by G. V. Steitz
“Totally in it. My parents will be so elated it won’t be funny. My mother still talks about you. So what do you say? Florida? Can we?” I ask eagerly like a 5 year old asking to open Christmas presents.
“Of course. If you like I can stay here or once we get there, you take her to your parents, I will check into a hotel for however long you want to be out there.”
I just couldn’t believe my luck right now. Everything I have ever wanted in my life, I was given everything I ever wanted in just one day. I just shook my head at this crazy woman I loved my entire life practically.
“Up you go.” I said as I motioned for us to get up.
“Oh, ok, I’m sorry.” Ivy said as she quickly scooted off my lap.
“Let’s put any doubts to rest right now.” I said to her as I tugged at her arm, pulling her towards her bedroom. “We are so going to bond this arrangement together right now.” I demanded as I picked her up and tossed her on her bed and closed her bedroom door.
I climbed up over her and I waited. Both of us panting, trying to get our emotions in control. With it too much to achieve I couldn’t stand it any longer.
“I love you Ivy. I never stopped. I will always love you. So let’s cut the shit and promise me, right here and now, no more running. No more secrets. No more excuses. Promise me those three things right now, and you will never have to ever doubt anything between us again. I want you to believe me. To trust me Ivy. It’s what I have always wanted baby. Please.” I asked and offered at the same time.
“I don’t deserve you Dominic. I have taken away the last 6 years of your life without your consent over anything I have done with our daughter.” Ivy admitted, making me feel my heart break more for her with her crying into her hands, covering her face, slumped over as she sat on the bed with me.
I peeled her hands from her face. “Promise me Ivy. We will work through the kinks later. Together. Now Promise me if you still love me and want a future together.” I say softly. “If you don’t love me, if you don’t want me in that sense, I will go out in the living room and go back to the couch. We will work out details together still with Ava. But I need to know what you want from us.”
Chapter 15.
Ivy
Turning a New Leaf
“I always loved you Dominic. I always will.” I whispered through my tear soaked face, and puffy eyes.
No sooner did I say that, and before I could say anything further, Dominic swooped in and mauled my lips with his. This attacked on my mouth wasn’t anything soft and gentle. This was Dominic staking his claim in me, in us and our family.
In no time he had us both naked in bed and his body sprawled out over mine.
“I’m not on the pill any longer, There hasn’t been a need since, well, since you.” I confessed.
Dominic growled. “Good, maybe this time I can be witness to you having my next child.” Without missing a beat in our kissing, only talking between or through the kisses he graced my mouth with.
Dominic lavishly consumed my hard, pebbled nipples in his mouth. Sucking, licking and nibbling, making me moan with need for more from him.
As he moved his mouth down my body, leaving a hot trail of kisses that felt as if they seared my skin with him branding me everywhere his lips landed, he came to my hip bone and stopped. Looking down at my small little tattoo. I had done after Ava was one years old.
The tat was in Italian. It read in a flowing motion like a gentle wave crossing my pelvic bone from left to right in small print.
Il mio unico vero amore, per sempre. D.C.~
After Dominic read it, I was positive he could read Italian. I knew his family spoke it when I was involved with him back in school. He ran his fingers across the words, lowering his mouth to the phrase, searing me with hot kisses across the entire tat.
“When did you get this?” Dominic asked me, making me self conscience of it.
“After Ava turned one. I was no longer pregnant or breast feeding, so it was safe then.” I shrugged. “The only person I ever showed it to was Craig. I was excited to get it, and since I knew no one else but me would ever see it, or so I thought, I figured I would show Craig. He nearly had a heart attack at seeing it, but I didn’t do it hoping for his approval. Not that I didn’t think of you every day of my life, but at least I had something on me that I seen every day I looked at myself in the mirror. I didn’t feel so far from you this way.” Knowing how stupid I sounded, I cleared my throat, trying to hide my embarrassment.
“My one true love, forever. D.C.~” Dominic recited out loud, in English, making me smile. “Why hadn’t you had anyone else after me? I mean, look at you Ivy, you are more than beautiful. You have a huge heart. You are funny and a good person… I mean you could have anyone. You’re the entire package. Why didn’t you find someone?” He asked me sincerely.
“I did find someone, and everyone else after, wasn’t you.” I told him, looking down to see him looking back down over my tat.
“Ivy, I can’t believe you would do that, never having been with anyone because of me? You can’t imagine how much that means to my heart baby. I have a lot of time to make up for I suppose huh?” He asked with a sly grin creeping over his beautiful face.
I nodded, smiling at him. And just like that, Dominic moved in for the kill with his mouth. Working his tongue in between my bare mounds, he latched on to my pulsating clit, throbbing for his attention.
Both us, fighting to get closer to one another. Attacking each other like we were still in high school. Both of us, more than well amped up, Dominic finally slowly slid himself in to my core. The first time he entered me, I really began to wonder if the teenage boy I remembered, wasn’t fully grown between his legs when I was with him. Only because now, I felt like I either shrunk myself into near extinction or he got bigger, a lot bigger.
By the third time that night, I was positive he must of still grew since I knew him. Why I felt the need to google this in the state I was currently in with him, is beyond me.
Dominic apparently had no problems what so ever. His facial expressions sure made him look like he was in immense pain but assured me it was pure heaven. I told him if this is what heaven looks like when you enter it, I am pretty sure I don’t need the experience, making Dominic laugh.
We never went to bed that night. After we messed around the third time, we both took a long soak in the claw foot tub I had, soothing our aching muscles. Apparently the bath salts worked so well, we still needed to go another round before getting out to dry off. After that, we dug out some peanut butter chocolate ice cream from Baskin Robins. Both of our favorite still to this day, and began going through our plans with how to break all the news to Ava.
Dominic called and made reservations for our flight to Florida later that morning. His parents were told he was coming home for a short visit and had some interesting events to go over with them that he had to tell them in person. I was silently praying they weren’t going to have a heart attack when they seen me, or found out who Ava was to Dominic as well as their family.
Dominic ran back to his place for some clothes and came back to find me making breakfast and Ava had yet to show her beautiful face still and I was a nervous wreck.
“Relax, ok. We went over all of this last night and this morning like 6 times. You sure you are ok with her finding out about me and going to see my parents?” Dominic asked while he cupped my face with his big warm hands dragging his thumb back and forth across my jaw, instantly relaxing me.
No sooner were we closing in on another romantic moment, did we hear a little princess clearing her throat at our feet to make us both jump a little and making Ava giggle.
Chapter 17.
Dominic
Back Home with the Cavaliers
“Did you ever go home Mr… I‘m sorry I don‘t remember how to say your last name.” Ava told Dominic without waiver, making us both laugh.
“Actually I did Ava. I came back because your Mommy and I have some surprises for y
ou and we are going to take a mini vacation all together if that’s ok with you.” I told her as I picked her up while she was still in her pink princess flannel nightgown that went down to her ankles and was holding on to purple alligator.
Ava’s face lit up like a Christmas tree when we said vacation and surprises all in one sentence. She squealed and screamed and scared me to death at first. After asking Ivy if that was a good sign or bad sign, they both laughed at me, making me relax.
“So, what do I call you?” Ava asked me politely causing Ivy and me to look at each other and got busy with breakfast.
“Lamb chop, do you want chocolate milk?” Ivy asked her causing Ava to roll her eyes and looked at me.
“Oh brother.” Ava stated in an exhausted sigh.
“What?” I laughed when she said that.
“Mommy only let’s me have chocolate milk when there is something really important to tell me.” Ava explained as she nodded her head very firmly up and down. Ivy whipped her head back over towards us, with her eyebrows raised.
“Is that so?” I stated looking back at Ivy.
“Oh, and when did you pick that up Miss. lamb chop?” Ivy asked her as she brought Ava her chocolate milk not before tickling her first.
“Wait, you’ll see.” Ava sang in a song. “So what do I call you?” She asked me again.
I sucked in a deep breath and looked back at Ivy.
“How about we all sit down together?” I asked Ivy who was doing some jumping bean dance that was making me more nervous.
Ava was drinking her chocolate milk through a purple straw pretty quickly.
“Are you going to get a head ache drinking that so fast?” I asked her concerned.
Ava froze, taking her lips carefully off the straw and mouthed the word “nope.” with a pop.”
“Okay then, here we go.” Ivy said, rolling her eyes as she picked Ava up and brought her into the living room for the three of us to sit down on the couch together.
We plopped Ava in between us both and Ivy began.
“Ava…” Ivy paused.
“Mommy.” Ava said making me laugh and Ivy rolled her eyes.
“Where did you pick up all this drama?” Ivy asked Ava. Ava shrugged and took her lips off her straw again and tapped her little chin with her chubby finger. “Hmmm… I think Uncle Johnny.” Ava stated as a matter of fact.
I threw my head back and laughed. “Got to love children’s honesty.” I barked out loud between laughs.
“Do I get to pick a name to call him Mommy? Because he won’t tell me his name.” Ava leaned into her mother and whispered even though I could still hear her talk.
“Ok, about that. Remember when I told you that Mr. Cavalier was my special friend?” Ivy asked.
Ava nodded. “That’s his name Mr. Cawaweer.”
“Right, well, we were friends in school before you were born. And… Well, we loved each other very much.” Ivy started to looked nervous.
“And we still love each other.” I added grabbing Ivy’s hand and kissing the palm of her hand.
“Anyway…” Ivy blew some hair from her face, making Ava giggle. And right before Ivy began to speak again, Ava looked over at me and then back to her mother and back to me and blinked a couple times.
“Are you my daddy?” Ava point blank asked without saying another word to explain to her how this situation.
I looked at Ava in complete shock. I did the same lost look back at Ivy who raised her eye brows and motioned for me to say something. I looked back at Ava who was still looking up at me with the same eyes that I had.
“I am Ava. I’m your Daddy.” I confessed, not knowing what to do or say next. Leave it to a child to put everyone at ease without realizing it. Ava carefully looked back at her mother and handed her the chocolate milk. And then stood up on the couch to be at eye level with me. Ava literally had melted my heart with what she said and did at that moment. She took both her little chubby cool hands from holding the milk and placed them on both my cheeks and smiled. “I knew you were my daddy.” And then she jumped into my lap and wrapped her little arms around my neck and I let out a long breath that I didn’t know I was holding. I wrapped my arms around her tiny little body and carefully squeezed her and held the back of her head and rocked her. When I opened my eyes, I seen Ivy was crying and so was I. Ava pulled away from me and looked very serious. “I told you I was right about the chocolate milk.” She informed me as she nodded up and down again, making all of us laugh.
“How did you know I was your daddy?” I asked her still holding her in my arms, and her wrapped around my neck. Her chocolate warm breath puffing out onto my face was the best scent and feeling I ever had up until that moment.
“Well, mommy told me all about my daddy.”
“Really? Like what?” I asked looking at Ivy, and back to Ava.
Ava, smashed the palm of her tiny hand across her face to move the curl’s of her long hair off away from her nose and shook her head then. Making me bit down, smashing my lips together so I wouldn’t start to laugh at how cute this little angel was.
“Mommy told me all about you. She always told me that you and me had the same eyes and bowf of our eyes are bowf green. See…” She nearly poked her eye out, pulling her eye lid back. “And then she told me that she only loved you and never anyone else and that every time she had pizza she thought of you.” Ava shrugged her little shoulders, like it was no big deal.
“Besides, Mommy never went out with anyone except Uncle Craig and Uncle Johnny. And she always told me that she would never bring anyone new over unless they were going to be important to me too. And until she seen you yesterday, no one ever else came over here except Uncle Craig and Uncle Johnny. And they are like Mommy’s brothers and they love each other. They love Mommy but only like a sister. Mommy told me all the time that you were her prince and some day you would ride in on your horse and come to meet me and you would love me. Do you love me Daddy?” Ava finally ended with that question, making me cry for not only asking me that, but everything she just told me her Mother said about me. Ivy was still crying and chuckling here and there.
I looked back down to my beautiful daughter and told her what was in my heart. “I’ve loved you before I even met you Ava. I’m sorry it took me so long to finally find you, but I had a very important job, and now I am finally here to stay with you and your Mommy if that is ok.” I told her.
Ava nodded really fast and jumped back up into my arms. “I love you too Daddy.”
Epilogue
Ivy
Finally a Family.
We made it to Florida that morning and waiting for us at the Airport terminal was Dominic’s parents.
A great deal of people had already recognized Dominic for the team and position he played and signed a bunch of autographs in both Dallas and Tampa airports. We finally found his parents and his mother looked like she never aged. Dominic’s father was in a wheel chair but still looking remarkable. Time was kind to them both.
Dominic took off and whisked his mother in the air and twirled her around a couple times before placing her back down on the ground while she was still laughing. He went up to his father and gave him a hug and kiss as well before turning towards me and Ava.
“Ivy, is that you sweetheart?” She asked quietly with a quivering lower lip and eyes that immediately pooled with tears. I nodded.
“Honey, look who is here? It’s Ivy, Joseph.” She pulled me and Ava over towards them all. Before I realized it, Dominic picked Ava out of my arms and Mrs. Cavalier wrapped her arms around me tightly. Crying and laughing. She started kissing me all over my face and I went over to Dominic’s father.
“Hi Mr. Cavalier.” I said.
Mr. Cavalier began to cry himself and I leaned into his waiting open arms. “Baby, I am so happy to finally see you again.” He said as I finally pulled away from his heart felt warm embrace.
Both his parents looked back at Dominic and then at Ava.
“And who is
this beautiful little angel?” Dominic’s mother asked, smiling at Ava. Ava stole the show of course. She wrapped her arms around Dominic’s neck and just said what really brought it all home for me. Keeping her head against Dominic’s chest, and his arm protectively around her to keep her feeling safe, Ava just told them. “This is my Daddy.” She offered the introduction of Dominic to his parents. Clearly making his poor mother nearly passing out. “You are? What is your name?” Dominic’s mom asked her as she continued to cry as I did as well. “My name is Ava.” She proudly told them, making Dominic’s mother stagger a little before I jumped over to hold her arm making sure she wouldn’t fall.
“Ava…” Mrs. C whispered and looked at Dominic and then me. I nodded and she looked back at Dominic and he nodded. “Can I hold you? I’m your Grandma. And this is your Grandpa. We have been waiting so long for you. Finally you are here like an angel from Heaven.” Mrs. C. said to Ava. Ava nodded and scooped Ava up into her arms and cradled her like no one was going to come close to Ava. Dominic came over towards me, wrapping his arm around my waist as Mrs. C. whisked Ava over to her Grandpa, and Dominic leaned in and kissed my temple. I don’t think we will get her back until we board the plan to go back home.” He whispered, making me laugh.
Once we were headed back, promising to see them the following month out by us to stay, Ava was now boarding with her own personal designer pink luggage, thanks to Grandma and Grandpa. Along with the new 5 piece luggage set, was a full new wardrobe that barely fit in the five piece luggage set.
The night before we came home, Dominic proposed and we married the following month since we no longer had any reason to wait any longer. We were reunited and whole once again.
Lucky for us, we got married when we did. Mitchell and Joseph were born 8 months after we were married. Apparently the swimmers that Dominic carries are pretty potent little guys, making the mad dash to my eggs. We probably conceived the little dare devils the first night we made love.