by A. Aubry
It was going on seven o’clock in the Twin Cities which meant that it was dinner time for Jackson who was in California. His game was still two hours from taking place and I knew I could not wait that long to turn on the game and see his face. Since Jackson was the visiting team in California, his team was the first for batting practice. Their practice took place two and a half hours before the game whereas the home team’s was an hour and a half before the game. He would be halfway through his batting practice if I called him right now. Before I was able to talk myself into waiting for another half hour, I found myself picking up my phone and dialing his number.
“Is everythin’ alright? Are you okay? Is the baby okay?” Jackson rambled as his answer rather than a simple ‘hello’.
“You can tell your daughter to stop making me such an emotional and hormonal mess,” I sighed as I laid back against the pillows on our bed and rubbed my protruding belly.
I heard Jackson let out a large breath of air, “Baby, I’m in battin’ practice. I shouldn’t be on the phone.”
I bit my lip, “I know—I just—I miss you, Jackson. This is our first full day away from each other in seven months. I couldn’t go another minute without at least hearing your voice.”
“Damn, you know it’s hard to be stern with you when you say things like that,” Jackson softly chuckled.
“So, you aren’t mad at me?” I asked hopefully.
“I can never be mad at you, Madeline. I miss you too. It’s killin’ me to be away from you and Lydia. My hotel room bed was quite lonely without you in it with me.”
“It better be fucking lonely, mister,” I teasingly scolded.
“Oh, don’t worry darlin’, it is a very large and lonely bed. Just as ours should be at home for you.”
“To be honest…”
“You better be fuckin’ with me right now, Mad.”
“I have been snuggling with your pillow quite a bit…”
“God dammit, that is one lucky pillow.”
“Wait…Jack…you didn’t honestly think I would be cheating on you…did you?”
Jackson sighed loudly on the other line, “It’s a force of habit from all those years with Josie…I’m sorry.”
“Jackson, listen to me. I have never and will never cheat on you. We are bringing a baby into the world together and I love you more than anything. The only person who I want to be cuddled up in this bed with right now is you.”
Jackson’s voice went soft, “You’re in bed right now?”
I furrowed my brows in confusion, “Uh, yeah…have been all day except for when Lydia treats my bladder like a trampoline and to get food.”
“What are you wearin’?”
Oh, he wants to play?
I looked down at my maternity nightgown that I had put on after a quick shower after dinner. Since I was alone, I wasn’t forcing myself to wear a bra. I was lying under our covers, Jackson’s pillow hugged close to my side and my feet were slightly elevated thanks to the swelling of pregnancy.
“I’m wearing my nightgown, the pale pink one that goes to my knees…” I described.
“I love that one on you. Bra or no bra?”
“Jack, you know me. I’m alone and in my nightgown. What do you think?”
“No bra.”
“Mhm,” I hummed.
He whistled through his teeth, “You know what I’d be doin’ to you right now if I was there, right?”
My breath caught in my throat, “Why don’t you refresh my memory?”
“Well first, I would kiss you deeply because I love your kisses. Then I would kiss down your neck as I began to pull your nightgown up your body.”
I could feel my heart begin to race, “I love when you do that.”
“Then as soon as your nightgown was on the floor, I’d start to kiss and suck on your beautiful breasts that have only gotten bigger durin’ the pregnancy.” The sound of his voice was so seductive that I closed my eyes.
“Keep going…”
“I would start kissin’ further south, over your belly, down to that amazin’ pussy of yours.”
I gasped just at the memories and visualization of him going down on me, “Jackson…I need you…”
His smirk was audible through the phone, “And I need to taste you.”
“Fuck,” I groaned.
Jackson talked to someone away from the receiver before his attention turned back to me, “Hate to cut this short, baby, but I gotta go.”
“So, you’re just going to leave me all hot and bothered in our bed?”
“I’ll finish with you later, I promise.”
“Jackson, I don’t even know if I’ll be able to stay awake through the whole game because you are two hours behind me.”
He hummed as he thought about a plan, “Watch the first few innings then take a nap. When the game is over and I am back to my hotel, I will call you and we will FaceTime just like we did when we were datin’.”
“But…but…” I whined.
“Yes, you do have a nice butt.”
“Jackson,” I groaned and hit my hand on the bed.
“Patience is a virtue, is it not?” He teased.
I rolled my eyes, “Not when your pregnant wife is all turned on and wanting you.”
Jackson chuckled, “I’m sorry, Mad. I’ll make it up to you.”
My bottom lip pouted out, “Fine…have a good game, sweetheart. I’ll try to watch as much as I can before I pass out.”
“I love the way you support me.”
“I love you too.”
We said our goodbyes and I reluctantly ended the call. The next few hours I was focused on writing as much as I could be. My book was almost complete, and my editors were eating it up. By the time the game started, I could already feel my eyes drooping. I made it through two innings, making sure to catch Jackson’s signals each time he did them, before I closed my eyes and fell asleep.
The sound of my phone blaring next to my bed woke me up. I immediately forced myself awake when I saw that the game was over on my television. It was time for mine and Jackson’s FaceTime date. Rolling over, I eagerly picked up my phone to see Owen’s number on my phone. That was what told me that something was very wrong. I answered it on one of the last rings.
“O…what’s going on?” I asked, my voice shaking.
“How do you know that something is wrong?” He sounded amazed.
“Where is Jackson…is he okay?”
There was muffled talking before Jackson’s voice flowed through my phone, “Baby, remember what the doctor said. Do not get stressed out.”
Is he serious right now? “Jackson, you aren’t calling me on your own phone and Owen pretty much confirmed that something happened. If you don’t want me to get stressed out, you better start fucking talking.”
“I will tell you after you take a deep breath,” his tone told me that he wasn’t joking around.
I took a dramatically loud and deep breath to satisfy him.
“Thank you. There was an accident on the way back to the hotel in Drake’s rental car. I am okay, just have some bumps and bruises but my phone was pretty much destroyed.”
My breathing turned rapid as I started to hyperventilate. He was in an accident and I could have lost him for the second time in the six months that we had been married.
“Madeline, calm down…I told you, I’m fine,” Jackson said softly.
I began to just let the tears fall freely, “Prove it.”
My phone beeped, and I pulled it away from my ear. Jackson was attempting to initiate a FaceTime call with me. Pressing accept almost immediately, Jackson came into view with the familiar scenery of a hospital behind him. He held out the camera a bit and showed that he was standing up. There were no casts on him, only a few cuts and some bruising on his arm.
“See, I’m alright.”
“Jackson, I don’t think I can do this being away from you thing if you have the opportunity to get injured. I already almost lost you once…” My te
ars refused to let up as my voice trailed off.
His eyes looked glossy, as though he was getting emotional because I was, “Baby, I’m right here. Everythin’ is okay, the car that hit us didn’t even hit my side of the car.”
I sniffled hard and tried to take a steadying breath, “I’m coming to you…”
“Madeline Joyce, no. Dr. Oliver said it isn’t good for you and the baby to be travelin’. The stress that it puts on you and her…I don’t want anythin’ to happen to either of you.”
He was right. Dr. Oliver had said that I had been under a lot of stress with the traveling that I was doing with Jackson and his team. My blood pressure wasn’t in a healthy place and at first the doctor thought I had preeclampsia. I was already getting Braxton-Hicks contractions and they were getting so bad to the point where I honestly thought I was already in labor. The last few days that I had been spending in bed seemed to be keeping them at bay, but Jackson needed me.
“But you were in an accident, Jack. You could have been seriously injured, I need to be with you.”
“We can’t risk your health or the baby’s. I’ll be home in a week.”
That was when I let out a full-blown sob. Sure, it wasn’t easy knowing he was going to be gone for a full week before the accident, but after? I was going to have a freaking aneurysm any second.
“Baby, no, please don’t cry.”
“I—I don’t like being without you. I—I could have lost you…”
“Shh, you know I would give anythin’ to be there with you. I will be back before you know it.”
We sat there in silence as I attempted to calm myself down. Which was nearly impossible, by the way. Jackson was the one who always calmed me down. He would hold me and brush my hair with his fingers, it was the most calming thing in the world. I had never had anyone play with my hair the way that Jackson did, and I had discovered that it was something that I loved.
“Would you feel better if I sent Shelby to stay with you? Or told Alex to come over to the house and stay with you?” He asked quietly.
“The only way I would feel better was if you were with me,” I mumbled through my trembling lip.
“And I wish that I could be there with you. I’ll call them both and have them come visit you. Is that an okay substitute?”
I nodded sadly, “I guess…”
“Okay, I will get right on it. In the meantime, tomorrow I will go to the nearest Verizon store and get a new cellphone so that you will be able to contact me. I should probably get Owen’s phone back to him.”
“I love you, Jackson. So much that it hurts me to be away from you.”
“I love you too, Madeline. It’s killin’ me to be away from you, especially when you are cryin’. I want to make you smile, not cry.”
I gave him a small smile, “You do make me smile. It’s our situation that makes me cry. You make me so happy that it makes it so hard to not be with you.”
Jackson quietly chuckled, “The things you say sure do inflate my ego, Mad.”
“It’s the truth though. I’ll be counting down the days and hours until I can be with you again.”
The baby kicked, and I jumped slightly before resting my hand on my belly.
“Is Lydia bein’ active?” Jackson inquired.
“She just kicked, and it hurt. It’s like she’s beating me up from the inside,” I rolled my eyes.
“I’ll have to have a talk with her when I get back. You should probably try to get some sleep…you still look exhausted. I’ll call you first thing tomorrow after I get my new phone.”
I yawned as I agreed, and we said I love you before hanging up. Hell, this next week was going to be the longest week of my life.
As I attempted to fall back to sleep, there was a pressure on Jackson’s empty side of the bed. The last few days, whenever Shelby or Alex wanted me to wake up, they would jump on his side of the bed. But the pressure wasn’t a jump as it had been before. Maybe they were finally gaining some manners and allowing me to get the rest that I wanted.
That was when I felt the lips against my shoulder. Even though I wasn’t looking at them and I hadn’t felt them in days, I knew exactly who was attached to them. I excitedly opened my eyes and rolled onto my back, seeing Jackson smiling down at me.
“You’re home!” I cheered a little too loudly, wrapping my arms around his neck and bringing his lips to mine.
“I took an earlier flight. I didn’t want to spend another minute away from you.” He smiled as one of his hands rested on my belly, “How are my girls?”
I buried my face into his neck and breathed him in, “Better now that you’re back home with us.”
Jackson looked mischievous as though he was thinking about something, “I almost forgot…”
My brows knit together as I watched him slide down, his mouth pressing a gentle kiss against my swollen stomach, “Lydia, daddy is home. We need to discuss how much strain you put on mommy when I’m not here.”
Giggling, I ran a hand through Jackson’s hair as he gave the most adorable lecture to our unborn daughter. Once he was finished, he moved back up to my side and pulled me into his grasp.
“I think she gets the picture,” he chuckled as he kissed my lips.
My fingers dragged over his light stubble, showing me that he hadn’t shaved yet today, before brushing over his lips. I memorized the way his light caramel colored eyes shined as they looked down at me. I hadn’t been this close to Jackson since before he left, and I felt as though I hadn’t seen him for much longer than a week.
“You’re so much more handsome in person,” I whispered, not meaning to say it out loud.
“I’m goin’ to take that as a compliment,” he laughed as he puckered his lips against my finger.
“It is a compliment…FaceTime doesn’t do you justice,” I giggled.
“It definitely doesn’t do you justice,” Jackson smirked as he kissed me deeply, his lips easing mine open for him.
It didn’t matter how many times I had kissed him before, it always felt like the first time. My breath was always taken away, my heart always beat a little faster. The things that Jackson made me feel, nobody had ever made me feel before. I had had my fair share of boyfriends and relationships before I met this man, but it was only ever him that made me feel this way.
“I’ve missed you, Madeline,” Jackson said softly, his nose running along mine.
Running a hand through his hair, I smiled at the softness between my fingers, “I’ve missed you so much, Jackson.”
“It’s your daily wake up—wait Jackson, what’re you doin’ here?” Shelby asked as she strode into our room and flopped down on the end of our bed.
I raised an eyebrow at him before burying my face back into the crook of his neck.
“I couldn’t wait to be home with my wife, so I took a redeye flight back,” Jackson explained.
Shelby hummed, “Mhm, and you couldn’t give your sister a heads up?”
My lips pressed against the skin of Jackson’s neck.
“I—I didn’t even tell Madeline that I was comin’ back earlier. It was a surprise,” Jackson stuttered.
I smiled against his neck as I gently bit down onto the soft skin. His breath caught in his throat.
“Well, it’s good your back then because you can take us out on the boat,” Shelby replied, unaware of what I was doing to Jackson.
“You’d have to ask Maddie if she’s up to it,” he cleared his throat to remove the husk behind his tone.
Shelby was silent as she waited for me to reply.
Reluctantly, I lifted my mouth away from him, “We can go out on the boat.”
She squealed in excitement and I heard her run out of the room. Jackson shifted slightly and pushed his hips against me, his erection hard against my leg.
“I know that I’m up for somethin’,” Jackson chuckled softly as he tugged on my earlobe with his teeth.
“Mm,” I hummed, “I have missed that something very much.”
<
br /> Jackson climbed on top of me as best he could with my baby bump in the way, “Why don’t we have some before we go out onto the boat?”
I leaned up and kissed his lips, quickly lifting his shirt up over his head.
“Hey now, you two…you can keep it in your pants a little longer. You owe me a boat ride,” Shelby said from our doorway.
“Shel…really? I haven’t been with my wife in a week,” Jackson whined as he put his head on my chest.
She crossed her arms over her chest, “Well then you can wait a few more hours.”
I giggled and wrapped my arms around Jackson, running my hands up and down his muscular back, “Shelby. Just give us ten minutes, then we will spend as long as you want on the boat. Go pack us some sandwiches and drinks so when I get hungry—and you know I will get hungry—I don’t force my husband here to turn the boat around to get me food.”
Shelby sighed, she knew that my cravings could get so bad that I would tell anyone and everyone to stop what they were doing for me to get my food, “Okay, fine. Ten minutes.”
She closed the door behind her and I dragged my nails lightly up Jackson’s back.
“Damn, you trained her in a matter of days…I have been tryin’ do that for years,” Jackson chuckled as he kissed my lips gently.
I smirked, “She’s learned not to fuck with a pregnant woman.”
Jackson wiggled his eyebrows, “But I get to fuck a pregnant woman.”
“Shut up and undress me already. It’s been too damn long,” I groaned.
He instantly did as I told him to, pushing the blankets the rest of the way off of me, and sliding off my nightgown. His fingers hooked in my panties and tore them off, depositing them onto the floor. I dragged a hand down his chest and unbuttoned his khaki shorts, eagerly pushing them down his legs. Jackson quickly kicked off his shorts before pulling down his boxers. Our mouths connected once again as his boxers joined the rest of our clothing on the floor. He wasted no time to plunge into me and I gasped, groaning at the same time. It was unhealthy how much my body craved Jackson’s.