by Lacey Black
“God, yes. Don’t stop,” I beg.
He pulls out and then thrusts back in, setting a fast pace. My eyes never leave his as he moves within me. Our bodies are both tightly wound and if the way he’s clenching his jaw is any indication, I think he’s already racing towards the finish line. Something about seeing Luke so unhinged and out of control makes my body burn even greater.
My internal muscles start to tighten around his cock as he thrusts deeper and harder into me. His back is now sweaty as I grip his skin, hanging on for dear life. Warm, wet lips descend on mine. My tongue strokes his as he mimics what he’s doing to my body, probing my mouth in rhythm.
I cry out his name as euphoria sweeps through my body, crashing into every nerve ending my body has. He’s right there with me, grunting my name as his release fills me.
“Fuck, being with you is perfect,” he says hoarsely, placing open-mouthed kisses all across my face.
I’m too tired to open my eyes, so I just lie there, reveling in the feel of his kisses and soaking up the warmth of his big body. “It is pretty nice, isn’t it?” I ask, a smile crossing my face.
Luke’s laughter fills the room. “Nice. I like epic or orgasmic.”
“Those are good adjectives, too,” I whisper, wrapping both my arms and legs around him.
“I need to get off you.”
“You need to stay right where you are. Just for a minute.” I feel him relax slightly; not enough to crush me, but enough that lets me know how peaceful he feels.
Luke turns his face so that his nose is buried against my neck and inhales deeply. “You are so fucking perfect.”
I pull back slightly and glance down at him. He’s looking up at me and I swear his eyes are full of love. “No, I’m not.”
“You are so fucking perfect for me,” he answers, stealing my breath with a single sentence.
An insistent knock sounds on the front door. “Shit,” Luke says as he jumps up, pulling himself from my body. He reaches for his jeans and slips them on, careful not to close his junk in the metal slide of the zipper. As he reaches for his shirt, he throws it towards me. “Use that to clean up. I’ll grab a towel after I get rid of whoever is at the door,” he adds as he steps out of the room, bare chested and with the button on his jeans still undone.
I lie there for several moments, listening for any indication as to who is at the front door. The answer is clear as a female voice echoes down the hallway. It’s a voice I haven’t heard in a decade, but one that I’ll never forget, nonetheless: Luke’s mom, Janice.
Jumping up, I use Luke’s shirt to clean away the remnants of our afternoon tryst and quickly throw on my jeans and sweater. Voices rise and fall as I finish dressing. I glance at my reflection in the mirror, praying that it looks less like a woman royally sexed, but am shocked by the image looking back at me. My hair is a knotted mess, my eyes red and puffy from my earlier crying spell, my lips swollen, and my cheeks whisker burned. I look like a hot mess, a woman who was just royally sexed.
Great. Just the impression I wanted to give Janice as I see her again for the first time in ten years.
Their voices are almost heated as I step into the hallway. I left my shoes off so my steps are silent as I approach the living room. “You haven’t been answering your phone! What was I supposed to do?”
“I was busy, Mom. I can’t always just drop what I’m doing and answer your calls.”
“I’m sure you can’t! Not when you’re rolling around in bed with some hussy!”
I gasp, and realize my mistake too late.
Luke and his mom both turn towards me, a very different look crossing their faces. His shows nothing but remorse for me hearing what she said, while his mom’s shows something more like distain at my sudden appearance.
“Mom, you remember Sidney, right?”
“Sidney?” she asks, clearly not comprehending what her son has said.
“Good afternoon, Mrs. Thomas. It’s so nice to see you again,” I say, trying to sound as jovial as possible, and keep the mortification at bay.
“Oh, yes, Sidney. So lovely to see you again, dear. My, I haven’t seen you since your mother and father divorced when his affairs were exposed. You left town with your mother when the scandal broke, right?”
So this is what it feels like to have a dagger shoved in your heart. Pleasant.
“Mom,” Luke says as a warning. “That has nothing to do with Sidney.”
“Right, right,” she says with the wave of her manicured hand. “I was just stopping by to let you know that I ran into an old friend of yours this morning, but I wasn’t expecting to find you…entertaining.”
A deep shade of crimson sweeps up my neck and settles on my cheeks. There’s nothing more embarrassing than being caught by a parent, even if we’re both adults. That’s like seeing your parents coming out of their bedroom in the middle of the day, hair askew and righting their clothes. We all know it happens, but still prefer to remain blissfully unaware as much as possible.
“I’ll give you a call later,” she says as she turns her full attention to her baby boy.
“I have dinner plans, but should be available afterwards,” Luke says, keeping eye contact. His posture screams don’t mess with me on this.
“Fine,” she says as she turns towards the door.
Luke clears his throat before she’s able to cross the threshold. To my utter humiliation, Janice stops, and after a moment’s hesitation, looks over her shoulder at me. “It was nice to see you again, Sidney.”
“You too,” I croak, my throat suddenly desert dry.
When the door closes, I finally turn towards Luke. He’s smiling widely, on the verge of laughing. “That was so embarrassing.”
“I’m sorry she’s such a pain in the ass. I don’t know why she’s like this with me. She’s never hovered over Blake like she does me,” he says as he stalks towards me.
Wrapping my arms around his neck, I say, “You seem to handle her well.”
His lips caress mine. “I’m afraid I’m bordering on rude where she’s concerned anymore. She just gets under my skin, but I don’t let her get away with her shit as easily as I used to. Before, I never wanted to cause more unnecessary drama, but then one day, I realized I was tired of being treated like an infant. It wasn’t helping to just ignore it, so I had to start fighting back.”
“I would have loved to have seen that.” I practically moan as his hands wrap around my rear and pull me tightly against his erection.
“It wasn’t pretty the first time, nor the several after that. Now she’s used to my insubordination. Since I’m an adult, she can’t do too much about it, though I always try to remain respectful.”
“You’re a good man.” His hands slide into the back of my jeans.
“I don’t want to talk about her anymore,” he whispers against my ear as his fingers knead the globes of my ass.
“What do you want to talk about?” I pant.
“I don’t want to talk at all.” He licks a trail of wet fire up the column of my neck to my ear. “Unless it’s the sound of your voice repeating my name over and over again.”
“Your name just happens to be my favorite name to say.” My fingers tangle in his hair and pull as I bring my mouth to his.
“I want it to be the only name you say.”
My heart skips a beat at his words. Does he mean that he wants it to be the only name forever or for the time being? I want to ask exactly what he means, but I’m afraid to learn the answer. Do I want forever with him? We’re having babies together, so we’re pretty much stuck with each other for at least the next eighteen years, but what about after that?
Deep down, I already know the answer.
I want it all.
Chapter Eighteen – Cupcakes
Luke
Admittedly, I’m a little nervous as we pull up to my brother’s house for dinner on Sunday afternoon. My parents aren’t here yet, but I plan
ned it that way. I wanted to share my news with Blake and Carly together before my parents arrive. He pestered the crap out of me on Tuesday when I returned to the office, but I was able to appease him by letting him know everything was fine.
We’re still not sure if we’ll be announcing the babies today or not. A huge part of me wants to tell them both because I’m so damn excited, but the other part doesn’t want to deal with the nagging or look of disapproval on my mom’s face.
Sid decided to go ahead and call her mother and share the news. Since she’s several states away and doesn’t communicate with anyone back here in Vegas any longer, we figure our secret would be safe with her for a little while.
Sidney slides from the passenger seat before I can make it around to help her out. I find myself hovering more than I ever expected in light of finding out she’s carrying twins. She retrieves a container of cupcakes she carefully packed up this morning from the backseat and walks with me towards the house.
She’s glowing as I knock once and wait. Back before Carly was pregnant, and they felt like mating twenty-four seven, I used to knock once and enter. But when I stepped inside and saw my brother’s naked ass front and center on the stairwell, well, that pretty much cured me of that habit real quick.
“Hey,” Carly exclaims as she opens the door, wrapping Sidney in a hug first. “You must be Sidney. I’m so happy you’re here,” Carly adds, taking the container and popping open the lid. “Oh my God, are these chocolate cupcakes? If I wasn’t married already, I’d marry you today, Sidney.”
We both laugh as Carly pulls a cupcake out of the container and starts to eat it. She devours it in two bites as my brother walks down the stairs towards their front door, carrying my curly-haired three-year-old niece, Natalia. “You’re leaving me for another woman?” Blake asks with a smile.
“She brought me cupcakes. Chocolate ones,” she says with a mouthful.
“I brought you chocolate cake last night,” he reminds her with a kiss on the neck. “Nice to see you again, Sid,” Blake says as he places a polite kiss on her cheek.
Closing the door behind us, I follow everyone up the stairs and into the small living room. Blake and Carly’s home is tri-level, and there’s a much bigger family room on the lower level. “It’s so good to see you again, as well. And who is this?” I can hear the warmth in her words as she checks out Nat, who’s reaching for me.
“This sweet angel girl is my niece, Natalia. Nat, can you say hi to Sidney?” I ask the little girl in my arms. She turns her deep green eyes towards Sid, and I can see the moment register on her face where her heart literally melts over those gorgeous green eyes. She smiles widely at Nat, which is why I get a little concerned when I see tears form in her eyes.
Without saying a word, I turn and hand my niece to Blake and grab Sid’s hand. I pull her towards the hallway, just out of earshot. “Are you okay? Why are you crying?”
“It’s nothing,” she whimpers before a few more tears spill from her eyes.
“You’re crying so it’s obviously something.” I wipe away a few of the tears as they leak from her eyes. The scene guts me. Is it too much for her to be around my family? My niece?
“It’s just that…she’s…beautiful. She has those emerald green eyes and…they’re yours.” My gut clenches with realization. “And in that moment, I hoped that our babies have the same color eyes.” Tear. “And your smile.” Sniffle. “And your heart because it’s beautiful, just like that little girl in there.”
My heart literally is about to pound out of my chest. My throat tightens with emotion, and I actually have to blink back my own tears.
I wrap my arms around her body and hold her close. “Well, do you know what I want? I want a girl with your gorgeous aqua eyes, who can stop time when she laughs, and can render me completely speechless with her smile. If she’s anything like you, her heart will be made of the purest gold.”
“And if one of the babies is a boy?” she asks through more sniffles.
“Then he’s going to rotten just like Blake.”
Her laughter fills the hall, and I smile down at her stunning face. “Whether we have two boys, two girls, or one of each, they will be the very best of both of us, angel. I know it.” And because I’m helpless against it, I kiss her lips.
A throat clears behind us. “We’ve got a guest bedroom downstairs if you need a few minutes before the parents get here,” Blake says, his voice laced with laughter. “I’d hate for Mom to walk in and catch you guys a second time.”
And in that moment, I regret that I shared that detail with my brother, because he’s obviously not going to let me forget it. “I hate you,” I throw over my shoulder.
“No you don’t. You love me.”
“Whatever,” I mumble as I turn my full attention back to the woman in my arms. “Are you okay?”
“I’m perfect. What do you say we go tell them our good news before your parents get here?”
My eyes light up. “Yeah?”
Sidney nods her head, and together, we walk into the kitchen.
“Everything okay?” Carly asks, her olive complexion marred with worry.
“Everything’s great. I just get a little emotional sometimes,” Sidney replies, and it’s like a secret code is shared between the two women. Both being pregnant, even at different stages, it’s like they already share a special bond.
“Oh, I understand that. When I was pregnant with Nat, I cried over beer commercials. It hasn’t been as bad this time around, so I’m thinking it’s a boy.”
“I told you I’d give you a son, and I meant it,” Blake chimes in while stuffing a carrot dipped in ranch dressing into his mouth.
Carly’s reply is to roll her eyes. “Even the great Blake Thomas couldn’t predict what the sex of the baby would be.”
“Maybe not, but if it’s another girl,” he starts as he steps behind her and places a kiss on the curve of her neck, “we’ll just try again. And again. And again.”
Carly smiles and starts to turn into his embrace. I can already see where this could quickly go. After all, I’ve witnessed their need to try again on more occasions than I’d like to admit.
“Actually, before you two start to get all freaky and scar me for life, Sid and I have something to share.”
At that, Carly turns her full attention to us. Blake, on the other hand, continues to kiss his wife’s neck. It isn’t until she bats him away that he turns his annoyance our way.
“Well, since you’re cock-blocking and I’m clearly not getting any right now, speak.”
“You know how we went to the doctor’s office on Monday?” I ask my brother and his wife.
“Yes. Wait. Is everything okay?” Carly asks, her brown eyes filling with worry and tears.
“Everything is fine,” Sidney adds, reaching down and grabbing my hand. “Actually, we found out something a little surprising.”
“And exciting,” I add.
They both stare at us, waiting for the news. “We’re having twins,” Sidney finally says, ending the suspense.
“Twins?!” Carly exclaims as she jumps up and down, her swollen belly bumping into Sidney’s still-flat one as she envelopes her in a massive hug. “Oh my gosh, I can’t believe it! Do you have twins in your family?” she asks, pulling back and wrapping her arms around me.
“Not that I know of,” Sidney replies.
“Well, you don’t have any, do you?” Carly asks her husband.
“No twins that I can think of, right?” he asks me.
“Nope. So we’re thinking it must be just a fluke. That or I’m way better at this and managed to impregnate my woman with two babies to your one, which makes me clearly the superior alpha male.”
“What the fuck ever, dude. I’ve done it twice. I think that makes us tied.”
“Fuck ever,” Natalia screams from the family room.
“Jesus Christ, her hearing is amazing,” Blake mumbles. “Last week she
told me to kiss her ass.”
“That’s why we don’t take work calls when we’re holding a toddler,” Carly chastises, barely containing her smile.
A knock sounds on the front door, but before Blake can go open it, I turn to them both. “Not a word yet about the babies. We’re not going to tell anyone else until we’ve hit twelve weeks. You know, just in case,” I say, lowering my voice.
They both nod their head in understanding. Blake heads down the stairs to admit our parents, while Carly turns her full attention to Sidney. They’re whispering with their heads together, undoubtedly talking about the babies or pregnancy. It causes my heart to pound like thunder in my chest at the picture they’re painting before me. I never thought I’d be comfortable with–or want–to bring a woman around my family. I was perfectly content with casual hook-ups when the need arose, but the thought of going back to having a different woman warming my bed every few nights doesn’t hold any appeal. In fact, it makes me a little sick to my stomach.
When did that happen? When did talk about babies not send me running for the door? When did it thrill me to see the woman I’m dating so warmly accepted by my brother and sister-in-law?
When Sidney reentered my life.
When I fell in love.
That’s when.
Chapter Nineteen – Kill Me Now
Sidney
Carly and I are bent over the cupcakes, each of us wolfing down one before Janice and Daniel are fully inside the house. We’re each giggling as we swipe at chocolate remnants on our mouths.
“I’m going to gain fifty pounds with this baby,” Carly mumbles as she crumbles up her wrapper and throws it in the trash under the sink.
“Are you kidding me? You couldn’t gain fifty pounds if you tried. Me, on the other hand, will look like a beached whale this summer. I’ll be a side attraction at the grocery store like Shamu.”