Keeping Her 18+ (Her Series book three)

Wilder

"Wilder." Hearing my name on her lips sends my pulse into a frenzy. She's looking at me with wide, fearful eyes and she's as still as a statue. Fuck, she's even more beautiful than I remember.

Her long blonde hair is cut shorter now, sitting just above her slim shoulders, and her hazel eyes are even more vivid. I let my eyes trail down her body before coming back to her face. Her hips are slightly wider and her breasts look fuller, making my cock jump in my jeans as it takes notice. She has dark circles under her eyes, made more pronounced by her pale complexion, but none of that detracts from how gorgeous she is.

"Mommy, bekfast." The garbled words from the little boy, our son, pulls her out of her shock. She pastes a smile onto her beautiful face as she looks at him.

"Here you go, little bean, eat it all, and you can have a slice of pie when you're finished." She sets the food she was holding down on the table and he digs in. I watch him smile at her with love and affection, showing a dimple in his right cheek that looks just like mine.

I feel a pang of regret and sorrow flow through my chest as I study him. As soon as I entered the diner, I saw him sitting here and came right for him. With just one look I knew he was mine. There's no denying it. If you placed a photo of me at his age next to him we would be identical.

He's got to be around four years old now. I have a four year old son that I didn't get to watch grow. I missed out on so much already, but I vow to never miss another moment of his life for as long as I live.

I swallow the lump that's building in my throat. I want to hold him in my arms so badly that I have to clench my fist together to stop myself from reaching over just to hold him, because I'm a stranger to him, I'm his father and he doesn't know me.

I look from him to Alex and feel my anger boiling in my veins. She kept him from me. She left in the middle of the night and had my baby without ever telling me.

"That's my son." I whisper hoarsely, trying my best not to startle him as he eats.

She bites her bottom lip as her eyes dart between me and him, then she motions me to follow her a few feet away, close enough to keep an eye on him but not to where he can hear us talking.

"Yes." That's all she says before closing her mouth and swallowing.

"You kept him from me. All these years." I take a step closer to her and she backs up. "I have a son and you never told me about him." I look her over as the feeling of rage and contempt consumes me.

"You were engaged, Wilder. You had someone else waiting at home for you. I was just a summer fling to you." She narrows her eyes and her nostrils flare. "Besides, you never even told me your last name. How was I supposed to find you to tell you?"

"What the hell are you talking about? I've never been engaged, Alex. And you know you were more than just a summer fling to me. You were my everything." I say, a sinking feeling taking over my body.

"I heard you." She whispers hoarsely as she looks down at her feet. "You were on the phone with someone named River, and you were telling him about how you were going to be married soon and were leaving to go back home." A heavy breath leaves my lungs as I rub my face, understanding dawning on me, making me feel both like an idiot and furious over the absurd miscommunication.

"No. I was talking about you. About us."

"What do you mean?" She scrunches her nose, looking adorable as fuck, as she looks at me in confusion. I step closer, running my finger down the side of her delicate face, causing her breath to hitch and her pupils to dilate.

"I was on the phone with my brother, River. I was telling him about you. I told him I met the woman who was meant for me." I grab her chin in a delicate grasp to keep her from looking away from my eyes. "I was planning on bringing you home and marrying you." Her beautiful eyes widen as she takes in my words.

"What? You never said anything to me. I thought I was the only one who felt..." She trails off without finishing.

"Felt what, Goldie?" I plead with her to say it.

"I missed that." She whispers after a long pause, barely loud enough for me to hear, but I know what she means. I missed it too.

"What did you feel, baby?" Say it. Say it so I know it wasn't all in my head.

"I felt a connection with you that was unexplainable. I fell in love with you. I thought we were each other's futures." She closes her eyes as she admits the depth of her feelings.

I should have said something. Every night we were together I would whisper in her ear how much I loved her, but only when she was asleep. I was afraid of scaring her with my declaration after not knowing each other very long. I was terrified she would run. Turns out, she did run, because I should have been a man and told her how I truly felt.

"You weren't alone, Goldie. I fell in love with you the moment my eyes landed on you at the beach. In a single moment my world was flipped around." She's speechless, with her mouth partially open as she looks at me in shock, and it takes everything in my control not to kiss her beautiful lips. But she's skittish, so I know I need to take it slow.

"Good morning, everyone." Whatever else was about to be said is interrupted as Ann walks into the diner. She looks at us with a knowing look and I see Alex blush before clearing her throat and taking another step away from me.

"Good morning. You're here early, Ann." Alex walks around me until she's back at our son's side where Ann is currently standing.

"I figured I would stop by a little earlier in case the little man here got bored before it was time to get him. Plus you need some time off. You've been working yourself to the bone since you got here." She smiles sweetly down at our son before shooting her eyes towards me with a raised brow.

I called Ann before the diner opened this morning and told her I would be taking Alex and our son for the afternoon. After she demanded to know what was going on, I begrudgingly admitted who Alex is to me and how the kid is ours. After threatening me not to hurt Alex, she was nice enough to help me out. Ann grew up in this town, so she's familiar with the legend, and understands what this means.

"That's not necessary, Ann. I'm fine, I promise." Alex quickly refuses to leave early, causing my pulse to race as I try to figure out a way to get her to come with me.

"Hey, bud, you want to go to the park with me and your momma?" I squat down to where I'm eye level with the kid to ask him.

"Yes! Park, mommy. Park!" He claps his hands as his face lights up in glee. Fuck, he's precious.

I look at Alex and see her nibbling on her bottom lip while shooting a worried glance my way. I see the moment she gives in. "Sure, little bean, we can go to the park."

He jumps down from the booth and I steady him with my hands before finally doing what I've been craving since I locked eyes on him. I pick him up and hold him in my arms. He looks at me funny for a moment before smiling his dimpled smile, making my heart feel fuller than I thought possible.

I can't take my eyes off him as I run my hand down his hair. I have a son. I'm a dad. Fuck.

"What's your name, bud?" I quietly ask him as I do my best to keep my emotions from my voice.

"William Wilder." He tells me before looking back to his momma and smiling at her. "Park, momma!" She laughs at his exuberance even as I see tears shining in her beautiful eyes as she watches me hold him.

This both kills me and fills me with pride. She gave him my name even after believing I used her body. I swallow the lump in my throat as I look at Alex.

I have a son, and he's named after me. Determination fills me as I look at my son and my woman. Alex is my soulmate, and I lost her, but I'm going to get her back. I searched for her for years before finally accepting my loss. Now she's standing right in front of me while I hold our son in my arms. This is my family. I'm never going to lose this again.

I'll do whatever it takes to keep this. I refuse to lose it again. They're mine, and they belong right here with me.