"I have a jacket," Tate said in the backseat.
"That shows about three inches of your wrists," Oakley rolled her eyes. "Why do you not want a new jacket?"
"I like my old jacket," Tate said.
"We can find one just like it," Oakley said as she pulled off the highway. "But you can't go into the winter with a jacket that doesn't fit you."
"But my jacket matches Dad's jacket," Tate said softly, and Oakley smiled.
"Then we'll find you a new one that matches your Dad's," Oakley turned into the parking lot. "Or, if all else fails, we'll make your Dad come out and get one to match your new one...how's that sound?"
"Deal," Tate nodded.
Oakley pulled into the parking lot and they both got out. It was getting cooler in Montana now; fall was right around the corner which meant winter wasn't far behind it. Tate had needed a new jacket last year, but she wasn't who she was now back then.
They walked over to the children's clothing section and looked at the jackets already out. Oakley knew Tate had a fondness for matching his father, even if he wouldn't admit it to Kayce directly. She looked through the racks of clothing, trying to see if there was something similar to Kayce's tan one.
"Oaks!" Tate called out and Oakey looked over.
Tate was holding an infant's jacket that was pretty close to the one she was looking for, for Tate. The small jacket made Oakley's heart clinch as she smiled at Tate.
"Think we should be proactive like you say," Tate walked over to her.
"You'd need to get two," Oakley laughed and then stopped, her head shooting up and looking over at Tate's confused face.
She and Kayce had just found out three days ago that they were having twins and hadn't gotten around to telling Tate about the change in plans. They were going tonight, at a family dinner with John so they could let it be known to everyone. But Tate's confused face made Oakley feel terrible that she was going to have to explain without Kayce.
"Two?" Tate asked. "Why two?"
"Um..." Oakley turned to face him more. "Well, buddy...you know how your dad and I went to a doctor's appointment this week?"
"Yeah?" Tate nodded.
"So, we got some news on the baby," Oakley reached down and placed her hand on her small bump.
"Something wrong?" Tate asked.
"No, nothing's wrong," Oakley shook her head. "It's just we are not having one baby...we're gonna have two babies."
"Two babies?" Tate looked up at her. "As in...you're having...twins?"
"Yeah, twins," Oakley smiled. "What do you think about that?"
"So, two babies...I'll have two little brothers or sisters?" Tate looked at Oakley's bump.
"We won't know for a little while but yeah...two siblings," Oakley reached out and tapped Tate's chin. "How does that make you feel?"
She watched Tate think about it for a minute.
"Does that mean there will be three of us?" Tate asked her and Oakley nodded. "Three against two?"
"Against two?" Oakley looked confused.
"You and Dad," Tate smiled. "Against the three of us."
"There will be no against us," Oakley smirked. "I don't know what you're planning Tate Dutton, but this isn't a democracy...your father and I are in charge, I don't care how many you have on your side."
"I think that'll be fun," Tate giggled.
"You can get all those thoughts out of your head, pal," Oakley rolled her eyes. "Ain't none of that happening."
"What if they're boys?" Tate smiled. "Then it'll be four of us against the one of you."
Oakley's smirked died.
"What if they're both girls?" Oakley chimed back. "Then it'll be you and Dad who are outnumbered."
"That's too much pink," Tate shook his head.
"Too much?" Oakley laughed. "Tate, I don't even wear pink."
"I think they're boys," Tate reached over and for the first time, placed his hands on Oakley's bump.
She hadn't had a bump really for him to do it before, and after her own hands, only Kayce's were what Oakley was used to touching her like this. But seeing Tate's little hands over her bump make Oakley's throat tighten slightly.
"Two little brothers," Tate mumbled.
Oakley reached up and pushed Tate's hair back some as she smiled down at him. She took a deep breath, feeling better that this conversation was out of the way now. It had gone better than the first time they had told Tate's Oakley was pregnant...
Oakley turned around to bring the casserole dish to the table. But she stepped wrong, and her feet flew out from under her, sending Oakley down and the dish clanging against the tile. Kayce was y her side in an instant, Tate standing up next to them.
"I'm alright," Oakley laughed.
"Babe, stay still," Kayce held her arms. "Tate, get a rag."
"I'm fine," Oakley shook her head. "I just slipped...Kayce stop!"
Kayce was trying the reach his arms under her knees to lift her.
"I'm okay," Oakey pushed him away.
"What about the baby?" Kayce asked. "Should we call the doctor?"
"Baby?" Tate asked, making both Kayce and Oakley look up at him.
"Shit," Kayce whispered, and Oakley hit his shoulder.
"Tate..." Oakley sighed. "Honey..."
"You're gonna have a baby?" Tate asked, looking at Oakey. "Why didn't you tell me?"
"We were going to tell you," Oakley tried. "It's very early on and-Tate!"
Tate ran back into his room. Oakley sighed, frowning, and looking at Kayce.
"Sorry," Kayce sighed. "I'll go talk to him."
"No, I will," Oakley stood up before Kayce could help her. "You've done enough on this topic."
"Hey, you're the one who wanted to wait and tell him," Kayce stood up too.
"Because it's early," Oakley whispered to Kayce. "Because I'm trying to be careful...for all of us."
"And I'm not?" Kayce asked.
"This isn't about you, Kayce," Oakley was frustrated. "This is about Tate. I wanted to do this the right way to make it easy for Tate."
Oakley walked over to Tate's bedroom door and knocked gently. After a few seconds of not hearing anything, Oakley opened the door. Tate was sitting back on his bed, his dinosaur book on his lap but it wasn't opened.
"Hey..." Oakley stood at the foot of Tate's bed. "Room for one more?"
Tate looked up at her for a few seconds and then nodded. Oakley walked around and got into bed with Tate, leaning over toward him on the pillows.
"Can I say something to you?" Oakley asked and once again, Tate nodded.
"When my doctor told me I was pregnant...do you know what my first thought was?" Oakley asked, looking at Tate.
Tate shrugged.
"My first thought was...I gotta make sure this is what Tate wants," Oakley said.
Tate looked up at her with a confused expression on his face.
"Me?" Tate asked.
"Yeah...you're just as much a part of this decision as me or your Dad," Oakley smiled. "We're a team, Tate...and I can't do this by myself."
"But you have Dad?" Tate said.
"I do," Oakey nodded. "But I think I'll need you more for this one."
"Why?" Tate asked.
"Well," Oakley shifted closer to Tate. "Because you'll be the older brother. You'll be the one that this little one will look up to for all of their life...I need you in this with me, because you're probably gonna be their most important person, their best friend...their first friend...I had an older brother...and he was my best friend...and I need you to be with me because I can't do any of this without you."
"Sounds like a lot of responsibility," Tate said, but Oakley saw his eyes getting clearer.
"It will be," Oakley nodded. "But I think it'll be a lot of fun too...think of it like having a built-in friend forever."
Tate smiled and looked up at Oakley.
"Think we can do this?" Oakley asked.
"Yeah," Tate nodded. "It'll be fun to have a little brother."
"Or sister," Oakley winked.
"Or brother," Tate giggled.
Oakley ruffled his hair.
"Alright," Oakley leaned back up. "Well, dinner is ruined...how about we go see what's in Grandpa's house?"
"Nice," Tate jumped off the bed and ran out the door.
When he pushed open the door, Oakley saw Kayce had been standing there. His soft eyes found her as Oakley stood up and walked over from the bed. She stopped next to him, her hand resting against his chest as she looked up at him.
"Gator's cooking duck tonight," Kayce mentioned to her.
"I might for once stick to the salad," Oakley smiled. "Was all that, okay?"
"Of course, it was," Kayce pressed a kiss to Oakley's cheek. "Thank you."
"One step at a time, love," Oakley winked and walked past to catch up with Tate.
"This one?" Oakley asked, holding up another jacket. "There's orange stitching on the sleeves."
"Too much orange," Tate said.
"You love orange," Oakley looked at Tate.
"I don't think we're gonna find it today..." Tate sighed dramatically. "Guess we'll just have to wait."
Oakley eyed him.
"Tate, we're leaving with a jacket today," Oakley said. "You're either gonna have the option to pick it or I'm gonna pick it for you...I think there are some nice pink ones over on the other side too."
Tate's eyes widened.
"The one with the orange is good," He said quickly.
Oakley nodded, grabbing the jacket, and then pushing Tate over to the left.
"But the registers are that way," Tate pointed.
"I know," Oakey handed him his jacket. "Hold this and give me a second."
Oakley walked down an aisle and stopped, looking around for a few seconds. She spotted the adult version of Tate's new jacket and grabbed Kayce's size. When she walked back up, Tate was smiling at her.
"Okay, now we can go," Oakley nodded toward the registers.
**
Oakley was leaning against the fence, watching Colby and Ryan get Tate up on his horse. She looked behind her shoulder when she heard voices and saw Kayce walking up with Rip. After Rip nodded, he walked past her to the barn, Kayce stopped next to her.
"Hey," Kayce smiled. "Did y'all have a good day?"
"Yeah," Oakley nodded. "You also got a new jacket out of it, by the way."
"I did?" Kayce asked.
"Don't ask," Oakley shook her head. "I also...kind of had to tell Tate about the twins."
"He knows?" Kayce looked over to Tate.
"I blurted it out accidentally," Oakley shrugged. "But he was good with it."
"I didn't doubt it," Kayce rubbed Oakley's back. "How are you?"
"Good," Oakey nodded. "A little tired from today, but I feel good."
"Feel up for dinner?" Kayce asked. "Be okay if you didn't."
"We need to do these dinners," Oakley shook her head. "Come November, I don't think John's gonna have as many as he thinks he's going to have...and it's good for Tate too."
"Dad!" Tate called over. "Look!"
He was up and riding Lucky around with no rope or help, leading the horse back and forth. Oakey saw Kayce smile over at Tate.
"Looking good, son," Kayce nodded. "Make sure those reigns stay loose though unless you're giving him a command."
Tate nodded and looked down at his hands. Oakley leaned back into Kayce's chest, one of his arms circling around her.
"He wants them to be twin boys," Oakley said.
"Tate?" Kayce asked, looking down at her. "That'd be a whole lot of testosterone for you."
"Don't think I haven't thought about it," Oakley laughed. "But if they're girls then you two would be outnumbered."
"Mmm," Kayce hummed. "Don't know if I can handle two daughters at the same age."
"I don't think I've ever seen you with a baby," Oakley turned into Kayce more. "Now that I think of it."
"About what you'd expect I reckon," Kayce shrugged. "I was a nervous wreck every time I'd hold Tate for at least a month."
"I bet you were great," Oakley smiled.
Kayce looked down into her eyes.
"You sure you can do dinner?" Kayce asked, raising his eyebrow. "If you need to go lay down, I'll take you back to the house."
"Why are you so hell-bent on not doing dinner with your father?" Oakley asked. "Did something else happen?"
"No," Kayce shook his head. "I haven't seen Dad in over a week...just thinking if you need to."
"I told you I'm fine," Oakey narrowed her eyes. "I don't need...Kayce...do you need to go lay down?"
"Only if you're with me," Kayce eyed her.
"Are you asking for more than just laying down?" Oakley giggled. "In one of your weird, roundabout ways of saying you want something more?"
"I always want more," Kayce mumbled, leaning his face closer to Oakley's.
Oakley leaned up on her toes as her lips pressed against Kayce's.
"Maybe Tate can stay with his grandpa tonight?" Oakley asked, her lips brushing Kayce's. "Then I could give you some attention you seem to really need."
"It has been a long week," Kayce nodded, tugging Oakley closer to him. "Haven't felt close to you all week."
"Well, we can't have that," Oakley grinned.
"Nope," Kayce shook his head. "Can't have that."
He leaned down and captured Oakley's lips again in a heated kiss.
"Ugh, stop!" Tate laughed from atop Lucky. "You're already having a baby!"
Oakley laughed against Kayce's lips as he let a little growl out from the back of his throat.
"Yeah, he can stay anywhere else tonight," Kayce muttered.
"Tate," Oakley called out. "Supper time...feed Lucky and then let's go up to the house!"
She watched and when Tate, Ryan, and Colby disappeared into the barn she looked back at Kayce. Her hands came up to his face and she pulled him down for another kiss. Kayce's hands roamed over her back, reaching down so his fingers went slightly under the hem of her summer dress as he deepened the kiss.
Oakley held his hair back as she tilted his head, her tongue swiping against his. A little moan escaped her mouth as Kayce's lips moved along her jaw.
"Okay," Oakley breathed out, knowing they needed to stop. "Baby..."
"One more," Kayce pressed his lips to her, silencing anything else she might say.
When he pulled away, Oakley was breathless.
"If it'll help," Oakley cleared her throat. "Tate only wanted a new jacket if it could match yours...I couldn't find one that matched the tan one you always wear. So, I bought you one that matched the new one I got Tate."
Kayce looked down at Oakley and smiled.
"That helps," Kayce tucked a piece of hair behind Oakley's head. "But I'm still fucking you tonight...he can go anywhere else."
"Kayce!" Oakley laughed with a roll of her eyes.
"You said I was walking around what I really wanted," Kayce shrugged. "Just making it clearer for you, babe."
"Kayce, you're a man," Oakley shook her head. "I think I know what you're always trying to say."
"I'm your man," Kayce smirked.
Oakley took a deep breath.
"Keep this up and I'll just drop Tate off with John," Oakley smiled.
Tate ran up to where they were standing. Ryan and Colby had both gone into the bunkhouse for the evening. Kayce was still staring at Oakley.
"Hey buddy," Kayce looked at Tate. "Go one up to Grandpa's...we'll be there here in a little bit, okay?"
"What're y'all doing?" Tate asked, innocently.
"Just need to take care of something," Kayce said. "Go on, we'll be up later."
Tate eyed them both before shrugging and taking off. Oakley watched him over Kayce's shoulder until he got up to the main house. When she thought she saw the door shut, her eyes looked back to Kayce.
"Just want do you have in mind, cowboy?" Oakley smirked. "We're in the middle of the corrals."
"Come with me," Kayce laced his fingers with Oakley's and led her over to the barn.
It was warmer in the barn as Kayce walked over to the ladder, leading up to the lofts. He looked over at Oakley and smiled.
"What are we?" Oakley laughed. "Sixteen again?"
"Might have the mind of one," Kayce shrugged. "But I know I fuck you better now than I did back then."
"What's gotten into you?" Oakey asked but reached for the railings.
She walked up the ladder to the second-story lofts. They were filled with soft hay, a few barrels to sit on, and some worn blankets. It had always been a hideaway for anyone looking to escape for a while. Oakley didn't know the last time she had been up here.
Kayce gently pushed her over to one of the barrels to sit on as he tugged some blankets around them on the floor. Oakley leaned back on her hands as she watched Kayce make things comfortable. When he stood back up and stepped over to her he held out his hand.
Oakley leaned up but reached for his belt, undoing it and pulling it from his jeans. Kayce's hand rested back against his side as Oakley unbuttoned his jeans and pulled the zipper down. Oakley's eyes looked up into Kayce's above her. His hand came out and held her chin, his thumb running across her lips as she tugged his jeans and boxers down.
"Oaks," Kayce breathed out as Oakley got down on her knees.
His hands ran through her hair, gathering it into a ponytail for him to hold as Oakley's lips parted around Kayce. Her cheeks hollowed out as she took him into her mouth slowly. Kayce's eyes fluttered close as Oakley's lips pulled back and then forward again, gently.
Oakley rested a hand against Kayce's thigh as she used her tongue to help her take more of Kayce past her lips. His grip on her hair tightened, helping move her over him. Oakley's lips made a pop sound as Kayce pulled her off him. He kneeled in front of her, dragging her mouth to his.
Oakley's fingers tangled in Kayce's hair as he pulled her waist into his, laying her down on the soft blankets so he could move between her legs. Kayce's lips pressed against her neck as he tugged her dress up and over her hips. Oakley hooked one leg around Kayce's waist.
"What's gotten into me?" Kayce groaned against her. "What about you?"
"We've all perfected things since we were sixteen," Oakley giggled, nipping at Kayce's bottom lip as his hands held her waist.
Kayce shook his head as he reached up and removed her panties, placing them in his back pocket. Oakley pulled Kayce back down over her, her hands moving around his back as their lips met in a sweet kiss.
"I love you," Kayce groaned into Oakley's mouth.
"Mmm," Oakley hummed as felt Kayce push inside of her. "I love you too."
They would end up missing dinner altogether tonight.