The MC President's Forsaken Wife (Zara and Knox) novel Chapter 367

Chapter 181

Chapter 181

By mid-afternoon, the dining table has been cleared of empty plates and wrapping paper, replaced by small dishes of roasted nuts, shortbread cookies, and fresh clementines.

Evelyn is nestled comfortably in her favorite armchair by the wide ocean window, a wool throw over her knees, sipping herbal tea while she admires her new tide clock as it ticks quietly on the

stone mantlepiece.

Locke steps out onto the back porch to check the shifting wind, holding a fresh mug of black

coffee.

Watching his tall, broad silhouette through the glass door, I feel a sudden, quiet pull to be near him.

slip into my heavy wool coat, wrap a thick knit scarf around my neck, and pull on my boots to follow him outside into the winter air.

The moment I push the heavy wooden door open, the crisp, pure air hits my lungs like a splash of

clear water.

Locke turns at the click of the latch, his gaze sweeping over me as I step out onto the porch.

“You should be inside where it’s warm, baby,” he says, though he immediately steps closer, shifting his broad frame to block the biting wind coming off the water.

“I wanted to be out here with you,” I say, stepping right up into his space, my boots crunching softly on the dusting of fresh snow.

Locke sets his coffee mug down on the wooden railing behind him and opens his heavy wool coat. He wraps his broad arms around me, turns me around, and pulls me against his front. Then he zips his coat right up around us both.

I lean my head back against his shoulder, looking out over the misty, snow-covered trees.

“What are you thinking about?” I ask, watching our breath plume together in the crisp winter air.

Locke hesitates for a moment, his chin resting against the top of my head as his arms tighten around me. “Thinking about how fast the spring is going to come. And how baby’s arrival in July is going to be here before we even know it.”

I smile, turning in the coat so I can look up into his face. “July feels like a long way off right now in

all this snow, Locke.”

“It’s not, though. Six months goes by in a blink when you’ve got a list of things to finish. We need to get the nursery in the penthouse built out before spring hits.”

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Chapter 181

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“Damn right, I do. We’re turning the spare room across from ours into the nursery. Got to knock out that old shelving unit, sand down the trim, and set up the crib. I’m building it out of solid oak and

steel. None of that cheap particle board stuff from a store.”

“Steel? Won’t that – I don’t know – be hard on the baby’s skin?”

“It’s for the frame, so it goes under the wood. It’s damn solid and strong.”

“Like you.”

“Like us.”

“And of course you’re forging steel for a baby crib,” I tease him. “Because our baby needs a crib

built like a vault.”

“Needs to be damn indestructible,” Locke says, his deep chest vibrating against mine with quiet laughter. “And we still haven’t figured out how we’re going to tell your Dad and Mayhem and Jade.

And the rest of the guys.”

“Dad’s going to lose his absolute mind. He’s either going to throw a party or start demanding your intentions just on principle.”

“Maybe both,” Locke says. “Point is, I guess we keep it between us a little longer, huh? Just get through New Year’s next week, and that’ll put us at twelve weeks.”

“Agreed. Although watching my Dad’s face when he realizes he’s going to be a grandfather is going

to be worth every second of tension.”

“He’ll play the tough bastard for about five seconds,” Locke says, his lips twitching into a rare,

genuine grin. “Then he’ll be ordering custom-made miniature leather vests.”

“He absolutely will,” I say. “And Rook will probably demand to be named godfather within twenty

minutes.”

“Over Mayhem’s dead body,” Locke snorts. “They’ll probably end up in a fistfight over who gets to

carry the car seat out of the hospital.”

Locke’s eyes burn with a low, steady warmth that cuts straight through the biting air. He pulls me a little tighter against his chest, leaning down to take my mouth in a slow, lingering kiss that tastes like dark coffee and crisp winter air.

“We’re going to be fine, baby,” he murmurs against my hair. “All of us.”

Before I can answer, a heavy THUD echoes against the bottom of the porch door, followed instantly by a dramatic, high-pitched whine that sounds like a deflating balloon.

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Chapter 181

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Titan is standing on his hind legs inside, his massive front paws plastered flat against the glass, frantically scratching at the wood trim while looking at us with utter betrayal. He lets out a sharp, indignant bark, his tail thumping violently against the indoor rug as if to demand why on earth he

was excluded from the coat wrap.

Locke lets out a heavy, long-suffering sigh, resting his forehead against mine for a brief second

before cracking a slight grin.

“Every damn time,” Locke says, unzipping his coat just enough to free me. “Dog has zero concept of personal space. Or kissing.”

“He just wants to guard his territory,” I say, stepping back to unlatch the door.

The second the door swings open, Titan barrels out onto the porch like a two-hundred-pound snowplow, barging right between Locke’s legs, nearly taking us both down, and shoving his cold, wet nose straight into Locke’s coffee mug.

“Hey! Back off the coffee, brute,” Locke says, shoving the dog’s massive head away, though his hand immediately buries into Titan’s thick fur to scratch him behind the ears. “The last thing you need is more energy.”

Titan lets out a pleased, huffing groan, sitting heavily right on top of Locke’s boot and looking up at us as if to say ‘that’s better’.

“Look at him,” I laugh, shaking my head as Titan nudges my pocket searching for treats. “He’s convinced he owns the porch now.”

“He owns whatever he sits on,” Locke grunts, trying to pull his trapped boot out from underneath hundreds of pounds of fur and muscle without disturbing him. “Which right now is my left foot.”

I lean against Locke’s side, laughing as the cold wind blows around the three of us on the snowy porch. The secret that I carry is still ours, the road back home is waiting, but out here with my hand in Locke’s and a giant dog sitting on his foot, everything feels exactly as it should be.

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