by Jamie Knight
Sienna cautiously put her hand on my belly, like I might fall over if she pushed against me too hard.
“Wow,” she said quietly.
Sienna went back to take her spot at the reception desk as I pulled the card from bouquet and opened it. I recognized the handwriting right away. I had seen it hundreds of times in school notebooks and signature lines and ill advised, adolescent graffiti runs.
Had it been anyone else I would have crumpled the note and thrown it and the flowers directly into the garbage without a second thought. Not in this case, though. Kristen and I had a history together and I still had a real soft spot for her.
Even after all that had happened, I still loved her in that way only true friends do. It also didn't hurt that the note was written in the most begging terms the written word was able to get across.
She wanted me to come over so we could talk. Despite my common sense screaming at me not to go, to just make a clean break and not risk being pulled back into the same old bullshit, I felt myself relenting. Despite all of that, all those good points and arguments, I decided it was worth it to at least hear her out. The baby started kicking in agreement.
It might have taken her a while to start moving around in there, but once she did, she had barely stopped. She was a force to be reckoned with, and apparently, she wanted me to see what Kristen had to say.
In a world were few things are certain, it can be nice to know that there are some things that don't change. Kristen's address being one of them. It had been exactly the same since she had left home at 16, driven away by the same circumstances that had driven Logan into the darkness.
Her dad had been nice and kept giving her an allowance until she was able to get a job to support herself. Which, fortunately for her, happened before her dad lost all his money, getting cut out of the family business and any of the family money, similar to the way Kristen had.
I thought about all of this on the drive over to her building.
“Don't Look Back In Anger” was playing through the speakers; it was one of the songs I'd found that calmed the baby. But maybe that was just because it calmed me.
I had actually been considering Gallagher as a possible name, as an homage to my Irish roots, but then I found out she was a girl. Then I heard the name Brigitte and changed my mind. My daughter was going to Brigitte Freyja Evans. No one was going to mess with her on the playground.
I ran the buzzer and waited, part of me still wanting to run, the fact that this was now physically difficult being one of the main reasons I didn't. The door buzzed and I went in out of the chill.
“Hey,” Kristen said.
“Hey,” I agreed.
We hugged awkwardly, Kristen trying to mind my baby bump, not realizing it was fine to touch it. It wasn’t as fragile as most people who had never been pregnant seemed to assume. I knew that due to bumping into the massage table.
“Please, sit down,” Kristen said, gesturing to the couch.
I went over and sat down, bracing onto the arm to support myself on the way down so I didn't land too hard. Kristen sat in a chair near the couch. This was when Logan came in from the kitchen, sipping something bright green from a tumbler.
“What the hell?” I demanded, doing my best to get up in order to storm out dramatically.
Fuck.
Of course, just when I had decided to trust her, Kristen had to go and betray me like this. What was with her incessant urge to set me up with her brother long after I had said no? It was the opposite of how high school had been.
“You're looking well,” Logan said, looking at my baby bump as he sat down on the couch beside me.
He seemed really happy about the baby, which took me by surprise.
“Please,” Kristen said, on the verge of tears, “I want you to hear me out. Both of you.”
The “both of you” certainly got my attention and I sat back down, for no other reason than to see how it played out. Logan raised an eyebrow, looking intrigued by that part as well. But he soon turned back to me as if he had more pressing things on his mind.
“It's mine, isn't it?” Logan asked.
“Logan, please,” Kristen said, raising a hand, “I have something to tell you. Both of you.
I lied. Back in high school, I was so desperate to keep you apart that I lied. Logan, Kora really wanted you. Kora, Logan loved you. He told me as much. Said he would never need another girl if he had you. Which we can agree is saying something, considering his reputation.”
“Yeah, no kidding,” I agreed.
I was still letting it all sink in.
I guess it explained a lot.
At the same time, I wasn’t too incredibly surprised to hear it. It seemed to go with the rest of the story as I had always known it, having lived it.
She had thought he was bad for me. And bad for our friendship, because he was taking me away from her, all to maybe break my heart, which she understandably thought could happen, ruining things for our friendship and my heart. Of course she had lied.
“Anyway, that's it. I was a lying bitch and the cause of all this trouble all this time,” Kristen said, as if thinking we hadn’t heard her.
“I need a moment to think about this,” I said.
I may have been able to understand, but that didn’t mean I was ready to forgive.
“Right,” Logan said, starting to get up.
He looked quite a bit more upset about it than I was feeling.
“And to talk to Logan,” I said, taking him by the wrist.
He immediately sat back down, as I added, “in private.”
“Right, of course,” Kristen said, heading out of the room.
“Why did you ditch me like that?” I asked, when Kristen was out of earshot.
“Ah, well I didn't. At least not deliberately. After what happened the last time you stayed over, I went on a long sailing trip with my dad. I didn't have service on the boat. Not at all. It didn't even register missed calls. I was surprised, to be honest, but I also wasn’t. We hadn't had the best parting, I know. When I tried to contact you and you didn't respond and then changed your number, I got the hint. Or what I assumed was the hint.”
“Oh,” I said, realizing I had made the same assumption. “But what was that about? Throwing me out like that? It really hurt.”
“I'm sure it did,” he said, taking my hand, “but I swear I didn't mean to. I had an appointment with my dad. We were going to go over some new plans for the business; he wants to open it up and appeal to a more general clientele, not just the super rich. There was another guy coming to meet us, who was interested in our services. We were going to talk with him about business plans and then plan the sailing trip we were taking. It was an attempt at bonding, there being a lot of time to make up for.”
“I see,” I said, trying to process it all.
“I was so surprised I’d fallen asleep. I had meant to prep for the meeting with the potential client more. I knew my dad would be upset if it looked like I blew him off just to have sex. Plus, I just didn't feel right having him find my high school girlfriend there to boot. It might have been a bit confusing and a lot to explain to him right then. But I know now that I should have explained it more to you, as we were hurrying to get ready.”
“Girlfriend, huh?” I teased.
It was the only part I was focused on, now that I knew there was an innocuous explanation for the rest of it.
“Yeah, sorry,” he said.
“Don't be.”
I grabbed him, pulled him to me and kissed him. I was still mad but mostly at myself for making such an assumption, even though it made sense at the time.
Logan had acted badly in high school but not for no reason and that really wasn't who he was anymore. The kindness I thought I had seen in him since then; the thoughtfulness. It was all real. He really did want me and dammit if I didn't still want him!
“Oh, sorry!” Kristen said, walking back in during our make-out session.
“No, I
am sorry,” Logan said, “it's your house, dumpling.”
“Yeah, sorry,” I said, realizing it must have been somewhat awkward for her.
“A-are you still mad at me?”
“No,” Logan said. “I mean, I kind of am, because you sure screwed me out of a lot of sex I could be having with Kora during the formative college years of my life, but I get how it all went down, and I’ll eventually get over it.”
“I never really was that mad,” I admitted. “I already knew you had warned me away from him, and at the time, I thought it was wise advice.”
“Gee, thanks,” Logan said, teasingly.
“Sorry, honey.” I kissed him again, but tenderly this time, and with less of a display for Kristen to see.
“I’ll get over it, Kristen. I certainly am happy that you helped me out and brought us back together, so that helps make up for it,” Logan said, and we kissed yet again, but just a quick peck this time.
“I think we all had our own reasons for what happened in high school. We all made mistakes for similar reasons. I know what happened with your family wasn't easy on you, either,” I said.
“Really?” Kristen asked, coming over to the couch.
“Really,” I said.
“Of course, dumpling,” Logan said.
We had a big old group hug and Kristen cried, probably relieved that everything was good between us.
“I just realized that I’m going to be an aunt!” she exclaimed, wiping away a tear.
“We'd better get along then,” I said.
“Agreed,” Kristen said. “And I don’t think there will be any more obstacles to that goal.”
Chapter Twenty-Three - Logan
The invitation came as a bit of a surprise. Kora and I had reconciled but I wasn't sure where we were. Was it back to square one to try again or were we actually where we should have been all along?
The make-out session on Kristen's couch indicated the latter. There was lust, sure, but also a good deal of honest passion. I was pretty sure Kora loved me, though I didn't want to assume and make the same mistakes again.
Her new place was on the other end of town from her previous apartment and about as far away from my mansion as she could get and still be within the same city limits. I doubted that that was an accident.
The building looked about the same in terms of economy. I was relieved that her choice to go back to school didn’t seem to have affected her too badly. Especially with a little one on the way.
I hung back, letting Kora lead the way, though her pregnant walk made this somewhat of a challenge. I did my best not to ogle her ass as we went, not quite sure how she would take this, even though it was a hard goal to accomplish, since it looked even curvier and juicier now.
The place was really nice for what it was. Freshly painted. New chrome appliances and small enough that she wouldn’t need staff to clean the whole place.
At the time of his death, grandpa had employed twelve servants, not including the drivers. I shook my head at the wonderful simplicity of it all. Although it was meant to be a cliche, and in no way true, that in some ways the rich are envious of the average person, the cliche was still true. Not of everyone with a net worth over a million but a lot of us.
Of course it was nice to have money but there was a catch that went along with it. That was why so many in the upper income bracket had island getaways. Emphasis on the phrase "get away."
"It's this way," Kora said, leading me into the back room.
The nursery was lovely, done in a shade of purple I had never seen before but that looked really nice. Which is saying something, as I had never really been a fan of purple.
I thought maybe Kora had been edging her bets, not wanting to risk pink or blue. Then again, knowing her, it was also just as likely an intentional rejection of the traditional color scheme for baby girls. She had told me a bit about her upbringing and I got the feeling she had gotten her fill of traditionalist ideas quite some time ago.
"Well, what do you think?"
"Gorgeous," I said, looking right at her.
"I meant the nursery," she said with a giggle.
"So did I," I said.
"Oh," she said, seeming a bit disappointed.
"You, I would more describe as luminous."
"Oh!" she exclaimed, blushing a bright pink.
"The nursery is wonderful but -"
"But?"
I put a finger to her lips to silence her.
She wasn't happy but decided to hear me out.
"But," I started again, "I think you both belong with me."
"Both?"
I lay a hand gently on her baby bump.
"Oh."
"I've got plenty of room."
"A-are you serious?"
"Absolutely."
Kora threw her arms around my neck and kissed me, getting up on her tip-toes so she could reach. I put my hands on her hips and kissed her back, our tongues moving playfully in each others’ mouths.
My hands slid down to her ass, giving it a gentle squeeze. She gasped loudly.
"Yes?" I asked.
"Fuck yeah!" she said.
"My place?"
"Sure," she said.
We went back down to her car, which was parked outside her building.
"Maybe you should drive," she said.
"Why?"
"My bump gets up really close to the steering wheel and makes it hard."
"Oh, of course," I said, suddenly feeling a pang of sadness that I had missed so much of the pregnancy and didn’t know about these little details.
But I told myself there was still plenty of time. I was just glad that she and the baby were back with me where they belonged.
She tossed me the keys and I caught them in one hand.
“Nice job!”
"Wide-receiver, remember?"
“How could I forget?”
I helped Kora into the passenger side before getting into the driver's seat and starting up the car.
"Just Like Heaven" came one the radio. I decided to leave it.
"I know," Kora said, catching me glancing at her big boobs as we drove.
"Does it hurt?" I asked.
"Not really; I'm a bit more sensitive but it's mostly good."
"Ah."
"Wanna feel 'em?"
I glanced over at her to check if she was really serious.
She was.
"Sure," I said, getting my eyes back on the road.
Gently taking my hand, Kora slid it inside the top of her dress and onto one of her breasts. I didn't do anything for a moment for fear of hurting her.
Eventually, I started gently massaging and kneading the soft, warm flesh, Kora humming contentedly, gasping when I occasionally brushed her very hard nipple.
I could almost smell her excitement. I instinctively glanced down at her thighs. Noticing but not saying a word, she slipped off her panties, which were blue silk, and opened her legs.
"You sure?" I asked, thinking of the baby.
"Yep. It's perfectly safe until the third trimester. We have just under a month so you'd better get down there while you can."
I knew she was kidding, at least partially, but I still carefully slid my hand from her breast and moved it down to her pussy, cupping it lovingly. Kora shifted in her seat, grabbing onto the energy bar and breathing in sharply.
"You okay, honey?"
"Yes! Please, don't stop!"
I didn't stop. I kept my hand there a moment longer before beginning to softly move my hand in a clockwise motion, stimulating both her pussy lips and her clit at the same time. She moaned loudly and moved her hips as I massaged her.
Before long, she was ready, and I slid two fingers into her pussy. She nearly screamed with pleasure, sinking back into her seat, her eyes half open.
I wasn't fingering her long before her hand found its way over to my cock, which was already trying to break its way through my expensive, designer pants. I unzipped, keep
ing my other hand firmly on the wheel, making it easier for her to haul out the bulk of my hard cock. She licked her lips at the sight of it and I knew what was coming next.
Shifting her whole upper body from the hips, she lowered herself so she could get her mouth around the head of my cock, while still holding onto the base with her soft, warm hand.
This was the point where some guys would have stopped fingering their girl, focusing instead on the pleasure they were getting.
I was no such guy, multi-tasking being one of my great skills that I prided myself on, and so I kept fingering her sweet little pussy as she stroked and sucked my cock with unexpected enthusiasm, her libido apparently being as pent up and starved as mine.
I flooded her mouth with cum and she swallowed it all down, while somehow continuing to suck and stroke me. I kept my fingers deep in her pussy, working her walls, clit and occasionally, her G-spot, bringing her to a massive, shaking orgasm.
I kissed her on the cheek as she came down. She cleaned off my fingers and lay her head on my shoulder.
I put an arm around her, Kora sighing contently, my hand somehow finding its way back down to her breasts. She didn't seem to mind at all.
Chapter Twenty-Four - Kora
I hadn't been to the house in months and even then, I was being driven in and out in the back seat of a limo and then only at night. I never really got a good sense of the place.
But in a regular car, in the morning, the woods looked beautiful. Not foreboding at all. I could sort of understand why Logan's grandpa had his estate built way out here. I liked people as much as anyone but constantly being around them could be a bit much.
I loved my new apartment, but truth be told, the insulation wasn't the best going and I could hear the couple above me pretty clearly sometimes. Especially when they fucked. I had figured out where their bedroom was, though they didn’t always keep it in there, a bit of couch surfing also not being unusual, and so I put the nursery as far from it as I could.
Logan's offer for me to live with him had taken me somewhat by surprise. When I thought about it, though, it made sense. Everything I had assumed about him not being interested in me or the baby had been wrong. He loved me and was excited to be a dad and wanted us close to him and really, he did have a lot more room. As well as a good bit of land.