Page 109 of When Forever Falls Apart

I gently brush my lips against hers. “Everything, Bugs. I want an entire life with you.”

Her lips purse, trying to hold back a smile. “Hmmm, okay.”

“What, you scared?”

She shakes her head with an infectious grin. “Not in the slightest.”

“Good,” I tell her as I tighten my embrace.

A satisfied smile spreads across her lips as she looks up at me, her eyes sparkling with curiosity. “So, what’s on the agenda for today, our first official day back together?”

“I want to stay here, with you,” I tell her honestly. “We don’t need to leave this bed.”

“I like that plan, but eventually, we have to get up. I need to head into the store.”

“Billie has you covered,” I inform her.

Madelina laughs in my arms. “Sounds likeyouhave everything covered.”

“Speaking of having things covered, I want to run something past you,” I begin as she eases out of my arms and turns to face me. “Jacques, the owner of the restaurant, has asked if I’d be willing to stay in Saint-Tropez for three weeks of the year. I’d basically be training new staff, and of course, it means we’ll have our own place there by the beach. The hours won’t be long each day. He’s happy for me to put together a schedule that works for us. Oh, and I also wrote down a list of bookstores we could visit. They’re not strictly romance, but they come highly recommended.”

She falls silent, her expression thoughtful, a soft glowilluminating her face as she processes the idea. “You’ve really given this a lot of thought. Us, I mean,” she finally replies.

“Of course,” I murmur, my voice low and sincere. “It’s our life, Bugs. There is no me without you.”

“I’ll go with you, on one condition.”

I throw my head back into the pillow, a smirk on my face. “Okay, what is it?”

“We bathe nude in Saint-Tropez.”

My gaze swiftly meets hers. “No chance in hell any man is seeing you nude.”

“But it’s part of their culture,” she teases.

“No.”

“Fine.” She shrugs, but a smile creeps across her lips. “I guess I wouldn’t want your big ass dick out anyway. The men would eat you alive.”

“You mean women?”

“Uh, nope. The men,” she exaggerates.

I dig my fingers into her rib cage, causing her to squeal.

We stay in bed a while longer, talking about life and our future. When our stomachs rumble in sync, I head into the kitchen to make something for breakfast. Upon opening Madelina’s refrigerator, I see nothing but an old Chinese takeout box and a carton of milk.

“Wow, you must have been really depressed without me,” I yell from the kitchen.

As I scratch my head while going through her empty pantry cupboards, my phone buzzes on the countertop. Upon seeing Eva’s number, I hit accept call.

“Get your ass to the hospital!” Eva’s voice bursts through the phone like a sudden explosion, laced with urgency. “It’s happening!”

The call suddenly ends, prompting me to check if we are still connected. Madelina walks into the kitchen wearing a black silk robe. She lifts her arms to stretch, her browfurrowing in confusion. “Who was that, shouting like they’re on fire?”

“Eva,” I reply, my heart racing with this sudden need to rush to the hospital. “I think she’s about to have the baby.”

Madelina raises an eyebrow, skepticism etched on her face. “Wait, are you positive?