by ANGEL PAYNE
I circled my arms around her waist. Flattened my face along her belly. Barely managed to hold in my own bewildered sob.
Holy. God.
Our child was inside her body. Right now. The thought was so fucking amazing and terrifying at the same time. When she threaded her fingers through my hair and held my head tighter against her, the moment froze in time. I didn’t deny its importance. The crest upon which we stood. Maybe what I’d been working and waiting for my whole life. The edge I’d really been looking for.
A new beginning. A chance to start life over again.
“Sebastian,” she whispered at last. “I’m pregnant.”
“Abbigail.” I turned my head, lifted her shirt an inch, and kissed her soft skin. “I know.”
“You…what?” she croaked.
“Well, I had an idea.”
She started breathing faster. I lifted my head to look at her. Her beautiful eyes were still filled with tears, but now they were luminous with fear.
“Hey. Abbi—”
“I swear I didn’t do it on purpose.”
I crunched my brows. Gripped one of her hands. “Why would you say that? Or feel you needed to? Of course, you didn’t get pregnant on purpose.”
She pulled her hand free and joined it with the other, cradling the sides of my face. “I…I was so afraid,” she confessed. “So terrified you’d think I was trying to…”
“To what?”
“To trap you.”
“Trap me?” I showed her every shred of my bewilderment.
“Bas,” she chided. “You didn’t even want a girlfriend, for God’s sake. And now you’re going to have a child.”
“We.” I covered her hands with my own while stressing the word. “We, Abbigail. We are going to have a child.” I actually chuckled by then. “And God help us all, there’s a part of me that wants to be a father. That wants to raise a family.”
Abbi flared her gaze. “There is?”
“Yes. But I would never have given that wild idea a second thought with any other woman besides you.”
Her bottom lip wobbled. “I’m…I’m so scared.” She stopped the trembling by biting hard into her full flesh. “The timing of all of this…”
“I know, I know.” I rose to sit beside her on the bed. “And I don’t have a poetic sentiment to cover that one up. The timing is completely shitty. But baby, life is like that sometimes.”
“I guess you’re right.”
For the first time since I sent her to stay at this house in the desert, she gave me a genuine smile. As I cherished the swell of warmth in my chest from it, she abruptly stood. When she marched to the bathroom with such purpose, my mushy feelings fled. I was afraid she was about to be sick again. Instead, she returned with a small brown shopping bag in her hand. She returned to her spot next to me and pulled out the pregnancy test and handed me the white stick.
“Well, would you look at that.” I couldn’t help the grin that spread across my face. “You passed this thing with flying colors, baby.”
“I did, didn’t I?” She laughed. “God…” She rubbed her stomach. “I just wish I felt better. This little person has your temperament already, I can tell you that much.”
“Or possibly yours?” I gave her a disapproving scowl. “I hear you’ve been quite the fierce housemate still.”
“Elijah Banks is not exactly Mary Poppins,” she said with bite.
I burst out in a full laugh. “Oh, I know. Trust me, I know.”
The doctor arrived a little early, and Abbigail asked to be left alone with the female obstetrician so she could be examined without me hovering. They both promised to give me a full report as soon as they were through.
When I went out into the great room, I found Elijah and Grant sitting on the sofa, sipping glasses of whiskey.
“How is she?” Grant asked.
“She’s okay. She’s with the doctor now. Guess we’ll have a definitive answer soon enough.”
“Dude.” Elijah tilted his head, adding a bemused smirk. “This is—”
I held up my hand, already stopping the lecture. “Save it, man. I don’t need it right now. I could use a glass of that, though.” I pointed to the drink as he lifted the tumbler to his lips. “And I will warn you fuckers now,” I added, becoming lethally serious. “The first one to make a Daddy Shark comment or sing that damn song will get cut in his sleep.”
I fell into the armchair across from my two friends, and the three of us burst out laughing.
Chapter Seven
Abbigail
“Since your period was due two weeks ago, you likely conceived about two weeks before that.”
As Dr. Landon explained all the details, Sebastian and I listened carefully. I looked up at my man’s intense profile, already able to read his mind. He was trying to remember where we were precisely at that time, wanting to commit every single moment of our child’s history to memory. He was combing through the same details I’d already reviewed—in painstaking detail. Since I had nothing but time on my hands these days, I’d been able to devote a good chunk of brain space to the process. Thanks to my uncooperative stomach, no way had I been able to use my downtime for perfecting recipes or working on the restaurant’s business plan.
The expression on the doctor’s face said that special free time still wasn’t about to happen. “For now, we need to start some IV fluids, Abbigail. Just from testing your urine, I can see you’re definitely dehydrated. That’s not good for you or the baby. I know you’re having trouble keeping things down”—she patted my hand with compassionate care—“so we can do things this way for now. After twenty-four to forty-eight hours, you should feel remarkably better. Maybe then you can start back on eating bland foods.”
“Can we hear the baby’s heartbeat?”
Sebastian’s question surprised me but in a good way. His excitement, already so palpable, touched a deep place in my heart—and then even deeper than that. I had to close my eyes to will away the emotion—but even with my eyes shut, I discerned the smile in Dr. Landon’s answer.
“It’s still a little too early, but that doesn’t mean there’s anything wrong.”
I gave in to my own soft smile. Boy, did this woman have my man’s number already. That definitely would’ve been the next question from his mouth.
“At around eight weeks, we will be able to hear the heartbeat. If Abbigail has the conception date correct, she’s only around six now. We should be able to hear your child in two more weeks.”
“I can’t wait.” He leaned over and squeezed my hand. “You doing okay, baby? Warm enough?”
“Yeah, I’m fine. Just tired. But what else is new?” I laughed a little, but the burst was forced. Dr. Landon was competent; I already knew that much. But I still wasn’t looking forward to having an IV in my arm. I sucked down a long breath, struggling to stay calm about this whole thing.
“I’m going out to my car to get the necessary supplies to start your IV,” she said. “And then you can rest. If you want to take a quick shower or do anything that would be easier while you aren’t tethered to a pole, I suggest you do it now.”
“I’ll have one of the staff show you out to your car.” Bas walked out the door with the doctor.
Slowly, I got up from the bed, holding on to furniture as I went, and moved into the bathroom. Bas came in with a panicked look, having worked himself up between seeing the empty bed and finding me in the bathroom. I put my flat palm on his chest and said, “You have to calm down. It’s going to be the longest nine months on the planet if you keep acting this way.”
“Sorry. Christ, I’m sorry.” As he dragged a hand through his thick waves, worry twisted his handsome features. “I thought you were throwing up again.”
“No.” I stroked his arm, glad for the chance to focus away from my condition and onto his comfort instead. “I thought I’d take her advice and shower, even though I just had one. The hot water feels so good on my overly sensitive skin.”
&nbs
p; “Need some help?”
“No. You’re sweet, Bas, but I can manage—and I may need you more in a bit, when I’m not able to move around so easily.”
“Fair enough.” He conceded much easier than I expected, though there was already fresh purpose in his eyes. “I’ll go find Dori to change your linens, then. Elijah said you and her seem to be getting along really well? And you’ve mentioned she makes your bed just the way you like it.”
I answered him with an indulgent smile. The man was seriously like a German Shepherd sometimes. At his best when he had a clear purpose.
As soon as he was gone, I closed the bathroom door and flipped the lock, ensuring some privacy when he came back. With my back against the door, I closed my eyes.
And finally, for the very first time, let all the information sink in.
Deeply.
We were really going to have a baby.
Actual human life was growing inside my own.
If there was any time to be justified in throwing up my guts, this was it. But I wasn’t nauseated. Not even a faint wisp of the stuff.
That glaring clarity had ushered in a bigger revelation. A purpose that split open my senses like a giant diamond had been lobbed into my chest, scattering a thousand prisms of decision through my being.
I couldn’t stay here any longer. Not in this desert. Not in this house. Not this far from my baby’s beautiful, beguiling father.
But weirdly, I knew that my pregnancy wasn’t the only pivotal factor here. As well as he wore impending fatherhood, that wasn’t the sole turning point for my determination.
I needed to be with him. Period. In my heart, in my soul, with all of my body and mind. And I refused to accept his mandates about the matter anymore. When he went back to Los Angeles, whether it was tonight, or tomorrow, or in a week, I was going with him. I wouldn’t take no for an answer. If he was still convinced I was in danger, he could surround me with five ex-football players if he pleased. But my sanity—and now the wellness of our unborn child—would no longer pay the price for his paranoia.
I needed to go home.
The resolve brought me a new surge of energy. I took a shower and even did the extra things I’d been ignoring lately. I shaved my legs, used the sugar scrub on my dry skin, and also went so far as the second lather of shampoo before conditioning.
I’d lost track of the fact that Dr. Landon was waiting to start the IV until I stepped back into the bedroom and five pairs of expectant eyes were waiting for my reentry.
“Whoa, shit,” I muttered, glancing around the crowded room. “Well, the gang’s all here.”
Not an understatement. They really were. Sebastian, Elijah, Grant, Dori, and Dr. Landon were all present. Perhaps blushing and shifting more uncomfortably than me—which was kind of funny, since they weren’t the ones wrapped only in a towel.
“Wh-What’s going on?” I blurted. “Why is everyone—”
“Nothing’s wrong, Red.” Bas rushed forward with such fervency, I got panicky all over again. “Baby,” he soothed. “Honestly; everything’s fine. The guys just wanted to give their official congratulations to us.”
“And I just finished changing out the bed, Miss Gibson,” Dori offered.
“And Dr. Landon’s ready to start the IV,” Bas finished. “So nothing’s wrong at all.”
I still side-eyed him. “All right…”
“Do you want pajamas?”
I watched, stunned, as he pawed through my nightwear drawer for the second time this evening, and came up with a set decorated in cartoon cooking utensils this time.
Once dressed, Dr. Landon instructed me to sit on the bed and get comfortable while she checked my arm for a good place to stick the needle. I wasn’t a fan of the process but knew it needed to be done for the sake of the precious bean inside my belly. The men were talking among themselves in the corner, not paying attention to my distress, so that helped as well. I hated being the center of attention when I was showing weakness. Who didn’t, really? No one liked all eyes on them when they weren’t at their best.
In a few minutes, I was all set up and lying back against a stack of pillows. Sebastian had broken away from his friends and was back to fussing over me.
“Why don’t you try to get some sleep, baby?” He bent down until we were at eye level, piercing me with his intense blue stare. “Can I do anything to help you get more comfortable?”
I reached up and flattened a palm to his strong, stubbled jaw. Holy God. The man was normally beyond beautiful, but in this moment of our connection, he’d never taken my breath away more. “Can you…will you…lie down with me for a while?” I whispered.
“Of course,” he husked. “But I want you to try to sleep.”
“I don’t think that’s going to be a problem.” I forced a smile, and that was enough to have Bas turning toward the small crowd in the room. Our guest count had grown by a few, as the other staff members came in to start up their own conversation with Dori.
“All right.” His voice was back to its commanding boardroom best. “Everybody out.”
He herded our company into the hall. That included the kind doctor. He followed Dr. Landon out and paused to speak with her for a few minutes. They’d cut their tones to considerate murmurs, so I was unable to hear their exchange.
When Bas came back into the room, he removed his shoes and shirt and then stretched out beside me. Taking care not to strain my IV line, I snuggled against him. His broad pecs rose and fell beneath my cheek. I focused on pulling in a matching breath, gratefully filling my senses with his familiar scent. As the crisp blend of cedar and my man calmed my nerves, I murmured into his skin, “Congratulations, Papa.”
He lifted a hand to my hair and started stroking his fingers through it. “I love you, Mama.”
I hummed in bliss. I think. His rhythmic motion, along with his strong and warm proximity, was lulling me to the land of the sleep comas. “I…love you…too…”
When I opened my eyes again, the room was dark. And quiet. And empty.
I told myself not to panic. He wouldn’t have left without saying goodbye. Not this time.
After hauling the IV stand across the room and using the restroom, I found my phone on the nightstand. Less than a minute after I texted him, Sebastian bounded back into the master suite and hauled me into his arms.
“My Little Red.” After kissing my forehead, he pulled back a little to dazzle me with his full smile. “How was your nap? How are you feeling?”
“It was good. I’m fine. I don’t even remember falling asleep. Were you working?”
“Yes. There’s always something.” He smiled halfheartedly. “And I was also on the line with Pia, giving her an update.”
“Oh.” I felt my own lips curving upward. “I miss her. How is she?”
“Asking about you,” he supplied. “Both she and Vela wanted me to forward their love.”
His smile widened—as it always did when he spoke of his sister and niece. For several seconds, I sat and simply absorbed its stunning magic, from the sexy gleam of his perfect teeth to the pure happiness in his dark-cobalt gaze—and I recognized the blessing with which I’d been bestowed. When most of the world talked about the power of Sebastian Shark, they referred to his corporate drive and his commanding swagger. For the rest of time, I’d think of him exactly like this. Radiating the love in his heart. Exposing the huge capacity of his soul.
Which was why I already dreaded having to crack him open in both places.
“How…how sweet of them,” I stammered before hoisting on my proverbial big-girl panties and spurting in one long rush, “Sebastian, I want you to take me home.”
His grin faded. His face tightened. “Baby—”
“I’m serious.”
He glowered. “So am I.”
“I understand that.” I straightened my spine against the pillows. Jerked my chin higher. Most importantly, I met his gaze without a blink. “But it’s time for you to understand my perspective
too. We belong together, especially now. But even if that wasn’t the case, we’d be having this exact conversation. I refuse to stay here by myself while you go—”
“You’re not by yourself,” he spat.
“With all due respect, Mr. Shark, that’s bullshit.”
“Christ, Abbigail.” He paced a contorted figure-eight across the floor. “Please don’t argue with me!”
“No.” I raised my volume but—miraculously—kept my tone level. “This time, you don’t argue with me!”
He stopped and rushed out a weighted sigh. “I still have no idea if it’s safe. And now, other problems have come up that will require my time. It’s really not—”
“Then call in a battalion of security if you have to. I’m going with you, Bas, whether it’s on that helicopter or on my own two feet.”
He spun around. His chest was pumping. The only other time I’d seen him breathe so hard was during his wildest orgasms—an image I really didn’t need right now, with my system flushed in fresh sleep, half a bag of IV hydration, and a bunch of pregnancy hormones.
“I need to start care with my own doctor, Sebastian—the one who will be following me through the whole pregnancy, especially if the nausea is going to continue.” I capped that point by holding up the arm that housed the IV.
He didn’t let up with the hard breathing. Or the tormented look that now went with it. “Abbi, please,” he gritted. “I’m not trying—”
“I know you’re not, baby. But I’ve been more than patient with all of this.” I waved my untethered hand around, letting it symbolize my frustration with every part of the sequestration. “But my feelings don’t matter anymore. This child is the most important detail in the picture now.”
“And you don’t think I get that?”