In His Corner

by Alexandra Warren

  To no surprise, Sir Kingfield was already absent. But that only made my visit all the better, unable to hold back my smile as I told him, “Lucky you. Still fine as hell with your eye all busted up.”

  His laugh warmed my skin when he replied, “Mothafucka got me good too. But I made him pay.”

  I nodded to agree. “You did. Congratulations.”

  He reached out for my hand, giving it a squeeze as he said, “Thanks, love. You feelin’ better now that it’s all over?”

  I probably should’ve been feeling better now that it was over. And to be honest, I wanted to tell him yes and save this conversation for another time. But I could practically feel Gina’s side eye blazing into my cheek, forcing me to answer truthfully, “Uh… not quite. There’s something I need to talk to you about.” Then I turned to the team to ask, “Can you guys give us a minute?”

  They respected my request with no question - another reason I was glad Sir Kingfield wasn’t around - Gina proudly escorting them from the room as Princeton said, “What’s up, B?”

  The door closing only made everything feel heavier, made every quiet sound louder, made my heart beat faster and my legs feel weaker. And that feeling was only amplified when Princeton stood up to get my attention. “Bella. What you need to talk about?”

  My eyes were at the floor as I pushed out, “I… we… made something. That’s happening right now. In my body.”

  “Bella, what are you talking about?” he asked, my response obviously insufficient.

  So I did my best to make it as plain as possible, this time finding his eyes to tell him, “I’m… with child.”

  “With child? Bella, you’re pregnant?!” he exclaimed with wide eyes that only had me diverting mine again, hoping he knew to take that as a yes. And it seemed like he finally got it once he began pacing the floor with incomplete sentences. “How did this… when did this…”

  “Unprotected sex. Your birthday. Any other questions?”

  The confusion still on his face reminded me of my own, especially once he said, “But you took a Plan B. I saw you take a Plan B. And you said you got your period.”

  “Which turns out wasn’t actually a period. Just some implantation bleeding thanks to what must be super sperm since yes, I definitely took a Plan B and still ended up conceiving a child.”

  The fact that I hadn’t been able to beat out the promising odds displayed on the packaging had me wanting to write a letter of complaint to the manufacturer. But that was an activity for another time, right now all about helping Princeton understand what was going on since he still seemed in disbelief when he stopped to ask, “So you’re really pregnant? With my baby?”

  I nodded to emphasize. “Really pregnant. Really your baby. Well, technically our baby, but you get the point.”

  “This is wild, Bella,” he replied as his pacing started back up.

  I could only stand back and watch, remembering going through the same motions, though mine included a lot more tears and curse words. But now that the information had been sitting with me for weeks, my response had been reduced to, “Tell me about it.”

  “I’m… speechless. In a good way though.”

  “A good way?” I asked more to myself than him since there had been nothing good about my reaction. And he only continued his pacing as he said, “Just when I didn’t think today could get any better…”

  His sentiment had me stopping him in his tracks to ask, “Wait, what? You’re actually happy about this?”

  With my face between his rough hands, he looked down at me wearing a full-blown Kool-Aid smile when he answered, “Fuckin’ ecstatic, B! We’re having a baby!”

  In no time at all, my feet were off the ground as he pulled me into a hug so tight I thought I would burst, my voice breathy as I replied, “And you are way too loud about it.”

  But Princeton was far from fazed by my words, instead focused on other details like, “How long you been keeping this from me?”

  Tears of relief were beginning to form in my eyes as he put me down so I could answer, “I found out while you were away at camp. And I didn’t want to tell you because… well… immeasurable distraction.”

  “So that’s why you’ve been actin’ all crazy,” he said with a chuckle as if he was finally putting two and two together meaning I might’ve ended up being a distraction after all.

  Still, I played it off, rolling my eyes and swiping at the tear that fell because of it when I told him, “I don’t know about crazy, but…”

  “Can I touch it?”

  “Touch what?”

  He looked at me as if I had asked a stupid question when he answered, “The baby, B.”

  “Oh. I mean, you can’t really feel anything yet. I’m still in the... Thanksgiving dinner-bloat phase. But sure, I guess. If you want.”

  You would’ve thought Princeton was a kid who just found out he met the height requirement for a roller coaster the way he lit up with excitement at my approval. And while I knew good and well what was going on inside of my body, somehow having his hands against my stomach made everything really come to life, made it seem… less like a death sentence and more like a beautiful creation.

  Something created out of love.

  I kept that thought to myself as Princeton found my eyes to say, “Knowing you’re with child makes you even sexier, Bella.”

  The laugh I gave in response caused another series of tears to drop as I replied, “Good. Because this little sucker is also making me ridiculously horny.”

  It honestly didn’t seem fair that the feeling that got me into this situation was also the feeling running rampant through my body at all times of day, even more so since Princeton hadn’t been around to fully satisfy my craving. But when he wiped my tear while telling me, “Celebratory fuck it is then,” somehow I knew things would be alright after all.

  &

  Things had gone from new - and frightening - to the norm in a flash, working at Princeton’s house already my favorite pastime now that we had found our groove. While he was in the shower after his morning run, I was sitting on his bed in one of his t-shirts typing out my next piece, glad that he had remembered to keep his dog out this time. But it all felt incredibly comfortable, only made better when he walked out of the bathroom with his towel draped around his waist and beads of water still on his skin.

  I thought I was the only one doing all the ogling, but I quickly found out I wasn’t alone once he said, “Damn, girl. You in these glasses got me ready to enroll back in school.”

  “That’s ridiculous. You already have a career. You don’t need a degree,” I replied with a laugh before continuing on to ask, “But hey, you think you can read over this for me? Give me some feedback?”

  “Feedback must translate to dick in another language cause…” he trailed, gnawing on his lip as he bent down to land a kiss on my neck that made me giggle before I put a hand to his chest to stop him.

  “Princeton, I’m serious! I just… I wanna make sure I’m getting the tone right.”

  Writing for myself, on my own terms, was panning out to mostly be a gift. Though there were times like now when I desperately wished I had someone to read over what I had and validate that I was on track. And while I could usually rely on Gina to give me at least some minor critiques, the fact that it was the middle of the work week made her unavailable which meant I had to find another set of eyes.

  If he had read as much of my work as he claimed, I was sure he’d be able to recognize if I was meeting the standard. And if nothing else, he at least saw the urgency in my request, slipping on a pair of basketball shorts as he replied, “It must be serious if you’re asking me for help.”

  “It is,” I told him with pleading eyes to match.

  He finally joined me on the bed, maneuvering into the space behind me before pulling me back to sit between his legs. And while I was busy savoring the smell of his freshly-showered scent, Princeton had his hands on my belly - his favorite pastime - as he read what
I had so far over my shoulder. Though he didn’t get very far without acknowledging, “Yo, ya boy soundin’ hella friendly in some of these answers. Like he was interested in sharing a little more than just his comeback kid story.”

  I leaned forward so that I could peek back over my shoulder and tease, “Is that a little jealousy I detect?”

  Instead of answering right away with words, he slipped a hand into my panties, doing a tease of his own with his thick fingers against my clit before he finally replied, “I get to do this, so nah. Nothing to be jealous about.”

  He was absolutely right, my eyes rolling to the back of my head in response to his ever-so-perfect rhythm, my head falling against his shoulder as I told him, “Nobody wants my pregnant ass anyway.”

  “I do. In fact, I want you right now,” he growled right against my ear before tugging it between his teeth, eliciting a moan that turned into more of a giggle since I knew I was way too sore from the night before - and the night before that - to really take it there no matter how good it felt to have his finger now inside of me.

  But my soreness wasn’t the only thing on that list, the personal deadline I was on enough for me to half-moan, half-whine, “Princeton, I’m trying to workkk.”

  “So am I, B. Consider me a taste tester,” he said, pulling his fingers from my panties and shoving them into his mouth, licking them like they were covered in icing when they were really only covered in me.

  “That’s supposed to be my job when you finish this whole boxing thing, remember?” I asked with a grin, secretly hoping that day would come sooner than later.

  Not that I wanted to take Princeton away from his passion or that I didn’t enjoy watching him live out his dream. I just wanted him… safe. And alert. And without the pain that every boxer before him, his father included, carried long after their last bout in the ring. I wanted him to be able to enjoy his life without a forever-lingering headache, wanted his memory sharp years down the road. And even sooner than that, I wanted his reflexes intact so he could catch our toddler from running off.

  A toddler.

  My God.

  As always, my mind was far into the future while Princeton stayed in the present, landing a kiss against my collarbone as he insisted, “Your job later. My job now. Now open up so I can get some more.”

  You would’ve thought he had a remote control for my thighs the way they immediately began to part, his continued kisses against my collarbone only making me sink deeper into his body which gave him better access as he once again found his place in my panties. And in no time at all, the circles he created on my clit with his fingertip were back in perfect rhythm, my eyes slipping closed as he whispered, “When I first met you, I thought you were so damn innocent. You know, one of the good girls.”

  “One of the good girls? Are you implying that I’m a bad one now?” I asked, my eyes still closed as I pulled my lip between my teeth to catch my moan.

  He gave me the gentlest kiss on the cheek before hooking a finger inside of me and answering, “Look how wide open you got me, Bella. Is that even a question?”

  The steady cadence of his finger didn’t allow me to answer, especially once he added a second that practically had me riding his hand. But he didn’t let it last forever, pulling his fingers out so he could do another “taste test”.

  My chest was heaving from just that little bit of action as I finally replied, “Well look at how wide open you have me. I’m the one who you almost just made cum with your damn hand. And I’m the one with a stomach full of human.”

  “Could have a stomach full of something else if you’d quit playin’,” he said with an arrogant laugh before giving me another one of those sweet cheek kisses as a tease.

  I rolled my eyes, telling him, “One, that’s a myth. Anatomy doesn’t really work like that. Two, I really, really need to get this write-up done so I can send it off. But I promise we can play later.”

  Even if I wasn’t recovered enough for a full-blown freak session, there were plenty of other ways we could have some fun and satisfy each other in the process. In fact, I was already dreaming up ideas when Princeton said, “Actually, we can’t play later. I gotta get to the gym here in a minute.”

  He was already climbing from behind me by the time I sat up to ask, “Get to the gym? I thought you couldn’t train again for thirty days.”

  I wasn’t sure if it was the sight of him putting on a shirt or his response, but I felt annoyed as hell after he explained, “That’s only if I would’ve gotten knocked out. I just took a little hit, so I’m good to go now that my cut has healed.”

  “Barely,” I muttered with another roll of my eyes.

  But my attitude only earned me a stiff, “Bella… don’t start that shit.”

  “Well excuse me for getting used to having my baby daddy around as company again,” I whined as I climbed off the bed to join him.

  I suppose it was my whining that made Princeton pull me into a tight embrace, looking down at me to ask, “So now I’m baby daddy, huh? That’s how you doin’ it?”

  I yanked away so that I could give an exaggerated rub of my belly when I replied, “No, that’s how you did it. Congratulations.”

  The laugh he let out made me smile as he put a hand to his chest to respond with a little sarcasm of his own. “Huge honor. I’m touched.”

  “I can’t stand you,” I told him with a matching laugh.

  One that he only added to when he said, “Back at you, B. Why? Cause I prefer you laying, on your back.”

  “And you say I’m corny...” I muttered, closing my laptop so that I could carry it down to the kitchen; my second favorite place in Princeton’s house to work. And after getting his gym stuff together, he met me there, grabbing his protein shake from the fridge as he asked, “You gonna be here when I get back?”

  “I don’t know. Maybe. Or I might find some pants so I can take your bitch on a walk.”

  He laughed again as he said, “Well if you do, be careful. She’ll drag you if you let her.”

  I thought I was whispering to myself when I replied, “Just like a true bitch to wanna drag somebody…”

  But it was clear Princeton had heard me, stopping by the stool I was sitting on and grabbing me by the chin to say, “You’re a trip, you know that?”

  “So I’ve been told,” I replied, catching the kiss he delivered against my lips before slipping a set of keys into my hand.

  When I only gave a confused expression in response, he explained, “So you can lock up if you choose to leave. Or take my bitch on a walk.”

  Of course I was genuinely flattered by yet another positive step in our relationship. But I still couldn’t help offering up some of that sarcasm he had given me when I gushed, “Wow. Keys to your place. Now I’m touched.”

  He only shook his head with a grin, sneaking another kiss before he said, “Bye, beautiful.”

  “Bye, ugly. Have a good day getting your ass kicked,” I called after him, catching the laugh he gave just as the door shut behind him.

  After his departure, I just sat there grinning from ear-to-ear, trying to figure out what I had done to deserve such a blessing, what I had done to be in such a good place professionally and personally. But instead of questioning things, I decided to pay it forward by making good on that walk with the dog I knew was named Lucy though I would never refer to her as such.

  The second I grabbed the leash hanging nearby, she started barking and bouncing in excitement, her tail going crazy since she obviously knew what the leash meant. And while I was sure she could jump over the gate Princeton had her behind if she wanted to, I still made it a point to tease her with it, getting a kick out of the way she chased it with her eyes when I tried to hide it from her.

  I was just getting ready to let her out when I heard an unfamiliar ring behind me, the buzz that accompanied it enough to draw my attention. And once I saw it was from Princeton’s phone that he had left behind, I felt a little bad telling the dog, “Sorry, Rosa Ba
rks. Maybe next time. Daddy forgot the phone he needs just as much as any of us. Except for you. Because you don’t have hands.”

  She groaned as if she was legitimately annoyed by my jokes, barking what I assumed was a complaint that I met with, “No, Nicole Ari Barker. You can’t come with me.”

  But it was her little cries and whines in response that got me right in my swollen, especially-hormonal chest, making me feel worse for planning to leave her behind. And while I couldn’t believe I was saying it, I unlocked the gate as I told her, “Fine. But I’m putting you in a seatbelt.”

  Princeton

  I was buzzing as I made my way into the gym, glad to be back for the first time in weeks. I honestly hadn’t even realized just how much of my day was usually spent here until I couldn’t be here at all thanks to a lucky hit, though those weeks outside of the gym had given me the wonderful opportunity of being able to spend more time with Bella. And not only spend more time with her, but really get to know her beyond her writing and text messages, get a good glimpse into just how silly and sarcastic she was, and of course, explore her body in ways a lot more personal than just a hit-and-quit now that she was carrying my child.

  She still didn’t think she was showing much, but I saw and was fascinated with every change. I took great pride in rubbing on the special serum that she claimed would prevent stretch marks and making the late night food runs on the nights she stayed at my place. In fact, I was sure I would be a step slower in the gym from all the extra snacks I had been consuming because of her cravings. But that was a small price to pay for the woman I adored. And while I shouldn’t have been surprised by her pushback when it came to my return to the gym, I still couldn’t let that deter me from what I knew it would take to stay on top.

  Truthfully, I already felt behind.