Eight months later . . .
Dean grabbed the man by the shirt and yanked him off his feet. “She wants juice. If you have to tear apart the entire hospital, she will get juice!”
Catherine shook her head, exasperated. “Stop assaulting the poor man, Dean. I don’t have to have juice. Really, it’s okay.”
He dropped the man, and Catherine watched as the poor orderly hurried out of the room. Dean’s dark brown gaze swung back to her and her heart did a little flip. He was so handsome when he did the manly, protective thing. Would she ever get tired of looking at him? She doubted it. He was too good looking for his own good.
Catherine tried to sit up, but her back was still hurting so she gave up and lay back down. Lordy, who would have thought that having a baby could be so monumentally painful? And why did women fe
el the need to do it more than once? Just the thought of going through that again had her cringing. Then again, she wouldn’t change a thing. Her baby was gorgeous. Perfect. She already had a head full of dark hair, just like her father. The Harrison genes had shone through loud and clear.
“Dean, we need to talk.”
He strode to the bed, grasped her hand, and began to massage his thumb over the back of it. “Are you in pain? Do you want the doctor, sweetheart?”
She shook her head. “Nothing like that. But our conversation before all this happened, we need to finish it.”
“Are you sure you’re up to it?”
She nodded. “We need to decide on a name for our little girl.”
He sat next to her on the bed and brought her hand to his lips, then proceeded to kiss each fingertip, before replying, “I thought you wanted to name her after your mom.”
“I do. It’s a good name, but I think we should include your mom too.”
“I think that’s a good idea. Audrey Jean Harrison. I like it.”
She smiled. “Do you think she’ll eventually shorten it to AJ?”
He shrugged. “If she does I don’t see a problem with it.”
She smiled. “You’re going to spoil her rotten, aren’t you?”
“Bet on it, sweetheart,” he growled. “I love you with all my heart, Catherine, and I plan to spoil the both of you.”
Her heart swelled with love. “I wish my mama could’ve been here to see this. She would’ve been so happy.”
He frowned and stroked her hair away from her face. “I think that she’s watching you right now. I bet she’s grinning from ear to ear too. And my mom will be here soon. She just got caught in traffic.”
“I’m glad. I’m going to want to pick her brain about raising children.” Catherine recalled that horrible moment when she’d seen the proof about her biological father. “As much as it makes me sick to know who my real father was, I’m glad I know. I’m glad there aren’t any more secrets.”
Dean leaned down, placing both hands beside her body, caging her in. “No more secrets, Catherine. Never again.”
She nodded. “I love you so much.”
His lips brushed hers, gently, sweetly, then he raised up an inch and groaned, “It’s a good thing, because the feeling is mutual.” His deep voice slid over her skin like velvet. “You belong to me, sweetheart. The baby and I are your present and future.”
“Yes,” she agreed breathlessly.
Dean pressed his lips to hers and kissed her with predatory heat. He was hard and demanding. She gave him access to her mouth and he swooped in, scouring and drinking in her moans of pleasure. When he lifted, they were both panting and out of breath.
“Without you I felt lost, Catherine. I’m so sorry for not trusting you. I’m sorry for not believing in you.”
“I know, and it’s in the past,” she rushed to reassure him. “Besides, we both made mistakes, Dean.”
Dean nodded, then stood back up. “Shall I go find out if our daughter is ready to be fed?”
Because their baby was a preemie, she had to stay in an incubator for a few days for observation, though the nurses had all said she was a healthy girl and had the lungs to prove it. “Yes, my breasts are beginning to ache.”