by M. Clarke
“I want to undress you,” I said, out of breath. It was my turn.
After Max helped me up, I kissed the side of his neck while I undid his bow, his vest, his shirt, and helped him out of his tuxedo jacket. I slowly ran my hands across his firm chest, feeling every curve of his tight muscles as his chest rose and fell. Max groaned and shuddered from the warmth of my tongue. As I continued to taste him, I unbuttoned and unzipped his pants and let everything drop to the floor.
Max was hard, big, and ready for me. Down on my knees, I licked every part of his dick, then sucked and stroked the way he liked. “Jenna,” Max hissed and made the pleasured sound I loved to hear. Max started to rub my shoulder, and then threw his head back with his eyes closed. He needed to touch me. When he’d had enough, he yanked me up and kissed me, full of passion, desire, and want.
I couldn’t recall how my bra and all the extra lingerie I had on were off me, but that was what Max did when his hands ran all over my body and he kissed me like there was no tomorrow. He was so smooth and graceful with his hands and his lips that it always came as a surprise when I was completely naked.
After what seemed like an eternity of foreplay and me begging him to be inside of me, he finally entered. The shot of pleasure coursing throughout my body made my head spin. I was lost to his touch and the pleasure he was giving me. There was no sense of time or reality. It was just Max and me. Sometimes Max would look into my eyes and ride me slow. Sometimes, he would rock faster, causing me to expel short, gasping pleasure sounds. Max always made sure my needs were fulfilled, but he exceeded expectations tonight.
Today was by far the longest we’d explored one another. I didn’t know what time it was and I didn’t care. All I knew was that I was beyond exhausted. He wanted to make our wedding date memorable. There was no doubt in my mind that he had done what he had set out to do. I felt desired. I felt wanted. I felt his love in every kiss and every touch.
Chapter 32
Jenna
After we had brunch together with our family and friends, we said our good-byes. Mom and Dad decided to stay a few extra days with my in-laws, and Matthew and Becky drove to Los Angeles airport to catch a plane to take the flight to San Francisco. There was no doubt in my mind that Becky’s parents would adore Matthew.
“Mrs. Knight,” I heard. “Mrs. Knight.”
I looked up at the pilot and realized he was calling me. I was Mrs. Knight. It felt so strange to be called that name, even though I knew that it was my name now. It would take some time to get used to. “Yes?” I smiled.
“Please tell Mr. Knight we can take off now.”
Just as he finished his words, Max entered. He had been checking the back of the plane. “We’re good back here.”
“Put on your seatbelt sir, we’re clear to go.” With that, the pilot closed the door behind him. I could never get used to the idea that I was riding on a private plane.
“You comfortable, babe?” Max asked, making sure my seatbelt was fastened.
“I already did it, Max.”
“Just making sure, babe.” Max kissed my forehead. “If you’re tired, take a nap. And if you’re hungry, let me know. Our lunch is already prepared.”
“Thanks.” Max was so good to me and always catered to my needs. He held my hand as the plane took off. Looking out at the beautiful clouds, I wondered how on Earth I was so lucky to find someone like Max.
After we landed, we got into a car that was heavily tinted. Max had hired a driver for the duration of our stay. The time difference didn’t bother me much since I’d slept most of the time on the plane.
“We going to take a quick detour, then we’ll be on our way to the hotel,” Max informed.
“Why?”
Max kissed the back of my hand he was holding, and grinned widely. “You’ll see.”
What did he have up his sleeve?
When our limo driver pulled over, Max helped me out of the car. We were both dressed in casual wear so I knew we weren’t going any place fancy, but I never would have imagined that we would stop by a bridge.
“What are we doing here?” I asked, observing people around us. Many couples were holding hands. When I turned to Max, I was taken back by the countless locks on the bridge. It was massive. Holy cow! “What is this place?”
“This is where couples come and declare their love forever by writing their names on the lock, then they toss the key into the river.”
Then it dawned on me. Becky had mentioned what they had done in our conversation. “Becky told me about this place.”
Max pulled out something from his back pocket and dangled it in front of me with an irresistible grin, like he was about to do something naughty. The lock was the biggest one I had ever seen. It was bigger than my hand. I was pretty sure that no locks on this bridge could compare to the size of ours. “That’s huge.”
Max chuckled. “Yup, mine is. That’s what you said.”
“Oh my God, Max. I didn’t mean …” I decided to play along. While I caressed his chest and pressed my body on his, I spoke with a sultry tone. “That’s true. Yours is huge. And I want to lick it.” I couldn’t believe I had just said that.
Max chuckled again and his grin told me he liked my comment. “I can show you later, but let’s do this.” Max wrote my name, then his with a permanent pen.
“Where should we lock it?”
“Right here.” Max pointed.
Becky had told me that their lock was at the start of the bridge. I didn’t think we would ever find it because I couldn’t visualize what she meant, so I was surprised that Max had found it. “Did Matthew tell you about this place?”
“He did, but I also knew about it. I had planned to bring my wife here when it was time. And here we are.”
I smiled at Max, knowing I was his first. “Are we going to put ours next to Becky and Matthew’s?”
“That’s the plan.” Max handed the lock to me.
Matthew and Becky’s lock was big—it stood out from the others for sure—but I knew ours was bigger. “Theirs is silver, too.”
“Ours is platinum, babe. Heavy duty. I had it made by a locksmith.”
Why did that not surprise me? “Platinum, Max? Seriously?” I laughed.
“Nobody is going to be able to break it. Let’s put it on together.” After I looped it through, Max helped me press into the hole until we heard the “click” sound. “On the count of three, we toss the key together. This is forever, babe.” Max pressed his lips on mine. “One...two...three.”
Max’s hand that was already cupped behind mine gently pushed forward. The key flew just high enough to plop into the river. I jerked with a scream. Max had slapped my ass. “Come on, Mrs. Knight. Let’s go have some fun.”
Our honeymoon was an amazing experience to remember. Max and I took a lot of pictures to show our family and friends. Though we were gone for two weeks, it seemed like a dream. It went by too fast.
Just like Max said, all of our belongings were set when we got home. Max also paid for them to put everything in it’s place so I didn’t even have to hang anything in my walk-in-closet that looked more like a room. Even the furniture we had agreed to purchase was placed in the correct position: the crib, dresser, the rocking chair, and little baby fixtures.
“The painters are coming by tomorrow. You can ask them to design the nursery however you’d like.” Max slipped his arms around my waist from behind and kissed my cheek. “My parents, Matthew, and Becky are on their way.”
“I can’t wait to see them. I also have a doctor’s appointment next week.”
Max’s hand fell down to my stomach. “You mean we have a doctor’s appointment.” Suddenly, Max jerked away. “Did you feel that?” he asked excitedly, his eyes wide. “I felt our baby move.”
“I did,” I said with exhilaration.
“That was incredible.” Max got down on his knees and placed his hands on my belly. “Come on, baby, move for Daddy.” He leaned in closer and his expression tol
d me he was consumed with joy. Max kissed my stomach, stood up, and gave me a kiss. “Was this the first time?”
“Yes it was. Our baby knows we are home.”
“Our baby is smart.”
The sound of the doorbell broke our conversation. “Let’s go down together.” We started down the stairs. “Should we tell them the sex of our baby?”
“Nah,” I laughed. “Not just yet.”
Max swung the door open. “Jenna!” Becky practically jumped on me. She was really starting to show. Then it was Matthew’s turn. He looked down to my stomach. “You sure ate a lot in Paris.”
We laughed out loud from his teasing comment. “You know how Max is. He loves to feed me. Let’s go to the family room.”
“Matthew already gave me the tour of your house when the movers moved you in. I made sure they placed everything where I thought you would like it,” Becky explained as we sat on the leather sofa. “You have a beautiful home.”
“Thanks, Becky. You shouldn’t have. It’s no wonder everything looked right in place. So, how are you feeling?”
“So far so good. I have a doctor’s appointment every other week. Enough about me. Tell me all about your trip.”
Max and I shared as much as we could. We even told them about the lock, but we didn’t mention that ours was bigger.
“Mom and Dad are coming, right?” Matthew asked.
“They’re on their way,” Max replied, placing his hand on my stomach again.
“They live down the street. You’d think they would get here first,” Matthew chuckled. “What are you doing?”
“We felt our baby kick for the first time today.”
“We did, too.” Matthew grinned, gazing at Becky. “Do you know if you’re having a boy or a girl? We’ll tell you, if you tell us.”
We all laughed and stood up when there was a knock on the door. “Here they are,” Max said. We followed behind.
Becky stopped me. “I don’t know if Max told you, but we’re moving down the street. A house went up for sale. We loved it so much that we put in our offer and they accepted it.”
“Becky. That’s wonderful.” I embraced her tightly. “We can help each other.”
“That was our thoughts exactly. And before I forget, Nicole and Kate want to throw a dual baby shower for us. Is that okay?”
“It’s perfect.”
The door opened, but before Robert and Ellen could see us, I asked Becky a quick question. “How did your parents take it? And what did your sister think of Matthew?”
“My parents adored him, and Rachel, too. They loved Matthew. And Ellen and Robert were beyond excited,” Becky said quickly, smiling. Ellen and Robert had spotted us. I would ask her more questions later.
“Welcome,” I greeted, giving them hugs. “Max had dinner catered. Let’s head toward the family room.”
“Babe, it’s for you.” Max handed me the phone. “It’s your mom.”
I excused myself to our bedroom. “Mom?”
“Jenna. How are you?” Mom’s tone immediately gave me comfort.
“Is everything okay?” I had called my parents the day we got back from Paris, so to get a call from her this soon worried me.
“Everything is fine. Dad and I wanted to say thank you. We received the big statue of the Eiffel tower and the various chocolates you mailed. It was a nice surprise.”
“Max and I wanted to thank you and Dad for coming.”
“You don’t have to thank us.”
“I know, Mom, but we wanted to. I’ll see you in couple of months, right?”
“Yes. Dad will finally retire. We also agreed to take Max’s old place, but only if he let us pay the rent. We can’t stay there for free.”
“I think he paid it off.”
“Regardless, we’re not staying there for free. That is our deal.”
“Okay. I’ll let him know.”
“I can’t wait. I’ll help you with the baby in any way I can. I wasn’t able to be there much for your wedding, but now it will be easier.”
“Don’t worry about it. I didn’t do much either.”
“Well, I’ll let you go. Drink lots of fluids and eat healthy. Do you know the sex of the baby yet?”
Oh God! I wanted to tell her so bad, but Max and I had made a promise to each other. “Not yet, Mom. Our baby is stubborn. The legs were closed. Maybe on the next visit we’ll find out.”
“I’ll call you soon. Love you. Bye.”
“Love you, Mom.”
Chapter 33
2 Months Later
Becky
“I could eat everything off this menu,” I said, feeling hunger pangs.
“Me, too,” Jenna added. Jenna looked like the ideal pregnant woman. You couldn’t tell she was pregnant, except when you saw her stomach. Her face glowed with a flush of pretty pink, and you could tell how happy she was. As for me, my feet, my hands, and my face looked puffy, mostly from fluid retention.
“Well, I’ll be joining you all soon,” Nicole stated, looking at her menu.
There were no movements from the three of us, except for Nicole’s eyes flickering back and forth on the menu. We were waiting for her to clarify her comment, but she offered none.
“What did you say?” Kate asked after a long period of silence.
Nicole dropped her menu on the table. “I’m pregnant.”
“Oh my God. Congratulations,” the three of us squealed.
“When did you find out? When is the baby due? How? I mean, forget the how,” Kate snorted. She was rambling so fast she had no idea what she was asking.
“We haven’t announced it to our families yet. So you’re the first. It’s only been two months. Our baby is due seven months from now, in June.”
“That’s awesome. We can have play dates,” I said.
“Did you have morning sickness?” Jenna asked.
“No. I’m hoping that I won’t get it.” Nicole shrugged her shoulders. “After seeing what you had to go through, I hope it never happens to me.”
Kate crossed her arms on the table and gazed at all of us. “I’m just glad that I won’t be the only one with a child. Now you’ll understand what if feels like to be a parent. I love Kristen and I wouldn’t want anything different, but it can get crazy frustrating at times. But at the same time, there’s a lot of joy and wonderful memories you wouldn’t trade for anything.”
When the waitress came by, we ordered our food and drinks.
“How are you feeling?” Nicole gazed at me. “We’re praying everyday that your baby and you are safe.”
“Thank you. I’m tired and bloated.” I looked at my hands. “But I’m thankful that I’ve been steady. My kidneys are functioning, but not to their full capacity, and my blood pressures have been normal. I’ve been very lucky. I just need to hang in there for another month and a half.” Suddenly, my body flushed with warmth. I took a sip of my water, hoping it would help me cool down.
When the waitress came back with our food, we ate and held small conversations about Jenna’s honeymoon, the baby shower Nicole and Kate were hosting at Jenna’s house, and what items to register for.
“Isn’t this strange?” I asked, looking at my friends. “We used to talk about the guys we were we dating, our jobs, and our sex lives. But now...we’re taking about marriages and having babies.”
“We’re at that age,” Jenna sighed. “And pretty soon, we’ll hang out at our kids’ birthday parties, graduations, and I hate to bring up the morbid topic, but funerals as well.”
“The circle of life,” Nicole added. “It’s never ending.”
“I’m just glad that we have good friends to share all of the happiness, and even the sadness, because the sadness isn’t so bad when you have friends to talk to,” I said, talking another bite of my big, fat, juicy hamburger. It oozed with a satisfying sensation. The warmth that spread so quickly in my body disappeared. Maybe I just needed to eat more, but I wasn’t as hungry as I was with the first bite.
&nb
sp; “It sure isn’t.” Jenna smiled at me, then at Nicole and Kate.
“Let’s make a toast,” I suggested, lifting up my glass of water. “Not the kind you would eat.” We all laughed, recalling Matthew’s words. I laughed lightly and said, “Sorry. I had to say it. Anyway, here’s to Nicole being pregnant, having safe deliveries, and our lifetime friendship.”
With a clink, we toasted. After Jenna placed her glass down, she got up. I immediately knew what she was up to. Not wanting her to pay for the bill, I followed after her. “Jenna. What are you doing? I told you I got this.”
Jenna turned to me and looked surprised. “How do...Becky. No. I’ll get it.”
“It’s too late, Jenna. I already gave the waitress my credit card the second I walked in the door.”
“No you didn’t,” she argued, opening her purse.
“Want to find out?” I challenged with a smirk. “I didn’t bring my purse up here, did I?” My expression faded into a scared one when the room started to spin. Everything around me seemed to move in slow motion. Hot and cold feelings alternated quickly, flashing through my body. The sudden change of temperature hit me fast and hard. My heart was pumping in overdrive, and it got worse when I felt like I was losing my breath.
“Jenna.” I tried to get her attention, but I didn’t know if she heard my desperate call for help. All I could think of at that moment was my baby and Matthew. Oh God. Please don’t let anything bad happen. When I felt myself losing control of my muscles and the day started to turn to night, I knew I was in big trouble.
Jenna
I got worried when Becky’s smile disappeared so quickly. Did I say something to offend her? But I knew that wasn’t it. “Becky, are you okay?”
When she didn’t answer, I thought maybe she was in deep thought at first, but she was showing signs of stress. Her eyes were staring into space and her face suddenly lost color. Becky mouthed a word, but no sound escaped her.
“Becky!” I reached for her just in time and stopped her from collapsing to the floor. My tone caused a lot of attention. Nicole and Kate must have heard me, too. They were on the floor next to us.