by Kelly Myers
I roll off her and onto my side next to her. I look at her delicate features, glistening with the afterglow of her orgasm. She looks over at me and gives me a smile.
“Thank you,” she says. “For everything.”
I trail my hand over her torso and let it rest on her stomach. “I should be thanking you. You’ve made me so happy.”
Tears glisten in her eyes and she brushes them away.
“I’ve cried way too much tonight.” She chuckles. “But I’m just so happy. And tired.”
“Well, you can sleep now,” I say. “You don’t need to worry about anything, I’m going to help you through this.”
She nods. “I’ll probably worry a little, it’s in my nature.”
I roll onto my back and pull her closer to me so that her head rests on my chest.
“I’ll have to make sure I keep you distracted and relaxed,” I say.
Cynthis smiles and cuddles closer to me.
We do have a lot to face in the coming days. Cynthia will have to get through graduation, first and foremost. She will have to tell her mother about us and her pregnancy. That conversation might be difficult, but I’m determined to do whatever it takes to show Cynthia’s family and friends that I am worthy of her. And that I’m going to take care of her.
Then we’ll have to find a place to live in New York. Luckily, I’ve spent enough time there and I have enough income that I’ll be able to find somewhere perfect for us in a neighborhood that is close to Cynthia’s school and is good for raising our baby.
It takes my breath away every time I think about it. I’m going to have a baby. Cynthia and I are going to have a child together.
I did want kids, a long time ago. I thought when Lianne and I got married that it was inevitable. Then, when that exploded in my face, and I swore off committed relationships, I figured children were just something I would have to sacrifice.
And now, when I had given up all hope, Cynthia has granted me this unexpected gift. I’m going to be a father. It wouldn’t feel so right if it weren’t Cynthia. The idea of having a family with her doesn’t scare me or make me hesitate. I know it’s going to be ok, because it’s me and her.
I press my lips against her hair.
“How are you feeling?” I ask. “Any stomach sickness or dizziness?”
“Oh, I threw up at the party.”
I sit straight up, startling Cynthia from her resting spot. “What? Why didn’t you say anything?”
“Um, I was a bit distracted by you jumping out of the bushes and yelling at me.” She laughs and curls up under her blanket. “It was no big deal.”
“I wasn’t in the bushes,” I grumble. “And I just want to make sure you’re healthy. I’ll start looking for a doctor tomorrow so we can get you an appointment.”
“Who knew you could be this doting?” Cynthia teases.
“I’m going to be the best partner I can be,” I say. “For you. And for the baby.”
Cynthia props her head up and smiles at me. “Stop, or you’ll make me cry again.”
I lay back down and fold her into my arms.
She lets out a hum of satisfaction.
“I love you,” I say. “I’m going to say it every day so you never forget.”
“I love you too,” Cynthia says.
She’s quiet for a while, and her breathing slows. I’m convinced she’s asleep when I feel her stir and say my name.
“What is it?” I ask.
“Do you really think I can do it?” she asks. “Have the baby and do medical school?”
“I know you can,” I say. “Because there’s no one as hardworking and determined as you.”
“And I’ll have your help,” she says.
“And that.”
She closes her eyes and after a while, I can tell she really is asleep. I don’t join her in slumber for a while. I’m content to just lie there, enjoying the weight of her in my arms. I run through everything that needs to get done. I’ll have to find a new renter for this apartment, but that will be easy enough. I won’t bother renting my own house because it will be nice to have a place to go to on weekends and holidays.
I think a three bedroom apartment in New York should be suitable for us. That way Cynthia’s mother can visit whenever she wants. I hope she will visit. I know how close Cynthia is, and I think it would be nice to have help with the baby.
I’m pretty sure we can manage though. Cynthia is young, but she’s competent. I know she’ll adapt to motherhood like a pro, even with her studies.
And even if she’s overwhelmed, I’ll make sure I ease the load. I can easily lower my hours of working, and stay at home with the baby. I intend to commit wholeheartedly to fatherhood.
No matter what it takes, Cynthia and I and our child are going to be happy.
I stare at the ceiling and shake my head in bemusement. Two months ago, she was just the college student next door that I thought was attractive. Now I’m ready to move towns and change my entire lifestyle for her, and she’s worth it. She’s changed me. Or rather, she has fixed something inside me that was broken long ago. With her by my side, I’m a new man.
It’s going to be different this time. I’m a better person, and I’m more prepared to commit to one woman. Cynthia is different too. She’s special. I understand and admire her, and I feel like she understands me as well.
And I can’t wait to tell her all about my plans for us in the morning.
Epilogue
Cynthia
One Year Later
I take a deep breath as I emerge from the underground subway station. Even after a full ten months of being a New Yorker, I’m still not used to crowded and noisy subway. Nate says I need to give it another fifteen years or so.
Luckily, I adore everything else about the city. I love all the restaurants and the bustling streets. I like my classes and the wide range of medical students I’ve met.
Most of all, I love exploring the city with Nate and now Matthew, our son.
The day he was born was the craziest but happiest day of my life.
The one perk of being an insanely young mother was that my pregnancy was pretty easy. I didn’t have to worry about any of the risks that might face an older woman having a baby. Instead, I just had to stress about things like telling my mother I was moving in with my much older boyfriend who used to be my landlord and, oh yeah, I was pregnant with his child.
She was shocked, understandably. But once she got used to the idea and was able to spend time with Nate and see how well he takes care of me, she came round. When I was about five months, she confessed to me that she’s actually glad I was having a baby earlier than planned because during her cancer, one of her greatest fears was that she would never get to meet her grandchildren. That made me cry, but at that point, thanks to the pregnancy hormones, everything was making me cry.
Nate was right though. I managed to excel in my classes and take care of my unborn baby throughout my pregnancy. Of course, he was a massive help. He took care of so many of the logistics of moving to New York, and arranging doctor’s appointments. He told me over and over that all I had to worry about was my studies. Even on my darkest days, when I was feeling too exhausted to continue, he assured me that I was going to be a doctor.
Then I had Matthew, and I knew that every struggle of the pregnancy had been worth it. Because he’s amazing. Nate is just as obsessed. He’s been doting over our child since the second the newborn was placed in his arms.
My phone buzzes, and I look down. It’s a text from Becca about the new guy she’s seeing. I shake my head and smile. I’ll respond once I get home. And after I give Matthew several hundred kisses. I miss him when I’m at classes, but luckily, summer break is about to start. I’m still doing a few courses, but I’ll have much more time to spend with my darling baby.
Becca and I have kept in good touch over the last year. Strangely, she was not as shocked when I told her about Nate before graduation. She admitted that she knew some
thing was up with me, she just couldn’t figure it out. She said it made sense I was with an older guy.
“You were always too mature for the guys our age,” she joked.
I turn the corner onto our block, and I pick up my pace. No matter how long my day of school has been, I always get so excited and re-energized when I get home. Everyone says being a new mother is exhausting, and it’s true, but the joy Matthew gives me rejuvenates me. Besides, Nate never lets me get too tired. He always insists on getting up when Matthew cries in the night and doing so much of the childcare.
I breeze through the doors of our apartment building and wave to the doorman as I head to the elevator.
Once I get to our floor, I’m practically skipping with excitement.
“I’m home!” I cry.
I kick off my ballet flats and toss my bag on the bench before scampering through our living room and into the kitchen, where Nate is stirring a pot of something that smells delicious, and Matthew is giggling in his high chair.
He shrikes in delight when he sees me and waves his little fists in my direction. I run first to him and kiss him all over until he is laughing uncontrollably. Then I turn to Nate. He wraps his arm around my waist and kisses me on the mouth.
I melt against him. Every single day, I just love him more.
“How was school?” he asks.
“Good,” I say. “I did well on that exam last week.”
“I knew you would.” Nate gives me a wink.
I turn back to my baby, and sit down in the chair next to him. Matthew is messing around with a little bowl of formula, but it’s clear that not much is getting to his mouth. I pick up a napkin and dab at his adorable little face. He has dark eyes like Nate, but my mother swears he has my mouth, and it looks like he’ll get my thick dark hair as well. He’s such a happy baby as well, always giggling and hugging people.
I stop short when I see something sparkling in the little pocket of Matthew’s bib.
“Nate, what’s this?” I freeze as I reach for the glimmering item and see what it is.
A ring. A gorgeous diamond on a silver band.
I pluck it out of Matthew’s bib and turn to Nate. He has sunk to one knee behind me.
My mouth drops open.
“Cynthia, you have made me the happiest man on earth,” Nate says. “And I want you to let me try and make you just as happy. Will you marry me?”
I’m stunned. I knew Nate wanted to get married, but I assured him I was in no rush. It’s not like I was desperate for him to make an honest woman of me. Even so, I’ve had daydreams about this moment. And it’s even more perfect than I imagined. The ring is beautiful, and I’m so happy Matthew is here to be a part of it.
I open and close my mouth, and tears spring to my eyes. Matthew lets out a delighted giggle, as if he knows what’s happened.
“Yes!” I cry at last. “Yes of course!”
Then I throw myself into Nate’s arms. He laughs and kisses me as hard as he can.
Then I lift Matthew out of his seat so I can hug them both at the same time and once again appreciate how lucky I am to have two such amazing gifts in my life.
Excerpt: Yes Daddy
I’m so tempted to claim Eden.
So tempted to ravish her.
But she’s the woman who is completely off limits.
Eden works at my beach house as a maid.
She’s over a decade younger than me.
Gorgeous. Submissive. Innocent.
I’m insanely protective of her.
And I care about what she thinks of me.
I’ve got a past.
Things that won’t sit well with her.
Drama that might tear us apart.
But her safety and happiness come first.
And I need her troublesome stepfather to back off.
Eden is my responsibility.
She has my heart.
Will she want to keep it once she finds out what I’m hiding?
Eden
As soon as I opened the door after work, I heard one of my younger sisters scream at the top of her lungs. “Ow! Stop! You’re hurting me.”
My heart leapt into my throat as my sister’s voice rang out. I dropped my purse and ran.
I raced into the kitchen to find my sister, Piper holding a wooden spoon in her hand. Her wrist had a bright red mark on it.
My stepfather loomed over her. His pasty white face was red as he panted and snarled. He grabbed for her arm again, but she jumped back, weidling the spoon. “Get away from me!” she yelled.
“I’ll beat your ass, you ungrateful little shit,” he bellowed, getting right in her face.
Him berating her was a common sight. Him threatening to hit her was not. And, if that red mark on her arm was from him, there would be Hell to pay. He was not going to put his disgusting hands on either of my sisters.
I looked around for any weapon that might come in handy. I’d never hurt anyone in my life, but I was not going to let this monster touch my sister. “Mike. Get away from her.”
His head swiveled in my direction. “You’re not in charge here, no matter how much you’d like to think so,” he said, but he took a step back. He hated me, and the feeling was mutual, but he liked the full-time paycheck I brought in that paid the rent.
“What’s going on?” I asked, hoping I could distract him.
My other sister Penny appeared from behind the table. They were identical twins, and they’d just turned sixteen years old. “He called us worthless,” Penny said.
“Yeah,” Piper chimed in. “And, he said he was going to make us work full time this fall once you went to college. I told him that was bullshit.”
I needed to defuse this powderkeg. There was no way Mike was going to make them quit school, because they weren’t going to be here in Georgia. They were coming to Florida with me, where I was finally going to start college. I might be twenty-two, but I’d worked my ass off to apply for scholarships and grants, and I’d finally gotten enough funding to leave. Mike wasn’t aware of that fact, because it wasn’t his business.
I looked at both of my sisters. “Go to your room.” They knew what that meant. They were supposed to go to their rooms, grab the bags they had packed and any money they’d stashed away, and then wait for me. I thought they’d protest at first, but thank God they listened.
He pointed his finger at me. “You’re a good-for-nothing whore, just like your mother.”
Before I could think of a comeback, he turned and left. He slammed the door behind him, and then I heard the engine of the car roar to life. I peeked out the window. Good. He was leaving.
I sank into a chair. I just needed a second to catch my breath. I still had on the apron I wore at the local grocery store, where I was the shift manager.
I had to get my sisters the hell out of here. We’d been living on borrowed time with Mike, and we all knew it. Our mother had left all of us over a year ago, and he’d gotten increasingly hostile. It was only a matter of time before we had to go.
We had a car, but Mike’s name was on the lease, so I couldn’t take it, not unless I wanted him reporting me for car theft. Besides, he’d just driven off in it, and I wanted to get my sisters out now.
After I sat for a few minutes, I pulled a Coke out of the fridge. Mike kept them for himself, for when he drank Jack Daniels whisky and Coke. We weren’t allowed to drink them, even though my paycheck probably paid for them.
Fuck him. I was drinking this Coke, and then my sisters and I were getting on a bus and getting out of this town.
We had a cousin in Santa Rosa, Florida, and her house was very close to the beach. She’d told us all about it last Christmas when she’d come home to visit our grandmother. She was the closest person to us that I could ask for a favor, and she was our only family member who held down a steady job. Maybe she’d take us in, and I could pay her some rent. As soon as we got onto a bus and headed south, I’d call her and see if she’d take us in until I could find a job.
We’d never been to the beach before. It would be an adventure for me and the twins. I had to cling to the hope that things would look up if we ran away to Seagrove, because they were pretty freaking shitty here with Mike.
Luke
I stood on the porch of my newly-acquired property, and wondered --.what the hell did I want with a tiny resort house in the middle-of-nowhere Florida? It even had a name -- Apricot Sunset. It wasn’t the kind of name I’d have chosen, but that’s how the tourists knew it, so the name stayed.
It wasn’t in Miami, or even Orlando. It was in a little place called Seagrove. Quaint, was what the executor of the will had called it. My aunt had passed away, and she’d left me the three-story home that functioned as a bed and breakfast.
If my aunt hadn’t loved it so much, I probably would have donated it or sold it on day one. Instead, I had moved in.
I was no stranger to hard work, or to running a business. But, in Seattle I’d run a multi-billion dollar investment company. I understood profit margins and advertising, and how to handle a board of directors.
Running a small business? I had no clue.
My brother Alec, who ran a tech company in Portland, Oregon, texted me frequently to give me a hard time about my ‘early mid-life crisis.’
He probably wasn’t wrong.
But crisis aside, I needed someone to clean the place, and handle the day-to-day aspects of making sure a hotel was hospitable. My aunt had offered every guest two meals per day. None of those things were going to come from me -- I hadn’t cleaned or cooked in fifteen years, so I’d taken meals off the list of amenities offered.
Even though it was a headache for me, I really wanted to make it work. My aunt had loved this place. As a teen and younger man, I hadn’t really understood why, but now that I was thirty-eight years old, it made more sense. It was peaceful in a way the rocky coast of the Pacific Ocean wasn’t. It was quiet in a way that even the most breathtaking beaches in Greece weren’t.