by Harper Sloan
“Congratulations, you’ve got a perfectly healthy baby boy.”
A boy.
In that moment, I feel like my brother is right here with us. Cheering right along with us. Enjoying this moment for everything it is. Celebrating the life he created. Happy and content.
And that’s all it takes for me to drop to my knees and press my forehead to Chelcie’s belly. I don’t even give a damn that that gel crap is getting all over me. I bring my hands up and frame her stomach, whispering words of love and promises of the future I’ll make sure this little boy has. I can feel Chelcie’s shudders and I know that she’s crying again, but I don’t dare call her on it since I can feel the tears falling from my own eyes.
After a few minutes, I climb to my feet and rub my eyes against my sleeve before moving in, taking her face between my palms, and kissing her with everything I have. We don’t need words right now. She knows—she gets it.
I vaguely hear the click of the door as the doctor leaves us to our moment. Lost in our own thoughts but connected together with our love for each other and our love for this baby.
This little boy.
Our little boy.
I smile against her lips, feeling a weightlessness cover over me.
You did it, little brother, I think. I’m going to make sure that your son knows just how brave his father was. Not one day, Coop . . . Not one day will go by that I won’t show him how much he’s loved. He will never once question if he’s wanted, I promise you that.
When we leave the doctor, I notice that not once has our smiles slipped from either of our faces.
“I love you, Sunshine.”
“I love you back, baby.”
CHAPTER 22
Chelcie
It’s been a week since the doctor’s appointment, a week since we found out that I’m having a baby boy. It’s been such an incredible week. Between working part time with Dee, working on my book, and falling into Asher’s arms at night, my life couldn’t be fuller. I’m beyond happy right now and I don’t think anything can change that.
Asher’s been over the moon since we found out. At first, I could tell he was trying to hide his happiness. The uncertainty with his role in the baby’s life was weighing heavily on him. I didn’t waste a second before letting him know exactly how I felt about it. How I wanted things to be.
I told him, while sitting in his lap in his Jeep, my arms around his neck and my forehead pressed to his, that, in my heart, he’s this baby’s father. Not in the way that he is replacing Coop or Coop’s part in this baby’s life. I want Asher to raise this child alongside of me. I want this baby to look at Asher with the same love I feel, wake up asking for his daddy and Asher is there. And . . . I want Asher to be by my side every night we tell our son about how brave his daddy Coop was. This baby would never question who fathered him, but he would also know the very tangible love of his daddy.
Asher didn’t even fight me on it, as I’d expected. He just pressed his body closer and thanked me over and over again. From that moment on, we’ve grown even closer as a couple. Our love for each other and our love for our child is so all consuming that there is no doubt in my mind that I’m the luckiest woman on the planet.
I grab the mail from Joe before making my way up to my apartment. I had to go into the office today and talk to Dee. Ash and I talked last night and we both decided that I would stop working for her. He wants me to focus on enjoying my pregnancy, and he’s been urging me to finish my book. His faith in my dream and me is what finally caused me to make a decision. She was naturally upset that I would be leaving her at the end of the month, just two weeks away, but she also understood why.
I think her confidence in me really helped to make me see that this is the right move. I might have never had the courage to take this step, but I want nothing more than to make all of them proud of me.
Asher decided to stop taking so many cases that would put him leaving me for long periods. I could tell that he didn’t want to miss a second of my pregnancy either, but I was starting to get worried about how we would support both of us and the baby on one—cut-in-half—income.
Asher explained to me that he’s been working on some technical jobs the guys at Corps Security needed. He said that, with Maddox not around as much, he’s been taking over for him with his normal duties. I felt a little better knowing that, even when Maddox came back to work, they would be keeping him on full time. He says that business is growing so quickly that they need the extra help.
So here we are. I’m almost unemployed. Asher is starting with the CS crew. And we’re working to start our lives together.
I unlock the door and go to push it open, frowning when it catches on something.
“Uh, Ash?” I holler through the half-cracked door.
“Coming, Sunshine. Hold on. Shit, I’m sorry. I meant to move that.”
I hear some shuffling, sounds of him picking up and dropping something heavy, and then him letting out a tired sigh.
What the hell is going on in there?
When he swings the door open, all thoughts fly out of my head. His wearing just a pair of basketball shorts hanging low on his hips. His bare chest, chiseled muscles, and sweaty skin are just begging for my hands.
I drop the mail in my hands, my purse hanging heavily in the crook of my arm, and all but attack. He laughs against my lips but lets me lead the show. My hand is pushing between the waistband of his shorts before the door even closes behind us. His groan is swallowed between my lips, and I moan at how hard and velvety he is in my hand. Thick and heavy with his arousal. I drop to my knees, ignoring his protest, and take him as deep as I can. His girth makes it hard for me to take him as far into my mouth as I wish I could. I decide to work with his swollen head, moving both of my fists in sync with my mouth, working him up to the point that his hands are both fisted in my hair and his substantial panting is falling down to my ears.
Knowing that I’m bringing this much pleasure to him is all the encouragement I need to keep going. I lick and suck, nibble and tease, caress his heavy sac, and the whole time, I can feel my body starting to heat. That familiar burn takes over my system and begs for release. I hum when I shift and the seam in my jeans rubs against my sensitive clit.
Holy shit, I could come right now—just from sucking his cock.
“Chelcie, I want to be inside that perfect pussy when I come, coating your tight-ass cunt with a part of me, and marking your body. Fuck, Sunshine, just the thought of your slick heat dripping down my cock as me ready to blow. Lean up, baby.”
I release his cock with a loud pop and take his hand when he helps me stand. He doesn’t waste a second, his lips slamming down on mine with a teeth-clashing brutality that has my pussy screaming for fulfillment.
“I-I . . . Fuck, I need you!” I scream when his hand moves to cup my pussy.
“I know what you need,” he rumbles.
My pussy clenches at his voice.
God, I need him.
He picks me up, careful not to jostle me too much, and takes off to the bedroom. Standing me up next to the bed, he slowly peels my clothes from my body. His lips, tongue, and teeth create a trail of fire across my skin, and when he takes one of my heavy breasts in his hands, rolling my nipples roughly before closing his lips around the peek, I know I’m seconds away from coming. And I damn sure want to be with him when I do.
Pushing away at his shoulders, enjoying the look of shock when he falls back on the mattress, I finish stripping the rest of my clothes from my body.
When I’m completely naked, I take my hand and run it through my wet folds. His eyes darken and a rumble vibrates from his chest, causing my fingers to wet even more. I kneel, straddling his trim hips, and move my hand back to my pussy, opening my lips for him to see just how much I need him. His snarl is the fuel to my fire. Dipping two of my pink-tipped fingers deep into my pussy, I throw my head back and whimper. Curling my fingers, I hit that perfect spot deep within my body that causes my h
ips to rock forward, and I feel his hard erection bobbing against my arm, begging that I move and let him in.
Wanting to see just how long he’s going to let me have the driver’s seat, I continue to fuck myself with my fingers, alternating between pumping them deep and swirling around my clit. I don’t want to make myself come, so I avoid pressing against the one spot begging for it. My fingers are coated; I can feel my wetness starting to pool where my palm is cupped against my lips as my two digits pump slowly.
“Give them to me,” he barks. “Fucking give them to me,” he spits coarsely through clenched teeth.
I make a show of slowly pulling my fingers out of my body, walking my fingers up his body, tracing each defined ab, twirling around each nipple, before I finally give him what he wants. The second my fingers are within reach, he leans forward and takes them between his lips. His tongue curls around them, and he sucks in an intoxicating rhythm that has me panting and stars starting to pop in my vision.
He releases my fingers. His teeth nipping my fingertips right when I’m almost free of his mouth has me moaning again, rocking my hips forward on his cock.
“Take me inside you, Sunshine. Ride my cock until you come.” His face is pulled tight, his arousal burning me in his sapphire stare.
Lifting up, I guide his thick cock inside and begin to do just as he demanded. I ride him hard. My hands start off on my tits as I gain speed, but when it becomes apparent that I need help steading myself, his hands come forward and help me move from their grasp on my hips. I move my hands back and brace myself on his muscular thighs. I bounce, rock, roll, and grind against him, my wetness echoing along with the slapping of our skin.
“Goddamn, your pussy is so fucking tight. Your walls are milking my cock, Sunshine. Fucking begging for my come.” His fingers dig in, and I’m almost sure I’ll bruise from the pressure. It is delicious. “I’m not going to last much longer,” he warns.
I just hum my response, too close to my own completion to speak. Sensing my closeness, he takes one of his hands and moves it to my throbbing clit, pinching it roughly before he gives me a light slap against my lips. And just like that, I come with a ferociousness I never knew possible. By the time I stop screaming his name—and God only knows what else—I loosen the hold my fingers have on his legs and lean forward.
I can tell he hasn’t come yet. His face is flushed, lips drawn in so tight that they’re turning white around the creases. His eyes though—they’ve become so dark that they have that navy color I love so much. I lean up, slowly take him all the way to the root, and rock my hips, and we both let out a heavy breath when he swells even more within me.
“Fuck me,” he pants.
After leaning up, he lays me down with more gentleness than I thought him capable of then pulls his hips back. He pauses with his cock just centimeters away from slipping from my body before he slams home. I scream, my hands reaching up and pulling him down to my mouth. We swallow each other’s cries as he takes what he needs from my body. Right before he comes, my body seizes in the second most delicious orgasm I’ve ever experienced.
He grunts deep in his throat, his teeth biting my shoulder with just enough pressure to cause a little mini orgasm to rock through my body. Then he unclamps his teeth, throws his head back, and screams my name.
“Chelcie! Oh fuck, Chelcie!”
I close my eyes and drift off to one hell of an orgasm-induced fog.
CHAPTER 23
Asher
After I’m able to mentally find all the pieces of my brain that just splattered all over the ceiling, I look down at my woman as she’s passed out with a small smile on her face.
Fuck, that was the one of the hottest things I’ve ever experienced. My legs feel like mush when I go to move off of her, and when my cock slips free of her body, I want to cry out from the loss of her tight walls hugging me.
Looking down and seeing our joined releases falling out of her pussy has my dick throbbing for more. I close my eyes and will my erection down, but all I do is notice the heavy scent of her arousal feeding my nostrils.
Fuck. Me.
I climb off the bed, looking back at her. She’s completely bare and spread wide for me, and I have to make myself walk to the bathroom. I clean myself off, smelling my fingers one last time before grabbing a washcloth and running it under the warm water. Walking back in our room, I smile a wicked smile when I see that she hasn’t moved a muscle. Her long and lush legs are parted from where I was just seated deep, her arms having fallen to her sides in a lazy way and her breathing making her substantial tits and her beautiful, round belly rise and fall with even movements.
She doesn’t even stir when I clean her pussy. Not even a twitch when I bring my lips down and kiss her against her red pussy lips.
Shaking my head, I grab a new pair of shorts and head back into the kitchen to finish the task I was in the middle of when she got home, stopping long enough to pick up the mail and grab her purse and keys to place on the entryway table.
The smile never once leaves my lips.
* * *
“Mmm, that smells heavenly,” I hear softly spoken from behind me right before her arms wrap around my stomach. I see my abs clench when the jolt that always follows her skin touching mine shoots through me.
“Yeah, Sunshine, that’s called dinner,” I joke.
“Dinner sounds good. All of a sudden, I’m famished. Would you happen to know anything about that?” She snickers.
“Damn right I do.”
She squeaks when I turn quickly and grab her by her hips. The feel of her soft body against my hard one causes my dick to stir in my shorts. There seems to be no shortage of my craving for her. She leans up on her toes, and I love how we fit together. Her stomach presses hard against my cock, her soft breasts hit me high on my abs, and with her face tipped up—staring at me with so much open love—her chin rests at my collarbone. She feels perfect.
“Do you want to tell me why there are two small refrigerators in my closet?” she inquiries with a smile.
“About that . . .” I hedge.
“Yeah, about that. Maybe you could tell me why they’re stuffed full of the most interesting things?”
“Just making sure everything is covered.”
“Asher, what on Earth could I possibly need a fridge full of pickles, almost every brand of cheese I’ve ever heard of—and some I haven’t—not to mention the abundance in coleslaw? I’m pretty sure I saw anchovies and pickled eggs when I was looking too, which, baby, that’s just strange.”
“Don’t forget the fruits and vegetables. They’re in the second one. Did you not look in that one?” I ask, moving around her to open the refrigerator in the kitchen, “Well, maybe I put them in this one. Hold on, Sunshine.” I start rooting around but don’t see them. “Are you sure they weren’t back there?”
I turn around and meet her eyes. She’s trying hard not to laugh; I can see it in her eyes, which are shining brightly at me.
“This is not funny,” I say firmly.
“This is hilarious, baby,” she giggles. “Did you go on a mission to find every food recorded as a pregnancy craving?”
I can feel my skin heat. Fuck, when was the last time I blushed?
“This is serious, Chelcie. What if you’re sitting here one day and you think ‘Damn, I really wish I had some anchovies with Cheese Whiz’? Well, no worries, because it’s here. You want to nibble on some pickles and grab some ice cream? I’ve got it taken care of. Go on. Look.” I push her towards the freezer, my chest puffing with pride. Yeah, that’s right. I took care of my woman.
She opens the fridge and almost gets nailed with a pint of Chunky Monkey when it falls from the cold depths. I see her lip twitch and decide to ignore it. This was genius.
“And what was blocking the door when I came in?”
“Ah! That was the juice. I got two of every brand they had. I wasn’t sure if you would want something sweet or something with a little tart taste to it. So i
t’s taken care of. I was moving the coats out of the closet by the front door when you came in. I need to make room for your juice.” I smile at her, proud as hell at all I’ve accomplished today.
She’s silent for a moment, just looking at me then back to the freezer. She opens the fridge and sees the stuffed shelves before looking back over at me. She glances down at the floor for a few beats before she looks up at me again.
“Thank you, baby. That was very sweet of you. I’m really glad that, if I ever need Cheese Whiz and anchovies, spinach, or olives, you’ve taken care of it.”
And just like that, my chest puffs up a little more. Damn, I’m good.
She rolls up to stand on the balls of her feet; I bend down and meet her lips for a few small kisses.
“Go on and relax. Dinner should be ready in about thirty minutes.”
“All right, baby.” She smiles, shakes her head, and walks away.
I hear the TV click on before I turn back to the stove and finish cooking dinner for my woman.
Chelcie
I have never tried harder to keep my face blank. To keep the laughter that is threatening to burst loose. When I opened my closet and came face to face with two small, black fridges, I was instantly confused. But when I noticed what they were full of, it all started to click together.
Every cabinet and closet I looked in had been stashed with more odd foods. There were nuts in the bathroom drawers. There were chips—of almost every brand and style—stuffed in the guest bathtub. Apparently, I have a small juicer in my closet too.
But even as funny as this is, I can’t help but love him a little more for how much thought he put into his weird stocking.
I round the couch, grabbing the remote and clicking on the TV as I go. I spot the mail and snatch it up before settling on the couch. When I lean back, I feel it. I’ve felt it a few times before, but this time, I can clearly feel my son making his presence known.
“Asher!” I scream, a huge smile taking over my face.