Great job in Brazil. Very proud of you.
As he continued to sip the IPA, he simultaneously sorted emails, deleting unneeded ones and bookmarking others.
Then a sound at the kitchen entrance captured his attention.
Roselle stood in the doorway in white and blue striped shorts and the matching nightshirt that looked two sizes too small because of how it stretched across her very large stomach. She’d brushed her hair into a topknot and was barefoot and didn’t have on a stitch of makeup on her fuller face.
Her cinnamon-brown skin glowed, giving her an angelic appearance, but his thoughts were far from holy when he noticed the tops of her breasts were visible at the neckline where she’d undone one of the buttons. His pants tightened in the crotch area, which always seemed to happen at the most inopportune times. He wanted to go straight to bed, but he’d have to rub one out in the shower. Maybe that would help him sleep tonight.
“You’re back,” Roselle said.
“Came in a few minutes ago.”
“How did it go?”
“They signed with us.”
“Stephan, that’s great! Congratulations.”
The pride in her voice made him sit up taller. He’d proved, not only to himself but to everyone else, that he was more than a pretty face. “Thanks. Couldn’t have done it without you.”
“That’s not true. You’d have found a way to pull together the information you needed. Besides, you were the salesman. I had nothing to do with that.”
“Thanks anyway,” he said, watching her waddle over to the refrigerator. So cute.
His gaze zeroed in on the exposed back of her neck. He would kill for a chance to kiss that spot and listen to her breathy pleas as she wiggled her soft ass against him. Then he’d enter her from behind. He loved to hear the soft little sounds she made when he hit it just right.
Thoughts like that were no good. He drained half his beer. “What are you doing up so late?”
“The baby won’t let me sleep. She’s very active tonight, moving around a lot.”
They were having a girl but hadn’t decided on a name yet.
“Your mother came by today. Your father came with her this time, and they brought more gifts.”
“Again?”
Roselle nodded and laughed. “She informed me her grandchild will want for nothing. She brought up the baby shower again, but I told her I don’t see the point. You’re still okay we didn’t have one, right?”
“Definitely. We don’t have to have a shower you don’t want. We can get everything she needs ourselves. And obviously, that’s not an issue, because my family will make sure we have more than enough.”
“I know family members and friends like to be involved, and I get the impression your family definitely wants to be involved.”
“They’ll be fine, trust me. Our baby is the most important thing right now.”
She seemed satisfied with the answer. She poured a glass of water, drank it, and set the empty glass in the sink.
“Okay. Good night, then.”
“Good night,” he said.
She walked away, and the ache in his loins magnified the farther she walked away from him.
Roselle paused at the doorway with a hand on her belly. She turned. “She’s at it again. Want to feel?”
The question took him aback. She’d never offered to let him feel the baby move before.
“Yeah.” For some reason, his hands suddenly became clammy. He was about to make a small connection with his unborn child, which he hadn’t done before.
Roselle came to stand in front of him and unbuttoned the lower buttons of the shirt to show her stretched belly. He saw what looked like a finger poking under her skin.
“Holy crap. Did that hurt?” he whispered.
“It feels weird, but it doesn’t hurt, except when she pokes me in the navel or kicks me in the kidneys.” She laughed softly.
She took his hand and placed it on her belly. His daughter’s movements tickled his palm. He was so moved by the experience, he bent his head closer to Roselle’s belly. “Hey in there. What are you doing to Mommy? Settle down.”
Instead of settling down, his daughter’s movements increased.
Eyes bright, Roselle laughed at her agitation. “Now she’s really moving around. She must like the sound of your voice.”
Stephan continued talking to his daughter until she settled down. “She’s finally going to sleep. Maybe now you can get some rest.” In case his daughter moved again, he didn’t remove his hands, but also because he was finally making skin-to-skin contact with Roselle in a meaningful way.
Occasionally, they’d brushed against each other, or he’d held her arm as he helped her out of the car on the way to an appointment. But this, this was much more intimate. Watching his fingers spread out over her taut belly stirred his blood.
Roselle placed a hand to the back of his head and let it trail down to his jaw. Her gentle touch sent shivers down his spine. He looked up and saw tears in her eyes.
“I never said you were shallow,” she said in a thick voice.
“Not in so many words, but that’s what you meant.” Fatigue burned the back of his eyes. He didn’t want to have this conversation now. They were way past that argument from months ago.
“I was emotional.”
“Maybe you said what you were really thinking.”
“No,” she said with quiet intensity. “I was scared.”
“Of what?”
Her lower lip trembled. “That you’d leave me, too. I don’t have anybody. Only my baby.”
He kissed the palm of her hand and then looked into her expressive brown eyes. “You have me. I keep telling you that, but you don’t hear me. I’m not going anywhere. I love you.”
She blinked. “What?”
Goddammit. His gut wrenched at the slipup.
“I’ve said too much.” He started to rise.
“No, no, wait.” Roselle pressed her hands on his thighs and forced him to stay in place. “Why didn’t you say something before?”
Stephan rubbed a hand along his nape. He didn’t want to open up and share. He was a fool for loving her and a bigger fool for saying it out loud.
“Did you mean what you said just now?” Roselle’s voice quivered.
He sighed. “Yes, I meant it.”
“Why didn’t you tell me before?”
“I guess I was scared too,” he admitted.
She stepped between his legs and cupped his jaws. She brought her face so close to his, their noses brushed for a second. “I love you, too. I think I’ve loved you ever since Paris when I saw what a kind soul you are. That you’re not shallow, but you’re funny and thoughtful.”
Stephan drew her thumb to his lips and kissed the tip. “Paris was definitely when you messed me up. From then on, I only had eyes for one woman. You. You’ve gotten a little fat around the middle, but I can work with it.”
Roselle laughed through her tears.
“Maybe in another month or so we can see about getting rid of all this.” He palmed her belly.
“I’ll do my best.”
He thumbed away her tears. “I missed you, babe.”
“I missed you, too.”
Using his forefinger, Stephan traced the curve of her bottom lip. His eyes tracked the motion, and his ears picked up her increased heavy breathing.
“I want you so much,” Stephan whispered. “But I don’t want to…is it okay if we…?”
Roselle nodded vigorously and locked her arms around his neck. “Yes, yes. It’s fine.” She seared her mouth to his and kissed him with all the longing and need that had accumulated over the months.
Stephan eased her arms from around his neck. “Hold up. Let’s go upstairs. I want to make love to you properly.”
She bit her bottom lip, and they both left the kitchen, hurrying up the stairs to Stephan’s room.
Chapter 30
Lying on his side behind Roselle, Stephan smoothed a
hand over her belly, along one hip, and over her thigh, listening to her purr as he lovingly kissed her shoulders and back. He wanted to go slow, but she wasn’t making it easy, what with her whimpering his name as he kissed her neck or gasping and arching her back when his hand squeezed the fullness of her breasts.
She seemed extra-sensitive, which was driving him crazy. He’d been horny for so long that before they started touching he’d been hard as granite and was sure he’d explode at any minute.
He inserted a finger between her legs, and she spread her thighs. Stephan lifted onto his elbow to watch her, eyes closed, lips parted, and a frown creasing her brows as she concentrated on what he was doing to her body. Stroking between her legs, he played with her engorged clit, and her curved spine arched further.
She circled her fabulous ass against his hard-on while his fingers continued to torment the swollen bundle of nerves between her legs.
She was getting close. Her hips moved with more urgency, and she reached back and grabbed the back of his head.
He dropped kisses on her neck. “My pussy is so wet. You want me to get in there?”
“Yes. Please,” she whispered, looking at him through half-closed eyes.
She was so sexy like that. He kissed her cheek and ear. He kissed the corner of her mouth.
“Stephan,” she moaned, the sound a mixture of desire and impatience.
“Okay, sweetness, I’ll give you want you want,” he said huskily.
He angled his hips toward her and slotted his body into hers. A wail of pleasure blew past her lips, and he almost came, listening to her while experiencing the softness of her bottom pressed into his pelvis.
She was his again, every inch of her body, and he savored this moment.
Slow, Stephan reminded himself. Which became extremely difficult when she reached back and sank her fingers into his ass cheeks, urging him deeper as she thrust her hips.
They moved together in slow motion, she throwing back her hips and he slicing into her wet body. Then Roselle moved with renewed vigor and panted heavily, striving toward release. Stephan joined her and increased the pace.
Finally, she came, quivering around him. Seconds later, he groaned out loud, gripping her hip and firing off two final pumps before he emptied inside her.
He groaned again and slumped on the bed, breathing heavily, and content for the first time in months.
Chapter 31
On his knees on the floor of the nursery, Stephan’s gaze swept across all the parts of the crib spread out before him. They had gone to a doctor’s appointment this morning, but he had taken the whole day off to spend time with Roselle. Now he wished he’d returned to work because of the daunting task of putting together the crib.
Roselle sat in an armchair, her head hidden behind an enormous, unfolded page of instructions. “According to this, we should start with part A and part B,” she said.
“You know we can pay people to put together this furniture,” Stephan said.
Roselle peered over the top of the sheet. “I heard you the first two times, but where’s the fun in that?”
“Where’s the fun in this?” he demanded.
“We don’t need to have fun when we’re doing it. Putting together the crib is an act of love for our baby.”
“Or an act of torture for me because we are not putting together the crib. I am, which could take the rest of the day.”
“Then you better get started.” Roselle smiled sweetly.
Stephan glowered at her. “You’re lucky I love you. I wouldn’t put myself through this type of misery for just anybody.” He took a deep breath. “Okay, let’s do this.”
He’d never put together a crib before, but if that’s what she wanted, that’s what he would do. He located parts A and B and set them aside together.
“Stephan.”
“Yeah, babe.” He piled all the screws and bolts together so they’d be easy to find.
When Roselle didn’t respond, he glanced in her direction.
“Ask me again,” she whispered. Her eyes held quiet longing.
“Ask you what?”
“Ask me to marry you.” She spoke so softly, he barely heard her.
“I never asked you the first time.”
Since they’d made love a few weeks ago, they’d become much closer. They shared his room now, and the only times he didn’t fall asleep right away were when they stayed up late talking about the baby and their plans.
Looking into her face, he remembered how he’d screwed up when she first told him she was pregnant. This time he’d get it right, giving her the type of proposal she deserved, so she’d know how much she meant to him. How much he genuinely wanted her to be his wife, his partner in life.
Stephan came to his feet and walked over to where she sat on the chair. He lowered in front of her and set the instructions on the floor. Taking both of her hands in his, he looked into her eyes.
“Roselle, being with you, loving you, has affected me in so many ways. I’m a changed man because of you. I like who I am when I’m with you, and I like how you make me feel. I want to feel this way for the rest of my life. Would you do me the honor of becoming my wife?”
She’d pulled him out of a dark well of cynicism and reckless behavior, into the light. There was no one else he wanted to journey down life’s road with but her.
“It would be an honor to become your wife. Yes!” Her face broke out into a huge grin.
They kissed briefly, their lips touching in a soft kiss.
Looking into her eyes, Stephan saw a bright future and wanted it to start sooner rather than later. “Let’s get married right away before the baby comes. I’ll leave work early on Friday, and we’ll get our marriage license and get married this weekend, become husband and wife before the baby is born, the way I wanted in the first place.”
“What about your family?”
“Getting married is about us. You, me, and our little girl. Unless you want a big wedding, say yes, and we’ll become husband and wife in a few days.”
“I don’t care about a big wedding. I want to get married before she comes, too, so the answer is yes!” Roselle squealed.
He enveloped her in a big hug and rested his forehead against hers.
“We’re doing this,” she whispered.
“We’re doing this,” he confirmed.
They kissed again, leisurely, enjoying each other and the emotional moment now that they’d committed to spending their lives together.
Stephan rose from his kneeling position and walked to where the parts of the crib were spread out. He stood over the pieces.
“Okay, I separated A and B. What’s next?”
Roselle let out a pained sound, and he immediately swung in her direction.
“What’s the matter?”
She rubbed the top of her belly and groaned, biting down on her bottom lip. “I don’t know... I wonder if I’m having contractions, but that can’t be right. We still have a few weeks left. The baby can’t be coming now. She’s too early.”
“When did you start having contractions?” Stephan asked.
Shifting in the chair, Roselle exhaled through her mouth and rubbed her lower back. “After we left the doctor’s office.”
“And you didn’t say anything!” Stephan exclaimed.
“Don’t yell at me! I thought they might be the Braxton Hicks contractions again. Except these are stronger, and they’re coming closer together now.” Her eyes filled with worry.
“I’m calling the doctor.”
Turning in a circle, Stephan frantically searched the room, trying to tamp down his panic because he didn’t want to alarm Roselle. His phone was on the window sill, and he rushed over and picked it up. He dialed Dr. Tambo’s number, and while the phone rang, he knelt beside Roselle’s chair and took her hand. Her hand was shaking, and he gave her a reassuring squeeze.
When the doctor answered, he put her on speaker and explained that Roselle was having contractions.
>
“How far apart are they?” the doctor asked.
Roselle answered in a small voice. “Um, I’d say ten to twelve minutes apart, but this last one was almost twenty. Should we be worried?”
“Everything looked fine when I examined you this morning, so for now I’m not worried. Don’t be alarmed.” The doctor’s voice was warm and reassuring. “This is your body preparing you to deliver your baby girl. Here’s what I want you to do. If you haven’t already, write down the times between the contractions, and if they get to five minutes apart and last for about an hour, call me. Definitely call me if your water breaks, you experience any bleeding, or if something feels off, okay?”
“Okay,” Roselle said.
“Do you have any more questions or concerns?”
“No, that’s it,” Roselle replied.
“Call me if you need me.”
“Thanks, Dr. Tambo.” Stephan hung up the phone.
He and Roselle looked at each other, and he figured the same thought was going through her head as was going through his.
“I can’t have this baby right now. We still have a million things to do. The crib isn’t ready, and we have to get married first.”
He set the phone on the floor and clasped her hand in both of his. “Babe, forget about the crib. I can hire someone to put it together for us. As for getting married first, that’s not going to happen if the baby is coming.”
“I want to be your wife when I have this baby!”
Stephan kept his voice calm. “If you’re going into labor, that’s impossible.”
“Dr. Tambo said we still have time, and who knows, this could be another false alarm. Let’s get married today. Let’s not wait.”
“Sweetness, we can’t get married today.”
“We have to. I’m not having this baby. I want to be your wife first.”
“You don’t get a lot of say in the matter. Babies come when they’re supposed to.”
“You think I don’t know that!” Roselle yelled. “We need a marriage license and someone to marry us before I deliver. You’re rich. Figure it out.” Tears welled in her eyes.
Two Nights in Paris Page 19
