Broken Dreams (Broken #2)(59)
Author: Kelly Elliott

She shuddered, and I couldn’t help but smile.

I leaned over and put my lips up to her ear. “I’m thinking this might be something fun to try for later,” I whispered before pulling her earlobe with my teeth.

“Mmm…that sounds like a good idea,” she whispered.

I sat back and pulled my seat belt back on, and then I drove the longest two miles of my life. I parked the truck and said, “Hold on, baby. Let me get the door and help you out.”

I ran around the front of the truck and opened her door as she held her hand out for me to help her down. I guided her to the side of the house over toward the giant oak. I stopped her back far enough to where she would be able to see it as soon as I took off the blindfold.

“Are you ready?” I whispered in ear.

She nodded her head and clapped her hands. “The surprise is outside?”

“Yep.” I started to untie it and said, “Don’t open your eyes until I say so.” I let the scarf drop from her eyes as I watched her face. “Open your eyes, Court.”

She took a deep breath and opened her eyes. Her mouth dropped open, and she brought her hands up to her mouth. When I saw the tears building in her eyes, I knew I had done the right thing by surprising her. I knew how much she loved surprises.

She just stood there and stared up at it. She dropped her hands and turned to look at me. The tears were streaming down her face as she said, “You remembered what I said about the tree house. When? I mean…how? I mean, did you build this, Reed? It’s amazing. It’s the most breathtaking tree house I’ve ever seen,” she said between sobs.

I nodded my head. I was afraid if I tried to talk, I’d start crying like a pansy-ass. She threw herself into my body and held on to me as tight as she could. I must have held her for a good five minutes while she cried and kept saying thank you over and over. She pulled back, and I used my thumbs to wipe away her tears, and then I gently kissed her on the lips.

“That day I brought you out here to show you around, I knew I would be building this for you. When we got back to Layton’s, I began drawing out the design. Then, when you told me you were pregnant, I knew I would be building it as soon as we got back home.”

She sucked in a breath of air and said, “This is what you’ve been doing?”

I smiled and nodded my head. “Layton and I have been taking care of the ranch in the mornings and then meeting Kevin and Richard over here in the afternoons to build it. I’ve been nervous as hell to show it to you.”

She pulled back and gave me a shocked look. “Why in the world would you ever be nervous to show it to me?”

I shrugged my shoulders and said, “I was worried you weren’t serious or that maybe you would want to be a part of the design. I just always want to make you happy. There is nothing in this world that I love more than making you smile.”

When the corner of her mouth lifted and she peeked up, I knew what she was thinking.

“I know the first surface that needs to be broken in,” she said.

I let out an exaggerated gasp. “Our future kids’ tree house? You want to have sex in our future children’s tree house?”

She slowly nodded her head and said, “It’s ours for a little while.”

I glanced up at the tree house and then back down at Court. My dick jumped at the idea of making love to her up there. I grabbed her hand and pulled her over to the staircase that snaked around the tree and led us up to the deck of the tree house. Courtney let out a giggle and mumbled something about not being able to wait to tell Whitley.

As I pushed open the door, I looked back to see her face.

“Oh, Reed,” she said in a hushed tone as she looked in every direction.

We had built the tree house all around the tree. The main room contained a few beanbag chairs. There was a flat screen TV on the wall, and under that was a wall that contained built-in cabinets.

“Oh my God. There is a TV in here?” Courtney said.

I laughed and said, “Layton and Kevin insisted. They said the kids wouldn’t be able to use it for a few years, so we might as well make it fun for us. We just put these chairs in here until you pick out some other stuff.”

She looked at me, stunned. I took her hand and led her into the other room that had two sets of bunk beds that Kevin had made out of cedar. All the wood was cedar, and it smelled so damn good. Courtney put her hand up to her mouth and shook her head.

“I didn’t have a chance to buy any mattresses or anything like that.”

“Reed, what about the weather? Won’t the heat and cold ruin this stuff?” she asked as she looked around the room.

“No, baby. The whole thing is insulated, and we have it ready to add air and heat.”

She spun around and stared at me with her mouth dropped open. “What the hell? Our kids’ tree house is going to have air and heat? They’re not even born yet, and you’re spoiling the hell out of them already!”

I threw my head back and laughed. I didn’t want to say anything, but I loved how she also kept referring to multiple kids. “Well, I figured we can enjoy it until they get older.”

Courtney walked up to the ladder and asked, “Where does this go? To a bathroom?” she said with a giggle.

I walked up and whispered in her ear, “This leads to my favorite part of the whole tree house, the crow’s nest. Here, you go first. I don’t want you slipping and getting hurt. There is a small landing at the door. Just open the door and step on out.”

As she climbed up, my heart started pounding.

“Why does it have a lock on it?” Courtney asked as she looked down at me.

“Well, I figured when the kids are little, we will want to keep it locked, so they don’t go up here without us. I’ve built up the walls pretty high to keep them from falling over. This is the only area that does not have windows.”

I made my way up to the landing and stood there while she smiled at me.

“Reed, you’re going to make an amazing father.”

I gave her a weak smile and said, “I hope so.”

I reached around her and pushed open the door. She turned around and let out another gasp.

Rose petals covered the floor, and white lights were draped across the walls. The sun was beginning to sink into the western sky, and the colors of the sky were amazing. The view would only get better the closer we got to sunset. In the corner was a blanket, a bottle of grape juice, two wine glasses, and Courtney’s favorite thing right now, chocolate-covered grapes. I gagged every time I saw her eat them, but she loved them.