All I Want Is You (A Chester Farms Novella) (15 page)

The sun lowered and the customers thinned out as it got dark. Already, pops and cracks sounded out in celebration as she locked the store and then drove to Patrick's. The closer she got, the lighter her chest seemed until she was in his driveway, in her spot. He had a truck, so he'd been parking to the right of the driveway in the grass so she'd have the concrete.

Light shown through the front windows, but from her car she couldn't see in them. She tried the ring on once again and wanted to stretch her arm out, but the chain stopped her. She unhooked the chain and turned her hand under the dim lights of the car. The diamond caught the light and sent sparkles out.

She looked back at the house again and this time, she got out of the car with the ring still on her finger. The chain stayed behind in the cup holder. She tapped on the door as she stepped in the living room and found Patrick surrounded by packages of fireworks. A few were strewn across his lap.

Three smaller ones dangled from his lips. "Hey."

She glanced at the piles of fireworks and pointed. "Are you planning to blow up the house?"

He grinned and pulled the crackers out of his mouth. "I'm doing our strands for the Chesters."

"Our?"

He nodded. "We all do a strand. Breaks up some of the work and you were assigned one. I just finished mine, so I started yours so we could be done in time."

"Whitney mentioned a fireworks show." She didn't mention the high chance of them all killing themselves.

He tied on the last of the three he had. "We take our strands out to the fields and stick them in the ground. We light the fuse and run like hell while they all pop. People come out and bring their own strands. It's fun."

She took a breath and shook her head, loving the idea and yet, also terrified. This was her life now and she was ready for it. Glad to finally know where she was meant to be. Even the ring on her finger was lighter to carry than just moments ago when she'd put it on in the car. "Need some help?"

"Yep. But I have something to show you first." He tied something off, placed the strand on the floor and stood. He waved for her to follow and stopped her in the hall by the spare bedroom. "You ready?"

She dropped her purse off her shoulder and shrugged. "Sure."

He pushed the door open. Lights were already on in the room. She stepped in and was surrounded by baby furniture. Her heart swelled as she eased through the room and touched a rail for a crib. "Where did you get this?"

"Some of it was from Mom. She said she wasn't sure if the crib was mine or my sister's, but we were welcome to take it. I didn't have time to put it together. The swing and dresser are from Mrs. Jana. Stuff they used, so she wants it back. Apparently, you told Whitney and within two seconds, Whitney told everyone in the family.” He gave her a sidelong look. “By the way, unless you don’t want all the Chesters to know, you don’t ever tell Whitney anything.”

She chuckled and shook her head. “No, it’s okay. I’m fine with Whitney spreading the news.”

“Mrs. Jana had some other stuff too, but I wasn't sure what would fit. She has plastic bins full of bottles and things in the attic. And I think she kept about all of Tate’s, Wade’s and Whitney’s clothes."

She couldn’t even…. All this stuff. A white teddy bear was on top of the dresser and she lifted it. "I'm going to cry again."

He smiled and leaned on the doorway. "I figured you would. I can live with it. I picked the bear up the other day. I saw it and knew we had to start somewhere."

She rubbed over the top of the fluffy softness and held it to her chest. "I love it."

"I know all this stuff can't fit in your apartment."

Her apartment. She smiled. She'd called it her room or thing. Place to stay until she got by. "Not even a little bit."

"I thought, maybe we could get a small crib or a playpen thing for there so you'll have somewhere to keep the baby during the day."

Somewhere temporary for the day while she worked. She liked the sound of that. She placed the bear back on the dresser as her throat tightened. "I like that idea."

"And I’ve been thinking about your work. You were worried about even being able to work. All the old people are going to be in there every day when the baby gets here. Old people love babies, so you'll still be able to work easy. You probably won’t even change a diaper all day. Just get a coffee pot and offer them free refills. You’ll have free babysitters."

She smiled and shook her head. "You're a mess."

"It's true. Lot of old people in this town are just waiting for a baby to hold. Small town. It doesn’t happen every other day, you know."

"I could advertise with that."

He nodded. "You should."

She walked to him, wrapped her arms around his waist, and put her head on his chest. "Over the next couple weeks, I'm going to start moving in with you."

His arms wrapped around her back. "Okay."

"You're right. I don't have enough room in my apartment." She turned her head to look at the room. "And this is a perfect baby's room. Right across from our bedroom."

"I actually thought of that."

She tipped her head back to see him. Just looking at him made her happy. His eyes and him holding her had her happy. Everything about this was so right and what she wanted. "Besides. It would be weird if we lived apart once we’re married."

His brow lifted and then he smiled. "Is that a yes?"

She pulled her hand from around her back and showed off the ring on her finger. "Yes. Yes, I will marry you."

He lifted her off her feet and his mouth was over hers for a quick kiss. "You won't regret this."

"I know." More than anything in her life, she knew that was true. "I know this is going to be work. I’m going to figure something out to do in the evenings. Maybe babysitting on Friday and Saturday nights so you’re not doing it all. I want this. I'm happy."

He lowered her and pressed another kiss to her forehead. "We won’t be like this long. Just before you got here, I was on the phone with Wade. We’re going to work weekends and evenings when I’m off to get me to pass that test at work.” He pressed another kiss on her and held her close. “We’re going to be okay."

Chapter Fourteen

Patrick pressed a hand to his wife's sweaty forehead and pushed hair back from her face. As often as Tasha stuffed it behind her ears and he freed it, now here he was pushing it back. She leaned forward, muscles straining and strong like her grip on the chair. A grunt started out low and climbed higher to a scream. Teeth bared as she leaned forward and pushed on.

He rested his hands on her shoulders to help support her as the doctor between her knees nodded. "Good girl. I see the head. Breathe and give me another push just like that one."

Tasha collapsed against the bed and gasped for air. Her cheeks were red, eyes tired, and a bead of sweat eased down her temple. He kissed her hand and brought her fingers to his chest, wishing he could somehow do more. "You can do this."

She breathed and shook her head. "I'm tired."

Fourteen hours of labor had made him tired, but he wouldn't say that. "We're at the home stretch. Just a little more."

She still hadn't caught her breath and looked up to the ceiling.

He leaned over and pressed a kiss to her cheek. Her eyes found his and it hit him square in the chest. This was it. He'd waited for the right moment, thinking it would be after the baby was here and they were alone, but this was the right time. He gave her another kiss and whispered in her ear. "You can do this. I love you."

He didn't know if it was sweat or tears around her eyes, but he'd take it as tears. He repeated himself. "I love you, Tasha."

Those three words had been on his mind for months, but he hadn't said them yet. The time just never seemed right.

She blinked several times and squeezed her fingers in his. "I love you, too."

The doctor adjusted. "All right, Tasha. Give me that big push."

She grabbed the bars of the chair, sat forward and gave another growl of a shout.

"Head's out! You're doing great. Little more."

Patrick stood behind her and held her shaking shoulders when a cry erupted and the sound made a beeline right for his heart. Tasha fell back against the chair as a nurse walked by with a baby hollering out with his little pinched face. He was tiny. Smaller than Patrick ever imagined. His whole body looked like it would fit in one of Patrick's hands.

Tasha grabbed his arm and held him tight. "A boy?"

He leaned over and covered her hand with his. The slight panic that had begun was eased by her touch. "It's a boy."

Tasha cried then. "Told you so."

Hell, even his eyes were watering up as the nurse checked over the baby and cleaned him. His boy’s hands were fisted and toes curled as he wailed. The nurse bundled the baby up tightly in a blanket and placed him in his arms.

Good God, he made a baby. He looked at Tasha. They made a baby. He lowered the little guy into her arms and pulled hair away from her face. "I knew you could do it."

She looked at him, still crying, but smiling as big as he'd ever seen her before. She touched the tip of their baby's nose. "Hello, Dustin Whit Abington."

He touched the brow of Dustin’s tiny head as the baby calmed and settled in his mom’s arms. "Whitney is going to be worthless when she finds out we named him after her."

Tasha gently rocked him in her arms. "He's perfect."

"I think so, too." He pressed a kiss to her forehead.

The baby gave a big yawn and oh man, that face. It was a wrinkled, pink, heart stopper wrapped in blue. Tasha lifted him up. "You barely got to hold him and I’m afraid I’m going to drop him."

He lifted his son—Jesus,
his son
—out of her arms without complaint because he did want to hold him.

The nurse stepped by the bed. "If you'd like to take the baby to the nursery so the family can see, I can show you the way."

He looked toward Tasha. "Last I saw them, they were about to walk holes in the floor."

"Show him off."

The nurse patted her hand. "The other nurse is going to get you cleaned up and moved to a more comfortable bed downstairs, and we'll have you something to eat. You’ll have your strength back in no time and be able to hold that baby all day."

Tasha adjusted the cords of her IV. "I like the sound of that."

Patrick followed the nurse down the hall and walked through a door marked for the nursery. A handful of babies were sleeping and there was an empty rocking chair by a few windows. He sat as the nurse lifted the screens and revealed their family.

Whitney was pressed to the glass in front with Mrs. Jana. His parents and extended relatives he barely knew were all there. Tasha's brother was on the end waving his fingers toward the baby.

Patrick looked at his boy as his little eyes peeked open and stared up. "Hey there, little man.”

Never Stopped Loving You Sneak Peek

All I want Is You
is a prequel in my new Chester Farms series.
Grab the start to my new series,
Never Stopped Loving You
today
. You don’t want to miss Wade Chester’s love life!

At eighteen, Kara Duncan had already made her fair share of mistakes, choosing the wrong boy and earning herself a bad reputation in the process. Hurt and humiliated, she’d packed up and moved on, sure that everyone in Bella Warren, Arkansas, would be better off without her. She’d planned never to return, but when crisis strikes, she has nowhere else to turn.

After seven years, Wade Chester thought his feelings for Kara were finally ancient history. Until he sees her again, standing on his front porch just as she’d done a million times before. She needs his help—and his family’s crops—if her canning business is going to survive. The rest of his family has let bygones be bygones, so why is it so hard for him to let go of thepast?