by Tina Martin
Emily’s mouth fell open.
Desmond, completely befuddled, looked at Dante and mouthed, “Is Melanie pregnant?”
Sherita looked like she was in the middle of the twilight zone and was waiting for the perfect opportunity to escape.
Dante rubbed his hands across his head, not wanting to interfere into his brother’s affairs. Not this time.
Melanie had frozen in her tracks, wanted to turn around, face him and tell him that she would never do such a thing, but what was the point of it all. Besides, she hadn’t wanted everyone to see the tears falling from her eyes. So instead of saying anything, she simply walked away.
Emily frowned, shook her head and dropped a fork in her plate. “You know, you can be such an insensitive jerk!” she said, looking at Dimitrius.
“Sweetie, calm down,” Dante told Emily.
“I’m a jerk?” Dimitrius asked angrily. “Your friend married me while knowing all along she was still in love with Scott? But I’m the insensitive jerk?”
Emily shook her head. Melanie was dodging Dimitrius yet again, and she knew she had to do something about it. Melanie might hate her for a while, but she would just have to get over it. So pulling in a deep breath, Emily said, “Melanie does love you. She doesn’t love Scott. Listen, Dimitrius, I really shouldn’t say anything because she begged me not to say a word about this, but I can’t hold it in any longer. Melanie told me she saw Scott and his family in the restaurant and she was upset, not because she wanted Scott. She was upset because Scott and his wife had a baby.”
“Why would that upset her, and what does that have to do with me?”
“Let me speak with you outside for a moment, Dimitrius,” Emily said, not wanting to air Melanie’s business at the dinner table.
“Nah. I’m good,” he said standing. “I’ve had enough of my time wasted.”
Before he could walk away, Emily blurted out, “She can’t have children.”
Dimitrius swung his neck back around quickly, looking at her. “What’d you say?”
“I said…she can’t have children. That’s why it bothered her to see Scott’s wife holding a baby. It wasn’t because she wanted Scott back. It was a reminder of what she could never give you…a child. She said she was going to tell you that at the restaurant, but I guess when she saw Scott and his family, it threw a wrench in her plans. She’d been on the fence about telling you because, after all, that is why Scott broke up with her.”
Dimitrius’ frown deepened as hurt replaced the rage that had consumed him. “Scott broke up with her because she couldn’t have children?”
Emily nodded. “Yes. She feared you would do the same once you found out.”
Now he understood why she looked so sad in the restaurant once Scott and his family had stopped by their table. Scott left her because she couldn’t have children, and then he had the audacity to introduce her to his wife who was holding his baby. It must’ve really hurt her to see that, and to know she couldn’t give him a child. And he also realized why Emily called him an insensitive jerk. Out of anger, he’d yelled to Melanie not to have an abortion if she was pregnant, but she couldn’t get pregnant. And if she could, he knew that she’d never do something like that to him.
Dimitrius sighed and shook his head. He had a lot of clean-up to do if he intended on working things out with Melanie. But what if the damage he’d already done couldn’t be undone?
“I have to go,” Dimitrius said to everyone, then quickly darted out the door.
Chapter 27
Melanie wasn’t ready to face Dimitrius and she didn’t know if she ever would be, especially after what he’d said to her tonight. If he meant for his words to cut deep into her heart, then he had certainly succeeded at that. Even still, she couldn’t get thoughts of him out of her mind, the good times. Their wedding. Their honeymoon. Their hiking adventures. Star-gazing. Dinners. Holding hands. Seemed every second, she thought of him, but she was sure Dimitrius hadn’t been thinking about her. It was evident by the wrath that protruded forth from his mouth just an hour ago.
Too add fuel to the fire, right after she broke up with Dimitrius, Desmond had notified her that they decided to go with another candidate for the marketing manager position at The Champion Corporation. Dimitrius must’ve been so angry at her, he had his brother call to fire her before she could start working at her new position. So not only was she without the man she loved, she was also without a job.
She’d been thinking about moving to Charlotte because she couldn’t imagine living in Asheville and running into Dimitrius with a new woman and a baby, same as she had with Scott. It would be too much for her to bear. Moving to Charlotte would give her a clean slate, a fresh start. Some place where she could live the rest of her days single – the way she had intended on doing it before, until Dimitrius came along.
She sighed. She couldn’t deny that she missed Dimitrius. She missed his sexy smile and the look in his eyes when he told her that he loved her. She missed his smell, missed wrapping her arms around his torso, closing her eyes and taking in the very essence of him. She longed for him, but knew how unhealthy it was to desire something you couldn’t have. Who knew that better than she did?
After a quick shower, she towel-dried her thick, luscious curls and tied a robe on her body. Then she walked to the kitchen where she made a cup of hot cocoa, hoping the warm liquid would help to settle her mind. After taking a few sips, she set the cup on the coffee table. The drink did nothing to ease the loneliness that crept into her heart. She longed to feel Dimitrius’ arms around her, to feel his hands against her face, his lips against her lips. Wishful thinking, she said to herself.
Reaching for the cup once more, she heard the doorbell chiming. She glanced at the clock. It was a little after nine at night. She summoned enough strength to get up from the couch and when she looked through the peephole, she couldn’t believe her eyes. Dimitrius was standing there and he looked upset, same as he was at Emily’s house.
She silently shook her head. She wouldn’t entertain any more insults from him. If he didn’t want to be with her, fine. But there was no need to bash her with harsh words. She was hurting enough already.
Dimitrius rang the doorbell again and again. And again…he knew she was home. Her car was parked out front and the lights in the living room were on. Melanie didn’t want to answer the door, so in order to get him to stop pressing her doorbell, she yelled, “Go away, Dimitrius.”
“Not a chance…open the door, Melanie.”
“Why?”
“Because I need to talk to you, now open the door,” he said, sounding authoritative.
Melanie took a quick breath and unlocked the door. Her eyes instantly connected with his. He looked serious, yet melancholic, wearing a pair of jeans and a black T-shirt, standing tall and powerfully male. “May I come in?”
She nodded and stepped aside so he could pass. When he did, she could feel his energy, his mere presence wreaking havoc on her body. The slightest scent of his cologne and his own pheromones made her warm and fuzzy all over.
Dimitrius walked over to the couch, sat down and looked up at her, not saying a word.
She walked over to join him, sitting a pillow cushion away from him, twiddling her thumbs, not sure what else to do or say since he was staring at her so hard. Finally, she opened her mouth to say, “What is it that we need to talk about?”
“First, I want to say that I’m sorry for the comment I made to you. I said it out of anger. I know you would never have an abortion or do anything of the sort. I’m sorry.”
Before she had a chance to keep her tears at bay, one had escaped, rolling down the length of her face.
Dimitrius swallowed hard when he saw it. He knew he was the cause of it. He scooted closer to her and brushed the tear away from her face. “I want to ask you something,” he said.
“Okay.”
“Let’s say that we’ve been happily married for five years, and The Champion Corporation ended up
folding and I lost everything including my house, the cars and had no money in the bank…would you leave me?”
Melanie shook her head.
“Okay. Now let’s say that I was in a horrible accident, and I became paralyzed. Would you leave me, Melanie?”
Melanie fought back tears as she shook her head. “No.”
“Why wouldn’t you leave me?”
“What does this have to do with—”
“Why…wouldn’t…you…leave…me?” he asked, methodically slow, cutting her off.
She sniffled. “Because I love you.”
He scooted closer to her and asked, “Then why would you look me dead in the eyes and tell me that you didn’t love me, Melanie? Why?”
She dropped her head, trying to hide her sadness.
Dimitrius tilted her chin up with the touch of his index finger so their gazes connected. “Why?”
“Because…I,” she said with trembling lips. “I’m not a good woman for you.”
“Why would you say that?” he asked, feeling her pain in his heart. “Because you can’t give me a child?”
She looked shocked, surprised that he knew. “How…”
Before she could say a word more, Dimitrius captured her lips in his mouth, kissing her with the hunger of a pleasure-deprived man. And no other woman could give him the pleasure of the woman he loved more than he loved his own life. No woman had been able to get under his skin the way she had. Make him furious to the point of no return and then could calm his soul with her ripened lips.
“I love you, Melanie. My love never has, or never will come with conditions, baby. I just want you, and right now, I need to make love to you.”
“I need you too, Dimitrius,” she said honestly.
Dimitrius effortlessly carried her to the bedroom, gently lowered her there, pulling the belt of her robe and watching it fall open, displaying the beautiful body that he missed.
After making love, he held her in his arms, feeling her body shiver as she whimpered. It touched him to his soul to feel her so sad. He wanted to do everything he could to reassure her that he loved her and she wasn’t broken to him because she couldn’t have children. She was the woman he wanted to spend the rest of his life with.
“Melanie, baby,” he said, staring into her eyes. “I want you to know that I love you no matter what. Yes, I want children, but just because you can’t have them doesn’t mean that I don’t want to be with you. I’m not Scott and I never want you to compare me to him or any other man. I’m the man who loves you unconditionally. Do you understand me?”
“Yes, Dimitrius, but—”
“No buts, Melanie.” He shifted his body to stare into the sadness of her face, batting tears away with his thumbs.
“I don’t want you to resent me later on for not being able to give you what you want,” she told him.
“I love you too much to resent you, sweetheart. Even when I was angry at you, I still loved you.” He took a kiss from her lips and said, “Now listen…I will not live another day without you. Effective tomorrow morning, we will pack your things together so that you can finally move with me into our home. Okay.”
Melanie sniffled. “You’re getting all boardroom on me now?” she quipped.
“Yes, and you like that…don’t…you?” he asked between kisses.
“I do,” she said.
And they made love once more before the night was over, loving harder than they’d ever made love before – their souls on fire as their bodies moved together. The night left them both completely spent.
Epilogue
Four months later
Standing at the grill, Dimitrius looked across the pool, over at Melanie as she sat next to Emily an umbrella table. He inhaled a deep breath and released it slowly, feeling a level of satisfaction beyond his wildest dreams. He never imagined he could end up this way – happy and in love. It brought him much joy and satisfaction to be with a woman like Melanie. A woman he was in love with. A woman he would build with. Grow old with.
He watched as Melanie rubbed Emily’s stomach. Emily and Dante had announced two weeks ago that Emily was five months pregnant. They were expecting a son. He was happy for his brother and happy that another Champion man was joining their family.
“Look at you manning the grill,” Desmond said, standing next to Dimitrius with a basketball tucked underneath his arm. “You look like dad standing here.”
Dimitrius smirked. Out of his brothers, he was the one who resembled their father the most.
“Hey, let me get one of them hotdogs, bro,” Desmond said.
Dimitrius poked a hotdog with a fork and said, “Here you go,” handing it to him. “We’re about to eat, so round up everyone,” he said. Everyone included Dante and Emily, Sherita, Melanie’s parents, Desmond and a few of their closest friends.
“Alright. I’m on it,” Desmond said.
Dimitrius took a roaster pan, that was filled with a variety of meats, over to the designated food table and then, after every one was gathered, he said, “Thank you everyone for being here at my home, sharing this beautiful day with my wife and I. This is truly what life is all about – family and friends.”
Dimitrius walked over to Melanie, took her by the hand and she stood next to him. He kissed her on the cheek and said, “And, with that being said, Melanie and I would like to make an announcement. We didn’t think it would be possible, and the doctors told us it was highly unlikely, but it just goes to show that when you love someone,” he said, throaty, taking a moment to get himself together so that he could finish his statement without becoming overly emotional. He released a breath and said, “When you truly love someone, anything is possible. So it brings me great pleasure to let you all know that Melanie and I are expecting a baby girl.”
Emily’s mouth dropped open. “Melanie! You’re pregnant?” she said with tears of happiness in her eyes.
Melanie nodded and rubbed her stomach.
“And you didn’t tell me!” Emily said.
Melanie’s eyes teared up. “We wanted to make sure we were out of the woods, especially since the doctors didn’t think I could get pregnant.”
“This is the best news I’ve heard all year,” Melanie’s mother said, elated.
“How far along are you?” Emily asked.
“Four and a half months,” Dimitrius answered. “She has to be closely monitored by the doctors. They’re almost positive that she won’t be full-term, but we’re committed to doing everything it takes to make sure our angel arrives here safely.”
Emily stood up and rushed over to Melanie, throwing her arms around her. “I’m so happy for you guys,” she said. Then she hugged Dimitrius. “Our children are going to grow up together,” she said happily.
Dante and Desmond walked over to Dimitrius and both gave him a congratulatory hug.
“This is awesome news…proud of you, man,” Dante told him.
“I am too, Dimitrius,” Desmond said. “But I feel sorry for my little niece already. I know how strict you’re going to be with her.”
Dimitrius smiled. “You know it.”
“And just to think that you guys thought this would never happen,” Dante said.
“I know. I’m glad I didn’t give up on Melanie. I have you and Emily to thank for that,” Dimitrius said.
“Not a problem, man,” Dante said. “That’s what family is for, right?”
“Right.”
The men looked up at the women. Melanie was barely showing but Emily still wanted to compare belly sizes. They were even talking about having their baby showers on the same day.
“Now, it looks like all we have to do is to get Desmond to settle down with his kryptonite,” Dante quipped.
“I’m too young to settle down,” Desmond told him.
Dimitrius shook his head. “You’re never too young when you know you’ve found the one.
“Is that right?” Desmond said.
“Yeah. That’s right,” Dimitrius responded. �
�Now let’s eat for crying out loud.”
Melanie looked up at Dimitrius and smiled. Then she walked over to him, wrapped her arms around him and said, “This is perfect.”
He smiled and said, “It is, isn’t.”
“Yes. Thank you for making all of my dreams come true, Dimitrius.”
“Thank you for taking a chance with me. I promise to make you the happiest woman that has ever walked this earth.”
She kissed his lips, then said, “Baby, you already have.”
* * *
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