Now That I Found You: A Tortured Heroine Standalone Romance (Heart's Compass Novella)

by Brooke O'Brien

  Pacing back and forth in front of the door, I hear two light knocks. Quickly looking back and forth, I look for any sign Callum could be here before looking up at the security camera.

  I squint my eyes at them, hating how I’m trying to surprise him, but the eagle eyes from above are watching me like a hawk. I understand now more than ever how important it is, but I’ve never been a fan of technology. I wish I didn’t need these to feel safe in my own home.

  Opening the door, I’m greeted with Kinsley’s face beaming a smile at me.

  She holds the large frame covered by a bag up in the air and wags her eyebrows at me. “I got the goods!”

  “Okay, come in, but hurry. Callum is in our bedroom lying down and if he hears you, I’m worried he’ll check the cameras from the iPad and the surprise will be ruined.”

  “Alright, well, quit talking and let me in already.”

  I roll my eyes at her and smile, opening the door.

  “Oh, God, I can’t wait to hear about his reaction. If only I could be a fly on the wall when you tell him.” She bounces around all giddy as she whispers to me.

  “Come here, I want to get away from that dang camera,” I mutter, leading her into the living room area with the bag in my hand.

  Setting it on the couch, she helps me open the bag. Kinsley has been a lifesaver helping me organize this surprise for Callum. As soon as I read the quote on the frame, tears fill my eyes.

  “Do you think he’ll like it?”

  “Are you kidding?” She laughs lightly. “Of course, he’s going to like it. He’s going to love it.”

  “I mean, the way I’m surprising him. I wanted to do something bigger, but with every day that’s passed, and he doesn’t know, I feel terrible I’ve kept it from him. Now I just want him to know.”

  “Ellie, the man proposed to you in the kitchen because he knew it would make it special to you. He’s going to love however you choose to tell him for the simple fact it’s you and it’s your baby, together. I promise you, you don’t need to overthink it. This is perfect.”

  She helps me with hanging it on the wall. I had Mason help with the measurements and making sure it was ready, we just had to get it situated for him to see it.

  “Call me later and tell me all about it.” She smiles, wrapping her arms around my shoulder. “I’m so damn happy for you both.” Her words come out muffled against the side of my head, and I swear for a minute it sounds like she’s crying.

  We both freeze for a moment when we hear Callum say my name from our bedroom, as she unwraps her arms from around me. Walking backward down the hall, she waves to me and motions with her hand to call her.

  I nod my head, as I scurry over to peek my head in the bedroom to check on Callum. Just as I do, I hear the front door click as Kinsley shuts it behind her.

  “Hey, sweetheart, what are you doing?”

  “Oh, nothing. I was just wrapping up a little something. Would you mind coming out here for a minute and giving me your opinion on it?”

  His eyebrows furrow at me, uncertain of what it could be. It’s not like me to keep something from him, even if it’s a project I’m working on. Hell, we both know over the summer I was working on Pinterest projects left and right. It was Kinsley’s doing though. She kept looking at do-it-yourself ideas for wedding decor. I still find glitter around the house from the centerpieces we made.

  Wedding planning was up her alley. I would’ve been just as happy if we went down to the courthouse with our friends and family. After all, I just wanted to be Callum’s wife. Everything else was just a bonus for me.

  Pushing the door open, I walk a few feet down the hallway and wait for Callum. He’s not wearing a shirt and has bandages wrapped around his torso, all taped up.

  He winces and he must see the worry on my face, as he quickly smiles, reassuring me he’s okay.

  “What did you want to show me, babe?”

  Staring over to the picture frame, I look back over at Callum. “Does this look straight to you? I just hung it up and want to make sure you’re happy with it.”

  He looks at the large photo collage Kinsley helped me have made at this local antique store in Everton. They do a lot of crafts. When I saw the quote, “All because two people fell in love,” I knew it was perfect.

  It takes a minute for Callum to see what he’s looking at, his eyes first scanning the photo taken of us together the night at Brodie’s. It was the first night we spent together in Arbor Creek, three months after we first met. The one next to it was taken by Kinsley, without us knowing, from our first night at Wes’s house for the end of summer bonfire. The next photo is of the two of us on our wedding day.

  “I love that picture of us.” He grins, pulling me closer to him. He presses a kiss against my lips before looking back at the other photos.

  I know the moment he realizes what he’s looking at when his body goes rail straight against me.

  “Ellie,” Callum says, a mix of awe and uncertainty lacing his voice. “Is this⎼what is this?”

  He drops his arm from around me and takes a step forward, looking at the sonogram photo from the hospital.

  “Surprise.” I smile, as tears fill my eyes. His eyes bounce between me to my stomach and back up to me again, as if he’s unsure what I am saying and he’s afraid his hopes could be wrong.

  When he sees me run my hand over my stomach, his eyes light up like I just gave him the best gift he’s ever received. It makes me fall in love with him all over again.

  “I’m going to be a dad?” The word “dad” comes out with more of an awe, like he doesn’t know if he wants to believe it until he hears me say it out loud, not wanting to misunderstand the surprise.

  “You’re going to be a dad.”

  It’s as if those six words give him permission and the dam gates were lifted, forcing a rush of emotions to come crashing through.

  As if all the pain he was once feeling is gone, he drops to his knees in front of me and presses his hands against my stomach. I hear sobs racking through his body, as he quietly mumbles, “I could’ve lost you both.”

  My heart aches for him, at the thought and the picture he just painted before us. I didn’t want the news to be ruined with the “what could’ve beens,” so I quickly push it aside and try to ease his mind.

  “You didn’t though. We’re here, we’re okay. You’re going to be a dad, Callum.”

  With both of his hands framing my stomach, he leans forward and presses his forehead softly against my non-existent bump. I have stood in front of the mirror for the past week, checking from multiple angles, hoping I would start to see the defined curve, but it hasn’t come yet.

  When he leans forward and presses a kiss against my stomach, I struggle to keep my emotions in check.

  “I can’t wait to meet you,” he whispers. “I love you so much already.”

  There’s no holding back now. The tears I was barely containing stream down my face.

  “Thank you for making me the happiest man in the world.”

  Running my hands through his hair, I hold his head to me as he leans back to look up at me. We’ve been through so much together, more than I ever thought possible.

  He pulls my shirt up, kissing me again on my bare stomach. His hands rub over me, over my hips, and down to my thighs. What was once a soft caress, soon turns urgent with need as Callum roughly runs his hands over my thighs and around to grab my waist.

  Not caring where we are, I let him pull me down on the floor until I’m straddling him in the middle of our hallway.

  He continues to push my shirt up and I help him, roughly pulling it over my head and tossing it to the side. We’re both careful of his injury and where the bandage is wrapped around his side.

  “I need you so bad right now,” he groans, as I grind down on him. We quickly shed our pants; I help Callum with his. Positioning myself above him, I stare down at him from where he lies, his arms positioned beneath his head.

  When I slowly ease
down over him, I watch as his eyes slowly roll back closing them as he mutters out a low “fuck.”

  “Callum,” I whimper. “Look at me.”

  His eyes flash open, blazing as he stares back at me.

  “Tell me you love me.”

  He moves his hands up, over the top of my thighs lacing his fingers with mine.

  “I love you,” he mutters. “So fucking much.”

  In this moment, my heart has never been fuller.

  Chapter Eleven

  Callum ~ January

  Stepping into the doctor’s office, I glance around the waiting room for Ellie. She’s seated off to the side near the window. The sunshine peeks in through the blinds making her look even more like an angel.

  The first trimester was hard on her in several ways. For a while, it started to feel like what happened at Hudson’s had set us back to where we were after she was taken by Royal.

  The combination of morning sickness, which seemed to happen more than just in the morning, and the lack of sleep from nightmares, made it hard on her body. After we spent some time together and separately talking to her counselor, we found she still has a lot of fear over the thought of losing me and raising our child alone.

  In a lot of ways, it resurfaced the same feelings she had when she was younger after her dad died and how difficult it had been to witness the grief her mom went through from his passing. Over the past few weeks, her morning sickness has improved, and she decided it was time for her to go back to work. We hadn’t really talked about what she would do when the baby arrived, but I didn’t want to push her. If she felt she was ready, I knew it was a big step for her to go back to working at Hudson’s. Those steps forward were all I wanted to focus on right now, no matter how hard they may be for the both of us.

  She reminded me it was time we focused on all the things we had to be thankful for. I couldn’t have agreed with her more.

  Ellie glances up from the magazine she was flipping through as the door shuts behind me. When her eyes fall on mine, they light up as her smile grows wide. There’s something so sexy about seeing my wife’s stomach along with our baby inside her.

  She sees me look down at her stomach, as she runs her palm over her shirt.

  “Daddy’s here,” she whispers as I approach, so only the two of us can hear. Rubbing my hand over her stomach, I lean forward and kiss her.

  “Of course, I am. Do you think I’d want to miss this?”

  There’s a flash of guilt on Ellie’s face. I know she feels bad I wasn’t with her for the first ultrasound. We didn’t know she was pregnant or what to expect. When she explained to me how she wanted to be certain it was positive before she told me she was pregnant, I understood why, even though I hated knowing I missed something so important. She didn’t want to tell me, get my hopes up, only for it to turn out to be negative. I hate thinking about how this all could’ve been ripped away from both of us.

  Either way, I had to remind her regardless of what came our way, I was always gonna be by her side every step of the way. She promised me we wouldn’t have any secrets between us ever again.

  “Ellie Reid,” the nurse announces into the waiting room and we both stand.

  “Oh my gosh, Callum, I’m so excited.” There’s a nervous giggle in her voice I hear bubble up.

  “I am, too,” I whisper to her, as I run my palm over her back leading her through the door and down the hallway to the patient room.

  “I’m Leddy, I’ll be your nurse for today. Do you have any concerns before Doctor Sattler comes in?”

  Ellie glances over at me, before looking back at her and shakes her head. “No, we’re just really excited for the sonogram.”

  “I can imagine.” She smiles a warm smile, as she approaches Ellie picking up the blood pressure cuff and wrapping it securely around Ellie’s arm. I stand next to her, rubbing her back as she goes through the motions of getting her vitals.

  “I’ll let her know you’re ready.”

  We both thank her as Ellie lies back on the exam room table, running her hands over her stomach. Bending down next to her, I pull up her shirt and press a kiss against her stomach. That’s how the doc finds us when she walks into the room a minute later.

  We’re on a first name basis now, as we’ve become well acquainted over the past few months. I don’t think she understood what I meant when I told her I was going to be very involved with making sure my wife was well cared for during her pregnancy.

  “Ellie, Callum. It’s good to see you both.”

  She has a pen tucked behind her ear, as she pulls the chair out facing us both before reading through Ellie’s chart.

  “How have you been feeling? Has your morning sickness improved? I haven’t heard from you both lately.”

  There’s a smirk on the edge of her mouth as her eyes bounce between mine and back to Ellie. There’s a not-so-subtle hint she had been receiving one too many phone calls from me. Ellie laughs, her face turning a rosy shade of pink, as she adjusts her shirt and I help her to sit up.

  “Much better, thank you for your advice. The past couple of weeks have been a lot better. I’m glad because I couldn’t imagine going through the rest of the pregnancy feeling the way I was.”

  “You’re welcome. I’m glad, for both of your sakes, that you’re feeling better.”

  Ellie laughs again, as she pats her hand on my arm, clearly finding my overprotective ways amusing. I went to Everton and nearly bought out the Target store with all the products Doctor Sattler and other experienced moms were suggesting online.

  “I’m always going to take care of you,” I say matter-of-factly. Ellie’s face softens, as I lean forward pressing a kiss to her lips. I don’t give a shit I’m kissing her, right here in the exam room in front of our doctor. I don’t think Ellie cares either.

  Now that we’ve crossed into the second trimester and she’s been feeling better, it’s like a switch has been flipped in her. Her need for me is insatiable. It’s the fuel to my desire that burns for her always.

  The sound of a throat clearing next to me pulls me away from my wife and her lips. Ellie bites her lip, hiding her grin as I flash her a wink.

  “Sorry,” I say. The grin on my face says I’m not at all sorry.

  “I know you’re both looking forward to the ultrasound today. Any questions before we begin?”

  “Uh… yeah, actually I do have a question. At what point in the pregnancy do I need to worry about sex posing a risk to the baby? I’m not going to hurt anything, am I?”

  Ellie coughs, clearly taken off guard by my question. Looking at her, I rub her back making sure she’s fine. Her eyes are wide as she holds her hand up. The look on her face is a mixture of shocked and horrified.

  “What?” I ask at the same time she sternly says, “Callum.”

  “You have nothing to be worried about, Callum. You’re not going to hurt Ellie or the baby. Sex during pregnancy is perfectly fine. In fact, it’s healthy and encouraged.”

  “Well thank fuck for that.” I laugh. “You hear that baby? She says it’s encouraged.”

  Ellie wraps her hand over her mouth to contain her giggle.

  “I’m sorry.” She looks back to the doctor.

  “It’s okay. It wouldn’t be the first time I’ve heard this question and it most certainly won’t be the last either.”

  She pulls the sonogram machine closer to her. “If you’re both ready now, I’d love to show you your baby. That way we can make sure everything is going smoothly. Hopefully, if he or she cooperates with us, I can tell you the gender too.”

  Ellie lies back on the table, getting comfortable. Leaning over her, I press a kiss against her forehead.

  The sound of rushing water fills the room, followed by the sound I know as our baby’s heartbeat. We’ve been able to hear the heartbeat on the doppler at every visit I’ve gone to with Ellie. The rapid beat in my ears slams into me; all my emotions gripping me by the heart.

  I’m unsure of what I’m l
ooking at, as the doctor rubs a wand over Ellie’s swollen belly.

  “Hey there, little one,” Doctor Sattler says, as she squirts more jelly on her belly. The picture adjusts as she moves it around again. I’m about to ask her to tell me what I’m looking at when a small face appears on the screen and tears prick the corner of my eyes.

  “There he is.”

  “He?” I ask, wanting to make sure I heard her right.

  She moves the wand again. “Yep, it looks like it’s a he. He’s an active one, squirming around a lot, but he’s definitely wanting us to know he’s all boy.”

  Ellie’s hand squeezes mine and my eyes flash down at hers. Seeing the tears streaming down her face pushes me over the edge. I can’t hold it back any longer.

  “It’s a boy,” she whispers.

  “We’re going to have a son, sweetheart.”

  I press a hard kiss against her lips, as I brush her hair away from her face.

  We both are enraptured by the sounds of his heartbeat and the images of our baby on the screen. The first time I heard his heartbeat was when it truly clicked into place and it hit me, I was going to be a dad. Seeing his little face today, I start to picture the life we’ll have together.

  There were times I wondered if we could get to where we are now and if having a family would ever be in the cards for us. We’ve had more challenges thrown our way than anyone should have to face. I love Ellie more than life itself and I’ll spend all my days giving her the same happiness and love she’s given me.

  Epilogue

  Ellie ~ May

  “CALLUM!” I shout from the bathroom in a panic.

  “I’m coming!”

  I can hear the worry in his voice as he bounds down the hallway toward our room.

  The door swings open and his eyes are bright and frantic, whereas mine are full of emotion. I’m on the verge of crying, feeling all the emotions bubbling up inside me.

  “You okay, baby?” Callum asks, racing into the room as his eyes look over me.

  “Umm… I think my, oh, shit, I think my water just broke.” There’s a mix of uncertainty and awe in my voice.