Okay…maybe she hadn’t been nearly as rational as she thought…or not at all. She’d apparently just reached the limit of what she could take before she’d lost it.

“Tell me what it’s about.” He leaned down, resting his forehead against hers.

“There are pictures in there, Liam. And even though I know what’s going on in every single one of them, seeing that? It…it just hurts.” She blinked and fresh tears fell from her eyes, tracking down her temples. Most got caught in her hair but the light tap of a couple hitting the pillow filled her ears. “This isn’t going to be the last of it, either. Bethelda figured out who you are…and that I’m pregnant.”

“What?” His head came up at her words, and he looked down into her eyes again. “When?”

“Two days ago. That blog isn’t hard to find, babe. It’s only a matter of time before someone finds out the relationship between the two of us. Especially the way “Forever” is getting bigger and how everyone wants to know who it’s about. It’s…it’s only going to get worse.”

“I know.” He smoothed his hand across her hair.

“And then the video for ‘Beyond the Limits’ is going to be released, and not only is that going to take off, but…but I have a feeling those pictures are going to be nothing in comparison to what’s in that video.”

“Don’t watch it.”

“You think it’s going to be that easy?” she asked desperately, wanting to hear him say yes.

“No. But God I wish it was.”

“What would you do if you saw a picture of me with another man? Pictures that were taken while you and I were together? Pictures of his hands on me? Even if you knew the context.”

Pain flashed across his face. “It would kill me. It isn’t going to happen again.”

“You can’t promise that.”

“No, I can. This hurts you. And I can’t change the past but I can prevent it from happening again in the future.”

“And what happens when you piss your label off?”

“Oh, that would be a headline I’d love to see: ‘Liam James storms off set because he refuses to hurt the love of his life.’ Let’s just see what happens after.”

“Love of his life?” Harper repeated, a small smile turning up the corner of her mouth.

“Yeah, didn’t you know?” He pressed his mouth to hers, in a soft and slow kiss that morphed into frenzied in seconds.

Mainly her doing.

The sudden shift in what her body needed was so strong that she couldn’t for a second deny it. Him. She needed him. Would always need him.

He shifted to hover over her and she spread her legs, making space for him between her thighs that now cradled his hips. His hand was up and under the skirt of her dress, and he wound his fingers in the lacey band of her thong. One good tug and he ripped the material from her body.

Her hands were at the front of his athletic shorts and she pushed them down just enough to free his erection. He thrust inside her and the cry that emanated from her mouth was one that couldn’t be helped.

“You okay,” he gasped as his hips stilled.

“Yes. Don’t stop.” She grabbed the back of his head and brought his mouth back down to hers, pushing her tongue past his lips to taste him.

He started to move, pulling back before driving into her again. She didn’t need to tell him harder, because he was giving her just what she needed.

Him.

Over. And over. And over again.

*  *  *

Liam hadn’t had a place that he really thought of as home in years. Sure the cabin in Tennessee was where he’d spent the long stints of his off time…but that was Logan’s place. Not his.

But now? Now Harper’s apartment felt more like home than any place ever had before. Mirabelle had started to feel like home…way more so than Nashville. He wasn’t sure when exactly that shift had happened, all he knew was that it had happened. And he had absolutely no doubt that it pretty much had everything to do with Harper.

God he loved that woman. Loved her so much he couldn’t think straight. But hey, him not being able to think straight had pretty much been the case from the second he’d met her…

No, from the second he’d seen her.

For years all he’d been working for was his career. All he’d wanted was to make music. Was for people to listen to the songs that he’d created and get something from them. Anything from them.

But ever since Harper had come along his focus had shifted. What he wanted was morphing to encompass a whole hell of a lot more. Being on the road and not seeing her, not getting to experience every moment of watching her body change, of watching her grow with their baby…well, it was physically painful actually.

He just had to keep telling himself that they could get through this. That they would get through this. Australia was the biggest hurdle to deal with—as he’d been on the other side of the world—and they were past it now.

The last month of the tour was all on the East Coast, and mostly in the south. He’d be able to see her way more often than before. Even if the trip was only as long as twenty-four hours, his butt would be on a plane.

And once that was over, he was off for a few months…until it all started again.

But that was something he didn’t need to worry about. The next tour was a good ways down the road, and would be happening well after the baby was born.

He and Harper had discussed a few pre- and post- baby topics. Like the fact that he was going to be there for the birthing classes, or that there would be nothing circus themed in the baby’s room if it included clowns. They freaked Harper out. They’d also talked about the holidays and that if his parents wanted to do Thanksgiving in Nashville it would probably be fine, but since she’d be eight months pregnant when Christmas rolled around they should spend it in Mirabelle.

And of course they’d talked about what they were going to have. The boy versus girl debate was ongoing, and it wasn’t like they had a preference either way. The only factor they were hoping for was healthy. It was the possible name selections that they were going back and forth on.

His top picks? Chloe if they had a girl. Caleb for a boy.

Her current favorites? Well, it depended on the day really. She couldn’t decide between Piper and Mackenzie for a girl. And Bentley, Donovan, or Sawyer for a boy.

They’d gone through a number of them…more than he even knew. When he’d been on tour there was always a phone call first thing in the morning. Or when he was with her, a whisper low in his ear in the middle of the night. And as he was throwing suggestions out right and left as well, they texted each other possibilities throughout the day.

They hadn’t exactly agreed on anything as of yet.

Though the field was cut in half on Monday at Harper’s next doctor’s appointment. They were having a girl.

A baby girl.

Knowing the gender was another step that brought them that much closer to the day. One more piece of information to get them prepared for the future.

He still had no idea where they were going to raise their child…Nashville or Mirabelle or anywhere else for that matter.

If they lived in Nashville they were going to need to buy a house. If they stayed in Mirabelle…they were still going to need to buy a house. Her apartment wasn’t going to cut it. There was absolutely no doubt about that. Her tiny spare bedroom was barely a closet. A cupboard under the stairs probably boasted more space.

The few things they’d bought or received for the baby weren’t even being stored at her apartment. They were keeping them in a spare room at her parents’ house because there was no extra space to find anywhere.

They needed room and rooms to grow. All of them. Space for multiple additions to their family. Yup, multiple additions to their family.

He wanted everything with her.