by Alyse Zaftig
She worked on her current cases, but she still needed to figure out how to talk to her boss again. She hadn’t downright denied the job offer, but she hadn’t accepted either. She hoped that he hadn’t called them already to tell them that she was pregnant and unable to move to Chicago. The DA position was still an option.
Although things between her and Andrei were finally at a manageable point, they still needed to talk about what a baby meant for them. What if she did decide to accept the position? Although Smith was disappointed that she was going to have a family, that didn’t mean she couldn’t do a damn good job, even when she had to take care of a Munchkin. She put a hand on her stomach.
Her computer had a desktop notification that she got an email from him; she was a little afraid to open it. Fear wasn’t a common feeling for Victoria, and it was definitely not one she liked. In the back of her mind, she wondered if he’d ever talk to her again. Some of the staff he only talked to with one word demands. She wasn’t one of them, but maybe he would after she didn’t meet his expectations.
Victoria took a deep breath and opened the email.
It was a simple sentence: “The job is still yours if you want it.” He’d signed it even though most people in the office didn’t bother putting their name at the bottom of emails anymore.
So he hadn’t given up on her completely, which made her want to cry again. She knew it was the hormones, because she wasn’t the crying type. Lately, that was drastically changing. She sent up a small prayer that she wasn’t going to be one of those pregnant mothers who broke down crying while they were interviewing a witness. There was a pretty good chance she’d never be taken seriously as a prosecutor ever again if she did. Her colleagues and opponents would bring it up for the rest of her life if she cried in open court.
As Victoria worked, she realized that the baby would seriously affect what she did. She knew Smith had been right about that when he spoke to her, but it didn’t hit her until then.
Over the course of her career, she had built up a reputation that gave her respect from her colleagues and judges who knew she could do her job well. Even the workers in the DA’s office treated her with dignity because of what she got done and her track record for getting some of the worst criminals off of the streets.
What would those people think of her if she couldn’t do her job because of a sick child or having to go to a parent-teacher conference? Was there even anyone who would be as dedicated as she was to her job?
That’s why the Chicago position still was a possibility. She wanted to be somewhere she could make a difference in the community and make the city a better place for upstanding citizens to live. If she was the DA, she could do even more good with her position than she could ever do as an ADA.
Maybe now that she and Andrei were in a better place, he’d be up for discussing it again. After all, it was his child, too. But it was her body and her life that had to adapt to everything and deal with the repercussions of the decisions she made.
Even if she did accept the position, by the time she moved to Chicago and got settled in, she’d have to consider time for maternity leave. Maternity leave could last for months, and she wasn’t the kind of person who could just sit and stare at a wall all day. Having her ankle keep her down was torture, especially when Andrei wasn’t around to pick her up and carry her around.
Most jobs required that employees work from six months to a year before taking time off. She vaguely remembered some sort of time requirements for the FMLA. How would she deal with that knowing all the work she could be doing while at home? The last thing she ever wanted was for her child to feel like he came second to her law career, but she’d never really thought about how having a family would change her life because she never saw that as her future. She was single and happy until Andrei swept her off of her feet. Even though her time with Andrei had been intense and passionate, everything had happened so fast that there was no time to consider what a future with him would even look like.
Maybe the Chicago job was more out of reach than she expected. Yes, she knew Andrei had two daughters, who she was more nervous to meet than she cared to admit, but she couldn’t put her entire life on hold because of that...could she?
Whether she moved or not, she had to start thinking like a mother and less like the single, professional woman she was so used to and comfortable with. There was the whole need to find childcare, new doctors, and a search for more family-friendly place to raise her baby in. The more she thought about it, the more overwhelming everything seemed. It made her anxious and uneasy, two emotions she wasn’t used to dealing with on a regular basis.
The day passed by fast, and she looked up after hearing a knock on her door. Andrei stood there in his sexy glory, looking like a god with good taste for Italian suits.
“What are you doing here?” she asked.
“I told you I was taking you to lunch.” A smile played on his lips and she fought back the urge to stare at the same mouth that had done some of the most exquisite things to her the night before. More than once. She shivered just thinking about how he had made her feel.
She spotted some of the employees staring at him in the hallway. “Close the door, or people will see you.”
His smile shifted into a smirk. “Are you embarrassed to be seen with me?” He winked at her and obviously didn’t care about her shyness.
Victoria jumped up and went over to close the door herself. “It’s not that,” she said, pressing her back up against the door. “You are not exactly unknown around here. Your family’s law firm has been pretty popular lately. Plus, I think some of them already suspect I have more than just a professional relationship with you, especially if Deedee said anything to any one of them. Love that girl, but she can get chatty if given the time.”
“So? For all they know, I could be here to meet with you about a client.”
She stared up at him, and the warmth in his eyes was evident. Any human being who had a sex drive would know what that look meant. “From the way you’re looking at me, I think you’re making it pretty obvious that you aren’t here on business.”
“I can’t help it. When you look as yummy as you do, I’m going to enjoy it. Any man in his right mind would.” He moved in on her, pressing her up against the door, trapping her between the wood and his hard, muscular body.
“Andrei, I’m at work.”
“The door is closed.” His fingers slid under the hem of her dress. “I can think of at least ten naughty things I could do to you right now.” He slid the skirt part up over her hips.
She could feel the hardness of him pressing up against her leg, and a sigh escaped her. She felt wanton and needy, almost as if it had been longer than hours since the last time together.
“You need to stop,” she whispered. “Anyone could come in and catch us.” The prospect of getting caught just excited her more, if the flush in her cheeks meant anything.
He reached up and turned the lock on our door. “Now that is no chance of that happening.” His finger slipped past her panties and found her opening for she could say anything else.
“Oh, God.” His two fingers slipped into her easily, and her head fell back against the door with a thunk.
“I love how wet and ready you are for me. Makes it so easy to take you.” He moved his fingers in and out of her with ease, working her body in the way only he knew how to do.
“They’ll know what we’re doing.” Although so many excuses filled her head, like the fact that the people outside could probably hear what was going on, she didn’t want him to stop. She clenched harder around him, urging his fingers deeper inside. Whenever he touched her like that, with such confidence, she couldn’t deny him and never wanted to.
“They’ll only know if you make a sound,” he said. “I recommend being very quiet.” He kissed her into silence.
She couldn’t think properly when he kissed her. It was like she forgot how to do anything but respond to him. She was melting insi
de. He kissed her as his tongue found hers, teasing her. He tasted like cinnamon and that only pushed her closer to him.
A finger found her clit and made slow circles that had her panting.
“Andrei,” she moaned.
He shushed her with another kiss. “Careful,” he whispered. “You don’t want your coworkers to find out the things I’m doing to you right now...unless you’re into exhibitionism.”
She bit down on her lip to keep from saying anything else or making anymore sounds. He shimmied her underwear down her legs and lifted her feet to slide them off completely. As he stood, he made sure he kept in contact with her as he bunched them in front of his nose. “You smell so fucking good.” He stuffed them in his jacket pocket.
“What are you doing?”
“I’m saving it for later. It’s going to be a while before I can get you home and have a proper taste, so this will have to keep me satisfied until then.”
“You have me now.”
“For a quick moment only, but I’m going to make up for lost time later.”
She heard his zipper lower before he lifted her up, so she could wrap her legs around him.
“I’ll take the short time with you over not being inside you at all.” He nudged her opening with the tip of his cock and wasted no time spearing through her in one fluid motion.
Victoria bit down on his covered shoulder to keep from crying out. She couldn’t stop a little moan from escaping. She held on tight to him as he moved in and out of her with a rhythm that nearly drove her insane. Her pussy jerked around him, feeling every part of his length.
Although they were both fully clothed except for where they connected, the idea of possibly getting caught and knowing people were on the other side of the door made their lovemaking even more erotic and tantalizing. Her orgasm built up in the pit of her stomach and grew with each thrust Andrei gave. She could feel her wetness, making way for him as he grew thicker inside of her.
Every inch of her body craved him and never wanted him to stop. The growing orgasm became a tangible thing inside of her until it exploded like a firework and spread throughout her body. She crumbles around him as he chained to the inside of her, coming so hard that it broke out another orgasm she didn’t expect.
Colors streaked behind her closed eyes as she gripped him tight, never wanting to let go. When she opened them again, he looked at her satisfied grin.
“I’ll never get tired of doing,” he said. “I’ll never get tired of you.”
She kissed him with all the strength she had left in her, knowing full well the feeling was mutual.
When they left her office, she felt like everyone who looked their way knew what they did. Even though she was a little paranoid, she was just happy that they left without her boss seeing them.
They didn’t go far for lunch. Instead, they ate at a steakhouse Andrei liked that was around the corner from where she worked. He said it was one of his favorites, and she had no intention of arguing with him.
She didn’t even complain when Andrei ordered lunch for both of them, a T-bone steak for him and grilled pesto chicken for her, along with baked potatoes and a side salad.
“That’s a lot of food for lunch,” she said after the waitress left them.
“You know that my beloved child is not going to starve, my love,” he said. “Not while I’m around to ensure that baby grows up strong and healthy.”
Victoria didn’t know how to process everything he said. If it had been any other time, she would have been upset with him taking so many liberties about what she ate, but what kept her silent the most was how he said the word love. Did that mean he loved her? Or was it like when a waitress called you honey?
That was the problem with having the mind of a lawyer. She was used to always over-analyzing things, even the simple ones. He just used the word love. It wasn’t like he actually said he loved her.
She didn’t know how to take it. From the way he said it, Andrei probably didn’t even know the word had slipped from his lips.
A man next to them had ordered raw oysters, and the smell of them made Victoria and queasy. She covered her mouth.
“Oh, God,” she thought! “Please don’t let me puke in this restaurant in front of Andrei.”
When their waiter returned, she asked, “May I have a glass of ginger ale with a lot of ice please? Quickly.”
The woman looked a little confused, but she still hurried off to get a drink.
Andrei looked at her with concern in his eyes. “Are you okay? What’s wrong?”
“I am fine.” She glanced over to the other table with the oysters, and Andrei followed her direction. “Just a little nauseated.”
The ginger ale arrived just in time. She gulped it down like it was the last drink she would ever have. She took deep breaths so she didn’t get sick.
“Can you move us to another table?” Andrei asked. “My girlfriend’s pregnant, and I think the smells around us are getting to her.”
She had never been more grateful to him and she was not moment, and she got an odd thrill at being called his girlfriend. They’d never talked about labels before or what exactly they were to each other. They were just taking it in stride.
“Of course, sir,” the waitress said. She left briefly and came back. “Right this way.”
They moved through the restaurant and followed her. That’s when Victoria noticed a few other patrons staring at them. She couldn’t help but wonder if it was because they were being moved through the restaurant, or if people stared because she and Andrei were an interracial couple. She hoped it was the first, because the second didn’t sit well with her at all.
They had never been on a date before, at least not a public one. New York was a diverse place. Interracial couples weren’t hard to spot, but uneasiness still settled in her chest.
After they sat down in a private booth, the waitress asked, “Is that better, ma’am?”
“Yes, thank you.” She waited until the woman left before she spoke to Andrei again. “Thank you for doing that.”
“Anything for you,” he said.
“So I’m your girlfriend, huh?”
“Did I say that?” His tone jested with her.
“I’m pretty positive that’s what you said.”
“Is that a bad thing?”
“I haven’t decided yet, but I like the sound of it, boyfriend.”
“I like you calling me that, too. Maybe we should try it out more often.” He flashed a grin at her that showed off his white, even teeth.
It sounded a little silly as she said it. After all, they were having a child together. There should’ve been a better time to call someone that less juvenile than boyfriend, more serious than baby daddy, and not as binding as husband. Husband. She wondered what kind husband Andrei would be, and if she even had the ability to be wife material. He might never want to marry again after his acrimonious divorce.
Their meal arrived before she could pick that apart like she did everything else. The food looked amazing, and she hoped nothing made her feel sick again. After sampling her food, she knew that wasn’t going to be a problem. She didn’t realize how hungry she was until she took the first bite, but her stomach gurgled.
Andrei began to eat, too, and it was fun to watch attack his steak like a man on a mission. The way he ate was an erotic event that she could enjoy over and over again without ever getting bored.
Victoria giggled as he devoured another bite. Andrei noticed how she was watching him.
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
“Nothing. I just didn’t think I would enjoy watching you eat as much as I am.”
“I’m glad you’re enjoying yourself,” he said. “But I have a secret to admit?”
“Oh? What’s that?”
“I enjoy eating you a lot more.”
Heat filled her cheeks, and she glanced around to make sure no one else heard them. “After last night, I’m certain that’s no longer a secret.”
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nbsp; He winked at her, and she laughed like a schoolgirl. Whatever Andrei was doing to her, she was starting to love it way more than was probably healthy for her.
She was able to get through half of her meal before nausea hit her again. She wiped her mouth with her napkin before putting it back down.
“Baby, you don’t look well?”
Victoria put her hand over her mouth, stood up, and ran to the bathroom. She barely made it to a stall before she hurled. She wasn’t even far along and already the baby was wreaking havoc on her body.
Andrei was outside of the women’s restroom when she came out and led her back to the table. When she returned, she asked the waitress to wrap her meal up for home.
She thought Andrei looked a little upset. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to spoil lunch.”
“It’s not that. I hate that you’re going through so much. If not for that baby…”
His voice sounded so harsh that she felt the need to defend it. “It isn’t the baby’s fault. We are the ones who didn’t use protection.”
“I know that. The fault is mine though. After two kids, you would think I’d know better.”
Victoria didn’t like the way this conversation was headed. “Know better? Know better than to have sex with me?”
“That’s not what I mean, and you know it. Stop trying to put words in my mouth that aren’t there.”
“I think I have to. Sounds like you think this baby is mistake.”
“Well, we sure as hell didn’t plan it.”
The waitress brought back the check, but Andrei grabbed it before she could.
“Don’t you dare,” he said. “I’m paying for this.”
The waitress scattered away without saying anything, avoiding the attention that was growing between them.
“I can pay for my own lunch, Andrei. I’m a big girl.”
“I know you are, and I have no doubt that you can take care of yourself, but that decision is not yours anymore. Not with my baby inside of you.”
“Stop calling it your baby. It’s my baby to, and it’s my body.”