by Lexi Post
Bea shook her head and used her best parenting tone. “Gerry, there will be no talk like that. This celebration is one we’ve been waiting for, for a long time.”
Grandma Beatrice interjected. “Yeah. Some of us longer than others.”
People chuckled, but then Tony caught everyone’s attention with his soft-spoken voice. “So, Bea, what are the gifts you brought us here for?”
Zach came around her chair and sat on the arm.
Bea looked into his eyes as he took her hand. Every time she thought about it, she choked up, and he knew it.
He answered for her. “It’s only one gift that we all have to share.”
Gerry groaned and Charlie hit him.
Bea smirked. “Oh no, you’ll like sharing this. Grandma, Mom, it’s so amazing, I can’t believe it.” She paused, letting her gaze connect with every expectant face. No one seemed to breathe. “As you all know, the Rappaccini women have given birth to girls for over a century.”
Grandma nodded. Mr. and Mrs. Woodman took in the new information.
Zach spoke. “We went to the doctor’s today.”
Bea waited a moment then burst with her news. “I’m going to have a boy!”
The silence lasted but a second.
Gerry swore, half in awe. “Holy shit, I’m going to have a grandson.”
Charlie piped in, “I can teach him how to fix cars.”
Andy turned to Susan. “He’s going to need to know construction. I can help him build a tree fort.”
Bea lost track of the conversation as everyone spoke at once. Zach put his arm around her. “I think my parents are a bit overwhelmed, but I can tell my father is going to demand his grandpa time.”
She took a peek at Nathan to see him more animated than she’d ever seen him as he spoke to Mathew about teaching her son how to carve. She moved Zach’s hand to her stomach. “He’s going to be spoiled rotten. We better make sure he has lots of siblings.”
Zach winked. “I can help you with that.”
The noise in the room grew until Bea noticed yelling and it wasn’t pleasant.
“Gerry’s a perfectly good name!”
“Huh, that has no finesse to it. I think Mathew sounds more impressive.”
Grandma Beatrice had to add her two cents. “They may want to name the baby after Nathan here.”
Bea tapped Zach’s leg. “You better tell them before Gerry decks someone.”
Zach stood and whistled again. The room went silent. “I think you should know we have already decided on a name.”
Susan couldn’t hide her surprise. “You have? You can’t name him after a flower, you know.”
Bea put her hand over her eyes at her mother’s remark while others chuckled. The Woodmans looked lost, and Tony tried to explain quietly to her mom why the flowers were no longer needed.
Zach continued. “We have decided to name our son after the one man who made his existence possible. Josh, if you don’t mind. We would like to name our son after you.”
Josh’s face turned bright red, as did his neck, but he stood and took the two steps that brought him to Zach. “I’d be honored.”
The two men hugged and Bea couldn’t keep back the tears any longer. As the room erupted into cheers, she found herself in her soon-to-be husband’s arms. She never would have believed she could have a husband, never mind a son. Only her grandmother and mother could understand how unbelievable it all was. Only them and the man in her arms.
Zach pulled back and kissed her. She could feel his love from her lips to her toes.
She couldn’t wait to tell her son their story. He would be a Woodman, but one day when he was old enough, she would tell him what it had been like to be a Rappaccini.
About Lexi Post
Lexi Post spent years in higher education taking and teaching courses about classical literature. From the Medieval work “The Pearl” to the 20th century American epic The Grapes of Wrath, from War and Peace to the Bhagavad Gita, she's read, studied, and taught great classic literature.
But Lexi's first love is romance novels. In an effort to marry her two first loves, she started writing erotic romance inspired by the classics and found she loved it. Lexi feels there is no end to the romantic inspiration she can find in great classic literature.
Lexi lives with her husband and cat in the Caribbean where gorgeous sunsets, warm weather, and driving on the left are the norm.
Lexi welcomes comments from readers. You can find her website and email addresses on her author bio page at www.ellorascave.com.
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Also by Lexi Post
Masque
Ellora’s Cave Publishing
www.ellorascave.com
Passion’s Poison
ISBN 9781419947254
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Passion’s Poison Copyright © 2013 Lexi Post
Edited by Grace Bradley
Cover design by Fiona Jayde
Cover photography by Mayovskyy Andrew/shutterstock.com
Electronic book publication August 2013
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Table of Contents
Blurb
Title Page
Acknowledgments
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Epilogue
About Lexi Post
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