Life Support (The Breathe Series Book 2)

by Zoe Norman

  “Aunt Edna?” Olivia laughs and follows my finger, which is pointing out the older woman.

  “I may have promised her a dance earlier, but I see she’s cornered another victim. Let’s make a run for it.”

  We quickly say our goodbyes to Simon, Reese, and Olivia’s parents and confirm plans for breakfast in the morning. After we leave the venue and head toward the elevators hand in hand, I softly push Olivia against the hallway wall. Trapping her in my arms, I give her a soft kiss, nibbling at her lips and eliciting a faint moan. I trail a hand down her side and around to her backside as I sink to my haunches in front of her.

  With my hand sliding down the back of her leg and down her calf, I lift her foot and slip off a high-heeled shoe. My thumb massages the arch of her foot and heel and I hear a relaxed moan. I glance up at Olivia and she looks at me with love and awe—like I’m the most thoughtful man on the planet. I grin and loop the straps of her shoes around a finger before picking her up in my arms. She doesn’t protest and nestles into the crook of my neck.

  “Thank you,” she murmurs.

  Once safely inside our room, I deposit Olivia onto the bed. “Can I get you anything? Order something from room service?” I ask as I loosen my bowtie and pull my shirt out from my pants.

  Olivia stands from the bed and contorts her body in an effort to rid herself of her dress. “I’m not hungry, but I could definitely use a hand getting out of this thing,” she pouts while turning away from me and pointing to her back.

  She doesn’t need to ask me twice. I gently move her hair over her right shoulder to expose the zipper. “It is always my pleasure to remove any item of clothing from you.”

  Olivia slants her head, looking at me over her shoulder, and smiles. I grab the small slide of the zipper and pull it down slowly, exposing her creamy, soft skin.

  “And look at that. No zipper problems.”

  Olivia lets out a soft laugh. “You’re never going to let me live that down, are you?”

  I slip the straps of her dress off her shoulders and run my hands down her arms. “Are you kidding me? That was one of the best nights of my life,” I say, recalling the first time Olivia and I had sex.

  She invited me up to her room under the guise that her zipper was stuck. I, of course, thought she was flirting, but in actuality, her zipper really was caught in the material of her dress. Fortunately, I was able to strip her of more than her dress that night.

  “You are so beautiful, Liv. I...am…the…luckiest...man,” I say, dotting kisses along her shoulder.

  “Thank you, baby,” she says almost shyly.

  I’m not sure why she’s feeling so shy. We’re a sexual couple and know every inch of each other’s skin. Then I notice Olivia holding up her dress around her breasts like a security blanket. Ah. I get it.

  I stand in front of Olivia and gently kiss her forehead before helping her step out of her dress. I lay it neatly across the desk chair in the room. When I return to her, I lightly trace a finger over the top of her nude, strapless bra and then lower, across the top of the matching lace boyshorts she’s wearing.

  “This...” I say huskily. “This is going to kill me.”

  Olivia’s eyes flutter closed as my single finger explores her. Nothing more than that. Just the finger. I lean forward, kissing her softly at first and then gradually becoming more insistent. She opens up to me, letting my tongue stroke inside her mouth. My hand reaches up, cupping the back of her neck and pulling her in closer.

  Olivia’s lower belly rubs against mine and she pulls away from my kiss, looking down between us. “Oh…” she says nervously.

  I follow her line of sight and smile before taking her hands in mine. “Hey. Come here,” I say as I walk backward toward the bed.

  I sit on the mattress and open my legs so she can get close to me, her torso at my eye level. Placing my hands on her hips, I gently brush my lips over her growing belly. My nose nuzzles her and I smatter soft kisses on her tummy.

  “I love you, Olivia. I love that your body will be changing, is changing. Beauty has no size. Please don’t hide yourself…your body from me. Think of it this way: the bigger that baby grows, the more my love for you grows too. You’re carrying our child, Olivia! Our child,” I exclaim. “This baby? This baby is a part of us. We did this. Together. You are my greatest gift, Olivia, and you’re giving me the biggest reward. Something I never thought I would have. And I want it…all of it. You…the baby…the life—everything. I’m all in, babe.”

  Olivia is crying. Not ladylike, adorable, little sniffles either. We’re talking ugly crying. Attractive? Not so much. But I’m kinda fighting the lump in my throat myself. She bends down and kisses me like her life depends on it. I grab her tight, pulling her down to my lap. It’s a passionate, desperate, devouring kiss so loaded with love that it takes my breath away.

  Olivia straightens herself, wipes her eyes and declares, “You have far too many clothes on, Maxwell.”

  A grin spreads across my face as she tugs the bowtie hanging loosely around my neck and flings it to the floor. I remove my cummerbund and throw it to the side of the bed before Olivia pushes me back onto the bed and crawls over my lap to straddle my hips. One by one, Olivia unbuttons the clasps on my crisp, white shirt while kissing down my chest and then makes quick work of my belt and zipper. She must be getting a second wind if she has enough energy for sex, and you won’t hear me convince her otherwise.

  Olivia stands up from the bed, and I lift my hips off the mattress to rid myself of my boxers and pants. After I take off my shoes and socks, Olivia watches with lust-filled eyes as I pull my arms through the sleeves of my shirt and toss it aside. Naked, I lean back and rest on my hands, waiting for her to make the next move. The longer she waits, the more rigid my cock becomes.

  I smile confidently. “You like what you see, don’t you.”

  “Mmhmm...very much,” she replies with a low, sexy voice.

  While gazing into my eyes, Olivia reaches behind to unhook her bra, pulling it off and throwing it onto the growing pile of clothes. Absentmindedly, she runs her hands over her breasts and tweaks her nipples before turning to face away from me. Hooking her fingers into the top of her panties, she bends forward and pulls the boyshorts down, placing her ass practically in my face. Longing rumbles in my throat and down to my cock. When she’s completely folded over and her hands reach her ankles, I slide a finger along her wet folds and over her perineum and stop to rub against the spot that is both forbidden and intriguing.

  “Goddammit, woman. Can I just tell you how fucking sexy you are?” I moan.

  “You can tell me that frequently. I’m going to need to hear it a lot the bigger I get.”

  “You’ll always be sexy,” I reassure her.

  Taking hold of her hips, I pull her down onto my lap. With her hands firmly gripping the tops of my knees, Olivia begins to swivel and undulate her hips, treating me to my own personal lap dance. I groan as she bends forward slightly, causing my cock to nestle along her slick heat. My palm runs up her back, over her shoulder, and around her neck to gently pulling her against my chest while my other hand wraps around her body to grasp her breast.

  “You like that, Owen?” she asks seductively.

  “You know I do, baby. Fuck! I don’t know that I can get any harder. I fucking ache for you. Put me out of my misery and get on my cock. Take what’s yours.”

  My words set her off. She’s gone from sweet and loving to ready to devour me.

  Olivia stands to her feet, swivels around to face me and pushes hard on my shoulders with her hands. I fall backward onto the soft mattress and chuckle at her aggressiveness…that is until she starts to climb over my body like a hunting lioness. The look in her eyes is intense and fucking hot. She straddles my hips and, while maintaining eye contact, reaches between our bodies to grab my throbbing cock. Gripping it tightly around the head, she starts to squeeze and pull rhythmically.

  “Ho...ly...fuck...” I choke out, which is fo
llowed by a long and loud groan. Snapping my eyes closed, I relish her expert touch.

  “Open those eyes, Owen,” Olivia chides with a gravelly voice.

  I’ve said those same words to her so many times, and I can hear in her voice how empowered she feels to use them on me. I do as instructed, my eyes locking with hers.

  “Look down, Owen. Watch yourself move inside me, baby.”

  She positions my cock at her entrance and watches my eyes widen as she pushes down, taking me to the hilt. Tightness and exquisite heat greet me as Olivia impales herself on me. She must feel how amazing it is too, because her head falls back and she lets out a groan while stretching herself around me.

  My hands ride up her thighs and lock around her waist. “Move, baby. I need you to move,” I grunt desperately.

  Olivia lifts herself slightly then slams back down, impaling herself on me. I swear to God, my eyes roll back into my head as she begins to grind on me.

  I watch with awe as Olivia moves on top of me. I love it when I can see her enjoy herself, knowing I’m the one who gives her this much pleasure. The way her hair flows, the way her tits bounce, and the sounds she makes while I’m inside her are enough to make me come on the spot.

  I reach up and pluck at her pebbled nipple. Getting the hint, Olivia rewards me by leaning forward so I can capture a nipple with my lips. Moans of pleasure fill the room as my tongue licks and teases the pert tip before I take all of it into my waiting mouth. Grinding and moving, lifting and dropping, Olivia rides me expertly in our mutual goal of pleasure. Needing more, I pull her on top of my body, causing her stomach to lie flush with mine as I begin to pump hard and fast into her. My balls slam against her ass and Olivia starts to yell. Needing extra friction, she press her hands on my chest and pushes herself back up to grind on me again. I can see the urgency in her face and immediately, my thumb finds her clit to help.

  “I love it when you ride me like this, baby,” I spit out through a clenched jaw. “You’re gonna come so hard for me, aren’t you? You need it. You need my cock inside you, don’t you? That’s right, baby. That’s my girl…”

  Two more light flicks of my thumb and she falls apart. Olivia’s head drops back and she screams out my name as I continue to pump into her. Three more thrusts and I’m emptying myself inside her as I grunt out her name.

  Spent, Olivia lies forward onto my stomach as her orgasm subsides. I wrap my arms around her, holding her tight, our bodies slick with sweat.

  “Oh God...that was...”

  “Un-fucking-believable,” I finish, breathing heavily.

  “Yeah...What you said,” Olivia chuckles, struggling to catch her breath.

  She slowly pulls off me and rolls to my side and onto her back, laying an arm over her eyes. I turn to face her and place my hand on her lower belly. Olivia lifts her arm and looks down at me and smiling as I scoot down on the bed and kiss her stomach.

  “I think maybe I want to come with you to your next appointment. I should learn more about the baby... You know...the important stuff.” I’m a little embarrassed to say this out loud, although I’m not sure why. I’ve been thinking about it for a long time and I think I’m so relaxed right now that it just slipped out.

  Olivia, on the other hand, is beaming. “I would love that, Owen,” she says, her eyes getting misty. “It would mean a lot to me. And maybe it would help you feel more at ease about everything...like our sex life.”

  I nod slowly and lay my head down on her stomach as Olivia runs her fingers through my hair.

  “Let’s get some sleep, sweetheart. Tomorrow morning is going to come fast,” Olivia sighs.

  We pull ourselves under the bed sheets and I pull Olivia close to spoon. “I love you, Olivia.” I breathe onto her neck with contentment. .

  “I love you more.”

  “DRAGGING YOUR FEET AND stalling is an automatic forfeit, Maxwell. Stick a nickel in it or pay the price!” Tanner scoffs from the front of the Rescue Company box truck.

  “Pfft. Whatever, man. You’re just scared you’ll lose!” I retort as I run a cloth around, over, and through the shiny chrome on the grill of the vehicle.

  It’s our turn to wax this beast of a rig. We were able to wash it before a call came in to the firehouse, and we’re testing our luck that we can get it waxed before we will be interrupted and need to head out on another rescue. Tanner is taunting me because he and I have a hefty bet going. If we can’t finish waxing the rig before we need to abandon the project and head out on a call, Tanner will need to take one of my weekend shifts, which would give me a string of days off to spend with Olivia. Alternatively, if we are able to complete the tedious task of waxing the massive vehicle before getting called out, I need to get a tattoo.

  I cannot believe I agreed to this. I’ve been talking about getting some ink for some time, and Tanner is sick of the talk and wants to see some action. I’ve been my typical non-committal self about the whole fucking thing. I want the ink, but I don’t know what I want on my body that will be with me for the rest of my life. I want it to mean something—for it to be important and personal to me.

  Initially, I wasn’t too worried about the bet since we’re usually a very active firehouse, but now, I’m starting to sweat a little. We have half of the rig finished and we’re approaching hour two without a call. It’s anyone’s race at this point.

  As I continue to polish the rig, my thoughts drift to Olivia and her being pregnant. It’s finally starting to sink in that I’m going to be a dad. A small chuckle of disbelief rumbles in my chest, and I cannot help but smile. Me. Someone’s parent. I shake my head, hardly recognizing the guy I was eighteen months ago. I’ve gone from being a swinging-single man-whore to being in a committed relationship with a kid on the way. I’m going to have a kid! A living, breathing, beautiful, crying, needy, mucous-oozing, cute-as-a-button kid. My smile quickly becomes strained and a tinge of panic grips my chest. Holy fuck. I’m going to have a kid!

  “Owen, you okay over there?” Tanner calls out to me. He finishes wiping the back quarter panel of the truck and walks toward me to grab his water from the truck’s step. “You look like you’re going to be sick.”

  “Nah, I’m good,” I lie. “Just thinking things through. You know how it is.”

  He nods his head, dismissing my mild panic attack. “How’s Olivia doing after her accident?” he asks as he takes a seat on the step.

  Outside of telling our families about the baby, I haven’t told any of my friends. It isn’t that I don’t want to tell anyone—I want to shout it from the top of Tower Ladder 119’s 92’ telescoping boom bucket. There’s also a part of me that just wants to keep this to ourselves a little longer. Yet here’s a perfect opportunity to share the news with one of my best friends.

  “She’s doing really well,” I answer as I begin to apply wax to the middle panel of the rescue truck. “She went back to work and has been rehabbing her knee a couple times a week. She found a good physical therapist close to her OB/GYN’s office, which is good since she’s pregnant. All of it makes her pretty tired these days, but she’s a trooper,” I deadpan as I work to swipe the wax from the metal.

  “Physical therapy is a bitch. When I had to rehab my shoulder, I—” Tanner stops mid-sentence and tilts his head to the side like a dog that heard a high-pitched sound. “Wait, wait, wait. What?!” he stutters.

  I stand up straight and face my friend with the biggest grin on my face. “Olivia is almost fifteen weeks pregnant.” I wait for his response and get a kick out of the way his face morphs into a full-on 1000-watt smile.

  “Motherfucker! Are you shitting me right now?” He stands up abruptly, dropping his empty water bottle onto the concrete floor.

  “Serious as a hooker looking to get paid,” I smile.

  “Wait a minute. That means she was pregnant when she had the accident?”

  I nod.

  “And she’s okay? No ramifications from that?” His face is suddenly panicked as if he’s reliving i
t all over again.

  “None. She’s incredibly lucky all the way around with that accident—that she wasn’t hurt more severely and that the baby is just fine.”

  “I… Wow, Owen. This…this is pretty major! You’ve been sitting on this news for some time, you fucker. Took you long enough to tell me!”

  I cringe a little, really not interested in telling him the other half of that story.

  “Well, congratulations, buddy. You’re a Potent Pete—knocking your Fertile Myrtle up,” he laughs.

  “What?” I laugh, shaking my head in confusion.

  “You’re potent with your swimmers and Olivia is fertile? Potent Pete and Fertile Myrtle? Get it? Ah, shit. Never mind. Congratulations, Owen,” Tanner says, pulling me in for a bro-hug.

  “Thanks, Tanner. Kinda crazy, huh?” I say, scratching my head.

  “Owen Maxwell has himself a baby mamma. Holy shit. How does that feel, man, knowing that you’re going to have a kid?” Tanner grabs his rag and we both continue to work on the truck—him determined to finish, me doing my best to stall.

  “There are no words. I’m eighty-five percent excited out of my fucking mind and fifteen percent scared to the point of having a panic attack. And at any given moment, those percentages flip-flop. It’s all so new, you know? I’m still wrapping my head around it. I’m trying really hard to be one hundred percent supportive and not show Liv how freaked out I am. I’d like to think it’s working, but she knows me too well. At the same time…I’m really proud. Like, really proud. It’s a pretty heady feeling.”

  Tanner and I begin to work our way toward each other on the final section of the truck. “So, now with Olivia being pregnant, are you going to pop the question?”

  I groan in frustration.

  “Come on, Owen. It’s a natural question and you know Olivia’s been thinking about it.”

  “I don’t know, man,” I frown. “I’m a born-again virgin to this commitment shit. I just found out that my girlfriend is pregnant and you throwing the “m” word at me is like asking for anal on our first date. Can’t I just ease into the one first before you start getting greedy?”