by Keelan Storm
She didn’t know why she clung to him so desperately when he had just confirmed her worst fear, even if she had only just realized it hours ago. He was her survival at this point, but apparently, she wasn’t his. Worst of all, now that the truth was out, things couldn’t continue the way they had been, but she was anything but ready to let go.
Tucker moved so that he could wrap his arms around her. His head lay against hers, and he whispered into her ear, “I’m so sorry, love. I never wanted to hurt you. I hate myself for this.”
“You… can’t…help…how you…feel,” she said, choking back sobs. “I…should’ve known…you’d never be…happy this way.”
“Happy what way?” He’d known she’d be upset, but she wasn’t making much sense.
“I never…wanted…you to feel…trapped,” she sobbed.
“Trapped? What is she going on about?” “Isabel…please…calm down,” he soothed. “I don’t feel trapped. I’m exactly where I want to be.”
Her tears slowed a little at those comforting words. “Do you really mean it?” she asked once her sobs had subsided enough for her to speak clearly. She turned just enough so that she could look into his eyes for his answer.
“Of course I do.”
“But you don’t really want the baby, do you?”
He shook his head. “I never said that. How could I not want our baby? It’s a part of us. Just further proof that it’s our destiny to be together, that fate brought us together.”
She looked away from him then.
“What?”
“I want to believe that you really feel that way, Tucker. I really do. But I just don’t know.”
“What don’t you know? You need to tell me so that I can help you understand.”
Isabel’s hands moved to play with the strands of hair on her shoulder. Her voice was on the brink of tears once again. “How do I know you’re not just saying that because you feel it’s your responsibility to be here for the baby and me? You never mentioned it until after we knew I was pregnant, and you just said that this isn’t how you imagined things for us to be…”
“I meant that I never imagined us to have a baby in high school. I saw a slightly different future for us. That’s all. Can’t you say the same thing?”
“Well, yeah, but what about the other stuff?”
“Where is all of this coming from?” he sighed.
Isabel thought back to Lisa’s words that had triggered all of her fears, but she shrugged in response. “Just letting my mind run away with me, I guess, or maybe not. You haven’t denied much.”
He sighed. He had worried she might not believe he meant those words, that she was meant for him and vice versa. “Look at me, please.” He waited for her to look before he continued.
“Yes, it is my responsibility to be here for you and the baby, but that doesn’t mean I didn’t mean what I said. I wish I would have told you earlier how I felt that night we were first together. Then, maybe, you’d believe me.”
He moved so that he was leaning over her, careful to position himself to avoid pressure on the baby, and tenderly placed his hands on either side of her head, locking his fingers in her hair. His thumbs stroked her cheeks, wiping away her leftover tears.
His gaze met hers, brown eyes meeting green. Hers were still red and puffy around the edges from crying. She looked so sad. How could he make her see how much she meant to him?
“Isabel Faye Dearly, you are my world. You mean everything to me. My life would be nothing without you. You and our baby are my future. Nothing will ever change that.”
Tears slipped from the corners of her eyes, and he gently wiped away her fresh tears with his thumbs.
“You really mean it, don’t you?” she asked.
“With every bit of me,” he assured her.
She smiled her wide, crooked grin that he loved. “I love you, Tucker Ryan Patterson. My heart will always be yours.”
He smiled. “And you will always have mine. I love you,” he said as he leaned in.
The kiss was soft, yet strong, and it helped to soothe any fears that may have lingered. It didn’t last very long, but when they broke away, both of their breathing were labored, their hearts beating wildly in their chests. They pressed their foreheads together, reveling in the rush when Isabel whispered, “Make love to me, please.”
Her words that were so simple held so much meaning in his ears, and Tucker knew she needed the reassurance of his love for her, could feel the passion she felt for him, and needed so desperately to feel in return.
He wouldn’t make her ask twice. Not when he needed to make sure that any doubts she had about his love for her were washed away for good.
His lips met hers and moved to trace her jawline until she shivered beneath him. He kissed her neck, listening to her breathing quicken before finding that spot behind her ear that made her squirm. She pulled his mouth back to hers, and he nipped at her bottom lip, making her arch against him as he deepened the kiss. Curious, he nipped again and grinned through their kiss as she gave a soft gasp of delight, her body arching to his once again.
“Tucker,” she breathed, and he leaned back as she moved to her knees to tug at his shirt and jeans. As soon as she’d cleared him of clothes, he reached for her dress, pulling it gently over her head. He laid her back down, and took a moment to marvel at her and the gentle rounding of her stomach.
He ran his hand over the swell and leaned to kiss her there, his lips brushing softly against where she carried his child. He felt her hand touch his cheek, pulling him gently back up, and she kissed him sweetly, urgently, while they discarded the rest of her clothing.
Their hands searched each other’s bodies, passionately, but slowly, neither wanting to rush. This time would be different than the rest.
Tucker sat back and pulled Isabel into his lap. The slight bulge of her belly pressed against the contours of his stomach as he held her close. Her hands wrapped around the back of his neck, and her fingertips wound themselves into the tousled hair just above the nape of his neck. Her lips locked with his. He used his hands to steady her hips against him as he moved, guiding and in control.
Their movements were slow and steady, each one like a current through his veins, every shift vital. Tucker set their pace, quickening each time Isabel was approaching release and then slowing for the next deliberate build of pleasure. She clung to him, gasping against him and tucking her head to his neck with her cries.
Tucker held the cycle for as long as possible, needing her, relishing in her, until her sweet moans made it too hard to continue. He held back just long enough for her pleasure to build up one last time, and they released together, their hands clutching each other tightly as their final moans of satisfaction combined.
* * *
Isabel followed Tucker down the stairs once they had finished. His family would be home soon, and while their parents probably weren’t unaware of what went on before they got home, the two teens did not want to be found in a situation that would confirm those suspicions.
They settled on the couch in the den and turned on the television, but neither of them was really watching it. Their minds were too wrapped up in what had just happened upstairs.
Isabel smiled to herself, reassured of Tucker’s feelings once again. She wished she hadn’t doubted him. He’d been trying to prove he didn’t deserve it.
“Are you cold?” Tucker asked her, running a hand down her arm when she shivered. “You’ve got goosebumps.”
“Yeah, kinda.” She hadn’t noticed it at first, but the cool front that had come in that day made the first floor of the house a little chilly. Tucker’s room had been much warmer. What they had been doing had been much warmer…
Tucker pulled the blanket off the back of the couch and draped it over her. She nestled into his chest and let the blanket and heat of his body warm her. She felt so much better since they had talked. If only one of them could work up the courage
to bring up what she knew they’d both been avoiding…
She watched Tucker check the time on his phone. They still had a little time before his family came home. “Should I try?” she wondered.
“Can I ask what you’re thinking?” his deep voice rumbled against her.
She frowned. It wasn’t going to be the most pleasant topic to bring up. But heck, a lot of unpleasant things had happened today. Why not add one more?
“Tuck…have you thought at all about what’s going to happen when the baby gets here?”
He tensed, his head dropping against the back of the couch. “Isabel…”
“We have to start talking about this, Tucker,” she pressed, hating that Ms. Lane had gotten to her that morning.
He ran a hand through his hair and sighed. “You’re right, you’re right,” he agreed, sitting up straighter for their talk. She adjusted to sit on the middle cushion, curling up with the blanket tucked around her shoulders as she stared up at her boyfriend.
“So, have you? Thought about any of it?” she asked.
“Some. I think our parents will let us stay at home, at least until high school’s over.”
“What if that’s it, though? What if they want us to move out with the baby after graduation?”
That one was hard, and Tucker wasn’t sure how to answer. There was the possibility of him rooming with Jet, and Izzy finding a place with Annie like they’d once planned, except they couldn’t have a baby in a dorm. Should they get their own place? That was scary and exciting all at once, but he had no clue how they’d afford it.
“I’m not sure,” he finally answered. “What were you thinking?”
She shrugged. “Every option makes me worried I won’t get the chance to go to school. I won’t have to go to summer school, by the way. Ms. Lane said there’s a homebound program that would let me still graduate on time.”
“Well, that’s good news.”
Isabel nodded. “Leo did tell me his sister runs a daycare, and he thinks she would give us a good rate.”
“Another plus,” he noted.
“But Tucker, whatever we decide, I don’t want you to give up basketball. I don’t want you to give up your dreams. I know what it’s like to worry you might have to,” she sighed, sounding torn.
“I don’t want you to have to give up on your dreams either,” Tucker assured her. “We can figure something out. Maybe we’ll have to take turns with school.”
Isabel shook her head, traitorous tears starting to brim. She was so tired of crying today, and she hadn’t realized how important that email was to her until that moment. She ducked her head to her lap, not wanting him to see.
“Hey,” Tucker lifted her chin to meet her gaze, studying her with concern. “Tell me.”
Her throat tightened, worried what he might think of her selfishness. “I just, I don’t see how that will work. You can’t postpone college for years for me to go to school first and still get one of those scholarships, but I can’t postpone dancing for several years without changing what I want, either.”
“Dancing? What does that have to do with school?”
She gave him a tight smile. “There’s an Academy outside of Houston I’ve been thinking about going to for a while; they specialize in dance. I got an email this morning saying they offered me an audition for late May. I’d actually gotten one for November, but they were nice enough to reschedule it.
“But I know it’s selfish of me to go,” she said quickly before he could say anything. “Annie would be crushed if I wasn’t near her. We don’t know which scholarship you’re taking yet or where you’ll be, and even if we used Leo’s sister’s daycare, I couldn’t stay at Academy housing with a baby. How could we afford everything?” She pressed her face to the back of the couch, waiting for Tucker’s reaction to her outburst.
Tucker had to process for a minute. There was a lot of information, and it was way more than he’d known to consider. “You’re not being selfish. You love to dance. I get it.”
She hedged a glance at him. “You do?”
He nodded, hesitating for a second over his following question. “You’ve been talking to Leo about this?”
“Yes,” Isabel whispered.
“Is he going to the Academy, too?”
“His audition is next week.”
Tucker nodded, taking it in. Leo had laid into him when Izzy had told him she was pregnant, warning him that he had to do right by her, asking him if he had any idea how much this was going to affect everything Izzy had been working for. Now, he realized how much it really was, and damn it that he actually had to like the guy now. Tucker had been so worried about losing his own dream of basketball that he honestly hadn’t considered Izzy might have had similar dreams on the line. Somehow, things just got even more complicated.
“You deserve to follow your dreams, too.”
“I won’t let you give up on yours,” she insisted. “Yours are much more attainable right now anyway, and I’ll have a baby at home.”
“No, we’ll have a baby.”
“We will,” she agreed. “But on that note, I need you to clarify something you said earlier. How can you say you want the baby when you say you don’t feel anything for the baby, either?”
He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. “Talk about hard to explain.”
“Try, please.”
“I don’t know, Izzy. It’s like…I want the baby because it’s a part of us, but I just don’t feel that attachment towards it that you seem to.”
Isabel pursed her lips in concentration as she considered his words. “So tell me, why did you agree to keep the baby if you didn’t feel the same?”
He didn’t want to answer this question. He knew she wouldn’t like what he had to say, but he answered it anyway. “Because I could see how badly you wanted it.”
She frowned up at him. “That doesn’t seem right, and it actually makes me a bit angry. You shouldn’t have agreed just because it’s what I wanted. It’s something we should have talked through. How can you be a good father to our child when the only reason you agreed to keep it in the first place was because you didn’t want to upset me?”
“That won’t be an issue.”
“Why not?” she pressed, growing frustrated.
“Because I do want this child on some level like I explained before. And I didn’t bring it up because it wouldn’t have made a difference. It wouldn’t have changed what I was feeling, and I still would have decided to keep it because that’s what would make you happy. If this baby is a part of your future, then it’s a part of mine, too. End of story.”
“But can you be happy?”
“I’m happy as long as you’re happy. Having this baby makes you happy, so I will figure this out. I will be a good father. I will love our baby.”
They were both aware that he seemed to be trying to assure himself of those words just as much as he was her. It was silent for a minute before they heard the garage door lifting.
“I guess we’ll have to talk later. Your mom’s home,” Isabel said, standing up.
Tucker grabbed her hand, stilling her before she could walk away, unsure of how they’d left their conversation. “I love you,” he stressed.
Understanding, she smiled. “I love you, too.”
“Come on,” he said, getting up to join her, “let’s go see what my mom has planned for dinner. She loves when you help.”
21
Birthday
Tucker sped down the court, dribbling the orange ball and dodging his friends on the opposing team on his way to the basket.
His heart raced with adrenaline, and sweat covered just about every inch of his body. They’d been playing for hours, but he wasn’t tired. He was in the zone.
Hector, the only other guy there that had talent anywhere close to his, ran up to block him. He looked around to pass the ball. No one was open. He was still pretty far away from the basket, but he kn
ew he could make the shot.
He jumped and flicked his wrist at the precise moment to send the ball above Hector’s outstretched arms and straight into the hoop that was nearly half a court away for the winning basket.
“Sweet!” Kyle whooped, jumping on Tucker’s back to put his tall teammate in a lighthearted chokehold. “That was awesome, man!” The redhead ran over to Jet next where they bumped chests at their victory.
“Yeah, yeah, whatever,” Hector replied. “We all know Tucker can play basketball.”
“You’re just pissed ‘cause you know we kicked your asses!” Tucker taunted his friends, Hector, Noah, and Corey, who had been on the opposing team for their games at the park that day.
He wasn’t going to feel guilty about gloating. The teams had been pretty even ability wise since Hector was playing against him. The guy just hated losing.
“Come on, Hector. It was just a game,” Noah said, whacking him in the arm with the back of his hand.
“Yeah, alright,” he conceded. “I’ll have plenty of time to try to beat you this next season, Patterson.”
“You might not have to,” Cory interjected. “He’s going to be Izzy’s baby daddy pretty soon. Will you even have time for basketball this year, man, or are you gonna be too busy trying to pay for diapers?”
Jet smacked the back of Cory’s head, smashing part of his afro. “Watch it, man.”
He turned and jumped on Jet, initiating a jocular scuffle until the muscled Greek had his arm pinned behind his back in a wrestling move.
“Fuck, man, chill.”
Jet released the hold and offered his teammate a hand. “You’re talking about family, dude.”
“I didn’t realize you and Annie had tied the knot yet,” Noah retorted. “One big happy family, right?”
“Shut up, guys,” Tucker said to their ignorant friends, giving them a look that said ‘leave it alone if you don’t want to start anything.’
He grabbed his water from the side of the cement court, taking a long pull and looked around at the group again. “And to answer your question, yes, I’m going to play this year. It’s not like I’m quitting school or anything.” But his mind couldn’t help drifting over the what-ifs of his situation.