With Brave Wings

by Cara Dee

  "Sort of." She snickered and scooted farther up to kiss his chin. Her eyes sparkled. "No need to check when I ovulate, though. I'm already pregnant."

  What?

  Heart drumming faster and faster, he didn’t know he'd asked that out loud until she answered.

  "I'm pregnant," she repeated. "I haven't been to the doctor's yet—wasn’t long ago I found out. But either it's brand new or it's since I came home and surprised you after Toronto."

  Holy fuck. "Are you serious?" He pushed himself up a bit, his gaze flicking between hers and her stomach. Hope and pride swelled in his chest, and the love he already had for her grew tenfold when she launched into an explanation about why she hadn't told him yet.

  She'd wanted it to be face-to-face. Her plan had been to tell him once she'd arrived in Cardiff, but then they'd fought. So she'd wanted them to solve their problems before she broke the news and, Jesus fucking Christ, Tennyson was at a loss for words.

  "I don’t know what to say," he admitted. Looking down, he slid a hand over her stomach and caressed her skin. She was soft and toned as ever, and even the second time around, it was near incomprehensible. "Maybe I'm too happy?" He chuckled, dazed. Shocked. Once again angry he'd let his jealousy go too far. "Christ, baby…" He blew out a breath before he kissed her hard. "I love you. I can't wait—Kayden will be thrilled." His mind spun, and now he'd get the chance to be there from the get-go. First doctor's visit, ultrasound—everything. "Have you been ill? Any cravings yet? It'll be a while before we go home, so we should find a doctor here. I'll make calls tomorrow. I can ask my mother to send some of the things you craved last time, too." Unless they had Dove chocolate here in Wales. Perhaps they did. He wouldn’t know, but he'd find out. Same with Reese's peanut butter. "And we'll speak to Daniel and Sage about limiting your traveling. We should hire Lucy full time as well, and—"

  "I think that’s enough," Sophie whispered and pinched his lips together. Her shoulders were shaking with laughter. "You're so fucking adorable, it hurts."

  Well, all right, then.

  Chapter 23

  It was funny how life worked out when you got everything you wanted. Sophie had everything to lose for the first time in her life, and it was scary. Scary and exhilarating.

  Work continued smoothly, and she reveled in everything she learned. Each day on the set brought a new challenge, and she loved how easy it was with Tennyson by her side. When she struggled with a scene, he was there to offer another perspective. When he tended to naturally exclude himself from meeting up with the rest of the crew and cast for dinner or drinks, Sophie became his social glue.

  "Come on, people!" Tennyson barked out. "I want this scene wrapped before lunch."

  "Woof, woof!" Sophie barked back.

  Everyone around them cracked up, though they respected—or sometimes feared—Tennyson enough to hurry the hell up. And Brooklyn finished checking the pregnant belly on Sophie that looked remarkably real. She'd been in the makeup trailer for hours, and now she looked eight or nine months pregnant instead of four months.

  "You're lucky I love you, brat," Tennyson chuckled and got behind his monitor.

  Sophie blew him a kiss, and then she walked over to the middle of the warehouse set where a crew member tied her to a chair. She was only wearing a thin top to go with a pair of pajama bottoms, so Brooklyn lingered to make sure the rope didn’t dig into her fake belly.

  "Will he hate me after this scene?" Judah asked quietly, seemingly both amused and worried.

  "Nah." She grinned and wriggled her hands, unable to move them much. "He's been in the industry too long to get worked up over that."

  Yesterday, she'd had a scene where her on-set husband had kissed her chastely. Tennyson had given her a devouring kiss afterward, but that was it. Rolling her shoulders, she closed her eyes and released a long breath. She found focus as the set cleared, leaving only her and Judah.

  "Cameras rolling!" Noah called out.

  Sophie hung her head and sank deeper into her role. Her mind brought forward the most recent scenes, where her brother had kidnapped her from her home in the middle of the night. She thought of her friends who were dead because of her. Sophie remembered the instructions from the medical expert who had told her the aftereffects of being chloroformed.

  "Action!"

  Judah circled her slowly.

  Sophie's chest heaved, and she tilted her head to watch him warily. She loved her brother, but he scared her. He was dangerous. Ill. Delusional.

  Her breaths were shallow, and she swallowed the nausea she portrayed.

  "You're mad at me," Judah said softly.

  She swallowed again and blinked slowly, dizzy. "I'm afraid of you, Rory."

  He shook his head quickly and kneeled down close to her, to which she flinched away. "Don't be," he croaked. Tears welled up his eyes, and he looked so damn heartbroken. "I love you. It used to be us against the world. Remember?"

  Sophie held her breath and tried to move her hands, but it was impossible. "What do you want me to say?" she blurted out, panting. A tear rolled down her cheek. "If I tell you what I really think, you'll hurt me."

  "I would never hurt you!" Judah cried. "You just keep running away from me! I want us to be together like we used to—"

  "You killed our parents!" Sophie screamed.

  A tense silence followed as the echoes died and she and Judah stared at each other.

  "And cut!"

  Sophie drew in a breath and shut her eyes, wanting to stay in the moment while the cameramen switched angles. Judah stayed close in the same position too, and when a rigger asked if the ropes were bothering Sophie, she merely shook her head and waited.

  "We'll take it from the silence," Tennyson announced.

  "Everybody on mark, cameras rolling!" Noah called.

  Facing Judah once more, Sophie stared at him as the scene started again, and he stood up to circle the chair like he'd done before.

  "Mother and Father took me away from you," he said. "They had me institutionalized. Locked away. Forgotten."

  "You were sick," Sophie whimpered. "Please understand me, Rory. I love you so much, but you're not well. You're hurting everyone I care for—you're hurting me!"

  "They made fun of me, Em," Judah gritted out tearfully. He came to a stand slightly behind Sophie and shifted her hair to the side, exposing her neck. "At the hospital—they laughed at me. They told me I was worthless." His voice grew softer as he drew a finger gently along her neck. "They shook me when I wouldn’t respond. They scared me, and you weren't there."

  Sophie hiccupped and screwed her eyes shut. Tears flowed. "I'm sorry." She started trembling when he lowered his face and nuzzled her neck and jaw from behind her. "Did—did you escape?"

  "I didn’t belong there." He groaned quietly and kissed her jaw, his hands coming to her front to palm her stomach. "I belong with you. You always made me feel so safe, and now nobody can stop us." She shuddered and stifled a sob when he licked the corner of her mouth. "Your husband can keep the spawn." He nipped at her jaw, sharply enough for her to wince. "You and I will go away."

  "Cut!" Tennyson called out. "Susan, make a mark at thirty-seven, please. I need to look it over." He spoke to the script supervisor. "And check for replacement words for husband. I'm not feeling it." Then he walked over to Sophie and Judah. "You guys up for one more?" He checked his watch. "We have another hour before we need to go, princess."

  "I respect you and all, but calling me princess?" Judah quipped.

  Sophie spluttered a giggle at Tennyson's snort.

  *

  A couple hours later, Sophie found herself in a doctor's office, and Tennyson had her hand in a death grip.

  "Let's see if the wee one is shy today, too," the doctor said.

  Sophie brushed her thumb over Tennyson's hand and waited as the doc smeared gel on her stomach. It was a relief to be rid of the fake one 'cause it was damn heavy.

  "The crew's taking bets," Tennyson said quietly. "Noah's h
oping for a boy because evidently you promised he could name your second child, and he doesn’t have any suggestions for a girl."

  "He wanted to name Kayden after himself—Collins," Sophie chuckled. "I did what I had to do."

  He grinned, and then nervousness joined in when the monitor was switched on and the doctor moved the wand over her belly. The sound of the baby's heartbeat filled the room, and Tennyson leaned forward and held Sophie's hand to his mouth, his eyes glistening.

  "You are sure you want to know the sex, yes?" the doctor asked.

  They nodded.

  "Congratulations, then." She smiled. "It's a girl."

  Sophie smiled widely through her tears, and soon she was engulfed in a hug by Tennyson. God, she couldn’t even describe her happiness right now.

  "I love you," he murmured thickly. "I love you so much."

  "You too," Sophie croaked.

  *

  The day before they were going back to LA, Sophie woke up in the middle of the night, and for some reason, she couldn’t fall back asleep. She tried; she snuggled deeper into Tennyson's embrace and watched his peaceful expression, but sleep eluded her.

  Then she tiptoed into Kayden's room and found him just as peacefully asleep, his thumb in his mouth.

  She smiled and glanced out the window, noticing it was raining.

  That brought back memories.

  Her first kiss with Tennyson.

  Returning to the master bedroom, she yanked on a pair of yoga pants, one of Tennyson's T-shirts, grabbed a blanket and her phone, and then she took the elevator up to the rooftop terrace.

  It was ridiculously cold, but there was no wind tonight.

  The bar was closed for the season, all the chairs piled up, the pool covered.

  With the blanket wrapped around her, she padded over to the middle of the terrace and tilted her head up. Raindrops splattered across her face, and more memories came back to her.

  "I hate the rain, Daddy!" she'd told her dad as a kid. She couldn’t remember how old she'd been. Maybe five or six.

  "Why?" he'd asked. "Without rain, you can't jump in puddles."

  Sophie had scrunched her nose and eyed a puddle on the ground.

  After that, Dad had taken her to the store, and they'd picked up a pair of rain boots with pink flowers on them. They'd been in New York at the time, and Central Park was the next stop.

  Dad had been the first one to jump into a large puddle, and Sophie still remembered the shock of seeing her father go bananas. He hadn't given a fuck about anybody watching him.

  She'd looked down at her pretty rain boots and then joined Dad with a war cry.

  And her love for the rain was born.

  "Let me tell you something." Dad had squatted down to her level, rivulets of water trickling down his face. "There will come a time when someone tells you you're too old to go puddle jumping. You don't want to be friends with that person. Okay, pumpkin?"

  "Okay, Daddy."

  Somewhere along the road, Dad had forgotten his own words. All things fun had been replaced with work. Making money and climbing higher on the corporate ladder became everything. There was no time for puddle jumping. Rain ruined fancy suits. Rain ruined shoes.

  Sophie had her eyes closed, and she drew in a deep breath. The air was wet, crisp, and smelled of trees, ocean, and winter.

  Opening her eyes again, she looked down at where she was clutching the edges of the blanket and her phone. Butterflies set up camp in her stomach.

  She'd been confused for a long time. Always trying to get somewhere. Someplace she didn’t know existed. Whether it was figuring out emotions, deciding what was right and wrong, or finding her place, she'd wasted too much time on confusion. She'd tried so hard to understand, but…

  Life wasn’t meant to be understood, was it? It was meant to be lived.

  Sophie wanted to live her life with her family—and all it entailed. Fights, second chances, devotion, flaws, love, and acceptance.

  Family. She saw a raindrop slide over the word "Family" on her finger. Second chances. She released a breath and scrolled through the photos on her phone. While she'd been in Toronto, Tennyson had asked if he could read the letter Dad had given her, so she had taken photos of every page and sent them. At the bottom of the last page, she found Dad's new number.

  It was too soon to add it as a contact, but she dialed it before she chickened out.

  Funny, wasn’t it? She was calling the man who had hurt her so much, yet the idea of calling her mother didn’t exist. Maybe because wounds could heal, but once you were forgotten, there was nothing left. Mom hadn't once tried to reach out—not ever. Since the day Dad divorced her, she had been quick to get out, and she had cut Sophie out of her life the minute the partying started.

  "Hello?" Dad answered.

  Sophie sucked in a breath. She thought she was prepared, but she wasn’t. Fuck. "It's me," she managed to rasp out. It was getting a bit too cold, so she walked under the roof and grabbed a chair to sit down.

  "Oh, Sophie—I'm so glad you called." His voice grew thicker. "Did you read my letter?"

  She nodded, forgetting he couldn’t see her. "Yeah."

  She'd lost count of how many times she'd read it.

  "I have no excuses, pumpkin. I became greedy. It started with wanting a nicer house for us," was one of the lines in the letter. Yet, the Pierces had always been well-off. But he'd wanted a mansion. "Nothing was ever enough, and I lost sight of everything that truly mattered."

  "What changed, Dad?" she asked quietly.

  He cleared his throat. "I had a heart attack a couple years ago. Woke up in the hospital alone, which… Well, it certainly put things in a new perspective."

  Sophie closed her eyes and hung her head. Christ. He could've died and she would've learned about it from some inside industry scoop.

  "I mistreated everyone who mattered to me," he went on, his voice rough with emotion. "Most of all, you."

  Her bottom lip trembled, so she bit down on it. "Did you really quit your job and sell the estate?"

  "I did," he replied somberly. "I'm staying at a hotel downtown for now. Closer to my lawyer's office." He made an attempt to joke, and she cracked half a smile. She remembered he'd mentioned getting divorced, too. "Do…do I stand a chance, pumpkin?"

  Considering she was deliberately biting back countless questions about his health after having a heart attack, she obviously still cared. And she was the one who had called.

  She'd once left her past behind her, but maybe some parts deserved digging up.

  "You're gonna have a hard time winning over Tennyson," she said softly, trying to keep it light.

  Dad let out a low, choked laugh. "I have no doubt. That only means he loves you." He sounded relieved. "I cannot tell you how happy this makes me, Sophie. I have a lot to make up for—I've said the most awful things to you."

  She nodded to herself and looked down.

  "I take it you two are together, then?" he asked hesitantly. "I was never able to get a grasp of your relationship."

  "We're together," she murmured. "Not from the start, but…" That was a story for another day. "I'm, uh…" She chuckled nervously. "We're actually expecting our second child."

  "Oh." Dad exhaled. "I—I have so many questions." He chuckled, sounding as nervous as she was. "I've seen photos of your son. Kayden, right? He has your eyes."

  "He does." At this point, it was too cold to be outside, so she headed inside and slid down along a wall to sit on the floor. There was no one around, anyway. "Yours too, I suppose."

  "Yes," he said quietly. "Um, do you know what you're having yet?"

  "A girl." Sophie blinked back tears. Part of her was so relieved. She hadn't spoken to her father like this, without being dismissed or ridiculed, in so, so long. It gave her some hope. "Noah, a friend of ours, has taken it upon himself to make sure my kids will grow up to be hockey fans."

  Dad laughed softly. "Is he a Kings fan? God—it's been ages since I went to a ga
me."

  Sophie remembered it too well. They'd watch a game together and go out for greasy food, and she'd pick any other team than the LA Kings simply to rile up her dad. They'd had a lot of fun.

  "Penguins fan." She giggled when he scoffed. "Yeah. So…" She could do this. She wanted it. She was ready. "If you want Kayden and the little one to be Kings fans, I guess you have your work cut out for you."

  Dad drew a ragged breath, and it took a moment before he spoke.

  "There's nothing I want more, Sophie. I can't thank you enough for giving me a chance."

  *

  Los Angeles

  "Is the fit still all right?" Brooklyn asked, concerned.

  "It's fine." Sophie sucked in her stomach as much as she could. Going through a new fitting process for a whole new pregnancy mold for one last scene was silly. "It's just one scene." A retake, actually.

  They'd been back in LA a couple weeks, and the baby girl in her belly had hit a growth spurt, much to her daddy's joy. Tennyson seemed to count every ounce as a major success.

  "Pierce to stage four!" an assistant called outside the trailer.

  *

  Los Angeles

  "Beautiful." Tennyson walked up behind her and dropped a kiss to her neck. "I have a feeling I'm going to enjoy this wrap party a lot more than the last one we were at together."

  "No kidding." She grinned and adjusted her cocktail dress. Her boobs were all over the place, damn it. "We ready to go?"

  "Almost." He gently grabbed her hand and turned her to face him. "I know you love that necklace of yours." She automatically brushed her fingers over the silver feather he'd given her in Vancouver. "But I believe it's time for an addition." While keeping their gazes locked, he slid a ring onto her pinky. "I found it a few days after you told me about Central Living."

  "Oh." She broke the gaze and looked at her finger, smiling when she saw the beautiful design of the ring. It was open, an angel wing meeting a heart.

  "An angel deserves wings." He pressed a lingering kiss to her forehead, and then tilted up her chin. "You use yours every day, and there's strength in everything you do. Whether you're giving out second chances or helping people find a home, whether you're letting me take care of you or you're asking for help."