Maintenance Required: A small town romance (The Cortell Brothers Book 1)

by Giulia Lagomarsino

  He tried to pull back, but I sucked him harder, taking every last drop from him. When I finally released him, he yanked me up off the floor and pulled me against his body.

  “I’m so sorry, Kat. I lost control.”

  I pulled back and grinned. “That’s what I wanted. So? How was it?”

  He smirked at me and spun me around, lifting me up onto his desk. “Fucking amazing. And as long as I have you in here, I think I’ll test out your theory of office fucking.”

  Eric

  I whistled as I made my way downstairs the next morning. Last night was amazing. Kat had been right about the piercing, but that didn’t mean that I would ever get a piercing like that again. Once was enough, just like the tattoo. My brothers were right, I liked what Kat did for me. She opened me up to new possibilities. She took this rigid man and made him live, even if he was kicking and screaming along the way. When I thought back on my life without her, I wasn’t sure what the hell I had been doing. It was like everything before her was mechanical. I was living life like a machine. Now my life was full of color.

  “So, I take it all went well last night,” Joe grinned.

  I clapped him on the shoulder with a grin. “You know how you have these amazing mornings where the sun is brighter and the grass is greener and life is filled with possibilities?”

  He looked outside and then back at me. “It’s overcast and the grass if fucking dead.”

  I grinned wide at him. “And it doesn’t even matter. This is life, my friend. It’s what you make of it. So, where you see dead grass, I see spring just around the corner. Where you see clouds, I see the possibility of rain for spring, to bring everything back to life.”

  He stared at me for a moment. “What the fuck is wrong with you?”

  “Nothing. That’s the thing, Kat makes me see things I never saw before.”

  “She gave you an orgasm,” he deadpanned.

  “It’s so much more than that. She breathed new life into this house the moment she stepped through that door. Everything is amazing because of her.”

  He stood slowly and took a step back. “Okay, where is my brother?”

  “Right here, man. You know, I’m even missing that crazy language you and Andrew speak. Isn’t that weird? Something that used to piss me off is something I want to hear.”

  “No,” he said, chuckling slightly as he waved his finger at me. “I’m not falling for that shit. Do you know how long it took me to train myself not to speak that way?”

  “Yeah, like six months.”

  “Exactly. I’ve gotten used to speaking this new way now and I’m not falling for your lines.”

  “What lines? Come on, throw out a fire or basic. It’ll be fun.”

  “No,” he shook his head. “Because in two months when you change your mind, I’m the one that has to deal with you getting all pissed again.”

  “Don’t you see?” I said, rushing over to him. “I’m not going to get pissed. Life is amazing! And as weird as you sound when I can’t understand you, it’s who you are. Embrace it!”

  His eyes narrowed and then his fist flew at my face. I didn’t even have time to move out of the way. His fist was like a lead ball to the face. I dropped to the floor instantly. Since when did he learn to hit? He leaned over me, glaring down at me.

  “Now, you listen here. I don’t know what the hell you’ve done with my brother, but you return him to me by tonight, or I’ll fucking punch you again. Understood?”

  I opened my mouth to speak, but he held up his hand.

  “Nope, you don’t get to talk anymore. If you thought me talking was weird, this shit you’ve got going on is out of this world. Fix it. I don’t like this version of you.”

  “Optimistic?”

  “This isn’t optimistic. This is sadistic.”

  “Why is Eric lying on the floor?” Kat asked as she walked into the kitchen.

  “He was spouting weird shit about sunshine and grass, so I knocked him on his ass.”

  “Oh,” Kat said, stepping over me to get to the coffee pot. “That makes sense.”

  I slowly sat up and rubbed my jaw. “You’re okay with this?” I asked, getting to my feet.

  She looked over at me and shrugged. “Were you talking about that stuff?”

  “I was pointing out what a beautiful day it is. I was saying that we should embrace life. I told him he could talk weird again.”

  She nodded. “Yeah, he did the right thing.”

  “What?” I asked incredulously.

  She walked around the counter and placed her hand on my face. “Baby, I love that you’re doing all this new stuff, but I happened to like stuffy Eric too. You don’t need to change everything about you.” She took a sip of her coffee and headed for the stairs. “And I like that I can understand Joe now.”

  I was so confused. Wasn’t this what they wanted, for me to loosen up? “I just don’t get it. I thought everyone would be happy that I was loosening up.”

  Joe cleared his throat. “Let me solve this one for you. Man, your bae is all like cancel because she’s totes on fleek and you’re basic. Sorry not sorry, but let’s spill the tea here for a minute. The struggle is real. You’re all salty and she’s thirsty. Goals AF, man. You need to Netflix and chill before you lose your bae.”

  I stared at him. “Did you just cram as much millennial shit into that little speech to piss me off?”

  “Totes.”

  I nodded slowly. “You’re right. That was…”

  “Glad that I changed the way I speak?”

  “Totes.”

  He punched me in the arm and laughed. “Maybe you’re not so salty anymore.”

  He walked out the door and I rushed over, yelling at him. “This doesn’t mean you should start talking like that again!” He waved over his shoulder. “It was a moment of insanity.”

  “Sure it was!”

  “I’m serious. Let’s go back to speaking like regular people!”

  “Alright, Hunty!”

  He got in his truck and pulled away. I slowly closed the door and rested my head against the door. “What have I done?”

  Katherine

  I took a deep breath and ran my hand over my belly. It had grown so much over the past month. I felt like I was close to popping already and I still had a month to go. My back was killing me and my ankles were constantly swollen. I hated wearing the scrubs at the hospital, but I had no choice, so when I was home, I always wore dresses. They were just more comfortable.

  “Hey,” Eric said, coming up behind me and wrapping his arms around me. His hands settled on my stomach and his lips immediately went to my neck, kissing right below my ear. I moaned slightly, not because I was turned on, but because he was there, I could lean back against him. He chuckled in my ear, knowing exactly what I was doing.

  “I need a back rub.”

  “Yeah?” His hands moved slowly to my arms, running up to my shoulders. He slowly pulled the straps of my dress down my arms, the fabric stretching as he pulled it tight across my chest in his attempt to take off my dress.

  “What are you doing?”

  “You wanted a back massage.”

  He moved the straps slowly down my arms, giving a gentle tug when the front of the dress got caught on my breasts. His tongue licked at my neck and then his lips latched on, kissing at the base of my neck. I tilted my head to the side to allow him better access. His hands slid from my arms back to my belly, sliding under the dress that was now resting on my large stomach. He shoved the dress over my bump, letting it fall to the ground.

  “Go lay on the bed on your side,” he ordered.

  I stepped out of the dress and walked to the bed, trying to look sexy as I waddled over there. I knew I failed, but when I turned to look at Eric, his eyes were burning with desire as he stared at me. He had this way of making me feel like a goddess even when I felt like a whale. It was empowering and gave me the confidence to get on that damn bed, even if I had to shuffle awkwardly. His eyes neve
r left my body, taking in every inch of me, making me feel completely naked.

  I watched as he stalked over to the bed and knelt down, slowly rolling me to my side. My eyes slid shut when I felt his wet tongue trail down my spine, stopping just above my underwear. His hand rested heavy on my hip, giving me gentle squeezes as he kissed his way back up to my neck. Then his fingers started gently massaging my back, hitting all the aching places, but now I had an ache between my legs that I couldn’t ignore, and the more he touched me, the harder it was to talk my body down.

  “You’re so sexy,” he murmured against my skin.

  “I don’t feel sexy.”

  I felt the tip of his nose running along my spine, sending tingles everywhere in my body.

  “There’s nothing sexier than you. It wouldn’t matter if you were pregnant or not. I want you either way.”

  His fingers continued to dig into my back, taking away all the aches and pains, but his tongue never left my skin. After about fifteen minutes, his hand slid down to my hip and under my panties. His fingers moved down to my clit, brushing lightly over the sensitive nerves. I opened my legs, making room for his large hand. I was soaking wet from him touching me so much, my body just barely hanging on as he stroked me.

  Then I felt his cock pressing against my ass. He slowly thrust forward as his fingers slowly swirled around my clit. With every stroke of his fingers, he thrust against my ass, a little harder each time. My breathing kicked into high gear as my orgasm built. I wanted him so bad, but I was powerless to even speak at the moment. Every time his cock pushed against my ass, my body started shaking even harder, until I was squeezing my thighs together from the massive orgasm that shook me. His fingers pressed against me, pushing my orgasm higher. I could feel his rapid breaths against my neck as he continued to grind against me.

  “Eric,” I breathed out harshly. “I need you.”

  My whole body was shaking as he pulled me toward him, kissing me hard on the lips. I got so lost in his kiss that when he pulled away, I felt a cold chill pass over my body. He dragged my underwear down my legs, getting a look at my soaking pussy. His eyes darkened, making me feel both wanted and vulnerable at the same time.

  He stood up, dragging his t-shirt slowly up his muscular frame and pulling it over his head, tossing it to the ground. Then his fingers moved to his jeans and slowly lowered the zipper. I couldn’t stop staring, my eyes never moving from the massive erection pushing forward. When he pulled his jeans down and his erection sprang free, I almost rolled over to grab him, but he stopped me with just one look.

  He climbed back on the bed behind me and nestled right up against me until his cock was wedging itself right between my ass cheeks. His fingers moved to my bra, unhooking it and pulling it off me to toss on the ground. My nipples pebbled, pushing out into the open air, just waiting for him to touch. I didn’t have to wait long. His fingers pulled at my nipples, twisting them lightly as he pushed his cock through my wetness. I groaned, widening my legs for him.

  “Keep them shut. I like dragging my cock through your pussy juices.”

  I let my leg fall back down and laid there as he used my body, getting off on touching me. He hadn’t even pushed inside me yet, but he was already breathing hard. With every thrust, his hands caressed my body. His tongue licked and sucked at my ear, driving me insane. I felt like I was on the verge of falling off the cliff again.

  “Eric, I need you inside me,” I pleaded.

  “Be patient, Kat. I’ll give you what you need.”

  I groaned in frustration, but he just chuckled in my ear. My heart pounded wildly as my body started to shake again. It didn’t even take another minute before I was quivering from his touch and creaming all over his cock.

  “That’s it, Kat. Give me more,” he whispered. He made everything sound so sexy. He made me need more of him when I thought my body was ready to fall asleep. I didn’t think there would ever be a time when I didn’t want this man.

  His cock nudged at my entrance as he shifted behind me. He lifted my leg, nudging his leg between mine. Then he was pushing inside me, his hand gripping my thigh so hard he would leave a bruise.

  “Fuck, I’ll never get tired of you, Kat.”

  “I hope not.” I grabbed behind me for his hair, running my fingers through the strands as he fucked me in long, slow strokes. He didn’t fuck me hard like I thought he would. He just took his time, each thrust pushing me a little higher. I could feel my cum slipping down my legs and pooling beneath me on the sheets. I would be ashamed of how wet I was, but this man just brought out my sexual appetite.

  “I’m gonna come,” he whispered, his voice shaky and tight. His fingers slid to my pussy again, rubbing circles around my clit as his thrusts turned faster and jerky. I felt him jerk hard inside me just as my pussy clamped down from my third earth-shattering orgasm. His fingers stilled on me as he rested his head against my back. I could feel the sweat on his skin sticking to me. When he caught his breath, he slid in even closer to me, his cock slipping out of me as he softened. He stayed nestled up against me as we both started to drift off to sleep. His hot breath fanned across my skin as he held me tight. I knew in that moment that nothing could tear me away from this man. I could picture myself with him for the rest of my life, staying right here in this bed forever.

  Eric

  Kat had been off for two days now. I could tell that something was bothering her, but she didn’t say a word. She would feel her stomach and her eyes would squint, but she never said anything. But the more she tried to play it off like nothing was wrong, the more I worried about her.

  “Kat, tell me what’s wrong.”

  She turned to me, a hint of fear in her eyes. “I can’t feel the baby move.”

  My heart stopped in my chest as I took in her words. My eyes flicked to her stomach and it took a good twenty seconds for my brain to kick online and my heart to start working again. I swallowed hard and gave a slight nod.

  “Okay, let’s call the doctor and see what she says.”

  She nodded and took a deep breath. I pulled out my phone and called the doctor’s office. A nurse came on the phone and after I explained what was going on, she gave me a list of instructions to follow.

  “You need to drink something with caffeine and lay down for a half hour. We need to count the movements that you feel in that half hour.”

  She didn’t say anything. She just laid down on the couch as I went to grab her a coke. She drank it as fast as she could and we sat there, just waiting for something to happen. Her eyes kept darting to mine, panic and fear replacing the usually calm woman.

  “Are you feeling anything, Kat?”

  She shook her head slowly, tears filling her eyes. We waited another ten minutes, but when nothing happened, I decided that we were going to the hospital, no matter what the nurse said.

  “Come on. Let’s go to the hospital. We’ll have you checked out.”

  I took her hand and pulled her up from the couch, not able to look at her. I was terrified. What if something was wrong? I couldn’t stand the thought of something happening to our child. I had grown to love this baby more than anything.

  “What if…”

  I stopped and raised my eyes to look at her. I saw the same questions in her eyes, but I had nothing to say that would be helpful.

  “Let’s just get to the hospital.”

  Joe came tromping down the stairs and I could already tell there was a joke on the tip of his tongue. I shot him a death glare and he immediately stopped in his tracks, watching as Kat grabbed her stuff and headed for the door.

  “What’s going on?” he asked quietly.

  “She can’t feel the baby move. We’re headed to the hospital.”

  He was quiet for a minute, but as I turned to leave, he grabbed my arm. “I’m sure everything’s fine. But call me if you need me.”

  I nodded and headed for the door, placing my hand on Kat’s back as we walked out the door and down the steps. It was quiet the
whole way to the hospital. Neither of us knew what to say. I slid my hand across the console and gripped her hand in mine. I didn’t know what the hell was happening, but it felt like something was shifting, and I was terrified that we weren’t going to survive it.

  We were taken back immediately to get checked out. Kat was given a gown by the nurse, and then we waited for her doctor to come in. I was a ball of nerves, my whole body shaking as we waited in the room. Kat just stared at the wall, her hands on her stomach as if she was trying to protect our baby from something. I couldn’t take my eyes off her baby bump, afraid that if I looked away, the bump would disappear.

  The door opened and the doctor came in with a smile on her face. “Hey, Katherine. The nurse said that you aren’t feeling the baby move?”

  “No. I noticed it yesterday, but I thought it was just one of those things. But then I didn’t feel her moving today either and I got worried. Eric called the nurse and she said to try drinking some caffeine. We waited for a half hour, but…”

  The doctor smiled at her and pulled a cart over with the ultrasound machine. “Well, babies like to give us scares. How about we check on that little peanut and see what’s going on before we jump to any conclusions.”

  I breathed a little easier at the doctor’s easy demeanor. It felt like a weight was lifted from my chest by her smile. Kat seemed reassured by that also. The doctor squirted the gel on her stomach and brought the wand to her belly, moving it around to find the heartbeat.

  I stared at the screen, tears coming to my eyes when I saw our baby on the machine. She was there, so perfect and tiny, but there was no heartbeat. I could feel my heart racing and with every second that passed, Kat squeezed my hand tighter. The more time that passed, the more it became clear that we weren’t going to find the heartbeat. I heard Kat sniffle and felt tears slip down my cheeks. I prayed hard as the doctor continued to look for the heartbeat. I prayed that my baby wasn’t being taken away from us, but it was hopeless.