by Kira Blakely
“Claim me?” I said.
“Yes.” He rested his hand on the back of my neck, his thumb on my jaw. “You’ve got to know how I feel about you.”
“I—”
“Three days or three weeks or three years. It makes no difference to me. I love you.”
“Logan!”
“I love you,” he repeated, and my heart tha-thumped in my chest.
“We don’t even know each other.”
“We do,” he said. “I know everything I need to know about you to love you. You’re strong, sassy, you don’t back down from a challenge, and you respect yourself enough to know when you’re in too deep. A person is more than just a collection of favorite colors and foods and animals. I can learn all that shit later. But the important stuff? I know that now, and I know that I love all of those things about you.”
“Oh god.” I pressed a hand to my stomach. “Logan, we seriously need to talk.”
“We are talking.”
“I’m pregnant.” The words fell out of my mouth before I could formulate a better way to say them. A softer, kinder way.
Logan froze. His eyes didn’t widen and he didn’t pull back. He simply stared at me. “Say that again.”
Chapter 23
Logan
“I’m pregnant,” Katie repeated it.
I didn’t let go of her, couldn’t quit touching her, but thoughts rushed through my mind, whipping in and out too fast to grasp. Pregnant. She’s pregnant.
“You’re the father,” she continued, “just in case that isn’t clear. I only found out today. Here, wait.” She fumbled in her bag, which was still slung over one of her shoulders, and brought out a thick envelope. “Here, this is the picture. I— God, I’m doing this all wrong. These are the sonogram pictures.”
I took the envelope from her and slowly opened it. I drew out two images, both black and white, and containing the outline of what looked to be a bean.
“That’s the baby,” she said and tapped the image. “I think. It’s really small still, obviously.”
I held the picture in both hands, then switched to the second. It was slightly different, but still with the same bean-looking part in the middle. A baby. My baby. In the woman I love.
“I know this is a huge shock,” Katie said. “It was for me too, but I think it’s because of the night when I was kidnapped. I didn’t take my pill that night, and we had sex the next day. The thing is, even then the chances should have been really slim.”
Meant to be—that was what I’d said, and it was goddamn true. This was meant to be. This woman, this gorgeous, perfect woman, was meant to carry my child and be mine.
“I want you to know that I only found out today, this morning to be exact, and my friend got me a rushed meeting with an OB-GYN. I was going to call you right after I told Mom. Okay?” She squeezed my arm and I lifted my gaze from the picture of our baby to her face.
Those sapphire eyes were moist, and worry wrinkled her usually smooth brow. One day, far in the future, those wrinkles would stay, and I’d love them as much as I did now. Christ, what had happened to me?
I’d gone from the man who didn’t want to feel anything for anyone, to the man who couldn’t picture my life without this woman and the child growing inside her.
“You don’t have to be involved,” she said. “I mean, you can be as involved as you want to be.”
“Katie.” She quit squirming and talking and looked into my eyes. “Involved as I want to be?”
“Yes,” she nodded.
“What if I want to be incredibly involved?”
She held her breath but didn’t reply.
“You’re telling me I’m the father of your child, and I’m telling you that I love you.”
“Yes, but I figured you might change your mind once you found out—”
I put the pictures on the coffee table, then took her hand in mine and tugged her a little closer. “Tell me you don’t love me, woman. Say it to my face.”
“What? No!”
“Why?”
“Because I— I—”
“You do love me,” I replied, with so much certainty that she blushed. “If it’s true, say it.”
“I love you,” she whispered. “Though, I don’t know how it can be possible after such a short time. Logan, I couldn’t do anything but think of you for the past six weeks, and it scared the hell out of me.”
“You don’t need to be scared when I’m around,” I said and drew her into my arms. Fuck, hugging her was like drinking water after dying of thirst. I fucking drowned in her scent.
“I know,” she whispered. “I always felt safe with you.”
I kissed her forehead, then either eyelid, the tip of her nose, her mouth, and moved onto her collarbone. She moaned and her head fell back, eyes closed. “Logan,” she whispered, “it’s been so long.”
“So long,” I agreed and worked off the cardigan she’d had on. Her nipples pressed against the silk of the camisole she wore underneath. No bra. Fuck, I was in trouble here. She’d always been my kryptonite.
“I want you,” I whispered. “I want to be a part of your life. I want to be a part of our baby’s life.”
“God.” She leaned back further and I dragged the straps of her camisole down and exposed those perfect breasts. I’d missed them. They’d been the object of my fantasies for the past six weeks, these tits.
Fuck, I’d love to bury my cock between them, fuck that soft flesh and come all over her face, but now wasn’t the time.
I lowered Katie to the sofa, and she stared up at me, desire brimming from her. She needed this as much as I did. She reached between her legs and rubbed her palm against her jeans, groaning.
I ripped my shirt off, and then my pants, and brought out my cock and stroked it a couple times as I watched her. Precum dribbled from the tip and she lurched up from the sofa again, took the tip of my dick in her mouth, and sucked.
“Katie—”
“I’ve always wanted to taste you,” she said, her lips moving against my skin. “I want this.”
“You can have whatever you like, gorgeous.”
She dragged her tongue around the ridge of my head, dipped it underneath, then took as much of it into her mouth as possible. She slid halfway down my dick, then gagged.
“Fuck,” I whispered, and smoothed her hair back from her face. “Fuck, Katie, that’s good.”
She dragged her lips back, my cock so thick in her mouth she struggled, then dove back down again, and gagged. She popped off the end and sighed, “You taste so good.” She continued, tasting, probing, sucking and genuinely driving me wild with her lips, her tongue. Christ, I couldn’t take much more of this.
“Wait,” I said.
Katie didn’t stop. She picked up the pace, her spit dripping down her chin now, her gaze fixed on mine. She wanted me to come in her mouth, but that wasn’t how tonight would go. I took her by the chin, gently, and brought her off my dick.
“I’m going to finish inside you,” I said. “And I’m going to make you come first. Lie down.”
She did as I’d commanded, kneading her breasts and pinching her nipples, gasping. “God, they’re sensitive,” she said.
I made a mental note of it as I undid her jeans and slid them from those creamy, white thighs. She had a pair of lacy hot pants on. I slid those off too, my dick throbbing to be inside her now.
“Fuck,” I growled. Her pussy lips were so fucking swollen and wet already, so ready for me to plunge inside her.
I didn’t. Instead, I lowered myself beside the sofa, and tasted her, pinched her clit between my thumb and forefinger. “That’s my girl,” I said. “My woman. I’m going to make you come so hard, you’re going to shatter.”
She grabbed a handful of my hair and pulled. It made me want to torture her a little before she came to climax. I blew on her clit, pulling the hood back and exposing that sweet bud.
“Logan,” she said and pulled again. “Baby, please. That’s not fai
r.”
“Massage your tits while I do this,” I replied, tone brooking no argument.
Katie massaged and moaned, grinding her hips and that curvy, heart-shaped ass into the sofa cushions. Her cunt had already produced so much fucking wetness that it dribbled between her legs and to her tight asshole.
I bent my head and licked her lips. I swirled my tongue between them, collected her juices, and then pushed them over her clit and toyed with it.
“That’s too good,” she gasped. “Too good.”
“Don’t stop playing with yourself,” I grunted.
I worked her pussy with two fingers and focused my tongue on her clit, eating her, fucking devouring her until she broke apart. Her back arched, her fingers dug into the meat of her breasts, and she tilted her head back and jammed through her climax.
Finally, she sank back to the sofa cushions, whimpering. “That was so good.”
I gave her one last lick, then kissed my way up her body. It was good, and it certainly wasn’t over yet.
Chapter 24
Katie
Logan kissed a trail up my body and paused at my stomach. He stroked me, gently, nuzzling his nose against my belly and smiled. “Mine,” he said, then moved up until our noses touched.
“I love you,” he said and brushed his lips across mine.
I opened to him, kissed him back, deeply, every part of me open to him. “I love you too,” I whispered, and it was true. I hadn’t wanted to admit it, that it could happen so damn quickly with a man I’d only known for a few days, but the circumstances under which we’d met had been so extreme. We’d been shoved together and it’d just… happened.
I wrapped my legs around his waist, my arms around his neck, and held him close to me.
Logan entered me slowly, peppering my face with kisses as he did, his strong arms encircling me. He made me feel so small, so fragile, in the best possible way. I was safe with him. I was his.
And he’s mine.
His thrusts were slow, deep, and so filled with meaning, my throat closed up with emotion. He filled me completely, brought me to the edge and we crashed over it together. My fingernails dug into his back, and he sucked on my neck, burying his face in my hair and pulsing inside me, unmoving.
“Christ,” he whispered. “Fuck, Katie. You’re so fucking perfect for me.” He slid out after we were done and kissed my stomach again, gently. We got up and walked through to the bathroom together, and I couldn’t quit touching him.
He was real, and he was here. And it seemed like he wouldn’t be leaving. That, in itself, was a miracle to me. My father had left, and I’d never envisioned having kids because I’d never thought I’d meet someone I could trust not to do the same to my child. To me.
Logan drew us both a bath in my tub, which was a little too small for the two of us, and we lowered ourselves into the water. He washed my back, brushed the hair off it and kissed a line down my spine.
I leaned back against his chest and shut my eyes, the water steaming around us, then exhaled. “This is nice,” I said. “Relaxing.”
“Not what we’re used to,” he replied and chuckled about it. “We’re not done talking, by the way.”
“We’re not?”
“No, we’re not,” he replied. “I want you to know that I’m serious. I want you to be mine for real, but I know that it’s too soon for us to get married.”
“Oh my god,” I said, and tried sitting up. He smoothed his hands over my shoulders, his laughter rumbling through my back.
“Lie down, woman. Relax. I’m just saying that I want to spend time with you. All my time, and if that means we have to take it slow at first, do all the dating and getting to know each other shit, we’ll do that. Whatever works.”
“Okay.”
“Just know that I’ll never leave. You’re stuck with me, so getting married isn’t that shocking to me. I understand that it might be for you,” he said.
My heart thudded along in time to his words. God, he wanted me forever, not just for tonight or tomorrow … forever.
All the memories of us together, of us laughing and running around in confusion because of the ring on my finger. The time we’d tried to get the ring off and ended up making love in the kitchen. God, all of these were memories happier than most I’d made over the course of my life.
The time with Logan had been raw and intense. What would it be like to continue this now, when we’re back in our normal setting?
“What about work?” I asked. “You’re a busy guy. You’ve got business to attend to. How will you make time for me? I don’t want to sound high maintenance here. I’m just asking from a rational point of view.”
“I’ll make time for you. For both of you.” Logan kissed my temple. “To tell you the truth, the past six weeks I’ve spent a lot more time at home, and it’s felt so fucking empty without you with me. It’s like I got used to having you around on the island, which should be impossible since it was only a couple of days, but that’s how it is. Life is empty without you.”
His words mirrored how I’d been feeling these past weeks. “I should have called you,” I said. “I was afraid. And that’s pretty pathetic. I usually tackle my fears.”
“I know,” he replied. “I watched you run toward gunfire, remember?”
“Those were fireworks.”
“Still,” he said, and kissed my shoulder, leaving a little wet spot there. “Don’t ever do that again. I can’t stand watching you walk away, much less run. I’ve promised you I won’t leave. Do the same for me.”
I turned in the bath, the water swishing against the edges of the tub, and caught him in a kiss. “I’ll never leave,” I said, against his mouth, our breath mingling. “I’m yours.”
Epilogue
Logan
Five years later.
The sound of laughter rang through our home and I walked toward the source of the noise, shucking my coat as I did. My nose was colder than a witch’s tit. It was snowing out there, and there was supposed to be a storm over the weekend.
“Dad’s home!” I called out as I entered the living room.
Summer hopped off her grandmother’s lap and ran toward me, grinning from ear to ear. “Daddy!” She threw herself into my arms and I lifted her and swung her in a circle. She giggled all the way through, and I plopped her back on her feet again on the rug. “How was your day?”
“It’s better now that I’m home,” I said and pinched her chubby little cheek. “Evening, Anna.” I waved at Katie’s mom, who’d basically become a fixture in our home, and grinned. “What are you two ladies up to?”
“We’re reading one of Katie’s books,” Anna said and lifted it.
The Little Train That Went A-Choo.
After she’d given birth to our little Summer, she’d started planning a series of children’s books, and hadn’t quit until she’d found herself an agent and a publisher. Now, Anna made a habit of reading them to Summer whenever she came over to visit.
“That looks like fun,” I said. “Are you staying for the weekend, Anna? We’d love to have you, wouldn’t we, Summer?”
“Yes, please stay Gramma! Please? Butchie can sleep with me in my bed.”
The dog, who’d taken up a position on the rug to doze, cracked an eyelid and whacked his tail back and forth in apparent approval of the notion.
“Of course I’ll stay. This is my favorite place to be,” Anna replied, then patted her knee for the little one to join her again. “Come on, we’ve got to finish reading this before dinner!”
Summer flung her arms up toward me, and I bent and accepted her tight hug and a big smooch on the cheek before she raced off to her grandmother again and settled onto her lap, pulling her skirt down over her leggings.
“Where’s Katie?” I asked.
“In the kitchen, whipping up some stew for dinner.”
“I love stew,” Summer said. “Stew’s my favorite.”
I laughed and walked through our living room, past the
fire crackling in its grate and casting a warm light over the paneled walls, and into the hall.
The clink of cutlery and a tune floated toward me from the open archway which led into the kitchen. I halted in it and rested my forearm against the jamb, admiring my gorgeous woman. My Katie.
She swayed from side to side in time to the beat, her ass just as exquisite and peachy as it’d always been, trapped beneath her blue jeans. She hummed along with the music and placed a fork next to the plate she’d just set down, her hair done up in a messy bun, strands escaping.
Katie had hair like no other woman. It had a will of its own. Some mornings she’d wake up beside me with it smooth and silky; others, frizzed out. Each day started with her flawless, either way.
I crept toward her, already aching for this woman. Christ, she was everything to me. We’d faced our challenges together. Yes, we’d had our arguments. But every day with her was my own personal version of paradise.
Katie wiggled and bopped to the music, and I grabbed her ass and squeezed.
She yelped and spun around, brandishing a butter knife.
“Hey,” I said and raised my hands. “No need to get violent. I was just trying to cop a feel before dinner.”
“You joke, but I cut my way out of bindings with one of these,” she said and dropped it onto the kitchen table. She slung her arms around my neck, and I kissed her, gently. “Hi,” she whispered. “How was work?”
“I want to say fine, but I spent all day thinking about you, about being here with my family instead.”
“You did?”
“You know I did,” I replied. “I’ve been thinking about it a lot. It’s Summer’s sixth birthday next week. And she’s going to big school soon. So yeah, I’m going to hand over the reins to Gerald and take an advisory role from now on. It will leave me more time to be here with you guys.”
“Baby, that’s fantastic,” Katie said, and kissed me again, bathing me in that coconut scent I so fucking adored. “Are you sure, though? You love what you do.”
“I love you two more than that.”
“Honey,” she said, and trailed her hands down my chest, to my belt buckle.