by C. M. Steele
“So where do you live?” She nervously changed the subject.
“Not too far from here, about another ten minutes. Do you want to eat out or pick something up?”
“Pick something up.” We were on the same level.
An hour and a pizza later, she was sleeping on my lap. I brushed my hands through her long brown hair. Thinking she couldn’t be comfortable, I got up and carried her to bed. I stood there, admiring her resting right where she belonged. If the doorbell hadn’t rung, I would have laid down with her.
Chapter 11
Charlotte
The sound of the doorbell woke me up. Stretching and rolling around in the bed, it hit me that I wasn’t in my own bed. I looked around the room and smiled. Ian carried me to bed. Curiosity getting the better of me, I climbed out of bed and quietly crept towards the bedroom door.
Just as I opened it a tiny crack, I heard a guy ask, “Where is she, bro?” Oh hell, could that be his brother? I wasn’t ready to meet his family.
“What the hell? How did you know?” Ian asked.
The other guy laughed then continued. “Come on, you think I’d let you get away with it. I had your neighbor next door let me know when you got home. That little old lady likes to gossip. I gave you a little time in case you wanted to rekindle the fire, but we waited long enough.”
I heard a bunch of footsteps which confused me since I could only hear the two of them. “She’s sleeping right now,” Ian whispered.
“It’s okay, son. We’ll be quiet.” Oh shit. His father was here? I guessed the other voice was his brother, Nick. I looked down, glad I had to dress nicely for work.
“Ooh look, pizza. Excuse me, I’m starving. We missed lunch being nosy,” he mumbled the last bit. I couldn’t see, but I bet he’d started eating the leftovers.
“So, when is the wedding?” A woman asked. Damn it, his mother was here too. It seemed like a reasonable question, especially because I’d soon be visibly pregnant. For now, I could pass for bloated after a heavy meal.
“Whenever she wants, as long as it’s sometime this week.” Why was he in a rush? I hoped it was because he loved me so much and wanted me tied to him legally.
“Ha. Bro, you’re so in love with her. Man, you fell for the girl who took your V-card.” His brother is a total shithead. I bet he was cool to hang around with. I wish I had a big brother to tease me and vice versa.
“What are you sixteen, dickhead? Who cares about that?”
I cared.
I wanted to believe him before, but it had seemed too unrealistic. Yet it had been the truth. I smiled again as my heart beat a little faster.
“Wow, so sensitive. Chill out.”
“Speaking of—have you heard from your girl?” Ian asked him. My ears perked up as I listened in like a nosy girl.
“No. She’s been avoiding me.” The sound of disappointment in his voice made my heart ache.
“Well, she put in that she’s opting out of her renewal. She doesn’t want to work with Knight Publishing any longer,” Ian told him.
“What!” he roared. “No way. That’s not happening. She’s not leaving me.” I heard the front door open seconds later as he stormed out of the house.
I exited the bedroom quietly but lurked just around the hallway out of sight.
“You’re a liar, son. I just saw the paperwork. She signed again for two more books,” his father said. Clasping my hand to my mouth, I held back a giggle. From my vantage point, I got to see them without being noticed. The resemblance between father and son was remarkable. They could pass for twins if it wasn’t for the gray around his father’s temples and the slight wrinkles around his eyes.
“I know, but he needs to get it over with. I can’t be the only one bringing grandkids into your lives,” Ian remarked nonchalantly. My eyes bugged out, seeing Ian staring at me. Shit. I’m caught.
“You’re going to start soon?” his mother squealed. Ian wagged his brows at me and held out his hand.
“We already have,” I answer, walking up to Ian and taking his hand. He pulled me to his side, holding me fiercely like I planned to run.
“Mother, father, this is my fiancée, Charlotte, the one I told you about,” he said with great pride in his smile.
Both of their mouths formed shocked “O” faces before their expressions transformed into friendly smiles. “Hello, I’m Nicholas, and this is my wife, Rosalyn.” His mother came up to us, then pulled me into a tight hug. It was a welcome surprise.
“I’m so glad he finally found you, and I can’t wait for the baby,” she squealed, touching my belly.
“Thank you,” I said gently. Before I could continue, Ian yanked me to his side.
Mr. Knight huffed then took a seat on a chair, pulling his wife down onto his lap. “We have a lot to discuss.”
“No time like the present.” Ian followed suit and sat down with me on his lap. I adjusted myself, causing him to groan. He lightly swatted my thigh, so I did it again. Then he sat me down on the seat next to him. With a look of pure lust, Ian whispered, “Bad girl, you’re going to pay for that later.
For over three hours, we sat there talking about the future. The hardest part had been when they asked about my parents.
“Dad, that’s something we need to talk about. They won’t be coming to the wedding. One of the reasons I met Charlotte again was because she was the supposed book thief.” Mr. Knight raised his brow, waiting for the rest of the story as my soul filled with embarrassment and shame.
Sensing my discomfort, Ian leaned in and took my lips in a deep kiss. Pulling back, he continued, “Her adoptive parents faked the whole information while they plagiarized our books. We’re not the only company, but they will be apprehended very soon. Mitchell made it clear they’d have it done for us.”
“I’m sorry to hear that. We don’t want to come between you and your parents,” his mother responded sweetly, pressing her hand on my knee.
“You’re not. There’s nothing to come between. Ian and I met because they ditched me in Italy. I’d decided to take a tour of the ancient ruins and not let my disappointment get me down.”
Ian’s phone pinged with a text that said, “Fuck you.” Nick apparently found out Ian had been lying.
“We’re going to leave you two. We’ll get all the arrangements settled in the next two days. It won’t be fancy, but it will be nice.”
“Thank you,” I replied, hugging his mother. She gave us both a kiss on the cheek, and they left.
As soon as he closed and locked the door, he slipped his arms around my waist and leaned down for a kiss. “How are you feeling?”
“Perfectly wonderful,” I answered, smiling up at him.
“Look, it’s raining outside,” he pointedly remarked.
“Well, then I see no point in wasting a good rainstorm,” I murmured with a smirk. He bent down and slipped one hand under my knees and the other on my back, then swiftly lifted me into his arms.
“We better get to it. I’ve missed you so much.”
Chapter 12
Ian
Two months passed since Charlotte and I rekindled our love affair, and a lot has transpired during that mess. We married a week later in my parents' foyer in an intimate ceremony and an even more intimate celebration in my old bedroom.
Another turn of events that helped ease my mind was the Crosses had been arrested on bank and wire fraud. Their capture was quick and uneventful, but they did try to lay blame at Charlotte’s feet. Our detectives were too smart for that and handed over the truth in documents from her former parents to the FBI.
I watched Charlotte as she stared without seeing out the window for the last ten minutes. The Harpers stopped by to drop off a gift of sorts for her.
“Sweetheart, don’t you want to open the box?” I stepped up behind.
“I do, but I don’t,” she answered, spinning around to look at me, tears falling from her eyes. She focused her attention on the offending box that sat on our coffee tab
le. It had been found during a search of the Crosses’ many properties. Inside were some of her birth parents’ belongings. Many of which should have been given to Charlotte from the start.
“Why?”
“Because. My heart will break even more. They’ve missed out on so much of my life, and they will never see their grandbabies. I know I should, but I just can’t right now.” I pulled her into my arms, holding her tight. She pressed her head to my chest, quietly sobbing.
“Okay. I understand. I’ll put it away.” I tenderly placed a kiss on her forehead, then moved to her soft lips. “I love you, Charlotte. I’ll always be here for you.” I stepped back and grabbed the box. The damn thing weighed a ton. Slipping it into the closet of our spare bedroom, I set it on the floor. Hopefully, she’ll want to see inside it one day.
~~~~
A week later, Charlotte woke up from a dream, panting and smiling. “What’s going on? Are you okay?” I asked, reaching to my side to hit the light switch for the lamp.
“I had the strangest and sweetest dream. I had to be about three in this dream. I’m on a sandy beach playing with my buckets. I go to lift it up, and there’s a crab inside. I howl, and a large man with kind eyes scoops me up from the ground and says, ‘It’s okay, sweetheart. Daddy will always protect you.’ It felt so real.” Large tears fell from her eyes.
I rubbed her back, trying to soothe her. I didn’t know if it was her imagination going wild or if this was a real memory.
“I want the box,” she said, scrambling to get off the bed. I stopped her.
“It’s two in the morning, Charlotte,” I groused. My eyes were heavy as hell since we’d been up past midnight fucking like animals.
“I know. You can go back to sleep. I’ll get it and look at it. I have to see what’s inside.” She was frantic about it. “I have to see.” Watching the animation of pure joy on her face should be permanent, so I relented.
“Don’t get up. I’ll bring it in here,” I grumbled, running hands through my hair, trying to shake the sleep off of me. I got the box and brought it back to the room. With only the side lamp we wouldn’t be able to see a thing.
Hitting the light switch on the wall with my elbow, the whole room illuminated. She scrunched her eyes, adjusting them to the brightness. I stood there with the box in hand, staring at my wife and thinking she had to be the most beautiful woman in the world. Her belly grew enormously in the last month, and it rested between her slender, bent legs. God, I loved her with everything in me.
“What’s wrong?” she asked.
“Nothing, you’re just perfect. So radiantly perfect.” She tilted her bashfully before turning on that mega-watt smile for me.
“Thank you, Ian.”
I set the box on the bed in front of her, sitting on her side. She turned her head to mine, staring just staring. Her teeth grabbed hold of her bottom lip, pulling it in and biting down. “My lips. Mine to bite,” I whispered, tugging it from her hold and stealing a kiss. Fuck, my dick was harder than stone. This wasn’t the best moment to take her. Instead, I pulled back and asked, “Well sweetheart, are you going to open it?”
Nodding, She popped open the flaps revealing a bunch of children’s things inside—several stuffed animals, clothes, toys. One by one she pulled each item out. Lastly, she pulled out a photo album.
The cover read, “First Five Years.” It was pink with bows, ribbons, and dolls on the cover.
We opened it to the first page which listed everything about the birth along with her baby picture. In elegant, feminine handwriting, it described the joy of her parents, Eric and Gloria.
Each page had been filled to the brim with notes and photos capturing Charlotte’s life with the two people who loved her most. Now she had me to fill that spot along with our son and after he’s born a dozen more.
We were at the photos after her third birthday, and that’s when I caught a glimpse of something amazing. In the corner of a bunch of pictures was one with her in her dad’s arms. The caption reading: Daddy is my superhero. On the ground sat her turned-over bucket and a little crab.
Our eyes met in fascinating surprise. She closed the book, tossing it to the side. Wiping the tears away, I asked, “It’s too much to look at?”
“No, it’s the end. That’s the last written page. After this, they unwillingly left me.”
“We’ll make those memories with our little one. Then we’ll be able to share this with them. Letting them meet their grandparents through their love for you.”
“Thank you, Ian. What would I do without you?” she asked, pulling the album to her chest. I kissed her head softly, holding her until she fell asleep in my arms. Settling her under the covers, I grabbed the things and stuffed them back inside the box and then set it on the floor. She clutched onto the album like it would be stolen if she didn’t let go, but I didn’t want it to get ruined, so I snatched it out of her death grip and set it on the nightstand before turning the lights off. With a sigh, I wrapped Charlotte in my arms, my hand caressing her belly. I couldn’t imagine my life without her. “Goodnight, son,” I whispered, cradling my family in my arms and drifting off to sleep.
Epilogue
Ian
“Ian, wake up,” Charlotte shouted from the edge of the bed, leaning on the footboard.
“Baby, what’s up?”
“The baby’s coming.” And like that—the sound of a water balloon hitting floor woke me up all the way. I was on my feet, running around getting everything together. The car was already packed, but she needed to be changed and right now.
I bent down and swooped her into my arms, cradling my family to the car. Damn, it’s cold and snowy out, and it’s the start of rush hour. I called 911, and they showed up ten minutes later to escort us there. “He’s coming,” she cries, freezing at the entrance of the hospital. I dropped to my knees with my hands between her legs just in time to catch my son.
No, I had no intention of trying out for the Patriots, but that had been a crucial catch for sure. The medical team rushed to us and aided Charlotte and the baby. The entire time, I stayed by her side, hoping that nothing else happened.
“Mr. Knight, I know you’re worried, but everything is fine. Are you ready to hold your son—well, again?”
“Of course.” They brought over our shiny, new son and placed him in my arms. “Wow,” I muttered, smiling down at how perfect he was. I carried him over to my beautiful wife. I could see she was tired, but she lit up as I set him down in her arms.
“Thank you, my love.” I leaned down and kissed her lips briefly. “I need to call my parents. They’re going to be rushing over.”
“Make sure they’re careful.”
“I will.”
My parents came and reluctantly left because visiting hours were over, but I wasn’t going anywhere. They have chaise loungers for the husbands, so I rested there with my handsome son, Eric. We named him after her father. This morning had been the most insane of my life, but I couldn’t be happier. “I love you, son,” I whispered, brushing my lips against his temple.
“Ian,” Charlotte whispered, tilting her head toward us.
“How are you feeling, sweetheart?” I asked, reaching out with one hand to take hers.
“Worn-out, but at least the labor was brief,” she joked, smiling at me with tired eyes.
I vehemently shook my head at the reminder that still had my heart racing. “Tell me about it. That shit happened too fast. We need to stay close to the hospital next time. There’s a hotel next door. As soon as you start feeling crampy, we’re booking a room.”
“It may not always be that way,” she contested, but it was a losing battle for her. No way in hell would that happen again.
“Listen, woman, you can prove me otherwise, but we’re not doing that shit again.” She rolled her eyes at me and twisted her lips, but I was unmoving on the issue.
“You know Eric can feel your tension,” Charlotte added, directing her attention to my little man.
“You need to pump the brakes because I’m not letting you anywhere near my girly bits for a long time.”
“We’ll see about that,” I scoffed, giving her a smirk. As soon as those six weeks were up, she’d be ready for me and then some.
“Whatever, it’s time for me to try feeding him.” I stood and handed her our heavy bowling ball baby. No wonder he practically fell out. At eleven and a half pounds the kid couldn’t fight gravity. I helped her situate the sleepy baby. He wasted no time latching onto my favorite toy.
“When you’re done, I’m going to lay him in his little cradle thing and we can both nap,” I told her, kissing her softly and brushing a few stray hairs away from her face.
“I love you, Ian.”
“I loved you first, sweetheart.”
“Whatever.”
I bent down and stole a kiss.
Charlotte
Three years later…
My faux-parents were in prison for the next ten plus years after several schemes were uncovered due to Sydney’s brilliance. Ian’s wonderful parents took little Eric for the week while we went on a trip for our third anniversary.
And now we were back where it all started. The rain was coming down as I pressed my hand on the gray stones that darkened as the water cascaded over them.
“Sweetheart, we need to get back. It’s coming down hard,” Ian whispered in my ear, slipping his hands under my flowy dress. I felt the cool breeze caress my bare ass. “You’re not wearing panties?”
“Well, I didn’t want to leave another pair here.”
“Do you mean to tell me you’ve been walking around all day with your ass on display for every other fuckhead?” he snarled, pressing his hard cock against my ass cheeks. I reached between us, stroking his length through his pants.
