by Lucy Darling
“Yeah, but you’ll get used to it,” I tell her as I take her mouth again. Fuck, I love this woman. Life with her is going to be sweet. Everything about her is.
10
Noelle
“Are you all right?” Josh glances over at me. We’re not too far from home, and I can’t seem to sit still.
“Yeah, I’m fine.”
“This is what you consider fine?”
I snort a laugh. “Just nice to get out of the city.” The first week we were there the boys stayed. The next they had to head back, and both Daisy and I started our programs. The plan was that on the weekends we would go home, and this is the first time I’ve been back since we left. It’s the first time Josh and I will be home together as a real couple.
“Are you not liking it there?”
“It’s okay, and our place is nice, but it’s almost as if I’m staying at a hotel. A place that is holding me over. Home feels different.”
“You might not like your new home.”
I roll my eyes. “I’m going to love it. If the inside is anything like the out, I’m sure it’s breathtaking.” I know how much hard work he put into the house restoring it. It’s not too far from his parents. I know he could have easily paid someone to do all the work, but that’s not Josh. This is his home, where his family is going to be. He wants his hands all over it. There wasn't a weekend he wasn't working on something at that house.
“It’s not completely done.” He pulls off his baseball hat, dropping it into the back seat of the truck before running his fingers through his short, dark hair. Does this man ever not look handsome? I have to pull my eyes away from his thick thighs so I remember what I was talking about.
“That’s okay, but how is that even possible? I thought I heard you tell your mom last year you were done.” I remember because I wanted to see it, but Josh didn't ask anyone to come over. Sometimes I thought the house was some secret or something. That he didn’t want to share it with anyone else.
“Yeah, I mean it is but it isn't.” I stare at him not sure what that means. “I’ve done all I could do until you get there and put your little touches on it. I can’t pick out paint and other odds and ends. That’s on you. All you have to do is tell me what you want, and I’ll handle the rest.”
“You were waiting for me?” My eyes start to sting with tears. These stupid hormones. Hopefully after this weekend I will be able to stop trying to hide my random outbursts of hormonal tears. Once I tell Josh about the baby then my little episodes will probably make more sense. And that’s on my agenda for this weekend. To tell him the secret that I’ve hidden for too long already.
“Yeah I waited for you.”
“I love you.”
“Love you too.”
I sigh, sitting back getting more excited with each mile we get closer. “You think Daisy and Eric will have kids?” I bite my lip. I’m totally feeling him out.
“One day.”
“With how they get it on? It might be tomorrow.”
Josh smiles, shaking his head. “I think Daisy’s been on birth control for years.”
“And how do you know this?” I laugh.
“She leaves the shit out on the sink. Aren't most girls on the pill?”
My stomach tightens. “Yeah,” I agree. I wasn't. I didn't have that kind of mom. There was no way she would have taken me to get the pill. Even if she was that kind of mom, she would have tried to talk me out of it I’m sure, because it can make you gain weight. Spoiler alert. So does getting knocked up.
The truck goes quiet. My stomach begins to turn each moment the silence continues. I can feel myself starting to freak out. “Do you want kids?”
He doesn't say anything for a long moment. I turn my head from looking out the window to look at him.
“One day,” he finally says, looking uncomfortable. The mood has shifted in the car. What the hell is going on? I thought the whole family thing was what Josh wanted. I know it’s what I want. A real family of my own for once. So different from the one I had growing up.
I look back out the window. What if I got it wrong? So many times I’ve just assumed things about Josh that were dead wrong. The first one being that he wasn’t into me. I was dead wrong on that one. Actually, I think only saying he’s into me is putting it mildly. I have no doubt he wants me.
Then there's his dirty mouth. Never in a million years would I have thought that good ole boy Josh Price would say some of the stuff he says to me in my ear when we’re having sex. I think he could make a sailor blush with that filthy mouth of his. One I’ve come to thoroughly enjoy, by the way.
“You okay? We’re getting close.” No, I’m far from okay. I need a minute. Hell, I need a whole bunch of them to get myself together. He’s not ready for a kid. I’ve been trying to wait to tell him to see if maybe by some small chance he was going to ask me to marry him. Then I’d know for sure it wasn't about the baby. It was a silly idea. Of course he’s not going to ask me this soon, so I tossed that plan out the window. But now I’m beginning to rethink my whole plan to tell him this weekend. I need some distance from him that I know he’s not going to willingly give me. So I say the one thing that I think will buy me some time.
“Actually, I just remembered that I told my mom I’d come by and hang out for a few hours and have dinner.”
“Why?” He gives me a look like I’ve lost my mind.
“She’s my mom. She wants to know how everything is going.” Gah. I’m such a liar.
“All right, we’ll go hang out for a few hours.” Crap. He’s making this hard.
“No.” I push my glasses up my nose. “We’re going to have a girl talk and stuff. She’s going to drop me off later.” Josh’s hands tighten on the steering wheel. His knuckles start to turn white.
“Okay,” he grits out, not looking okay at all. That makes two of us. I go back to staring out the window counting down the mile markers and willing myself to not cry.
I should have known. This was all too perfect to be true, and the other shoe just dropped.
11
Josh
“You want me to make you something to eat?” I look up from my phone to my mom, who is watching my every move as I sit at the island in the kitchen. I didn't want to go back home. Not without Noelle. So I came here instead.
“Why are you being mean to our son, Bunny? He’ll stop coming around here if you keep offering to cook for him.” Mom glares at Dad. He smacks her ass as he walks by. “Want me to make you something?”
“I’ll take a grilled cheese,” Mom says smugly, and I wonder if she ever had plans to cook me anything or she was just getting Dad in here to do it for us.
“You too?”
“I’m good. I’m eating dinner with Noelle. She likes to cook for us.” I’ve already stocked the kitchen for her. I might have gone overboard, but I wanted to make sure I got anything she might need. I wanted her to feel comfortable since it will one day soon be our home together.
“She’s gonna die when she sees the kitchen.” Mom smiles proudly at me.
“The plan is to make her fall in love with the house. Then when school is done she’ll be back here where she belongs.”
“Well, she’s already in love with you. The kitchen is a perk. You’re a sweet man. You know that, right? I’m so happy Noelle is getting you for a husband.” I smile at my mom. My parents’ approval means a lot to me. When I get it I know I’m on the right track. I not only followed in my dad’s footsteps when it came to work, but also when it came to love. They have set the bar on what a happy relationship looks like, and I want that same thing with Noelle.
“I grew up with parents that showed us every day what a good marriage looks like. Hell, I think I’ve used a few of Dad’s tricks.” I always thought my dad was a little crazy when he went into one of his caveman moments. Now I not only understand it, but I also know where I got it. Dad smiles while Mom rolls her eyes. She loves when he does that shit. She’s not fooling anyone.
“I’m surprised Noelle wanted to go over to her parents’ already.” Dad comes over and hands her a glass of wine.
“That makes two of us.” I shift in the chair, feeling edgy. There was a change in the truck. I felt it. It happened so quickly, but I could feel the shift. Then she hardly looked at me after it.
“She can’t hide there forever.” I jerk my head up from my phone again where I was checking if she texted me.
“Hide? Why would you say hide?” Mom takes a sip of her wine, stalling.
“I mean, why else would she go over there?” Mom shrugs.
“She’s mad at me? Then why didn't she yell at me?”
Mom laughs. “She’s not Daisy.” My sister can shout the house down if you make her mad. “Noelle isn't going to shout at anyone. I think that has a little to do with growing up with parents that won’t listen. You start thinking what's the point of saying anything.”
“Fuck me.” I run my hand down my face. That makes perfect sense. It’s going to take time, but I’ll take those thoughts from her pretty head. For now I’ll do better with reading her. My phone finally dings. I pick it up so fast I almost drop it. “Not fucking happening.” I push back the chair, standing up.
“What?” Mom's eyes are wide. Dad leans up against the counter with his arms folded.
“I’m guessing she just said something our son isn't okay with. Now he’s going to storm out of here and go over to her parents’ house and likely carry her out.”
“You’re all a bunch of cavemen.”
“I notice you’re not telling him not to.”
“It would be pointless.”
“And Noelle is going to see she has a man who will fight for her.”
Damn right I will. “I love you guys. See you later.”
“You better plan to have one meal over here while you’re both in town,” Mom shouts to my retreating back, but I’m already out the door and climbing into my truck.
Stay the night? She thinks she’s going to stay the night over there? She’s done lost her damn mind. The only thing I can think this is about is the birth control comment. She caught me off-guard. I thought most girls were on it? Of course not. My girl wasn't on it. I was trying to tread lightly about the whole conversation.
Deep down I know what I’ve been doing. Never once bringing up anything about protection. I had one thought every time I thrust into her hot little cunt. That I needed her to be mine in every fucking way. Then maybe, just maybe I won’t be so fucking nuts all the time about everything when it comes to her.
I pull up to the front of the her parent’s house. I leave the truck running, and I don’t bother knocking either. I follow the sound of voices and I know the soft, sweet one is my Noelle. The other is her mom’s. Nails on a chalkboard.
“I’m just saying you’ve gained weight.” I stop walking. Did she really say that to her daughter? “I had a feeling this would happen. I mean, you go to school to eat.”
“To cook.”
“Whatever. Are you going to tell me you haven't put on ten pounds?”
“Fifteen,” she says so low I almost don’t catch it. This is bullshit. Who fucking cares?
“Fifteen! How is that even possible?” And I’m done. I head into the kitchen to end this shit. Kelly looks at me as I enter. Noelle is facing her mom and has no idea I’m right behind her.
“Because I’m pregnant, okay? What the hell, Mom? Why do you have to be like this?” I stand there in shock. The drive today makes so much fucking sense now. “This is when I need you.”
“I’m not good with babies. You know what they do to your body. It’s never the same after.” The regret in her mom’s voice makes me want to snap her fucking neck. I grab Noelle’s hand. She spins around, a shocked look on her face.
“We’re leaving,” I tell her.
“What? You don’t boss her around.”
“You can shut the fuck up.” Her mom's mouth falls open in shock. Good, that means she’s not talking. I would usually never speak to anyone that way, but after the way she’s treated my girl, I can’t control myself. I pull on Noelle’s hand, leading us back out of the house to the truck. When I open the door, she climbs in without a word. Fine by me. I want to do this at home.
Noelle wrings her hands in her lap, not saying anything.
“Everything is going to be fine, babe.”
She looks up from her hands to me. Her eyes are full of unshed tears. She’s killing me here. Have I fucked up? Does she not want this? I know she wants a family, but maybe it’s too soon.
My throat grows tight. “I promise. I don’t like that worried look on your face.”
“You’re not saying anything.”
“I want to talk at home.” I pull down my long driveway toward the house.
“I always think that this place couldn’t possibly be as pretty as I remember it, but every time I’m proven wrong. It gets more breathtaking each time.”
I want to beat my chest at her admission. The fact that she loves it makes me feel as if I’m on top of the world. The whole point was to make her a home. I took the old farmhouse and not only updated it, but I added on, too. I wanted to keep some of the original stuff, but I also wanted the house to be up to date.
“I’m going around. Keep your sexy ass in that seat.” I flick her seatbelt off before I hop out of the truck, coming around to her side to get her.
“I can walk,” she says, but there is no force in her words. She wraps her arms around my neck.
“I have to carry you over the threshold.”
“That’s only if you’re married.”
I put my thumb on the lock scan, causing the door to unlock. “We’re getting there.”
She tenses in my arms.
“We’re getting married,” I say again. I’m making that real clear. I kick the door shut.
“Where are we going?”
I keep carrying her through the house. She glances around trying to see everything. “Oh my God! That kitchen.” I can’t help but smile at that. I made sure to pay extra special attention to that part of the house, knowing how much she loves to cook and bake. I made sure that it had everything she could possibly dream of in it.
“And it’s all yours.” I walk into the master bedroom, dropping her on the bed. “Seems I can get you to talk more when I’ve got you in bed.” I grab her sandals, pulling them off.
“I’ll talk.” She scrambles to sit up, tucking her feet under her ass.
“So talk.” I step back and lean up against the dresser, needing some space or I’m going to grab her.
“Well, I’m pregnant, as you heard.”
“I got that. I’m fucking ecstatic.”
Her eyebrows furrow together. “When I asked about kids you made it sound like you weren’t ready.”
I think back. “Because I hesitated?”
“That and you assumed I’m on birth control.”
“I’ve always known you’re not on birth control.”
“Oh.” Her eyes go wide for a moment. “But.” She pauses. “But then you knew I could get pregnant?”
I let out a breath. “I’m going to be straight with you. I don’t ever want lies or half-truths between us.”
“Me either,” she agrees.
“I knew what I was doing from that first night. I wasn't thinking Oh maybe she’ll get pregnant. I was trying to get you pregnant.” She stares at me, her mouth hanging open. I push off the dresser. “Why did you tense when I made the marriage comment?”
“I don’t want to get married because I’m pregnant.”
“I’ve made my intentions pretty clear about where we’re going.”
She nods in agreement. “You’re right. I know. I think I was just freaking out. These past few weeks have been the best of my life, and I don’t want that to change.”
“They have been.” Now that she's mine I feel like I can breathe again. I walk over to the nightstand, grabbing the box out of it.
“Josh?”
“I was planning to do this while we were here. I wanted it to be our first memory in this house.” I open the box. “I didn't know you were pregnant.” A tear slides down her face. It’s a simple ring. A platinum band with a very large princess cut diamond. It seemed fitting. It’s also not too flashy or overdone. She’d hate that. “Well, princess?” I pull the ring out of the box, tossing it onto the bed.
“You’re supposed to ask.” I stare at her. A smile pulls at her lips. “I guess you wouldn't be my Josh if you asked. Put the ring on me. I want to wear it while we make love for the first time in our home.”
I slide the ring on her finger. It fits perfectly. I snag her wrist, pulling her up on her knees so we’re eye level. She rests her hands on my chest.
“You want this? The baby?”
“Yes,” she says instantly. “I’ve always known I’d want kids one day. When I saw those two lines I realized how badly I wanted that.” I grab her face, kissing her. She moans into my mouth. I kiss her until we’re both breathless.
“You’re going to be my princess?”
“You’re never going to stop calling me that, are you?”
“Do you really want me to?” I think it annoyed her before because she thought I was saying it because of all those beauty pageants she used to do. When she was all dressed up, oftentimes she did look like a princess.
“No, I like being your princess.” I kiss her again. “You’re going to be my king?” she teases me.
“You can call me your king all you fucking want.” She bursts into laughter, throwing her head back and filling our bedroom with the sweet sound.
“God, I love you.” She grabs the front of my shirt.
“I love you too.”
“Then take your clothes off and get in this bed with me. I’ve missed that dirty mouth of yours.”
Fuck me. I grab my shirt, pulling it over my head and tossing it to the ground. “Any other demands, princess?”
“No. What more could a girl really ask for?”