Knocked Up by the New Zealand Doctor: A Surprise Pregnancy Romance (Doctors of Denver Book 6)

by K. C. Crowne

  I was telling her parents that I’d knocked up her daughter. Sure, Alan and Lisa were the reasonable type, but I figured that in matters like this, reason went out the window.

  “Well, alright,” Lisa said, still a bit befuddled. “Happy to see you too, Hayden.”

  Alan was there too, a beer in his hand as he squatted down to talk to Lily about one thing or another. When he laid eyes on me, he gave me his usual smile before coming over to give Grace a hug, then to shake my hand.

  “Good to see you, Hayden.” Then he flicked his eyes back at Grace, realizing that we’d shown up as a couple.

  His always analytic mind was putting it together on the spot.

  Shit.

  “Now,” he said, gesturing to Grace and then to me. “Did you two happen to share a car?”

  Grace and I shared a worried look. I opened my mouth to speak, but I didn’t get a chance to say a word. Ryan stepped over and put his hand on my shoulder, leading me away from Alan and Grace.

  Ryan had taken the news well. He’d busted my balls a bit for running around with his sister behind his back, but once we’d told him that what was going on between us was for keeps, and that we were planning on staying together to raise the baby, he softened up.

  “Now,” Ryan said. “I don’t know how you were planning on sharing the news. But if you’d been hoping to keep it a secret, that might’ve gone out the window when you two showed up together.”

  “Shit, I know, I know,” I replied. “We got so caught up in what was going on that ah, a minor detail like that slipped under the radar.”

  He smiled. “Do it now. Let’s turn this dinner into a celebration.”

  The tension was still in my gut, but he had a point.

  “Right,” I said. “Thanks, Ryan.”

  “You got it, brother-in-law. Or am I speaking too soon on that front?”

  “One step at a time,” I answered with a grin.

  He clapped his hand onto my back, and we turned to the group. I hurried to Grace’s side and spoke into her ear.

  “Ready to do this?”

  She took my hand.

  “Ready.”

  I brought down a deep breath and squeezed her hand.

  “Everyone,” I said. “If I could have your attention. We’ve got a little announcement to make.

  All eyes were on us but Lisa, all smiles, spoke up.

  “What, that you finally got together after over a decade?”

  I was stunned.

  “Uh…what?”

  She waved her hand through the air. “We’ve only been waiting for this to happen since what— Grace was just out of high school?”

  “Right,” Alan agreed. “Would’ve liked you both to finally get it a little sooner, but better late than never, huh?”

  “Wait,” Grace said. “You all knew this,” she waved her finger between me and her, “was going to happen?”

  “Of course!” Lisa said. “You don’t stay married for decades without being able to spot love-in-the-making when you see it.”

  I didn’t know what to say. Evidently, people had been pulling for us for years.

  Grace took my hand and squeezed it warmly.

  “Well, ok then, but we’re not done,” she said. “There’s a little more news to share.”

  I couldn’t keep a smile off my face.

  In that moment, just before we were going to share with those we loved that there would be a new addition to the family, it was impossible to not notice the joy in the air.

  And I knew there would only be more happiness to come.

  THE END

  Epilogue

  Grace

  Eight months later…

  “Holy hell, this hurts!”

  My hands were clasped over my belly as the contraction peaked, the pain hanging for several long, agonizing minutes before it faded.

  Hayden reached over to me from the driver’s seat, taking my hand and squeezing it hard.

  “We’re going to be there soon,” he said, his voice calm and even. “Just hang in there.”

  “You sure about getting there soon?” I asked, biding my time until the next contraction hit. “We’re in the middle of the worst 225 traffic I’ve ever seen. And my contractions are only a few minutes apart.”

  The timing couldn’t have been worse. Hayden and I had been in the middle of a weekend getaway in Evergreen, staying at this adorable lakefront cabin. Baby wasn’t due until the twentieth of November, so we’d figured going on one last romantic trip before our lives became a blur of dirty diapers and midnight feedings would be in order.

  But baby, we’d decided to keep the gender a secret, had other plans. He or she announced their impending arrival not two hours into our trip. And, of course, that had to be right in the middle of rush hour. The hospital where we’d planned on having the birth was an hour drive away – and that was in normal traffic.

  “We’ll get there,” he said. “And before you know it, you’ll be in some comfy-ass hospital bed, an adorable little boy or girl in your arms, and—”

  He didn’t get a chance to finish. Another contraction hit, the pain rolling through me in waves.

  “Hayden!” I shouted. “This kid isn’t going to wait until we get to the hospital!” Once the contraction passed, I sat up to see that we were right in the middle of endless miles and miles of traffic, red and white lights stretching out into forever on both sides.

  He did the same look around and seemed to come to the same conclusion.

  The next contraction hit right as we were in the middle of thinking about it, and when it passed, Hayden shifted gears and turned.

  “What’re you doing?” I asked, panic in my voice.

  “Delivering a baby can’t be any harder than a quadruple bypass, right?”

  It hit me what he was saying.

  “You can’t be serious.”

  “This baby’s coming,” he said as he pulled the car off to the sloping green hill on the side of the highway. “And besides, I’ve got the best OB/GYN for a brother-in-law.”

  Another contraction hit hard. Right in the middle of it, Hayden finished pulling over, taking out his phone as he stepped out of the car. I watched as he spoke to Ryan, a look of total focus, one that I’d imagine him to look like before stepping into the operating room, was on his face.

  Then he opened the door.

  “Got Ryan on speaker,” he said, setting the phone down on the headrest of the driver’s seat. “And he’s already called an ambulance from the nearest hospital.”

  “You there, Grace?” Ryan’s voice came in from the speaker.

  “I’m here! And I’m very sure there’s going to be a third person here in a few minutes!”

  “That’s what it’s sounding like to me. But I’m going to walk the heart doc through this if the ambulance doesn’t get there soon enough. First, Hayden, I want you to look and tell me if you can see anything.”

  “'Anything’ as in a baby?”

  “More or less.”

  Hayden raised his eyebrows. I hurriedly got out of my pants and underwear, Hayden helping me throw one leg over the back of the driver’s seat.

  “Well?” Ryan asked.

  “I can see the top of a baby’s head.”

  “It’s crowning. You guys are going to have to do this on your own. Ready?”

  “Ready.”

  We went to it, and after pushing and sweating and screaming out in pain, the baby came out in less than half an hour. Cries filled the air, the pain of birth replaced by the overwhelming joy of knowing my baby had arrived.

  “Well?” Ryan asked as Hayden held the baby in his arms. “Boy or girl?”

  “A girl,” Hayden answered. “The most beautiful girl I’ve ever seen in my life.” He held the baby girl close, his eyes glistening.

  He handed her over, not able to say another word.

  When I had my baby girl in my arms, her adorable face scrunched up as she cried her little heart out, I fell in complete and tot
al love.

  She was mine and she was so beautiful that it hurt my heart just to look at her.

  “We got a name?” Ryan asked.

  “Isla,” I said.

  “Isla,” Hayden echoed, his tone one of awe.

  In the distance, I spotted the ambulance weaving through traffic on its way to take us to the hospital.

  All Hayden and I could do was hold one another’s hands.

  We were a family. Never before had I known the joy I felt in that moment.

  EPILOGUE II

  HAYDEN

  Three years later…

  I had just as much fun at kids’ birthday parties as the kids seemed to. There were ponies and balloons and, most importantly, cake. What wasn’t to like?

  Isla’s third birthday party was no exception. The backyard of our new home down the road from Carly and Ryan’s place was packed. The spring day was gorgeous, the grass green and the sky blue, the Rockies rising in the distance like slate-gray monuments.

  Beer in hand, I took stock of the scene. Ryan and Carly were there, of course, the now six-year-old twins looking adorable as all hell in their matching lilac-colored sundresses, both running about with Isla, who toddled after them with her not-quite-as-agile legs. Corrine, their third daughter, trailed closely behind. Other kids from the daycare Isla attended on Fridays were there, dozens of them in total, all having the time of their lives.

  My brother Logan was there too, of course. And he seemed to be spending a hell of a lot of time speaking with Grace’s former roommate, still best friend Willow. I could tell by his body language that he was joking around about one thing or another, most likely flirting like a dog. But Willow was all laughs, clapping her hand down on his shoulder as her snorts cut through the air.

  Aside from having the cutest little girl in Colorado, things were going amazingly for Grace and my careers. I’d been put in charge of Pitt Medical’s newest cardiac clinic, and Grace’s gym had been a rousing success. On top of that, her flexible schedule allowed her to spend plenty of time with Isla.

  Life was damn good. Excellent, even. No, that didn’t even cover it. Life was better than it had ever been, and each day was better than the last.

  I had a little surprise planned to take things to the next level of happiness. I placed my hand on the small box in my pocket, a smile forming on my face as I did.

  “Hey, you,” Grace said as she approached from the conversation she’d been having with her parents. “Having fun?”

  “Always. Thinking I’ll hit the mini petting zoo soon, and after that steal a little piece of Isla’s unicorn cake before chasing the kids around.”

  “With how much we spent on that unicorn cake if you mess it up before the little lady has a chance to see it…let’s just say you won’t like where that chocolate ganache horn ends up.”

  I laughed. In that moment surrounded by all the love I could see before me, I knew I didn’t want to wait another minute to hold off on my surprise.

  “Say, I know it’s Isla’s birthday and she’s the one who’s supposed to be getting all the presents. But still…”

  I slipped the box out of my pocket and opened it. The gorgeous, three-karat ring glittered in the early afternoon sunlight. Grace gasped, her hands going to her mouth.

  “What do you say?” I asked. “Ready to make this family thing official?”

  Without a word, she threw open her arms and pulled me into a tight hug.

  “Of course!” she shouted. “Of course, I do!”

  We kissed, and by this point our little display had caught the attention of the party.

  “I love you,” she said. “And I love our lives so freaking much.”

  “Same here, gorgeous.” I slipped the ring on her finger. “Now, are you ready to steal the show from our daughter for a few minutes?”

  “She’ll be fine once she gets a slice of that unicorn cake.”

  “Not if I eat it all first.”

  She gave me a playful jab to the arm as we turned, hand-in-hand, to face the growing crowd.

  Life couldn’t have been any better.

  The End

  Did you enjoy Hayden and Grace love story? Great news! You can pre-order the next story in this series. It’s available for a limited time launch price of $.99. The price will go up to $3.99! Check it out here.

  Meanwhile, have you read the other books in my bestselling Doctors of Denver Series? You can check out a sneak peek of Doctor’s Baby Plan on the next page (this is Ryan’s story).

  Doctor's Baby Plan (Preview)

  "Screw IVF. Let's do this the old-fashioned way."

  The agreement we made was simple...

  Step 1: Sign the dotted line.

  Step 2: Deliver the babies to their father.

  Step 3: Move on, and forget it all happened.

  Easy enough, right??

  Sure... in theory.

  Except, I may have done the one thing I promised myself I wouldn't:

  Fall in love with the gorgeous, but emotionally unavailable, doctor who knocked me up. And these big swollen pregnancy feet of mine are turning into cold feet. How will I ever return back to my old life after I deliver the twin babies to their father?

  Prologue

  “However good you looked in that dress, it’s nothing compared to you right now.”

  A hot rush spread from my lady parts, the sensation making me weak at the knees.

  Then he closed the distance between us, placing his hand on the small of my bare back and bringing my body against his. I could feel his hardness through his jeans, the long, thickness of his length.

  He leaned in to kiss me again, and this time he brought his hand down between my legs, gripping firmly onto the soft skin of my inner thigh.

  I gasped through the kiss as he moved up, up, until his fingers were only inches away from right where I wanted them.

  “Tell me what you want,” he spoke into my ear, his lips taking a break from kissing me along the length of my neck.

  It was all such a bad idea.

  The responsible part of me was practically screaming, insisting loudly that what I was on the verge of doing might very well be the biggest mistake of my life. That I should stop at this very moment.

  But that’s not what I did. Instead of doing the smart thing, the responsible thing, I brought my lips to his ear, gave his earlobe a quick nibble, and said the exact word I shouldn’t have.

  “You.”

  And we were off to the damn races.

  He put his hand back on my inner thigh as he kissed me hard, his touch moving up until he was so tantalizingly close to where I wanted him that I wanted to scream. When the side of his hand grazed my lips, just the hint of his touch was enough to almost make me come on the spot.

  He touched me more, his hand on the small of my back, his lips on mine. He reached down with his right hand and peeled off my socks.

  “I can’t stop thinking about you,” he said, his palms tracing the outline of my hips.

  I grinned, flattered by the idea of a man like him fantasizing about me.

  “That right? Thinking about what?”

  “Thinking about what I’d do to you if I got you naked in front of me.”

  “Then do it.”

  He didn’t need any more encouragement. With effortless strength, he lifted me off my feet and carried me over to the edge of his living room couch. Once there, he quickly had my panties off, and my legs spread open wide.

  His hand went between my legs, his fingertip pressing on my clit with just the right amount of pressure as he made slow, sensual circles.

  It felt so damn good that I worried I might lose control of my body and make noises that would embarrass me. But he kept his left hand on the small of my back and held me in place as his right teased and touched me.

  “Oh God,” I moaned. “Touch me just like that.”

  He did, only taking breaks to slip his fingers inside of me, my pussy so slick and wet that he was able to enter me without
the slightest bit of effort. He knew just how to touch me inside, how to curl his fingers and hit my G-spot.

  He gazed intently at me, his eyes narrowed like a hunter’s, a slight smile on his sexy lips that made it clear he loved watching me as he made me come.

  When I was close to my orgasm, I clamped my hand down onto his, making sure it stayed in place on my clit. I tilted my head back and let out a long moan as the orgasm coursed through me, my body tightening and then releasing as he touched me through it all.

  “I need...” The words shot out of my mouth when the orgasm faded.

  “You need what?” he asked.

  Playful little shit.

  “You want me to beg?” I asked with a teasing tone.

  “Nope. Just want to hear you say it.”

  I answered his question by grabbing onto his cock through his jeans. His smirk broadened – I’d given him the answer he’d wanted to hear. With that, I hurriedly got him out of his pants and shirt.

  His body was perfect. Sculpted and toned and lean and strong.

  My eyes tracked up his muscles, and as I did, I noticed more than a few small scars here and there. No doubt they had stories to tell, but that moment wasn’t the time for them.

  I was drunk on desire, wanting him so badly I could hardly think straight. Once I had him out of the skin-tight pair of gray boxer briefs that clung to his powerful thighs and laid eyes on his long, thick cock, any other notion but my need for him to be inside me was gone.

  My fingers wrapped around his thickness, his cock warm and stiff to the touch. I guided him closer and closer toward me.

  He let me do it, let me tease my lips with his head for just a moment before placing him at my opening.

  He didn’t wait to do the rest. With a slow push of his hips, he moved into me and I closed my eyes to focus on the sensation of all his many, many inches pushing deep inside, stretching me out, my walls gripping him tightly.