial run without you and I nearly had a heart attack. I don’t want to miss you anymore. If that means upending my entire world to give you what you want—what we want—that’s an easy ask. Just...reconsider, okay? I don’t want to do this without you.”

  That must’ve been the right thing to say, because she threw herself at him. He caught her, staggering backward a step before regaining his footing and holding her tightly in his arms. She felt right there. Like she belonged there. His heart thundered against his chest as if it was reaching for hers. She tipped her chin to kiss him and he didn’t hesitate kissing her back. When they parted, the most beautiful words came out of her mouth.

  “I love you, too.”

  Happiness unfurled in his chest. Before he could revel in the feeling of being loved by Hallie Banks, she rocked him with three more words he hadn’t seen coming.

  “And I’m pregnant.”

  His turn to be shocked down to his boots. “I—what?”

  “You didn’t know, did you?”

  He shook his head. Or thought he did. He couldn’t feel anything from the neck up.

  “I’m only three and a half weeks along,” she said, still holding on to him, and thank God or else he might’ve fallen on his ass. “I’m terrified now that you know, you’ll take back every beautiful thing you said. I didn’t mean for this to happen, but I’m really, really happy about it. I didn’t want to pressure you into a future you hadn’t planned on, so I hadn’t decided how to tell you.”

  “Pregnant,” he repeated, trying to wrap his head around the news. “You’re serious.”

  “I’m serious. And you should know, before you say anything else, there is a very good chance I’m pregnant with twins.”

  “Twins?” Now he did feel like he might fall over. But it wasn’t because he was upset. No, definitely not upset. He didn’t have to dig deep to find the love he felt for Hallie easily extended to the unborn child—or children—in her belly. His love for her instantly grew bigger and bolder than before, and he hadn’t known that was possible.

  A smile crawled across his face, and, almost cautiously, she returned it with one of her own.

  “Are you telling me there’s a baby on the way, and it’s mine? That I’m going to be a dad and you’re going to be a mom, and if we’re really lucky, we could end up being parents to not one but two babies?”

  Her eyes shined as she grinned up at him. “Yes, I am.”

  He kissed her again, his tongue sparring with hers. She clutched him tight, her fingers winding in the strands of his hair.

  When he pulled away, he took one look at the dimples denting her cheeks and said, “Rule breaking suits us, gorgeous. And just so you understand where my head’s at,” he said, “I meant everything I said before you shared your news with me. I want you in my life. I want you in my house. I want you in my hot tub, in my car, making out with me on the boardwalk...”

  “I get the point.” Her laugh was musical and happy.

  “Can you forgive me for letting you walk out of my life?”

  She nodded, fresh tears welling in her eyes.

  “It’ll never happen again, Hals. No matter what, I will fight for you.” He swiped her tears away with the pads of his thumbs. “And our family.”

  Their next kiss grew deeper. She pulled at his clothes. He tore at hers. They didn’t make it to the bedroom, instead making love on the couch, right beside her tabletop Christmas tree.

  Epilogue

  “Gavin and Hallie really do have the best view,” Presley conceded as she sat in the lawn chair next to her husband’s. Cash grunted his disagreement.

  “Why, thank you,” Hallie answered. She was stretched out, folded hands over her belly while she watched the sky. She didn’t have to turn her head to know Cash was frowning.

  “Only because he has a property between two lakes,” Will said, bringing more beers out to nestle into a cooler filled with ice. “If we didn’t already have houses, any one of us could have done something like this.”

  “Yeah, but you didn’t.” Gavin shot Hallie a wink. She loved him cocky and overly confident. She couldn’t help herself.

  “But I like where we live,” Hannah argued. Her hands rested on her own belly, and Hallie knew what was under those hands. Her twin sister had found out she was pregnant a few days ago. She was seven weeks along. She’d told everyone right away.

  Hallie was rounding her final month, and her due date couldn’t come fast enough. She was going to have two very large baby boys. She had agreed with the doctor that a C-section was the way to go. But her sons weren’t ready to come out yet, no matter how anxious she and Gavin were to meet them.

  “How much longer until fireworks?” Cassandra asked, opening a beer for herself. She and Luke were getting married in a few months. They were waiting to start a family until after the wedding. Presley and Cash, though, hadn’t waited until they were married. After a small ceremony on the dock, Pres confessed she was already eight weeks along.

  Hallie and Gavin’s twin boys would have plenty of cousins to play with, that was for sure.

  “It has to be dark for fireworks, sweetheart,” Luke told his fiancée. “It’s only dusk.”

  Cassandra sighed. “Regardless, I’d rather await fireworks in Gavin and Hallie’s backyard. This is so much better than spending an evening at Mags Dumond’s soiree. I’m glad we skipped it.”

  “Hear, hear,” Presley agreed. “Let’s be the generation that doesn’t show up at parties we don’t want to attend.”

  “I will drink to that.” Gavin leaned forward to tap his beer can to his brothers’ beer cans.

 
Hallie lifted her water bottle. “Me, too.”

  “Everything that’s important is right here, right now,” Gavin announced, reaching for Hallie’s hand. He kissed her ear and whispered, “I love you.”

  “I love you, too,” she whispered back.

  “Were we that gross?” Will asked, and Hannah laughed.

  “Worse,” Cash answered, and Presley laughed.

  What might’ve turned into a brotherly argument was interrupted by the night’s first firework exploding overhead. Colorful sparks rained down as everyone clapped.

  Hallie, her palms resting on her very pregnant belly, felt her babies kick. “They liked that.”

  Another firework streaked the night sky. Gavin’s hand joined hers on her belly and they locked eyes as their sons gave a few more exuberant kicks.

  Any moment now, they would arrive on this plane and usher in a new generation. One that would forever intertwine the branches of the Banks and Sutherland family trees.

  As Hallie looked around at the faces lit by bright fireworks overhead, she had to smile. She’d never imagined this life for herself, but here it was. As big and bold and beautiful as Gavin had promised.

  All she had to do was let go...

  And break a few rules.

  * * *

  Look for the next Dynasties!

  Dynasties: The Carey Center

  from USA TODAY bestselling author

  Maureen Child

  Available October 2021

  Keep reading for an excerpt from Homecoming Heartbreaker by Joss Wood

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