by C. M. Steele
~~~~
A week later, Charlotte woke up from a dream, panting and smiling. “What’s going on? Are you okay?” I asked, reaching to my side to hit the light switch for the lamp.
“I had the strangest and sweetest dream. I had to be about three in this dream. I’m on a sandy beach playing with my buckets. I go to lift it up and there’s a crab inside. I howl and a large man with kind eyes scoops me up from the ground and says, ‘It’s okay, sweetheart. Daddy will always protect you.”
I rubbed her back, trying to soothe her. I didn’t know if it was her imagination going wild or if this was a real memory.
“I want the box,” she said, scrambling to get off the bed. I stopped her.
“It’s two in the morning, Charlotte.”
“I know. You can go back to sleep. I’ll get it and look at it. I have to see what’s inside.” She was frantic about it, so I relented.
“Don’t get up. I’ll bring it in here,” I grumbled, running hands through my hair, trying to shake the sleep off of me. I got the box and brought it back to the room. With only the side lamp we wouldn’t be able to see a thing. Hitting the light switch on the wall with my elbow, the whole room illuminated. She scrunched her eyes, adjusting them to the brightness. I stood there with the box in hand, staring at my wife and thinking she had to be the most beautiful woman in the world. Her belly grew enormously, and it rested between her slender bent legs.
“What’s wrong?” she asked.
“Nothing, you’re just perfect. So radiantly perfect.” She tilted her bashfully before turning on that mega-watt smile for me.
“Thank you, Ian.”
I set the box on the bed in front of her, then sat on the bed beside her. Stealing a kiss and another, I asked, “Well sweetheart, are you going to open it?”
She opened the flaps and inside were all her childhood things. Several stuffed animals, clothes, toys. Lastly, she pulled out a photo album. “First Five Years,” the cover read. It was pink with bows, ribbons, and dolls on the cover.
We opened it to the first page which listed everything about the birth along with her baby picture. In exquisite, feminine handwriting, it described the joy of her parents, Eric and Gloria.
Each page had been filled to the brim with notes, photos capturing Charlotte’s life with the two people who loved her most. Now she had me to fill that spot along with our son.
We were at the photos after her third birthday and that’s when I caught a glimpse of something amazing. In the corner of a bunch of pictures was one with her in her dad’s arms. The caption reading: Daddy is my superhero. On the ground sat her turned-over bucket and a little crab. Our eyes met in fascinating surprise. She closed the book, tossing it to the side. Wiping the tears away, I asked, “It’s too much to look at?”
“No, it’s the end. That’s the last written page. After this, they unwillingly left me.”
“We’ll make those memories with our little one. Then we’ll be able to share this with them. Letting them meet their grandparents through their love for you.”
“Thank you, Ian. What would I do without you?” she asked, pulling the album to her chest. I kissed her head softly. Holding her until she fell asleep on me. I set the box on the floor and the album on the nightstand before turning the lights off and cradling my family in my arms. I couldn’t imagine my life without her.
Epilogue
Ian
I laid on the little hospital chaise next to the bed with our baby in my arms. Charlotte had just given birth to our son, Matthew. This morning had been the most insane of my life. When her water broke, I nearly passed out. Luckily, I manned up and carried her to the car. The drive to the hospital couldn’t come at a more fucked up time, the peak of morning rush hour. I called the police and they helped us get to the hospital. She barely made it through the hospital doors before I was on the floor between her legs catching my son.
No, I had no intention of trying out for the Ravens, but that had been a crucial catch for sure. The team did their work and got them both taken care of, but I couldn’t shake the damn panic in me that something else would go wrong.
“Ian,” Charlotte whispered, tilting her head toward us.
“How are you feeling, sweetheart?” I asked, reaching out with one hand to take hers.
“Worn-out, but at least the labor was brief,” she joked, smiling at me with tired eyes.
I vehemently shook my head at the reminder that still had my heart racing. “Tell me about it. That shit happened too fast. We need to stay close to the hospital next time. There’s a hotel next door. As soon as you start feeling crampy, we’re booking a room.”
“It may not always be that way,” she contested, but it was a losing battle for her. No way in hell would that happen again.
“Listen, woman, you can prove me otherwise, but we’re not doing that shit again.” She rolled her eyes at me and twisted her lips, but I was unmoving on the issue.
“You know Matthew can feel your tension,” Charlotte added, directing her attention to my little man.
“Good, his ass needs to learn quickly. Ten he can whisper to the next one to pump the brakes.” I looked down at him and kissed his forehead. I may have gotten a scare of a lifetime, but it was worth it.
“You need to pump the brakes because I’m not letting you anywhere near my girly bits for a long time.”
“We’ll see about that,” I scoffed, giving her a smirk. As soon as those six weeks were up, she’d be ready for me and then some.
“Whatever, it’s time for me to try feeding him.” I stood and handed her our heavy bowling ball baby. No wonder he practically fell out. At eleven and a half pounds the kid couldn’t fight gravity. I helped her situate the sleepy baby. He wasted no time latching onto my favorite toy.
“When you’re done, I’m going to lay him in his little cradle thing and we can both nap,” I told her, kissing her softly and brushing her hair away from her face.
“I love you, Ian.”
“I loved you first, sweetheart.”
“Whatever.” I bent down and stole a kiss.
Charlotte
Three years later…
My faux-parents were in prison for the next ten plus years after several schemes were uncovered due to Eden’s brilliance. Ian’s wonderful parents took little Matthew for the week while we went on a trip for our third anniversary.
And now we were back where it all started. The rain was coming down as I pressed my hand on the gray stones that darkened as the water cascaded over them.
“Sweetheart, we need to get back. It’s coming down hard,” Ian whispered in my ear, slipping his hands under my flowy dress. I felt the cool breeze caress my bare ass. “You’re not wearing panties?”
“Well, I didn’t want to leave another pair here.”
“Do you mean to tell me you’ve been walking around all day with your ass on display for every other fuckhead?” he snarled, pressing his hard cock against my ass cheeks. I reached between us, stroking his length through his pants.
“Maybe, maybe not.” I didn’t mind playing with fire. A stinging hand came across my ass and it burned so perfectly.
“You’re mine, Charlotte. You always have been. You don’t show men what belongs to me. Do you understand?” he grunted, nipping my ear before moving to my pulse. I whimpered and moaned, unable to concentrate on anything other than his mouth and hands roaming over my skin. I shivered and pressed my ass to his bulge, rocking my hips. He bit my shoulder, stilling my movements for just a moment. “Do you understand?”
“Yes,” I sighed. My lips parted, and eyes closed, yearning for him. He spun me around quickly. My eyes darting to his. The energy and desire had never left. Even after three years, I lusted after my husband. “Ian, please.”
“Please what, sweetheart?” he challenged while he unbuttoned his jeans, sliding them down.
“Take me, Ian,” I begged, reaching between us and pulling his cock from his boxers, stroking it from base to
tip. He grunted and growled, slamming his mouth on mine. Our tongues wrapped around each other, and I had the urge to wrap mine somewhere else. Ending our kiss, I sunk down onto my knees, stroking his cock before sucking the tip into my mouth.
“Take me, sweetheart,” he moaned, tilting his head to look at me. I gazed up, showing my man what he does to me. With a grunt, he pulled me off his thick, long cock. He pinned me to the wall, thrusting deep inside me. We both released a deep sigh of relief and joy. He pumped to the rhythm of the rain hitting the stones, his hands gripping my ass as he fucked me. I tightened my legs around his waist and clenched my pussy. The more he made animalistic sounds as he pummeled my core, the wetter and closer I got to coming apart.
“Fuck me, own me, Ian,” I cried out, pulsing inside, coming on his cock.
He slammed into me a few more times before coming deep inside me. “Maybe we made another rainy-day baby.”
“No, we did that during the last storm. Happy anniversary. Ian,” I revealed. His jaw dropped for a moment, before his smile spread across his handsome face. He whispered his love over and over as he peppered kisses on my jaw. Tickling me with his scruffy face, I giggled losing my hold around his waist. He set me down on my feet, so I didn’t fall. “Surprise,” I added belatedly.
“Damn, I really do love rainy days,” he whispered, kissing me once again.
THE END
More from C.M. Steele
Caught: In a Case: Book One in the Caught Series
Caught Off Guard: Book Two in the Caught Series
Caught In A Lie: Book Three in the Caught Series
Caught Crossing the Line: Book Four in the Caught Series
Caught Breaking the Law: Book Five in the Caught Series
Caught Red Handed: Book Six in the Caught Series
Loving My Neighbor
Taking The Bait (Nothing But Trouble Book 1)
Wolfe's Den (Wolfe Creek Series Book 1)
Beta: Her Alpha (Wolfe Creek Series Book 2)
Raging Kane (Wolfe Creek Series Book 3)
Written in History (Wolfe Creek Series Book 4)
Bound: A Lamian Wars Novel (The Lamian Wars Book 1)
Reveal (The Lamian Wars Book 2)
Release (The Lamian Wars Book 3) *Coming February 2018
All Hallows' Eve
His Christmas Rose (The Kane Family Book 1)
Her Christmas Surprise (The Kane Family Book 2)
His Candy Kane (The Kane Family Book 3)
Christmas in July (The Kane Family Book 4)
The Kanes: The Complete Series (The Kane Family)
Falling for the Boss (Falling Series Book 1)
Falling for the Enemy (Falling Series Book 2)
Keeping Blossom
Keep in Mind
Built for Me (The Middleton Hotels Series Book 1)
Built to Last (The Middleton Hotels Book 2)
Built Strong (The Middleton Hotels Series Book 3)
Built Over Time (The Middleton Hotels Series Book 4)
Built Overnight (The Middleton Hotels Series Book 5)
No Choice (The James Family Book 1)
No Way Out (The James Family Book 2)
No More Waiting (The James Family Book 3)
Say Uncle (Say Something Book 1)
Say Please (Say Something Book 2)
Whatever It Takes (The Cline Brothers of Colorado Book 1)
Taking Whatever He Wants (The Cline Brothers of Colorado Book 2)
Down South (Southern Hospitality Book 1)
Gone South (Southern Hospitality Book 2)
Claiming Red (The O'Connell Family Book 1)
Burning For Claire (The O'Connell Family Book 2)
Claiming Abby (The O'Connell Family Book 3)
Reminding Red: A Valentine's Day Short Story (The O'Connell Family Book 4)
Conquering Alexandria
Wanting It All: Michael and Sarah
Chasing His Sunshine: Ryan and Stacy
Lassoing His Cowgirl
Ben's Resolve