Nick smirked. “Do I really have a choice? I’m strapped into a plane that’s taking off whether I want it to or not.”
“Relax. You can hold my hand the whole time.”
Grinning devilishly, he entwined his fingers through hers. “I’d like to do a lot more than that with you the whole time,” he whispered in her ear.
“Behave, Carter.”
He shot her a worried glance. “Is it okay for you to fly with the baby?”
She laughed. “Well, I think it’s safer to fly with the baby than without.”
“So it’s safe.”
“Of course it is.” His concern was so cute, and she was really touched.
As the plane took off, a middle-aged woman next to Nick touched his arm. “You two are the cutest couple,” she said.
“Thank you,” Nick and Michelle said in unison.
“Are you married?”
“No, we’re not,” he stated.
“Engaged?”
“No, actually,” Michelle said.
“You should get married, because I don’t think I’ve ever seen a couple so in love before.”
“How can you tell?” Nick asked.
“I can see it in your faces, in the way you hold hands, just the way you interact. And I couldn’t help but notice how concerned you are about her and the baby. I didn’t mean to eavesdrop, but I heard you talking about it.”
He blushed. “I’m really excited.”
“That’s great. I’m really happy for you guys,” the woman said sincerely.
“Thanks.”
For the rest of the flight, Nick had a death grip on Michelle’s hand. “Gosh, sweetie, can you maybe not crush my hand bones?” she asked.
“Sorry.” His grasp loosened slightly. “I just don’t like flying very much.”
“Gee, couldn’t figure that one out,” she teased. “Well you have me here, so you’ll be all right.”
“I know. I love you.”
“I love you, too.”
When the plane finally landed, she jerked her hand away from his and tried to rub the soreness out of it. “I’m sorry. Let me do that,” he said, taking hold of it once more. He massaged it gently until it felt better, then led her out of the plane. “Are you ready?”
“I guess. Not really. I’m not exactly looking forward to my mom’s reaction,” she said. “At least it’s her best friend’s son, and at least it’s someone I care about, and not some random one night stand.”
He opened his arms and pulled her into a hug. “Come here. We can do this.”
“You’re right.”
“Let’s go find my mom. She should be waiting for me somewhere.”
Instead of seeing Jane, they found Nick’s sister, BJ. “Mom has tons of food to make, so she sent me to pick you guys up.”
Nick gave her a long hug. “It’s been four months since I’ve seen you, Beej. What’s up?”
“Ugh, I’ve sworn off guys, but I’ll get to that later.” She turned to Michelle. “You look great!”
Michelle blushed. “Thanks. So do you.”
After picking up their luggage and getting into the car, BJ elaborated on her guy life. “Why are guys such assholes?” she exclaimed.
“Do you want to explain what happened?” Nick asked.
“Well, you remember that guy I was seeing, Bobby.”
“Yeah, I remember. The one I told you I didn’t like?”
“Yeah, him. I should have frickin’ listened to you, Nick, because the asshole cheated on me. I went over to his house one day to surprise him, and there he was, sleeping with some other girl.”
“You know what? Basically the same thing happened to me,” Michelle stated. “But you can’t swear off all guys.”
“Wait, wait, yes, she can!” Nick exclaimed. “Go ahead and swear off guys, Beej, because then I won’t have to worry about you.”
“As I was saying,” Michelle continued, “not all guys are jerks. I ended up finding one who’s really great. I kinda fell in love with him, and now I’m happy.”
“Who is this guy? Does he have a brother?”
Nick looked away so she couldn’t see the smile on his face. “He’s got a brother, but he’s a lot younger than you,” he answered for her.
“Damn, too bad.”