by LaQuette
Dante watched Sanai take a seat on the floor in front of the couch. She appeared weary, almost too tired to do more than just exist in that moment.
“I ordered Chinese,” he offered.
He brought two beers from the fridge, twisted them open, and set them on the coffee table. He sat down next to her, needing to be as close to her as he could get. They remained that way, silent and sipping their beers. The spell was briefly broken by the delivery of their food. He pulled out the cartons and plastic forks and they dug in. They ate in silence, allowing the sounds of plastic against paper food containers and chewing to fill in the quiet spaces. When Dante was finished, he pushed his food away and took a final swig from his beer.
“That was good; I haven’t had New York Chinese food in too long. Tomorrow I’m cooking. Takeout is great…”
“But after eating it for a month straight, home-cooked anything sounds like heaven.”
He laughed. They’d shared so many simple moments like this in the past. Easy conversation always led them to either laughing or loving one another.
He could tell the exact moment her mind stumbled over those same memories. She turned to him, the laughter in her eyes giving way to the sizzling spark of fire that always seemed to exist between them.
He let an errant finger pass carefully over the skin of her smooth brow, over full rounded cheeks, finally resting on those lips he loved so much. He paused a moment, trying his best to suppress his inner asshole, asking permission instead of taking as he usually did.
The first time they’d come together in passion had been a knee-jerk reaction to finding her alive again. It was hard and fleeting, gone before it really had a chance to begin.
They’d just come home from spending a month in the hospital with their son. They’d been so busy tending to Nazario, neither of them had broached the subject of what her resurrection meant for them as a couple.
Maybe you should be figuring that out instead of how to get back into her pants again.
“Sanai, I want you,” he murmured. She turned her body to face him, meeting his gaze head on. There was no shyness; she was open and confident, seemingly complicit in his desires. “I just need you to know this is more than just fucking to me. I need to know it’s more for you too.
“We’ve been…busy to say the least,” he continued. “But you haven’t even hinted if this is something you’re interested in.”
“A lot has happened, Dante,” she offered.
He stroked her cheek again with his finger. “I know. But I still love you, Sanai. I never stopped.”
“It’s been six years. We’ve both changed. There’s more at stake now.”
She was right; they had a child to worry about. This wasn’t just two young people humping because it felt good. If they did this thing, they’d be building something, something that needed to last. Something all three of them could depend on.
“Yeah, Sanai, there’s more to lose. But there’s also more to gain. We could be more than we were before. We could be a family. Isn’t that what we were working toward anyway?”
“Dante, we can’t just pick back up—”
“I say we can.”
He leaned in, gently placing his lips on hers, savoring the sweet and spicy mix of the sauce from her food. He laced his fingers around the back of her neck and pulled her to him. He dragged her into his arms until she was sitting on his lap, firm ass cheeks pressed so deliciously against his hardening cock.
He leaned back, taking her with him, until his back rested against the carpeted floor. She remained seated in his lap, straddling his cock, her heat burning through both their clothes. He couldn’t take this; he needed to feel her skin against his. He pulled his lips away, pulling her shirt over her head and quickly repeating the action with his own.
He unseated her, quickly reversing their positions so that he was kneeling behind her. He licked a long swath of skin on her neck, loving the floral scent of jasmine wafting up. He smiled a bit. She still wore the same perfume. It was a scent he’d picked up for her as a just-because gift. She’d loved it, and he’d loved smelling it all over her skin.
His palms smoothed up her abdomen until he was cradling the firm globes of her breasts. When his fingers tweaked her nipples while he simultaneously bit down on the exposed curve of her neck, her muscles quaked against him, and a long moan crossed her lips and filled the air.
He slid his hand to the top of her waistband and quickly undid the lone button keeping him from his target. When he pushed the zipper down, the flaps fell open, and he slowly slid his fingers beneath the lace covering her mound.
With each movement forward her breath hitched in anticipation. When he finally dipped his finger in between her silken folds, she raised her arm, clasping her hand around his neck and pulling him forward to meet him in an awkward side kiss. It was messy, sloppy, nothing romance novels were made of, but it was turning him the fuck on.
He smiled a bit when he thought of romance novels. When they’d first met Sanai was an avid reader of them. In order to woo her, he’d started reading them too. It was a way to show her he was different than other guys, that he cared about her interests. The truth was, he could’ve given a good goddamn about those books in the beginning. However, his ploy to get close to a woman had morphed into a genuine love of the genre. When she “died,” he’d kept reading them in an effort to remain close to her. How many of his men would’ve followed him if they’d know what his guilty pleasure was? Thanks to e-readers he never had to worry about the answer to that question.
A long moan escaping Sanai’s mouth pulled Dante’s attention back to the present. He didn’t need to focus on their past, not when she was here in the present, alive and setting his senses ablaze. If his drenched fingers settled between the lips of her cunt were any indication, Sanai was happy to be in this present moment too.
He circled slick fingers around her clit and squeezed slightly, causing her body to lurch forward, chasing the sweet pressure she craved.
“Take the rest of your clothes off,” he demanded.
She scurried to remove her pants and underwear, pressing her ass right back into his cock when she was done. He bit his lip. The pain of his stiff flesh being pressed against the unforgiving metal of his zipper made him curse through gritted teeth.
He looked up to catch a ghost of a smile on her face, teasing him, taunting him to do something to make their mutual ache disappear. He pushed his pants and underwear down just enough to free the painful hard-on begging for freedom. When it sprang free, he circled tight fingers around the base and directed it into the warm cleft of flesh between her ass cheeks.
He returned his hand to her mound. Unrestricted by her clothing, it was free to move in full circles, each rotation causing her hips to move in synchrony. When she raised her hips forward, she met the unrelenting pressure of his fingers. When she pulled them backward, his raw cock slid happily down the crack of her ass.
He felt like a teenager right now. He hadn’t entered her body, and yet his balls were already pulling up, begging to release his load.
“Are you close? I’m not gonna last much longer.”
“I haven’t even touched you.” Her words were chased by a soul-deep moan as he quickened the pace of his rotations and added another finger to his ministrations.
“I’ve touched you,” he huffed. “That’s all that’s needed.”
Maybe it was his words, maybe it was the tiny bites he was peppering along her neckline, maybe it was the hard cock he had pressed between her ass cheeks, or maybe it was the insistent fingers that wouldn’t allow her clit to shy away from the pleasure he was exacting. Whether it was any of those things singularly or an accumulation of them all, she broke apart in his arms, muscles twitching, breath caught in her chest, mouth gaping wide in a silent “oh” as she rode the first spasms of her orgasm. He held her securely as her body twitched with each electric pulse of her cunt. He slipped two fingers inside her, loving the powerful feel
of her walls contracting around him.
She rode his fingers until her orgasm ebbed. He removed his now-dripping digits, wiping them against his cock. It was just the amount of lubrication he needed. He gave himself two quick strokes and was coming. Hot spurts of cum painted across the expanse of her ass and back as he gripped her shoulder for purchase. When he was spent, he rubbed the sensitive head of his cock into the waiting mess, spreading his cream across her supple pecan-colored skin.
He reached around, bringing her swollen lips to his, fighting to kiss and breathe at the same time.
With his heart thundering in his chest, softening dick tingling, only one thought came to his mind: Home.
Chapter Eleven
“Sanai, I gotta say I’m not really understanding how this whole bone marrow match thing works. Why is a sibling the best chance at a match?”
They were in her bed, lazing around after one hell of a pair of orgasms on her living room floor a few moments ago. She remained silent, turning around slowly until she faced him.
“Your mom was a seamstress, right?”
”Yeah.” His mother had spent many years making beautiful clothes for all manner of people.
“Well, let’s say your mom was going to make two dresses that needed to be identical in every way. She would make sure the dresses were literally cut from the same batch of cloth. Even if it’s two different batches of fabric, but the same color, there may be minor variations that may present themselves when the dresses are created. It’s the same thing with DNA. A sibling, unless he or she is your identical twin, isn’t an exact DNA match. However, assuming both siblings share the same parentage—same mother, same father—they are made from the exact same batch of DNA. Because of this, siblings are likely to share common DNA traits that we often don’t share with parents or anyone else in the world. For Naz’s situation, a sibling would offer a twenty-five percent chance for a proper match.”
Dante sank farther into the pillow under his head and closed his eyes. The sister or brother Naz didn’t have was the most likely candidate to save Nazario’s life. How cruel of a bitch was fate being tonight?
“There’s no use in talking about this, Dante.” Her voice was laced with a slight somber tinge. “He doesn’t have a sibling, and there’s nothing we can do about that now.”
“Isn’t there?” He leaned forward, placing his hand firmly on hers and linking their fingers together. “We’re his parents, Sanai. We’re the only two people in the world that can do something about this.”
Dante watched her with careful eyes. The two of them had willingly joined forces to help their son. He hoped she would see reason and continue to work with him to help Nazario.
“Dante, what are you suggesting?”
“I think you know exactly what I’m suggesting. Let’s give our son the sibling he needs to live. Sanai, have another baby with me.”
* * * *
Sanai squeezed the fingers resting against hers, partly out of shock, but mostly out of concern.
Dante was spiraling out of control. For him to even suggest something like this meant he was desperate to save their son.
Sure, they’d just shared great sex; they’d always shared great sex. But being compatible in bed didn’t make people decide to have kids.
“Dante,” she whispered. “I know you want to help. The way you’ve taken care of both Nazario and me over the last month has proven that to me.”
She took her free hand and smoothed it over the low-cut buzz of his hair. The memory of him shaving it off to help their son cope was something her heart fiercely held. She let her hand travel until it rested gently against his cheek. She closed her eyes for a moment just to process how amazing his skin felt against hers.
“Dante, I’ve had that precious little boy from his first breath to now. I know how amazing it feels to have him in my life. I know how desperately you’ve always wanted children. Finding out about Naz’s existence is a dream come true for you. One you’re only skimming the surface of.
“Having been with him all this time, I know how utterly scary it is to think that I could lose him to this disease. I can’t even imagine how cruel it must feel to you to just have found him a month ago, and now to have to face the fact that he might not beat this. We both want him to live, Dante, but this…this isn’t the way.”
She felt the warmth of his tears coat her fingertips. Hers followed soon after, their shared pain nearly chocking her.
“I can’t lose him, Sanai. Please, help me save him,” he begged.
“Dante, a baby is not an accessory. Children are not interchangeable. You can’t just have one for spare parts. Not to mention you’ve never raised a child before. You have no clue what a huge responsibility it is.”
He pulled away from her touch and stood quickly, moving toward the window. He stood there, staring out into darkness, pulling in calming breaths.
“Exactly whose fault is it that I don’t have firsthand knowledge of child-rearing?”
She let her head fall briefly in shame. She couldn’t argue with the truth. “I’ll take the L on that. I made a decision to keep my son safe, and as much as I regret you not having the chance to know and love your son, I will never apologize for protecting him.”
“Sanai, at least consider this. We don’t have any more options.”
She waved a pointed finger. “No, we can’t, Dante. We’re not together. We can’t just have a baby for the sake of saving Naz. What happens after this child is born and his bone marrow is harvested? What happens then? We’re talking about a child…a child who would deserve the same love and attention that Naz has.”
He turned slowly from the window. His face was red, tears still streaming down his cheeks. “You don’t get it, Sanai. I might not know Naz well, but I have loved him from the moment I laid eyes on that picture on your nightstand. I love him not because he’s mine, but because he’s the son I created with you. My love for him will always be proof of how insanely I have always loved you. Any child you gave me would receive the same amount of desperate love.”
He moved quickly across the room, climbing back into the bed, pressing his lips to hers. He wiped her tears and allowed his dark gaze to weigh down on her. “Please Sanai, don’t allow our past to keep us from saving Nazario’s future. Please, help me save our son.”
She eased out of his embrace. “Was this what your let’s-do-it-again speech was about earlier? Were you priming me for this?”
“Sanai, whether you want to admit it or not, we’ve been back together since the moment I claimed you in this room, when I followed you home from work. You are mine, and I’m yours.”
She bit into her lip, attempting to keep her treacherous mouth from agreeing with him. No other man had ever been as much a part of her being as Dante was. Now that he was back in her life, she wasn’t sure if she could or wanted to extract him again.
“We can’t do this, Dante.”
He wiped his face with his forearm and pulled himself together as best he could. “I have to go back home to check on a few things. I need to secure plans so my assistant can continue to run my office while I’m gone.”
“Is there a problem?”
“No, but I’m the boss. It’s my responsibility to make sure my business, associates, and employees are taken care of. I’ll be gone for a few days, then I’ll be back here. I’ll probably have to make several more trips like this during Naz’s treatment.”
“What kind of business do you own? With all that’s going on, I don’t think I’ve thought to ask.”
He walked across the bedroom, then drew her into his arms. “I inherited a couple of businesses from my father when he died. They pretty much run themselves, and I drop in periodically to supervise. By trade I’m a civil engineer, but I own a contracting firm. It’s sort of like a one-stop shop for all your infrastructure, structural, and construction needs. I’m usually there at least three, four days out of a week. I need to run in and check on it.”
S
he snuggled closer to him before looking into his eyes. “Thank you. I had no idea how much you were sacrificing to be here with us.”
“It’s where I want to be. I’d sacrifice anything for the both of you. I know you think I’m crazy for suggesting we have another child, but there is nothing in this world I wouldn’t do to protect either of you.” He pressed a quick kiss to her lips then stood up. “Take these next few days to consider what I’m asking, Sanai. It may very well be the only thing that saves his life.”
The inside of her chest felt heavy with the weight of his request. How does one decide against the life of one child versus the well-being of another?
Chapter Twelve
Sanai sat at the foot of her bed and fell back into its plush hold. She spread her arms out and attempted to make sense of everything happening in her life. Dante had left three hours ago, and her brain was still stuck on a continuous loop replaying their conversation.
What he was suggesting was crazy. Yes, there was a twenty-five-percent chance that a full sibling would be the salvation Nazario needed. Dante was holding onto that twenty-five percent so tightly he wasn’t considering those odds also meant there was a seventy-five-percent chance another baby between them wouldn’t match Nazario at all.
She would give anything to save Nazario, but doing this could backfire on them in ways neither one of them could possibly realize at this moment.
God, her heart ached. She pressed her open palm to it, hoping to calm its erratic beating. This man was offering her a means to save her son. It literally hurt her to think about turning this down. She was a mother. Didn’t that mean she was supposed to make any sacrifice for her child? Even one that could possibly ruin them all, the would-be child included?
What would happen if this didn’t work out? What would they tell this child about his or her creation? Was this plan fair?