by A. m Madden
Something that unexpectedly had happened over the past few weeks—I realized I loved being pregnant… and that scared me to death.
What flipped my switch from merely experiencing my pregnancy to loving the experience was the day I felt the babies move. At first, I had no idea what was happening. I had been in the shower, and I thought I’d felt something flutter inside me. It had been so faint, I almost missed it… until it happened again. The second time there was no mistaking what it was, and the emotion it created practically knocked me on my ass.
I shared the news with Cooper and Ricky, even letting them each feel it one day when they came by with dinner. But I couldn’t bring myself to tell Ryder. Except for my welfare, he really hadn’t inquired about the babies. His questions for Dr. White proved that he’d read along in my pregnancy book. I suspected as much even before that appointment, because I’d sometimes find it askew on the small table it rested on. But keeping to himself whatever he learned was quite telling, and I didn’t want to upset him if it all hit too close to home.
From what I knew of his sister-in-law Tammy’s pregnancy, it was a senseless tragedy. The fact it had happened while pregnant made it egregious. She’d gone to sleep one night, happy and pregnant, and never woke the next day. If his brother losing his wife in such a horrific way wasn’t bad enough, to lose his child a day later was unfathomable.
Bryce only recently seemed to be existing in a somewhat normal state. Ryder had shared Bryce’s goal of becoming a counselor, which I thought was a fantastic idea. He also met someone, and through Ryder’s eyes I could tell just how much it warmed him to know his brother might have finally turned a corner. Ryder admitted he’d told Bryce we were back together, but also admitted keeping our engagement from him until he told his parents first… something I asked about often and kept getting an excuse.
I watched a cooking show in a daze, my mind on Ryder. He was on his way home from Chicago and called when he landed. I couldn’t wait to see him. When my phone buzzed beside me, expecting it to be him announcing his location, I was surprised to see an unknown number.
“Hello?”
“Riana, darling. It’s Michelle Carter.” Despite not having seen her in years, I could easily picture Ryder’s mom’s smiling face on the other end of the call.
“Oh, hi. How are you?” While with Ryder, I had grown close to his parents. Our breakup had seemed almost like a death. We’d kept in touch for a while, until the calls became infrequent as Ryder and I drifted apart.
“I’m great. Richard and I just got back from an extended vacation traveling Europe with friends. Now that Bryce is doing much better, we treated ourselves. It was such a lovely time.”
“That’s wonderful.” It was obvious Bryce had told her that Ryder and I were back together, but I didn’t know the last time Ryder had spoken to his family.
As predicted, she cleared her throat before saying, “We saw Bryce last night for dinner, and he shared the wonderful news that you and Ryder are back together.”
“Um… yes. We’re very happy.” Wondering what else she knew forced me to wait for her to drive the conversation.
“Well, we are so thrilled. Your boyfriend is in big trouble for keeping this from us. I tried to call my son earlier, but it went right to voice mail.”
“Oh, he’s actually on his way back from Chicago. You probably caught him on the flight.”
“Well, you tell him we are so happy and expect you two home for Thanksgiving.”
Shit.
“I will,” I replied, amazed the words hadn’t gotten stuck with the lump that formed.
“Okay, I’ll let you go. We’ll talk once my son gets home. Goodbye, sweetheart.”
“Bye.” Suddenly, Kayla scrambled to stand from where she lay at my feet on the bed and rushed out the door.
“Hey, girl,” Ryder said, followed by an umph when no doubt a big golden leaped on him. “Miss me?” he asked her before calling, “Baby?”
I appeared a second later. “Hi, honey.” He looked exhausted but still stole my breath. Wearing a navy polo shirt and khaki pants that fit him perfectly called to my libido. It had missed him these past few days.
With one last pat on her head, he dropped his bag, tossed his keys, and stalked right for me. His arms circled my waist, and his lips found my neck. “God, I missed you,” he murmured against my skin, and it instantly flipped my switch to go.
“I missed you too.”
He squeezed me before straightening to stare into my eyes. “You good? Everything okay?”
I couldn’t help but giggle. “Yes… same as I was twenty minutes ago when you called.”
His lips twitched. “A lot can happen in twenty minutes.” Without warning, he lifted me in his arms and carried me toward our bedroom. “I’m about to show you.”
And everything I needed to tell him was instantly put on the back burner.
Ryder
A shiver ran through her, spurring me on. Wasting no time, I lowered her at the foot of the bed, and she watched as I removed my clothes. Her eyes heavy with desire… a desire that I felt firsthand as well. It was a craving like no other I’d ever experienced. A need that coursed through me. No matter how many times I had her, the hunger for her never lessened.
Naked and hard, I took it upon myself to remove her clothes. It took every effort I had to go slow and not rush into what I desperately craved… that stupefying connection we shared whenever I first entered her. Sure, I needed that more than my next breath. I also wanted to savor every second with her.
Once she was naked as well, I lifted and placed her in the center of the bed, aligning my body beside hers. She pressed against me when I started to nibble on her lips. And a sigh released as I trailed my mouth down her neck and over her body at my unhurried pace.
As I latched onto one pert nipple, she pulled her bottom lip between her teeth. And when I molded a hand around her other breast, her moan caused my cock to jerk. Truth be told, I loved her new breasts. They were fuller, heavier than before, and I wondered if they would remain like that after the babies came.
They were also more sensitive, proven when she tangled her fingers in my hair, holding me to her with just the slightest of pressure. When I skimmed one hand down the center of her body to her slightly parted legs, she released my hair and instead gripped the bedding beneath her. The instant my fingertips touched her, she arched her back and sucked in a ragged breath through clenched teeth.
With our gazes tethered, I watched her body build with each rotation I made. Her chest heaved as I fondled her slowly. Waiting a few minutes, I skimmed my tongue down the path my hand made to replace my touch with my lips. When her legs fell open, I slipped my hands under her ass and lifted. The angle gave me access to every fold, every crevice, and every sensitive nerve.
I devoured her, and she trembled when I alternated long, slow strokes with short, quick sucks. My eyes were pinned to her beautiful face while she climbed closer to her climax beneath me.
“Ryder,” she called out, and I knew she was there. Reaching for the hand twisting the bedding, I laced our fingers, and her grip tightened during the peak of her orgasm. After several long seconds, she loosened her hold on my hand, and her body relaxed beneath my mouth.
I realigned myself until my cock rested on her pussy. Face-to-face, she took hold of my neck, eliminating the distance to kiss me. She stroked my tongue with hers as I entered her inch by inch. There weren’t words to adequately explain what she felt like.
Her legs wrapped around my waist to pull me closer. Our breathing became labored, our bodies pressed together as best as her pregnant belly would allow. Each slide in and out of her warmth brought with it a surge of pure pleasure.
Once more she called out my name and clenched around me, practically stealing my breath. I followed right behind, and we came together in an explosion of sensations.
Collapsing beside her, exhausted from the exertion of my release, I said, “See… twenty minutes was all
I needed.”
She giggled and played with my hair lovingly. When I opened my eyes, the love in her soul was unmistakable. “I love you, Ryder. So very much. I can’t wait to be your wife.”
“I can’t wait for you to be my wife,” I countered, and kissed her lips. She settled against my side, her head resting on my chest. I watched as she admired her ring, tilting her hand to look at it from all sides.
“It’s been weeks, and I still can’t get over how beautiful it is. It’s perfect.”
“No, it’s a ring. You’re perfect.”
Her focus twisted to my face. “I don’t deserve you.”
I shook my head in disbelief. “Baby, you have it all wrong. It’s the other way around.” I tightened my hold, memorizing the feel of her body against mine, wishing beyond reason that I could close my eyes and wake about a year from now when she would become my wife.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Riana
I hated to ruin our postcoital euphoria. But I had to tell him that his mom had called, and that she’d invited us for Thanksgiving.
So, as he played with a strand of my hair, I gently said, “I received a surprising phone call just before you walked in.”
“Oh yeah? From who?”
“Your mom.” Predictably, his hand stopped midair, prompting me to look at him. “She knows we’re a couple. Bryce told them… but knows nothing else… and she’s not happy with you.”
“I bet,” he said sheepishly.
“You haven’t spoken to them at all?” I found that hard to believe. He was always so close to his parents. “When was the last time you spoke?”
“They called me on my birthday.”
“Why didn’t you mention us?”
“They were away, and I didn’t want to get into it over the phone.” Another excuse. “When Bryce called that day as well, and he told me what has been happening in his life, I decided to share with him that we were back together.”
“Why are you keeping it all a secret, Ryder?”
He twisted a bit to face me. “Before you were put on bedrest, I had planned to take you home on one of our weekend getaways. I thought it would be good for you to get back to your favorite beach in Jersey. We could go into the city to see a play and have dinner. It was then I planned to tell them everything. But as you know, our situation changed, and I knew once I called them there was a lot to say. I was waiting for them to get back from their trip to make that call.” I felt bad for assuming his reluctance to tell them was for negative reasons. “The only reason I told Bryce was because he shared that he met someone.”
“I think that’s fantastic.” He nodded with a small smile. “It was great talking to your mom. I missed her.”
“I do too. They’ll be thrilled to see you after…”
His pause had me adding, “The babies come.”
“Right,” he confirmed. He traced the pucker in my forehead before skimming the back of his bent fingers over my cheek. “Baby, please don’t read into this. They don’t even know about Wes and me going out on our own. Things have been strained between us all, mainly because of Bryce and the way we walked on eggshells with him. It has nothing to do with us.”
“I get it.” The bigger issue was what I still needed to share. “But there’s a problem. She, um… invited us for Thanksgiving.”
“Of course she did,” he said wryly. “We’ll call them in a bit… tell them everything.” I nodded apprehensively. It was doubtful they’d be upset we’d jumped into an engagement, but I had no idea how they would take news I was a surrogate. Especially knowing what their son had dealt with in response to their other son’s tragedy. Picking up on my nerves, he moved over me, spread my legs, and positioned his hips between them.
“Enough talking about my parents.” He slowly slid inside me, stealing my breath… and any argument vanished with each piston of his body into mine.
Sex led to a joint shower, which led to us ordering a ton of takeout due to starvation. Hours later, and finally sated in every way we could be, Ryder and I settling on the couch with his laptop prompted a video chat with his parents. He had sent them a text earlier to be sure they were available. They anxiously answered ten seconds after the call began ringing, both their smiling faces excitedly staring back at us. “Hi, kids!” Michelle shouted into the screen.
“Hi, Mom, Dad.”
“Hi,” I repeated.
“We are so happy to see you two!”
“Mom, you don’t have to yell. Settle down… I have a lot to tell you.” Ryder looked at me, winked, and began telling his parents everything that had gone on since the night he’d run into me in Miami. “Seeing Ree that night felt like a dream,” he admitted, squeezing my knee. “I pushed pretty hard to take her out. She played hard to get, but a few weeks later I learned why.”
He then explained my surrogacy and the reason I decided to do it. They listened intently, nodding along and offering sweet words of praise. “Twins?” Michelle asked in awe.
“Yes… girls.”
“Riana, that’s so very gracious of you.”
“They’re really great people and deserve to have their family.”
“Well, God bless you, dear. How are you feeling?” I ran through my experience with morning sickness, and at hearing it was meat that seemed to be the cure, they both laughed on their end. “Oh dear. That’s quite the irony.”
“It sure is,” I said with a grin.
Ryder then told the tale of our engagement, the helicopter ride, and Bahamas trip. He even explained why he’d proposed after just a few weeks. “I wasn’t going to lose her again. I’d do anything for her.”
Michelle and Richard shared a look, and I wondered if they knew the guilt Ryder carried over moving away when we were together. “And guess what?” He flipped the screen to reveal their granddog sleeping a few feet away. “Meet Kayla.” Her head lifted on command, and she trotted over to lick Ryder’s face. “She loves me too.”
“She’s a beauty,” Richard said, leaning closer to admire our sweet dog.
“You sure gave us a lot to digest,” Michelle said with a reprimanding smirk.
“There’s one more thing you need to know.” He cut his gaze my way before saying, “I left Morton.”
“What? Why?” Richard asked.
Ryder explained that traveling was no longer something he wanted for himself and that he’d decided to start his own firm. During the conversation, when he recounted parting from Doug and how he’d reacted to Ryder resigning, their mouths gaped. There were a few frowns and a lot of cussing from his father. I felt stupid sitting there silently, not really contributing in any way. But it was more important for him to tell it his way, and for me to hold his hand in a sign of support.
It was difficult watching their concerned expressions while Ryder then admitted what Doug was pulling by dragging Ryder’s name through the mud. Although Michelle had been more emotional up until that point, Richard barked, “He can’t do that!”
“He can do anything he wants, Dad,” Ryder countered. “I hired a very good attorney, and if he’s stupid enough to take his lies further, we’ll be ready.”
“I can’t believe all this, Ryder. How could you keep so much from us?” his mother asked, fresh tears in her eyes.
“You had enough going on with Bryce. And I didn’t want to add to your stress.” He wrapped an arm around me and concluded with, “But it doesn’t matter now. He’s on a better path, just as we are. On a happier note, we plan on getting married at Benson Park next fall. It’s been a place Riana always dreamed of for her wedding.”
“Oh, that’s so lovely,” Michelle said behind steepled fingers. “That gazebo is a perfect place for the ceremony.”
“Yes, my mother loved it there.”
“We will help in every way we can. Riana, whatever you need, darling, I’m here.”
“Thank you. I appreciate that.”
“Not at all… and we are so happy for you. Aren’t we, Richard?”
>
Her husband smiled through his nod. “Extremely. Riana, sweetheart. Welcome back. We missed you.”
“I missed you too.” I cut my gaze toward a grinning Ryder. “Your son makes me very happy.” He leaned in and kissed me hard, his parents be damned.
Once he pulled away, his mother said, “We’re sad we can’t be with you for Thanksgiving. If I hadn’t invited Uncle George and his freeloading crew, Dad and I would fly down to you.”
“It’s fine, Mom.”
“Really, it’s not. I hate that you’ll be alone down there.”
“We won’t be alone. Ricky and Cooper, the twins’ dads, are great friends and have invited us,” Ryder said, and it warmed me to hear him admit that. “Cooper’s sister has a big house with a pool and two kids. Kayla can even come along. It’ll be a nice day.”
“Okay, I’m glad. But can you please promise to visit us after the babies are born?”
“We sure will,” I answered for both of us.
“We love you guys, and we’ll talk to you soon,” Ryder tagged on.
“Yes, you will, young man. If you pull this nonsense again, your father and I will be paying you a visit. Do you understand me?”
“Yes, Mom,” Ryder said petulantly before we disconnected the call. He looked at me and sighed. “Glad that’s over with.”
“Feel better?”
“You have no idea.” He nuzzled my neck affectionately when his cell started vibrating on the table. “What did they forget to scold me about now?” But when he lifted his phone and frowned, I leaned closer to see Wes’s name on the screen. “Now what?” Ryder mumbled, tapping the speaker icon and saying, “Hey.”
“Dude, put on Sports Game Plus… quick.”
Ryder grabbed the remote and clicked on the TV to the channel Wes mentioned. On the screen was Ryder’s picture with a headline reading, “Sports Agent Ryder Carter Reportedly Cheated for his Athletes.”
“Motherfucker,” Ryder snarled through clenched teeth. Bile rose as I stared at the image of my fiancé accused of a blatant lie for the sports world to see. “God, I hope my dad’s not watching.”