SWNOVELS Finding Hayes: Chapter 35
“I still can’t believe we’re moving in here. You made some awfully big decisions without me, Captain,” she said, as we walked toward the barn.
“Well, that serves you right for not taking my calls.” I chuckled before turning to look at her. “When Nash and I came out here to talk about a few things that I’m about to show you, I saw it, Sav.”
“You saw what?”
“Our life here at this farmhouse. I saw us filling those bedrooms with a bunch of rug rats, and”—I scratched the back of my neck and looked out at the acres of green—“I could see our family growing here. Before you even told me you were pregnant, I saw it. And it’s a damn good life.”
She tilted her head to the side and smiled. “It’s a damn good life, hubby.”
“Come on, let me show you my plan for the barn.” I led her inside, where there was a rectangular table in the middle with the drawings that Nash and King had had drawn up by their architect.
“Don’t tell me you want horses. You hate riding.” She chuckled.
“Nope. If you want horses at some point, we’ve got plenty of land to build another barn. But this structure is sound, and right now, it fills a need for something more important.” I stopped at the table and tapped on the drawings. “We’ll add dry wall and a private drive and do a full renovation on this place. And that way, you’ll have your business right here on our property.”
Her eyes widened, and she studied the plans. “Oh, my gosh, you want to turn this into my office space? This is brilliant. I love it.”
“I had the architect add in this little enclosed area over here after you told me about the babies. We can make a little nursery in here so when you’re working, you can have the babies out here with you. And when I’m not at the firehouse, they’ll be with me in the main house. And if you want to hire a nanny on the days you’re working and I’m not around, that works, too. I just wanted you to have options.”
She just stared at me as she shook her head. “Wow. You’ve thought of everything.”
“I want you to know we’re in this together.”
“I know we are. And I love that you aren’t assuming I’d stop working and that you took the time to think of all the different scenarios.”
“Two kids are a lot, Shortcake.”
“I know. There’s two of us and two of them. They’re going to keep us on our toes,” she said, as she started walking the length of the space. “I definitely like the idea of having a nursery for them out here. Obviously, I’ll take some time off to adjust to being a mom and enjoy a few months with them, but I think it would be fun to build a business that they’re a part of. They can be out here when I’m working, and if it gets too hectic, we’ll hire some help.”
“I can’t believe Saylor’s pregnant, too.” I chuckled. “Fucking King couldn’t wait to tell me.”
“I know. It’s pretty cool that we’ll be pregnant together and raising these kids together. Cutler is going to be a busy guy.” She paused to glance out the window. “It’s beautiful out here. I’m so happy you didn’t let me sell this place. And having the office on the property will be perfect. How long did they say the renovation would take?”
“Not too long. It’s got good bones, and there’s that little bathroom in the back, so there was already plumbing out here. You’ll handle the design aspect, and they’ll just get it all finished and ready for business. They said a couple weeks and they could have it ready for you, pending you don’t pick flooring or materials that are back-ordered.”
“I can definitely work with that timeline. Hopefully, I’ll find clients fairly quickly, seeing as there isn’t a design firm in town.”
“You’ll be fine, baby. There’s no rush. We’re good financially, especially with this place being paid off. We’ve got my income and the money from the other house once it closes. It’s a good nest egg.”
“I also spoke to the billing department at the hospital in Dallas, and I don’t think the trial is going to be as much out of pocket as I’d assumed. Turns out, Dad’s insurance is paying a decent chunk, and the trial itself covers a portion for the patients selected, as well. I got the first bill, and it wasn’t bad at all. So we’ve got the inheritance to tuck away, too.”
“Keep that money in an account for your father’s treatment for now. Let’s get him better so he can watch his grandkids grow.”
“He’s still on cloud nine since we told him the news. I think he’s serious about moving back to Magnolia Falls after he finishes the trial. Nadia said she’d love small-town life too, and they want to be close to the babies.”
“I think it’s great,” I said, as I pulled her into my arms.
“Hey, you beat us here,” Nash said, as he and Kingston strode toward us.
Kingston hugged her tight and spun her around. “Looking good, little mama.”
Nash hugged her next, and then we all stood around, looking at the design plans. The guys were just as excited as Savannah was.
“You know, Nash and I were talking, and we had this idea we wanted to run by you,” Kingston said as he turned to face us.
“Sure. What is it?” Savannah asked.
“We were thinking we could partner up with you. We don’t have a designer on our team, and with people going crazy about your design on this renovation out here, and our current client list being so backed up, we could do some good things together,” Nash said.
“I would love that. And I’m ready to start now. I’ll be going to Dallas twice a month on the weekends, but otherwise, I’m here and ready to go. I don’t need this space to be done to start working. That house has more rooms than we know what to do with right now, so I can work out of one of the guest rooms.”
“Well, you are pregnant with twins, so you don’t need to be overdoing it either,” I said, and everyone gaped at me.
“Oh, no, he didn’t,” Kingston whisper-shouted, which made everyone laugh.
“Hayes.” My wife raised a brow at me.
“What? You have two humans growing in your belly.”
“Uh, yeah, I’m quite aware. I’m a few weeks along. I plan to work through my pregnancy, so don’t even think about going all caveman on me.”
Kingston was laughing hysterically, and Nash just gave me an apologetic look. “Yeah, thanks for having my back, assholes.”
“Okay, well, aside from that failed attempt at telling your wife she shouldn’t work when the baby is the size of a pea, I think we have a partnership that will be great,” Nash said.
“Hey, she’s got two peas in there, buddy. She needs to be careful,” I grumped.
Savannah shot me a warning look. “She can hear you. And she is just fine working. You’re the one who fights fires for a living. Should I ask you not to do your job while I’m pregnant and after we have kids?”
“She makes a good point. We’re going to let you dig yourself out of this one on your own, brother,” Kingston said.
“Agreed. Savannah, we’ll have a team up here tomorrow to start the renovations, and I’ll bring over the plans for the house we’re starting next week. It’s the Windsor ranch, and his wife doesn’t know what she wants as far as décor goes, and she told us to pick everything,” Nash said.
“Yeah, that’s always fun when you have to try to guess what they like.” Kingston threw his arms in the air. “And then they hate what you pick and blame you.”
“Well, it’s always good to sit down with the client and show them a few different pictures to figure out what their style is. Even if they don’t know what it is, you can find out a lot by what they do and don’t like, then come up with an aesthetic that works before you order any materials,” my wife said.
“Damn, look at our partner using all sorts of big words. You’re going to make us look a whole lot smarter than we are.” Kingston was laughing as he walked backward toward the door.
“I think this is going to be a really good partnership. We’ll see you tomorrow.” Nash turned to leave and then called out for me. “Hey, Hayes?”
“Yeah?”
“If you aren’t out of the doghouse tomorrow, let me know. We can build you and Roddy matching houses for the backyard.”
I flipped him the bird as my wife’s head fell back in laughter.
I took her hand and led her toward the house, with our pup following behind us. “So, when do you want to move in?”
“I’m ready whenever you are. We can get the other house packed up pretty quickly. Whatever furniture we don’t need from this house and the other house, I can store for when I want to stage projects or if we decide to flip a few houses.”
“Look at you, Mrs. Woodson. Already talking like a businesswoman.” I pulled the door open, and we stepped inside.
“It feels like home, doesn’t it?” she asked.
“Yeah. But we need to christen every room to make it official.”
“Well, how about we start with one room right now?” She waggled her brows. “Pregnancy hormones can make a woman very horny.”
“How was I ever against knocking you up, woman?” I barked out a laugh and tossed her over my shoulder. “Where should we start?”
“You pick. I don’t care where we go, as long as I’m with you.” She smacked my ass, and I jogged down the hall toward the bedroom and set her down gently on the bed.
“Hayes, you don’t have to treat me like I’m made of porcelain. I’m fine.”
I hovered above her and leaned down, my nose rubbing against hers. “Have you ever loved someone so much that you just want to make sure nothing ever hurts them?”
She sucked in a breath, and her gaze softened. “Yes.”
“When I look at you, I feel so much, and I’m not used to that. So I just want to protect you and love you, and if I could put you in a box and keep you safe there, I would do it. And if that makes me an asshole or a caveman, so be it.”
“Okay, well, I love you, too. I get nervous every time you go to work. But guess what?”
“What?” I asked, knowing there was going to be a life lesson coming my way.
“I love you for the man you are. I love that you’re passionate about your work. So I guess we both just have to learn to trust that everything will be fine. And keep in mind, women have been having babies for a long time, Hayes. I’m not the first or the last.” She chuckled.
“But you’re having two, and that’s a lot for you to have to schlep around.”
Her laughter filled the room around us, and I fucking loved it.
“It’s a lot to schlep around. But we also get a two for one, right?” she said, with this silly smile on her face. “I only have to be pregnant once, and we get two babies out of the deal.”
“That’s true.” I shrugged. “I’ll back off. Just give me time to get used to it.”
“Well, you’ve got a lifetime to get used to it. I’m not going anywhere.”
“I like the sound of that. And seeing as you won’t let me put you in a little box, how about I bury my head between your thighs and enjoy this one.”
“Nice transition. Feel free to have your way with me, husband.”
And that’s exactly what I did.
Because pleasing my woman could be my day job.
And I’d never get enough.
King
You out of the doghouse yet, Captain?
Romeo
What did I miss? He just got her home. How is he already in the doghouse?
Nash
Because it’s Hayes, and he has no filter. He tried to tell Savvy that she shouldn’t work while she’s pregnant.
River
Ruby would cut off my balls if I pulled that shit.
King
Is Ruby pregnant, too?
River
No, you dinkledick. We aren’t ready for that crazy shit yet. But if I ever told her what to do, pregnant or not pregnant… <knife emoji> <eggplant emoji>
King
Seeing those two emojis together makes me very uncomfortable.
More than these? <bee emoji> <eggplant emoji>
King
That’s taking it too far. Welcome to the chat, you pussy-whipped fucker.
For the record, I am not in the doghouse. And I did not tell her not to work. I just know you two like to take on a lot of jobs, and I don’t want her to be working too hard.
Romeo
Yeah, Demi and I had that argument a few times. Good luck with that. We all fell for strong women, which means we can’t tell them what to do.
Nash
How about that… All five of us are married now. Who’d have ever guessed it?
Not me. And I sure as shit wouldn’t have guessed that King would marry my little sister.
Romeo
Ride or die, brothers.
River
Damn straight. Now you’re all knocking up your women and starting families. Hayes is living in a farmhouse that is so fancy it could be featured on HGTV.
You did not just throw out that statement. Are you watching HGTV now? Let me know, and I’ll drop off a box of tampons and some nail polish later.
River
Ruby loves that channel. And who are you to talk? You carry that puppy around like it’s a baby.
King
I didn’t want to bring this up, but Hayes had Roddy wearing booties when we he took him for a hike.
Protecting a dog’s paw pads is called being a responsible pet owner.
Nash
These are not conversations I ever thought we’d be having.
Romeo
I can’t say I mind it. It’s a lot better than the drama we grew up with. No one’s getting arrested or put in prison.
River
Damn straight, brother. We’re living the lives we couldn’t even dream of when we were teenagers.
King
Good women. Good jobs. Good friends. I’d call that a damn good life.
Are you drunk?
King
Nope. Just happy.
Yeah, brother. I think we all are.
Ain’t that the fucking truth.