December: A Calendar Gals series novella

by Gallie, DL

  Branson immediately races around the island and over to me. He starts hitting me on the back to dislodge the stuck snow pea but to no avail. Apart from hurting me, his hits are not doing anything to remove this damn pea stuck in my throat. Suddenly, he wraps his arms around me from behind. I stop focusing on the choking and focus on the feeling of being in his arms. The warmth emanating from his body into mine. His breath on my neck.

  With one final squeeze/pull, the snow pea dislodges and I spit it onto the counter. Lifting my hand to my throat, I breathe a sigh of relief and then Branson spins me around to face him. He grips my cheeks between his palms; my eyes flip up to his. “Are you okay, Kase? Is the baby okay?”

  My eyes are locked on his; they are full of worry and fright. My breathing becomes labored and it’s not from the choking. I’m mesmerized by Branson’s eyes—they are almost golden in this light—I could lose myself staring into them. Everything around me fades away; it reminds me of the first time that I saw Kody. Shit, Kody, thinking of him snaps me back to reality.

  “Kase, are you okay?” Branson questions me again.

  Stepping back from him, I nod my head and swallow. Words are eluding me right now. Blinking rapidly, I try to calm the feelings that are building within at the moment.

  “Kasey!” Branson shouts.

  My eyes snap back to his, “What?” I snap back.

  “Are you okay?”

  “I…I think so. I’m going to go lie down. Thanks for the peas,” I say, before I race down the hall to my room. Closing the door, I spin around and lean back against the wood. What was that just then? I ask myself, lifting my hand to my mouth, I cover it and gasp. Sliding down the door, I rest my head back and rub my belly. “Fuck,” I mumble.

  Closing my eyes, an image of Kody flashes before me but it morphs into Branson. I feel guilty for the feelings I had a few moments ago, and now seeing him before me again, the shame and remorse I feel skyrockets. Shaking my head, I whisper, “No, no, no,” over and over. Then it hits me, I don’t have feelings for him, I am just grateful he prevented me from choking to death on a snow pea. Yeah, it was feelings of gratefulness. Not lust. Not want or desire. It was thankfulness for saving my life.

  Standing up, I walk over to the bed, pull the comforter back, and lie down. Rolling to my side, I get a whiff of Branson’s aftershave from the pillow next to me, and those feelings from before come crashing back to me like a freight train coming down a mountain. It becomes abundantly clear to me…I’m falling in love with my dead fiancé’s brother.

  Chapter Six

  Sleep eludes me for hours. My mind keeps playing over and over the feeling of being in Branson’s arms. The fact I was choking to death is neither here nor there in my memories, my focus is on the warm, fuzzy, sexy feelings I felt. At one point I drift off to sleep, only to wake up sometime later with my hand in my undies, pleasuring myself. Branson’s name slips from my lips as my body tenses and my self-induced orgasm detonates.

  Before the sun rises, I climb out of bed, shower, and head into the office; may as well get a start on my day.

  There’s a knock on my door and I look up to see Chelle standing there. “Hey,” I say, as she walks in and sits in the chair across from me. “How are you?”

  “Tired, and you?” she says, as she leans back and stares at me.

  “Getting fat,” I reply and we both laugh. “What are you doing here so early?”

  “Early,” she questions, looking at her watch. “It’s 10:15 a.m.”

  “What? Shit, times flies when you’re having fun.”

  “What time did you get in?” she queries me again; her face laced with worry, but she tries to hide it with that sad fake smile people have been giving me.

  “Early enough that the sun was still sleeping.”

  She stares at me. “Are you okay? You know you can talk to me, right? Just ‘cause I’m working from home since returning from maternity leave doesn’t mean I’m not here for you.”

  Nodding my head, I reply, “Yeah, I know. Just couldn’t sleep.” My mind flits to what happened when I awoke at stupid o’clock this morning…and then I start to think about my developing feelings for Branson. “Actually, can I ask you a question? It’s kinda personal but pregnancy personal.”

  “Ask away,” she says, leaning forward to listen to what I have to ask, her face serious.

  “This is, umm, ahh, weird but, did you go through a phase of constantly being, umm, ahh, horny?” I whisper the last word.

  Chelle bursts out laughing. “Oh my God, yes. My poor husband didn’t know what hit him. Pregnancy makes you hormonally crazy.” I laugh at this, as it's so very true. “Every time he looked at me I wanted to jump his bones. Never ever thought I’d hear him say, ‘Honey, please, no more sex.’ Never.” Her face pales when she realizes where this conversation is now going. “Ohh, Kase,” she says when she realizes why I’m asking. The concern on her face causes the waterworks to start. Chelle jumps up and steps around my desk, she leans on the edge. I lower my head to her lap and cry. I let it all out. I cry because I’m horny. I cry because Kody is gone. I cry over my confusion regarding Branson. I cry for everything…damn pregnancy hormones. She runs her fingers through my hair, soothing me and not saying anything. Because really, what can she say? Nothing will bring Kody back and I’m not into chicks, so she can’t help with my horniness.

  A knock at my door has my head pop up and peer around Chelle, it’s Stacey, holding Chelle’s lil’ munchkin, Susan. “Everything all right?” she says, as she walks into my office and kicks the door closed behind her.

  “Yep, just another pregnancy hormonal breakdown.”

  She eyes me suspiciously. “Well, come hold this lil’ one. It will definitely put a smile on your dial.”

  Standing up, I walk toward her and take wee lil’ Susan into my arms. As you do when you hold a baby, I put on that annoying baby voice. “Hi there, baby girl. You sure are cute.” She reaches up her chubby little hand and squeezes my chin, it reminds me of Kody and my mind drifts off to a time when Kody and I were blissfully happy…

  …I’m sitting in the living room watching a rerun of Fresh Prince when Kody arrives home from work. He and Branson are in the process of opening a wine bar. Aptly named, Bin 501. Looking up at him, I smile. “Hey, babe, how was your day?”

  “Busy. Productive. Shattering. Tell me again why I’m doing this?”

  “Because you are awesome.” He places his keys on the table by the door, kicks off his shoes, and jumps on the couch next to me. Turning to him I grin. “Hi!” I huskily say.

  He leans toward me, grips my chin, and places a gentle kiss on my lips. Pulling back, he’s still holding my chin and softly whispers, “I love you with all my heart and soul.”

  Lifting myself up, I straddle his legs, push him back into the cushion, and slam my lips against his. Our kiss quickly deepens, and before I can register what’s happening, we are both naked and I’m sinking myself down on him. We rock back and forth. Just as we are both about to tumble over the orgasmic edge, he grips my cheeks and with our eyes locked on one another, we both explode, screaming each other’s names as we come. He holds my chin lovingly and runs his finger across my bottom lip as we both come down from our euphoric high…

  “Earth to Kasey, hello.” The sound of Stacey’s voice snaps me back to reality.

  Shaking my head, I smile. “Huh?”

  “Where did you go just now? You are grinning like a loon.”

  “Just thinking about Kody,” I say, my grin getting bigger.

  “Man, pregnancy does crazy shit to you. Not three minutes ago, you were bawling like a baby. Now you are smiling and grinning like the Cheshire cat.”

  Nonchalantly, I shrug my shoulders. “What can I say, pregnancy is…”

  Together, Chelle and I say, “...hormonally crazy.” We both start laughing when there’s a knock at my door. Through my laughter, I shout, “Come in!”

  The door opens and Marlee pops her head in. “H
ey.” She steps into my office with a tray of juices, a bag of snow peas, and hopefully hot salsa is in her handbag. “I come bearing gifts.”

  “EEEP!” I squeal in excitement, causing baby Susan to startle, “Sorry, lil’ one, but Marlee here has snow peas…and hopefully salsa too.”

  She places the drinks tray on my desk and proceeds to pull out not one, but two jars of salsa.

  “I love you, Marlee,” I say, as I hand Susan over to Chelle and snatch the bag of peas from Marlee, open the bag, crack the lid on the salsa, and dive in. A moan escapes my lips and Chelle laughs.

  “There’s the orgasm you were chasing.” My eyes bug open at what she said. Both Marlee and Stacey look between us confused. “What?” she says, confused at their blank expressions.

  “What are you talking about, woman?” Marlee asks, as she takes a seat and sips on her juice.

  “Nothing,” I quickly cover. “Chelle is on crack this morning.” I raise my eyebrows at her in a ‘shut-your-mouth-they-don't-need-to-know’ kind of way.

  Thankfully she gets my hint because she says, “You’ll understand when you are pregnant. Anyway, I must fly, this lil’ one needs a nap, and I have a mountain of washing to do.” She turns to face me. “You all good now?”

  Nodding my head, I shove another salsa-covered pea into my mouth. “Yep, all good here.” Swallowing my mouthful, I step over to her and wrap my arms around her, careful not to squish Susan. “Thank you,” I whisper into her ear.

  “Anytime,” she whispers back. “Catch you all later.” With that, she exits my office. Stacey soon follows since she’s manning reception, leaving Marlee and I to get stuck into the planning of this year’s toy drive…and it’s so nice to have Marlee on board from the beginning this year; she’s a godsend.

  Chapter Seven

  July has flown by, after the excitement of the Fourth, it’s been busy, busy, busy. I’m nearly four months pregnant now, and my tummy is getting bigger and bigger each day. I’ve discovered Peanut doesn’t like it when I eat peanuts, I get really bad heartburn and indigestion each time I eat them, so no more satay chicken for me.

  I’ve just gotten home from work. Branson is coming over tonight so we can start organizing baby furniture and all the other crap that goes with babies. I’m ever so thankful to have him in my life, because it’s totally overwhelming at times.

  I’ve just slipped into a pair of linen shorts and black tank when he walks in. “Honey, I’m home.” Walking down the hallway, I stop midstep when my eyes land on him. He’s wearing a pair of chinos and a black, short sleeve button-down; he looks fucking edible. Damn pregnancy hormones.

  “Hey,” I say, hoping that my cheeks aren’t red-hot because they feel hotter than Hades at the moment. My eyes watch as he walks into the kitchen and starts dishing up the Italian food he bought over. I’m craving mac and cheese, so this is perfect.

  “Do you want some wine? I can open a bottle for you.”

  “Will you have a glass with me?” I eye him. “One glass won’t hurt.”

  “Actually, that does sound nice. White okay with you?” I ask, as I open the wine fridge and grab a bottle of Verdelho out.

  “Sounds perfect.”

  He finishes dishing up dinner and I grab two glasses, pour the wine, and set the table.

  We sit down to eat and catch up on what’s been happening. The evening is perfect, I can’t remember the last time I was this relaxed.

  Standing up, I walk into the kitchen to grab a glass of water when I stop. There’s sensation in my belly I haven’t felt before. “Ohh,” I say.

  Branson immediately jumps up and walks over to me, rubbing my back. “You okay? What wrong? I hope it wasn’t the wine.” His voice is laced with worry.

  “I’m fine. Peanut is kicking and I really felt it just then.”

  “Really, can I feel?” He steps toward me and places his hand on my belly. Grabbing his hand, I move it over to the spot where I felt the kicks, but there’s no movement. Glancing up at him, his face is full of excitement. My heart rate speeds up at seeing this. I swallow deeply and as I do, Peanut kicks again. “I felt it,” Branson excitedly says. “Holy crap, that’s awesome.”

  “You should feel what it's like when she gets the hiccups.”

  “He gets the hiccups?”

  “Yes, SHE does,” I cheekily reply.

  With his hand still on my belly, he stares deep into my blue eyes. “You really think Peanut is a girl?” he asks.

  Shaking my head, I smile. “I’ve got no idea. I just like teasing you.”

  “Cheeky woman,” he playfully replies, as he tries to tickle my side. I step back to get away and lose my balance. Branson reaches out, wraps his arm around my waist, and stops me from falling. We stare up at each other. The air around us thickens and crackles. My hand gently skims along his arm. His fingers gently rub my back. Our breathing accelerates, until the moment is broken when Branson’s phone rings. We continue to stare at one another as it continues to ring. It stops ringing, only to immediately start again. “I better get that.”

  “Mmmhmpf,” I reply, but neither of us makes a move.

  Again, his phone stops ringing, and this time my phone begins to ring. “I better get that,” I whisper.

  He grunts an, “Mmmhmpf,” but we don’t move. We stay in this position, staring at one another. Branson’s phone begins to ring again. “For fuck’s sake,” he mumbles, letting me go, he turns and grabs his phone.

  Immediately, I feel the loss of his arms around me. “What?” he barks into his phone. “Sorry, mom. Hi, how are you?” I look up and he’s smiling at me, I’m so confused right now. Why am I feeling like this?

  Leaning against the counter, I lift my hand to my chest. My heart is still beating erratically when my mind drifts off…

  …In my mind, I picture Branson stalking over to me. He spins me around and bends me over the edge of the kitchen counter. Lifting my dress over my ass, he tears my panties off me, like they do in the books I read, and he slams his cock deep into me. Moaning in delight, I thrust back at him. Looking back over my shoulder, I see he has his eyes closed. He continues to thrust into me. Over and over. Harder and harder. Faster and faster. My body temperature soars and I explode around him, screaming out his name as he too reaches his climax. Both of us panting.

  “Kasey!” Branson shouts, “You okay? Your cheeks are flushed.”

  Staring at him, I blink a few times and nod. “Yeah, I’m good. Think the wine went to my head.” Yeah, good save. “I’m going to sit down. Is that okay?”

  “Yeah, sure. Sit down. I’ll clean this up and make you some tea.”

  Nodding my head, I walk over to the sofa and take a seat. Tucking my legs under me, I rest a hand on my chest. My heart is still beating fast but not as fast as before in my dream. Staring into space, I play the daydream over and over. Lifting my hand to my mouth, I cover it and whisper, “Fuck.”

  I’m still off in Lalaland when Branson sits beside me. He places his hand on my belly and once again Peanut kicks. His face lights up with joy, and he leans toward my belly. “Hey, Peanut. I’m Uncle Branson, we can’t wait to meet you. I’m sorry you won’t get to meet your daddy, but I promise to tell you a different story about him each and every day. He would have loved you sooo much. I’m sorry you won’t get to meet him, he was pretty awesome, but that makes you awesome by default.” Branson looks up at me and winks. “And your mommy is pretty awesome too.”

  Placing my hand over Branson’s, we spend the rest of the night talking to my belly and telling Peanut stories about Kody. The awkwardness of earlier and my inappropriate thoughts have disappeared, and we are back to our usual Branson and Kasey.

  Just before midnight, Branson heads home and I climb into bed. Immediately, I drift off to sleep but a few hours later, my eyes snap open, my body is covered in sweat, and tingling from my dream climax. My chest is heaving as I struggle to breathe. “I just had another erotic dream about Branson,” I whisper to myself. Lifting my
hand to my chest, I focus on my breathing until it returns to normal. “Fuck,” I mumble as I think about what just transpired in my dream.

  Chapter Eight

  The days are flying by, it’s mid-September and I’m currently five months pregnant. My belly is getting bigger and bigger each day, I feel like I’m the size of a whale whose eaten a Megalodon. I’m pretty sure I waddle like a duck when I walk—this was confirmed when Chloe and Gage both quacked at me when I walked past the break room earlier today. My feet and ankles are swollen and I’m horny as hell…all-the-freakin’-time. My mind is in a constant state of arousal, damn pregnancy hormones. My dreams always star Branson and they are off the charts hot; I wake up soaked and tingling all over. The dreams are happening more and more often, and they’re becoming more and more X-rated. Dream sex with Branson, is fantastic...I wonder what actual sex with him would be like?

  I’m sitting in Gage’s office for a meeting but once again, my mind drifts off to sexy land with Branson. I’m snapped back to reality when I hear Gage saying something about pink and blue aliens. “What?” I snap.

  “I knew you weren’t listening.”

  “Was too,” I snarkily retort.

  “Okay, what did I just say?”

  “Advertising spots for the holidays are nearly full…and something about aliens.”

  “Lucky guess. Now, want to tell me what’s on your mind? You’ve been off with the fairies for weeks now. I put it down to your pregnancy, but I think it’s more.”

  “It’s nothing,” I say, flicking at an imaginary piece of lint on my work pants.

  “Is it Branson?” My eyes flick to his, and my cheeks darken.

  “How did you know?”

  “I have eyes and you change when he’s around. Wanna talk about it?”