by Ford, Mia
“He won’t, and you will rock this, whatever you choose. I’m here to get you through every step of this.” I wrapped my arm around her shoulder as she began crying, exposing her fear and vulnerability. I held her as she let it out, wondering what was going to happen now as I stroked Cammie’s hair.
She fell asleep there and I looked over at her before yawning. It was late, and I was so tired, but I couldn’t leave her alone. I leaned back against the cushions and closed my eyes, holding her hand tightly as I drifted off to sleep.
Chapter Nineteen
David
I looked at the clock and sighed, bringing my phone to me. I sent Brent a text asking him why my fiancée was with his girlfriend right now when she should be in my bed. It took him a few minutes, but he told me that he needed to talk to me. Could he take a car over here?
I ordered the Uber myself, paying for it. I waited out front as the car pulled up to the gate, thanking the driver as I opened the gate for Brent. He looked like shit. I knew he was drunk, but it was more than that. “Come on.” I told him as I led the way to my apartment.
“When are you going to get a real house?” He grumbled as I shot a look his way.
“In time. I like my condo for now.” I walked up the steps as he followed, reaching for the door.
“Is Jake here?” Brent asked, and I shook my head.
“They went to meet some friends about a job. We’re alone.” I opened the door and walked to the kitchen, getting him another beer against my better judgement. He was already a mess, but I knew he’d be sleeping on my cough tonight either way. “So, what’s up?”
“Cammie told me she’s pregnant tonight. I didn’t plan it. We just moved in together.” His voice was filled with the shock he was still feeling, and I raised a brow. I knew he was happy with her, but a baby was a gamechanger. I was engaged, and it would be a surprise. “She cried the entire time she told me, and I said I needed a break. It was a shit move but I had to get out of there.”
“She called Aubrey.” I assured him as Brent nodded.
“We’re taking off now, David. How am I going to manage a baby?” Brent asked as I sat down on the couch near him.
“So, you’re thinking of going through with this.” I watched his shoulders slump and he took a long draw from the beer.
“My mom raised me and Ben all on her own. I’d never abandon my child and I have no doubt that it is mine. Cammie talks a good game, but she told me that it’s been just us for longer than she wanted me to think.” I nodded, knowing this as well. I saw through her tough talk from the beginning.
“You have time to figure this out. I’ll help both of you and you know that Aubrey is going to be there for Cam. At least you can afford it.” I joked as he laughed humorlessly.
“My woman works her ass off too. There’s no way she’s doing that with our baby in her belly. She needs to take better care of herself,” he demanded as I laughed.
“That wouldn’t stop Aubrey. Our girls are independent, Brent. We need to compromise with them where that is concerned. I fight Aubrey on it all of the time.” I assured him as he looked at me.
“If she was pregnant, would you fight harder? You said you wanted that.” I tilted my head thoughtfully and formed my thoughts into words.
“I’d want her to take care of herself. I’d like to think they’d both have that in their head.” I trusted the girls to do the right thing and leaned back as I let out a breath. “A fucking baby. How far along is she?”
“Couple months. It happened when we were off working on the plans for the tour and I visited for a night. She was on antibiotics for something and it fucked up her pill. I didn’t think it would affect anything and didn’t even think about it. I missed her too much to think about anything else.” Brent shook his head and finished the beer. “I need to face this head on, don’t I?”
“Yep.” I think that we should go to your place since it’s bigger. Cammie and Aubrey are going to be like glue through this. I just hope they don’t kick your ass. I considered the two beers I’d had through the night and reached for my jacket. “I’ll drive.”
We gathered what we needed, and I headed towards his house that overlooked the water. I thought about a child growing up there surrounded by love of the best two women I could choose for this and then about Aubrey with our own down the line. If I was a betting man, I’d think it would be me first, but life threw us a curve ball. I’d be the best fucking uncle there was though. We pulled into the driveway and both looked at the house, lit in the front living room where we assumed the girls were. Brent led the way and unlocked the door, opening it slowly as we both peered inside. “Well, shit. Isn’t that sweet?” Brent asked as he stared down at the sisters sleeping with their bodies pressed together. “Aubrey has her back.”
“Always.” I agreed and smiled down at them. “Want to leave them or get them to the rooms?”
“Rooms. We’ll eat together tomorrow and talk this shit out.” I watched as he leaned down, shaking Cammie gently awake as she blinked.
“Huh? Aubrey?” She asked before she opened red rimmed eyes to look around. “Brent?”
“I’m back. Come to bed, baby.” He reached out his hand and she took it as their eyes locked. “We need to talk.” She reached out and took it, letting him pull her into his arms for a kiss. “I love you.”
“I love you.” She wrapped her arms around his waist and smiled gratefully at me. “We’ll make breakfast tomorrow.” I nodded and watched them walk down the hall to his room before I sat beside Aubrey. I stared at her for a moment, exhausted but still here for her sister when she needed her. I loved that about Aubrey and knew that she’d do the same for me. I sat down and touched her shoulder gently, watching as she stirred.
“Baby?” I asked as she opened her eyes and looked at her.
“Wait. Am I still at Cammie’s house?” She murmured in a rough voice as I smiled and nodded.
“We both came here. He’s talking to her right now and we’re staying here. Is that cool?” She pressed into me and smiled before she kissed me. “Come on. Let’s go to the guest room and get some sleep.”
I stood and pulled her by the hand to take her upstairs to the large guest room, pulling back the blankets as she stripped off her clothes. “Is he okay?”
“He’s calmed down. It just really caught him off guard but he’s not going anywhere,” I promised her, watching as she dropped her bra to the floor and slipped into bed. “Jesus, you’re sexy.” She promptly blushed and I smiled as I followed suit, stripping off my own clothes. I joined her in bed and shut the light off before I pulled her to me for a kiss.
“I love you,” she murmured as I held her close to me, breathing her in. “She’s scared too. Cam never expected this, but I swore that we’d be here for her. Well, I swore I would. I didn’t put anything on you but it’s safe to assume?” I nodded in the dim light from the moon, kissing her again.
“That goes without saying. Brent is like another brother to me. This kid will be my niece or nephew.” I smiled at the thought and shook my head. I let Aubrey fall back to sleep as I watched her, thinking about her growing with my child in the future. The image made me hard and I closed my eyes, telling myself this could wait until tomorrow.
We didn’t wake up until late the following morning and dressed to go get some of the coffee that filled the air. Aubrey pulled her hair into a messy bun before we left the room, smiling as we walked into the kitchen to see Brent and Cammie snuggling by the stove as she cracked eggs into a bowl. “Morning.” Her voice was soft as she greeted them, and Cammie smiled at her. “Everything good?”
“We talked about it and we’re going to work through this. We have time to prepare and the house has three bedrooms. We’ll be fine.” She smiled and asked if we wanted some meat in the eggs. Aubrey got us coffee and made some Belgian waffles to go with the eggs as they planned for the baby. I knew that this kid was going to be spoiled and loved so much that they’d never have to want fo
r anything. Brent also had his twin brother and mom that would love all over the new addition to the family. We sat down to eat close to an hour later, chatting and laughing over the meal. It was a relief to see Brent relaxed about the change in his future and the stars in Cammie’s eyes.
Nobody brought up marriage because that wasn’t an issue yet. They’d be parents either way and were clearly in love with each other. Once the food was gone, I offered to wash dishes and Brent helped me as the girls took their drinks outside to the back deck. I took the spot to wash and he rinsed, looking thoughtful as we worked. “You okay?”
“Yeah. I think this will work out. We’ll make it work.” He sounded positive and I nodded as I handed him the last dish. “The band is in a good place. I can take care of them.”
“We’ll have to talk her into working with Aubrey, so she can be remote and get you a family bus.” I teased him as he rolled his eyes.
“What about you?” He asked, and I dried my hands with the towel and headed to the door that led out back.
“I’m getting married first. No offense, but I want to give Aubrey the day she wants.” I smiled as he nodded with an understanding smile. We joined them with fresh cups of coffee and sat down at the table, overlooking the water a few miles away as I tossed the idea of buying a house around in my head. The condo was plenty big, but this was great. I could have a backyard and maybe a dog.
Jacob sent me a text to ask if I was okay and I called him to tell him the news about Brent. He congratulated him through the speaker and Brent thanked him as he smiled. Jacob asked if we wanted to have dinner over there and Brent invited him over to his house for probably the last BBQ of the summer. The weather was starting to turn into Fall and everything would be back to being indoors.
I ran to the store with Brent for some meat for the grill and grabbed the vegetables that Aubrey requested. I wanted dessert and grabbed some ice cream and sundae fixings for that before Brent ran back for some big potatoes to bake in the oven.
“Do you ever miss the old days?” Brent asked as we loaded the fridge and checked on how much beer there was.
“The partying?” I shrugged. “It was part of the journey and I don’t regret it. Mostly. There were a few mistakes along the way, but that’s life and we had a unique one. Now, I prefer this a lot more. I don’t miss hangovers and feeling like shit for a week at all.”
“Totally. I guess it’s Cammie’s turn for that. She said she’s been feeling nauseous and that’s what clued her in.” His brow furrowed in concern and I closed the fridge.
“We’ll get her through this. It’s going to be okay,” I promised him, and he nodded with a solemn expression on his face.
Chapter Twenty
Aubrey
The week that we had time passed quickly and soon the band was back to work. They spent days together writing and playing to perfect their sound and I wrote a lot. I still helped Cammie with the catering, but Sarah was due back to work in two weeks. Her daughter Rose was here and healthy and she was going to work part time for the first year, which Cammie could work with. I could go back to my normal schedule and I knew that David would be thrilled about that.
She brought the baby to the main offices and that was when Cammie broke the news about her pregnancy to her. She was still keeping it quiet until the twelve-week mark with most people but seeing the sweet infant broke all of her walls down. Rose even made me want a little baby of my own and we took turns holding her on a break. Sarah had met her boyfriend five years ago and they dated on and off for the first three years, finally getting serious just after that. They moved quickly and got married and she found herself pregnant a few months after the ceremony. She was happy and seemed so content being a mom and I watched as her and Cammie talked about their babies getting to know each other and become close friends.
I felt a bit left out and was happy when David sent me a text on his break. He sounded tired and I urged him to come home early tonight and get some sleep. It was such a change from before when he was hounding me to take better care of myself. Now I knew how he felt. I ended the conversation telling him that I loved him, and I’d get dinner on the way home for us. Jacob and Vanessa were gone again, and we could have a quiet night in. There were no events tonight and I just wanted to go to bed early with my man.
Cammie had stars in her eyes when Sarah left for the day. If she wasn’t excited about the baby before, she wanted to deliver tomorrow now. She told me how excited she was to meet her son or daughter and see Brent as a father.
I got home with pizza later and placed it on the counter as David walked in. He glanced at me with a weary smile, dropping his keys on the counter and coming over to kiss me. “How are you?”
“I…I think my sister might be getting on my nerves.” I hated saying that and he frowned at me.
“What do you mean?”
“Well, we’re supposed to be planning the wedding and we are. It’s just that she’s so tunnel minded on the baby now. I need her, David. My mom isn’t here, and we have nobody else.” I looked at him with all of the fear that I was feeling inside.
“Baby, you know that my mom and sisters are all over this. Vanessa even wants in.” He told me as I nodded with tears filling my eyes. “The timing isn’t ideal. I’ll give you that. But our wedding day is going to be everything that you want it to be.” I kissed her softly. “I will see to that.”
“Sarah brought the baby in today. Rose is so beautiful, and it even made me want one.” I looked at him with wide eyes as he pulled me against him.
“We will have our own. Let’s get married and enjoy that. Maybe do some house shopping down the line.” I gasped as he smiled. “I like Brent’s place. I’d like something bigger.”
“What about Jacob?” I asked as he shrugged.
“He can stay. I don’t mind but I think he’s getting serious with Vanessa. They might get their own place soon.” David shrugged, and I walked to the fridge to pour some wine. “Grab me a beer, baby?”
I did and handed it to him before getting us plates. We sat at the breakfast bar to eat and I asked him about practice. He’d been writing hard since the tour started and I wanted to read all of it. David was private about his writing and preferred that I hear the finished product once it was all said and done. I respected that, but it killed me not to pry. I loved his enthusiasm about music and soaked it all in. We were the same way about our passions and he supported my writing as much as I supported his music.
After dinner, we placed the rest of the pizza in the fridge and dumped the plates in the sink. David took my hand and led me to our bedroom, pulling me inside before he pressed me against the wall. “This is my favorite part of the day, baby. I love when the day slows down and it’s just us in our element.” He kissed me slowly, deepening it as I wrapped my arms around his neck. “I love feeling you in my arms and how you taste.”
I backed us up to the bed and he turned to sit down, pulling me on his lap. I wore leggings today since we were just meal planning and my legs wrapped easily around him as I kissed him hungrily. David moaned against me before he reached down to pull my Henley over my head, kissing me again as he dropped it to the floor. He cupped my breasts through the thin cotton bra, making me moan as my nipples pebbled against him. “David. I need you.”
“I want you so fucking bad,” he murmured before he kissed my neck, pressing his open mouth to my skin as I closed my eyes. I pulled at his comfortable t-shirt and stroked his bare skin as he moved his mouth down my body. He sucked my nipple through the thin material and I arched my back as I dragged my short nails over his skin. I moved my hands to his shoulders and he sucked harder, drawing his teeth over my skin.
I rolled away from him, ripping his shirt from his chest before moving behind him to kiss his neck. I wrapped my arms around him, stroking his sculpted muscles as desire flooded through me. “Baby,” he moaned as he tried to reach back to touch me. I slipped my hand into his jeans, gripping his thick shaft as he moaned loudly
. I laughed as David managed to pull me in front of him, tearing down my leggings before he pushed me to my back. I cried out as he buried his face between my legs and ate away at me.
I came first around his tongue and then he moved over me, sliding inside of me with one hard thrust. I held him close and wrapped my legs around him as he worked out every bad part of his week on my body. I gave him my worries as I rocked against him, needing every inch. David grunted as he moved harder and deeper until he was filling me with words of love coming from his tongue in between kisses. We collapsed together, and he held me close as I pressed my mouth to his neck.
David fell asleep before I did, exhausted from his day. I pulled on a shirt and went to get some water before I joined him in bed. I listened to the silence in the house, trying to picture the house we might live in someday. I curled up on my side and smiled as I closed my eyes, breathing in the scent of my man and our love.
I took the next morning to write as David slept in. He needed it and I loved the quiet to get some work done. I looked outside to the overcast sky as I sipped hot coffee, smiling at my future. My phone rang, and I glanced down, seeing Cammie’s name. I smiled, answering it. “Hey, sis. How are you feeling?”
“A little nauseous and a lot like an asshole.” I raised my brows at her words. “I have been so obsessed with a baby that won’t be here until after your wedding. We need to make that a perfect day. I can work on baby stuff around your plans.”
“I want to celebrate both,” I assured her as a tear slid down my cheek. We chatted about the ideas for the wedding that was going to be fairly small with some family and friends. I didn’t want to spend a lot of money, but I wanted it to be beautiful and original to us. I was going to start shopping for a dress and Cammie worried about fitting into hers with the pregnancy. I personally couldn’t tell that she was even pregnant right now and she’d be gorgeous in five months. I suggested something flowing that would suit her curves and planned to let her choose her color. I’d pick flowers based around that.