It was only a few hours later that she went, but between the time she hung up the telephone and the time he opened his front door, she couldn’t stop herself from feeling happier and growing more excited as the prospect of seeing him grew closer.
He welcomed her with a huge hug the moment he opened the door and saw her, practically carrying her into his home with his arms wrapped around her. He buried his face in her neck and in her hair, and she heard him breathing her in deeply.
Lucas let her go and they walked together to the sofa where they sat down side by side and finally looked at each other in peaceful solitude, ready to talk about one of the most significant changes in their lives.
He grinned at her and reached for her hand, holding it in his. “I know this might sound strange to you, but I just can’t stop thinking about the baby. It’s the only thing on my mind, and it’s so important to me.”
She looked at him with wide eyes and shook her head. “You know, that is something I never would have thought I’d hear you say. I just… thought you were so set on your bachelor life. I mean… after our night together you were so distant. You didn’t call me, you didn’t contact me at all, and I was so sure you were done with me. I was so sure that you had gotten what you wanted and just… thrown me out like trash on the curb.”
It was difficult for her to confess her innermost feelings and fears, but she knew she had to bring them out in the open and discuss them with him if they had any chance of moving forward into a friendship or any kind of relationship where they would be raising a child together.
His mouth fell open a little and he looked surprised at her. “No! Oh god no… that wasn’t it at all! I’m so sorry that you thought that, or that anything I did made you think that. I am so sorry for keeping such a distance from you. I didn’t want to.
In fact, when I came back home the day you left and I found your note, the first thing I wanted to do was call you and have you come back over here to stay with me again. I wanted you back here that night… every night, actually. I even kept the pillow you slept on for a while because it smelled like your perfume.” He laughed nervously and it was her turn then to stare at him in disbelief.
“You… you wanted me back here? Then why didn’t you talk to me at all? Why didn’t you text or call, or… something? Anything? You just left me… alone. Totally alone, and I thought you didn’t want anything to do with me at all.” Her r heart was almost overflowing with emotion and it was threatening to make her weep again; something she discovered that she was doing a lot more of during her pregnancy.
He frowned and looked down in shame for a moment before raising his eyes to meet hers again. “I feel awful that you thought that. That wasn’t it at all. See, I thought that it would be best while we were working on the case. The media is horrible with me, and if they thought for a second that I was seeing my attorney in an intimate or romantic way, they would be all over it, and the court case would be tainted with articles and rumors and flat out lies about what was happening ‘behind chamber doors’ if you get my drift.” He rolled his eyes and sighed.
“They’re cruel, really, so much of the time. Always invasive in my life as if everything about my life is their right to publish for public consumption. I have almost no privacy, and I knew we needed to focus on the court case. I knew that you didn’t need the added stress of the wild dogs of the media chasing you around twenty four hours a day, trying to get to you and get a story about what was going on with us.
I did think that after the court case, when it was all settled and you proved that I was innocent, I would try to see you, because it wouldn’t matter if we were an item then; the court case would be done, and the rest could just be romantic media fodder, and I get that all the time anyway. It’s one of the reasons that Hollywood likes to call me the Bad Boy.” There was some blush to his cheeks as he spoke to her.
She had never considered that it could be anything other than the fact that he just didn’t want her. It had never once crossed her mind that there could be another reason; any other reason, especially a totally legitimate reason as to his deafening silence and absence.
Alexis frowned slightly. There was a little more to it than what he was admitting to her. “What about all the newspaper and magazine covers that showed you going out on dates with so many other women after the night we spent together? You kind of went girl crazy after that!” She wasn’t speaking in an accusatory way, but she was definitely anxious to know about his sudden dating surge.
Lucas shook his head. “All of that, every one of those girls, was just to throw the media off the scent of us. That was me protecting you. See, they wouldn’t bother you if they thought that I was busy out dating other women, and they wouldn’t even think that you might have been over here for any other reason than to go over my court case.
I had to do something; there are reporters and photographers waiting in not so secret hiding places all up and down my street every day, just waiting for a story to develop, and you staying the night here was really taking a chance. I don’t know if you noticed it, but all those girls I dated, I just went out with each one once. I didn’t want to see any of them more than that, because I didn’t want to encourage them, and I didn’t want the papers or you to think that I was serious about any of them.”
She was amazed that everything he was saying made perfect sense to her, and that all of it explained everything that she had seen or wondered about. All of her fears and worries had been unfounded, and it gave her both a sense of sadness at not having had any faith in him, as well as a sense of relief that he hadn’t actually wanted anyone else.
“I’m so glad to hear all of that, and to understand it. I was so sure that you didn’t want anything to do with me again.” She said quietly, looking into his sky blue eyes. He smiled at her and reached up to her cheek, cupping his hand around it.
“I don’t want anyone in my arms or my bed, or especially my heart, except you… well, except for you and now our little one.” He grinned, and she saw a light of excitement in his eyes that she had never seen before.
He was excited about the baby that they were going to have together, and that made her heart nearly leap from her chest with joy and bliss. He leaned forward then, his eyes on hers until he neared her, and he closed them slowly then and pressed his lips to hers, kissing her softly, taking his time as he moved his mouth over hers, tasting her and feeling her connect with him.
She was sure that they were never going to be intimate in any way again; not even a kiss, and yet there she was, being wrapped up in his strong embrace, being pulled toward him, being kissed by him as if she was the only woman in the world and her lips might be the only thing keeping him alive. Heat began to rise in her from the depths of her belly and it wasn’t long before a soft moan escaped from her. It fueled the desire in him, and as their mouths moved together, making them breathless and desirous of one another, he whispered in between kisses,
“Come with me. Come to my bed with me again. I need you… god; I’ve missed you so much. Please…” he lifted his mouth from hers and looked into her eyes, and she knew that there was nothing in the world that she wanted more than to feel him against her body, in her body, in her heart and in her soul.
“Yes…” she whispered with a growing smile, “Oh yes, please.”
Lucas took her by the hand and helped her carefully up the stairs to his bedroom where he slowly peeled off every article of clothing that she was wearing, almost as if he was unwrapping a precious gift, and when they were both bared, he pulled her into his bed with him, wrapping himself around her in the sheets, holding her close as they caught one another on fire, touching her, tasting her, teasing her, and making her need him more than she ever knew she could need a man.
He pleased her with his tongue, making her come for him as he kissed her hungrily, taunting her and fulfilling her all at once, and when she had reached an orgasm that way, moving her body against his mouth until she was breathless with ecstasy, then he brought h
imself up above her and rested himself in between her thighs, slowly pushing his erection into her, inch by thick inch until she was filled with all of him, and they moved together in an erotic dance of love, of passion, and of happiness.
Their lovemaking lasted a long while before he could not hold himself back any longer and he filled her with an explosion of his own pleasure, and she found herself climaxing again just from the feel of it. They held one another close and as he lay down beside her, he took her in his arms and spoke softly to her.
“Alexis, it’s so important for me to be part of this baby’s life.” He slid his hand down to her lower abdomen and covered it, running his hand over it gently. “I want to be there for you, and for this baby in every way; all through the pregnancy, all through the small learning years, all through the rough teenage years, and even beyond that. This is a new family that we have made together… you and me and this little one here. I don’t want to miss any of it, ever.” He took a deep breath and kissed her forehead, holding his lips there a long while as her heart felt like it was going to expand beyond her body. Then he lowered his mouth to hers and kissed her lips tenderly and slowly.
“I want this baby and this family with you,” he said, sliding his hand down just a little lower until his fingers found her core and he began to rub them against her gently, rhythmically, making her catch her breath until she began to moan softly and moved her body against his fingers. “I want this baby with you, and after this one, I want more with you. Will you give me that?” he asked, kissing her cheek and then moving to kiss her mouth as his fingers slid over her faster and faster, making her gasp with need again.
“Give me that…” he repeated in a heated whisper. “Please…” he breathed against her full lips.
She closed her eyes and let herself fall completely into him. Her orgasm came at her hard and lasted a long moment, making her body stiffen and she held to him tightly, calling out his name. “Lucas!” she bared managed to breathe.
“Please…” he repeated, just as her orgasm began to recede, and she opened her eyes again and looked at him, just as he positioned himself between her thighs again.
“Yes… Lucas, I will give you that.” She smiled widely at him and he pushed himself inside of her, gazing into her eyes as he did it.
“I love you, Alexis…” he whispered, and she felt her heart stop right in mid beat. It was at that very moment that she knew just how much she loved him as well.
“I love you, too, Lucas.” she replied, smiling and almost laughing with joy, but her laughter was stolen away by red hot fires of passion that began to consume them as they made love again, and all through the night until the early morning light touched them, finding them in each other’s arms, where they both wanted to stay.
***
The trial date came, and Lucas and Alexis had not spent barely any time apart between the night they had found each other in one another’s arms once more, and the moment they walked into the courtroom together. They put on a polite front before everyone in the courtroom and the media; they wanted to keep their relationship a secret from the press until a short while after the case was resolved. They were both careful to focus instead on every facet of the case. They both stopped to speak to the media on their way into the courtroom, both of them proclaiming Lucas’ innocence so adamantly that the massive ocean of social media followers who had been hash tagging constantly about the innocence or guilt of Lucas were largely swayed by his adamant declaration.
As court began, the internet and media from around the world seemed to catch on fire and detonate with opinions, rumors, and suppositions. Even Anderson Nolan was present in the courtroom, sitting directly behind the defense table, and Alexis realized that it didn’t intimidate her at all, in fact, she was pleased to discover, it gave her a renewed sense of challenge, and made her want to do better than her best on the case that day. She was going to show Anderson Nolan just how talented an attorney she really was.
The judge entered the courtroom and everyone rose from their seats, and then were all seated again. The prosecution made its opening statements and then proceeded to call forth as witnesses the police who had received the original tips and warrant to get into Lucas Ryan’s house. They talked about how they had gone in and found him passed out in his office, with drugs all around him on the desk and drugs in his pockets when he was searched. They talked about how they had put him into the squad car with the intention of taking him to the hospital until he woke up en route and they took him instead to jail.
Evidence was shown in the form of photographs of the drugs on Lucas’ desk and on his person. There were photographs of him passed out in the office on his desk, and there were photographs of him being booked looking like he was coming down off of a terrible high while hung over from far too much alcohol.
The prosecution rested and Alexis called Larry to the stand and had him testify to everything he had done from planting the drugs to kidnapping her. He gave an honest and straightforward testimony. He looked petrified at the thought of prison ahead of him.
Next she called Wade up to the stand and ran him through several of the same questions about planting the drugs on Lucas’ desk and in his pockets, about how they knew that Lucas had never done drugs before, about how both he and Larry had spiked the drink that Lucas had to make him pass out, and how they had positioned him on the desk to look like he had gone unconscious there on his own.
Wade admitted to everything, talking in depth about every detail of it, and she realized that he was under the impression that the more information he gave, the easier it might be for him when he was prosecuted. She didn’t bother to stop him or slow him down as he gushed out the entire story, and perhaps even a little more than anyone in the courtroom might have needed to know. He confessed to all of the fraud and drug activity as well as the kidnapping, and then she let him go off of the stand. She shot a quick glance then over to Anderson Nolan to see if he was getting all of the excellent work that she was doing, and she saw that he wasn’t missing a moment of it.
Her last witness before Lucas was Warren. At first Warren didn’t want to talk at all, but as she questioned him, she dug deep and he began to argue with her about specific facts until at last he admitted to everything. He looked straight at Lucas, sitting there at the defense table, and he told the court how he had hated Lucas since high school, how he had followed him for years to get his revenge, how he had become his manager with every intent to bring him down, how he had waited until Lucas’ career had reached a pinnacle height, and then had hired the drug dealers to pull of the stunt of a lifetime in planting the drugs, spiking Lucas’ drink, and framing him for possession and use, all to bring him down from his lofty heights of success.
He seemed to become more and more maniacal as he spoke, as if he was finally getting a chance to say all that he had wanted to say and more for years, but was never able to utter. The entirety of the courtroom watched him in horror as he explained all of the details of his work, and how his intentions were to get Lucas into prison for life or longer, and then disappear with all of Lucas’ assets and wealth. He seemed overwhelmed with pride at his plan, and even more so that it had nearly come to fruition.
He was so proud that he even added his devious plot in forcing Anderson Nolan to let him employ Alexis as Lucas’ attorney, simply for the reason that he knew she would fail at it, and Lucas would go to jail. By the time Alexis was finished questioning him, the prosecution had no questions for him, and the bailiff had to physically remove him from the stand; he was laughing like a lunatic, vowing to Lucas that he was going to wind up dead in prison. As a credit to his acting ability, Lucas never blinked or budged during Warren’s entire testimony and emotional meltdown; all the while keeping his cool. He would tell Alexis later that it had been a struggle for him, listening to such evil intent directed at him by someone he had cared for and trusted so deeply with nearly every personal aspect of his life, but that was for no one but Alexis, after th
e fact.
After the three big testimonies, it almost seemed pointless to have Lucas get up on the stand, but Alexis put him there, and his testimony proved rock solid and totally congruent with Warren’s testimony. It was so water tight that when he left the stand, the prosecution asked to drop the case entirely and to keep the two drug dealers in custody, as well as the drug boss who had never entered the courtroom that day, and Warren Paul, so that they could all be charged with their myriad of crimes. The judge allowed it and closed the case, and all of the charges against Lucas Ryan were dropped.
It seemed that the moment that release happened, the whole world knew about it. It hit the media before Lucas and Alexis left the courtroom with Anderson Nolan right behind them. The three of them stopped to talk to the massive congregation of reporters waiting outside of the courthouse, and when they had given statements and answered a barrage of questions, Lucas capped it all off with a strong message to everyone never to do drugs or to become involved with people who do drugs.
He and Alexis left, and went to his house to celebrate their victory in peace and happiness. Abby called her sister to congratulate her on her win, and to hear all of the details, and after a lengthy conversation with her, Alexis hung up and both she and Lucas turned their phones off and lost themselves in each other’s arms.
***
Two days after the trial, Alexis was back in the office again, walking on clouds on top of clouds, she was so utterly beyond blissful. Everyone at the office congratulated her on her success, and she wasn’t surprised when her secretary came to tell her that Anderson Nolan wanted her to go upstairs for a meeting.
She entered his office feeling much more confident than she had the last time she had been there, and she sat across from him at his desk, knowing that she had done her best, and that her best was far more than good enough.
“Miss Harper,” he began with a grin, “I want to congratulate you on your wonderful success. You took one of the most difficult and highest profile cases that this firm has ever seen, and you won it. I have to tell you, there was a long while there at the beginning when I wasn’t sure that you were going to be able to pull it off. I thought that we might lose you, and I’ll be honest with you; I didn’t want to see you go.
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