“You had news. Is it about the Arches?”

I grinned, unable to keep it from him.

“They accepted our offer?”

“Yes.”

Jesse bounced up and down in my arms, squealing excitedly. “That’s fantastic!”

“We’ve got to get all the building and land checks done and a survey, so it’s not a done deal yet. But all being well, our youth centre is one step closer to opening.”

Jesse grasped my face and kissed me hard. “It’s exciting, isn’t it?”

“Very.”

His eyes widened. “You should invite your dads to come and stay so we can show them the Arches.”

“I’d been thinking about that.” I carried him over to the sofa and sat down with him on my lap. “Maybe it’s about time we moved out of this flat.”

Jesse tilted his head to the side. “Why?”

“Well, right now, if we want to invite my family down, they have to stay in a hotel.” I paused, measuring my next words carefully. “And at some point, we’re going to have a family, Jesse. There’s not going to be room for children in a one-bedroom flat.” I stroked my thumbs over his lower back. “You wanted a house filled with music and the patter of tiny feet, remember?”

Jesse nodded, but he didn’t speak. His eyes were brimming with tears, and his chin wobbled.

“And I wanted a big bath.”

That made him laugh. “We need a huge bath.”

I stared into his dark eyes. “I want to find our forever home, Jesse. And I want to get married.”

Jesse frowned. “We can’t, not until—”

I silenced him with a kiss. “We know roughly when your heats will be. We can plan around it. We’re already mated. You know I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Now I want to show everyone else that—your family and mine.”

“And the world?” Jesse asked. “Because we’re not gonna get a cosy little wedding.”

I smiled. “The whole world. I’m yours, Jesse, now, always, and openly.”

Jesse gasped. “I’ve got it!”

“Got what?”

“The title of the song I’m going to write for you.”

I raised my eyebrows. “Will you share it with me?”

He smiled mischievously. “Nope. I think I’m gonna keep it a secret.”

I tickled him until I reduced him to a giggling, writhing wreck on my lap. Then I flipped him onto the sofa and lay over him, tickling him more until he was gasping for air.

“Now are you going to tell me?”

He put his hands around my neck as his breathing slowly returned to normal. “‘Openly Yours’.”

I nuzzled his nose with my own. “That’s beautiful.”

“So are you.”

We looked at each other, my heart filling as I saw how much love radiated from his eyes and smile. I kissed him, teasing his mouth with my tongue. “Let’s set a wedding date and start looking at houses.”

Jesse nodded. “Okay.”