“Sounds good to me.”
“Daddy it’s your turn.”
“Yes princess.”
Kimber took one more look at her much loved family and then left the room with her cell phone in hand.
She took a deep breath and then let it out as she dialed Paul’s number. She was worried that he was at work and she’d be disturbing him, but she wanted to tell him as soon as possible. He picked up on the second ring.
“Hello.”
“Hi Paul. It’s Kimber.”
“Hi. Um, did the results come back?”
“They did. I don’t know how long it will take you to get everything worked out so that you can come down here, but I’ll let the office know and we’ll go in whenever it’s good for you. Is Sierra coming with you?”
“She fought with herself over it, but she finally decided that she does want to be there.”
“Okay. Luke and I would like to take you out to lunch or dinner or whatever that day. If Halden is yours, we’ll need to talk and if he’s Luke’s it will be nice to feel like everything has closure.”
“Yeah. I feel like shit for hoping that he’s Luke’s, but we all know that it would be so much better if he is.”
“I know. I guess I’ll let you go now. Call me when you have everything figured out.”
“I will. Take care Kimber. Thanks for letting me know.”
“Bye Paul.”
“Bye Kimber.”
Paul called her back that evening and told her that he and Sierra would be able to be in town the next Monday. It was four days away. Kimber was sure that the days were going to feel like years as they passed, but she was glad that he had been able to work everything out with his vacation and she knew that it definitely could have taken longer.
She let Luke know. The next morning, she called the facility that had handled their test results and made an appointment for them to come in Monday afternoon. They made plans to drop Alexis and Halden off with Luke’s parents Monday morning.
The time did feel like it passed slowly, but by the time they were on their way to actually hear the results, Kimber felt like she wanted to run away. Luke had been so good to her and he acted the exact same way towards Halden that he did Alexis, but Kimber was still afraid that everything would take a turn for the worse if the results didn’t say that Halden was Luke’s son.
Luke pulled to a stop in the parking lot. Paul and Sierra were standing next to Paul’s car. Paul saw them and waved. Luke squeezed Kimber’s hand.
“Babe are you okay?”
“I am so nervous. Oh Luke, what if we’ve gotten our hopes up and Paul and Sierra’s hopes up and Halden turns out to be Paul’s son? I don’t think I can take that.”
“The easiest way for me to think of it babe was that I would be like his stepfather. It’s a little different if you want to get real technical. We were technically separated when it happened and it’s much easier for me to think of it that way. I know that I had an affair while we were most certainly not separated, but it helps me breathe a little better to think that you not only just had sex with Paul, but you did it while we were separated. We will get through this if Halden is Paul’s son. I hope and pray that he’s not because I want so badly for that boy to be mine. He’s already stolen my heart. I look at his face and see my eyes, but the heart sees what it wants to sometimes. Let’s go inside honey.”
Luke squeezed her hand again and then got out of the car. They were in her car since it definitely had more room for the kids, but she had been too nervous to drive.
He opened her door and gave her his hand. She stepped out and he shut the door. He embraced her. She held on to him, breathing in his scent, feeling tears prick her eyes.
Paul cleared his throat behind them. “Sorry to interrupt, but I guess we should probably get inside.”
Kimber pulled away from Luke and ended up looking straight into not Paul’s eyes but Sierra’s. The pretty woman gave her a half smile, though it looked to Kimber to be very forced.
Luke twined his fingers through hers and they all walked together towards the door. He dropped her hand long enough to hold the door for everyone and then took her hand again. They walked to the counter and Luke announced who they were and what they were there for. The woman behind the desk nodded and said that someone would be with them in a few minutes.
Luke led her back to the group of chairs where Sierra and Paul were sitting. It bugged her a little that Luke chose to sit beside Sierra when there were two open chairs on Paul’s left, but she forced it out of her mind and put her head on his shoulder and tried not to think about anything.
The minutes until someone called their names seemed to be everlasting. She felt nauseous when she followed Luke down a long hall and into an office.
They all sat down and the man behind the desk introduced himself. Kimber’s heart leapt to her throat when he opened the folder in front of him. She almost wasn’t sure that she believed her own ears when he announced that the father of Halden Elijah Stone was Lucas Stone.
She couldn’t speak. She felt like she was walking around in a dreamlike state when Luke thanked the man and held out his hand to her to help her to her feet. She stumbled a little and her face felt like it was on fire when they left the office. She looked at Sierra and Paul and saw that Sierra was crying. Paul’s eyes were filled with tears too.
The walk back to her car made her feel like she might have a little bit of an idea what it felt like to be released from prison. Luke put his arms around her. She let her tears flow then. He held her, saying nothing.
He pulled back several minutes later and she pulled a travel pack of tissues out of her purse. She wiped her face and blew her nose. Paul and Sierra were standing next to Paul’s car, looking uncomfortable.
Luke cleared his throat. “We’d like to take you out to lunch.”
Sierra bit her lip. “Um.” She turned to her husband. “What do you think Paul?”
He smiled. “I am so relieved right now, I feel like getting drunk.”
Luke chuckled. “A drink might be in order too. There’s a nice Italian place a few blocks away. My treat.”
Sierra nodded. “Okay.” Her eyes met Kimber’s but she quickly looked away.
They got into the car and Luke drove them to the restaurant.
Luke
When Luke heard the confirmation that Halden was his son, he wanted to jump up and down and scream his head off. He didn’t think he’d ever been so relieved in his whole life. Kimber still looked like she was going to throw up, but he knew that she must feel the same overwhelming feeling of happiness that he did.
Sierra and Paul had agreed to go out to lunch with them, so they drove to the restaurant where he and Kimber had had their first date. Luke had the offhanded thought as he followed them into the restaurant that Sierra was even more beautiful than he remembered her, but she was clutching Paul’s arm like she never wanted to let go. Luke pushed all thoughts of the attractiveness of his ex-lover out of his mind as they waited to be seated.
The talk was stilted at first. Paul seemed even more uncomfortable than Sierra did. He felt pretty uncomfortable himself, but he knew that they all needed to walk away from this thing clean. Everything had to be put to rest for once and for all between him and Sierra and Kimber and Paul.
Once everyone besides Kimber had had a glass of wine it got a little easier. They talked about their kids and Paul’s job, Luke’s songwriting and Kimber’s store. It still was nowhere near the most relaxed meal, but by the end, Luke was sure that they all felt better and hoped that there would no longer be anything that felt like it was finished between them.
When he had paid and they were all out in the parking lot, he gave Sierra a hug. He saw that Paul gave him a dirty look, but Sierra gave her husband an even dirtier one and held him tighter. When he let her go, he knew that he would never hold her in his arms again and realized that he was okay with that.
“Take care Sie.”
She smiled. �
��You too. Tell Alexis I said ‘hi.’”
“I will.” He turned to Paul. “Take care of her. She deserves to be treated well.”
Paul cleared his throat, and to Luke he still looked a little uncomfortable. “I will. I know. Best of luck with everything guys.”
“You too. Drive safely.”
“Always.” Paul took Sierra’s hand and they walked away.
Luke turned to Kimber. “I think I hear our bedroom calling our names.”
Kimber smiled. “Me too.”
Luke kissed her slow and easy. “There’s nothing like a beautiful wife that’s been given the okay by the doc to start having sex again. And an empty house. I love those babies and I am truly thanking my lucky stars that they are both mine by blood, but damn is it gonna be nice to have them tucked away with Grandma and Grandpa for the night.” He leaned over and murmured a suggestive comment into her ear.
Kimber raised an eyebrow at his suggestion. “You think so huh?”
He grinned. “Oh yeah I do.”
He took her hand briefly and then opened the car door for her. The drive back to their house seemed to take forever. He felt like there was a fire burning inside of him that was being fueled by his sex drive.
There was no talk as they unlocked the door and went into the house. They retreated to the bedroom and their clothes were soon on the floor beside the bed.
Luke pressed his beautiful wife gently back to the bed and kissed her. He let all his passion out into the kiss. He wanted her to feel the way he felt for her now more than ever.
She pulled back. “I love you Luke. Thank you for sticking by me through this whole crazy mess that I got us into.”
“I got us into this mess. You and Paul just ended it. I admit that you probably could have gone about it with a little more thought put into it and saved us all a lot of headaches, but none of that matters now babe. It might suck to explain all of this to Alexis and Halden when they’re old enough to understand, but you know what? I think they’re going to look at us and shrug because we are still going to be married and going even stronger by then. I love you Kimber. Now let me show you how much. I meant what I whispered into your ear earlier.” He winked at her.
“Mmm, it sounds good to me.”
She gave him one last kiss. Then he took his time and tasted every inch of her body on his tongue. He brought her to orgasm with his mouth and then entered her slowly with his manhood. She kept her eyes locked on his as he moved above her, a mixture of passion, love and contentment on her face.
He captured her mouth with his when he came to orgasm, and then moved off of her and let out a contented sigh.
“You know babe, before I met you, I used to worry that I’d never be able to stay married to a woman for long because the sex is supposed to change after you get married.”
“Uh huh.”
“Yeah, so I was gonna marry Sierra, and I was ready to settle down when I met you, but I really did worry that the passion would die down. But it has never died down between us. I know it was a little weird after my affair for a while, but before we knew it our sex life was back to normal. It’s pretty damned special to be able to make love to your best friend and not hate each other in the morning too.”
Kimber wrinkled her nose at him. “You’re a goof Luke.”
“I mean it babe. You’re my best friend and you will always be my absolute favorite lover. You know you’re happy with your sex life when the only woman you dream about making love to is your wife.”
“Oh Luke.”
“Do you dream about having sex with other guys?”
“No.”
“I can tell by the look on your face that you do, but it’s okay. I love you Kimber.”
“I love you Luke.”
He took her hand and then took her into his arms. He was truly content with his life. There had been times when he’d wondered if Kimber’s secret would have been better left unsaid especially since Halden was his son, but he knew that her honesty had only made their marriage stronger. He was proud to call Kimber his wife. There was no other woman in the world he would rather grow old with. And the fact that they had gotten through his affair and her one night stand with Paul and the questioned paternity of Halden, told Luke that their marriage could weather anything that life chose to throw at it.
Sierra
Sierra looked at Paul as he drove. She was so happy that the baby was Luke’s that she felt like crying again. But what she wanted to do most of all was make love to her husband. Since it was such a long drive, they were staying in town overnight. The drive back to their hotel room seemed to take forever to her.
He pulled up in the parking lot and they got out of the car. She grabbed his hand and pulled him to their room on the second floor. He grinned at her. “I’m anxious too baby.”
“Uh huh.” She tapped her foot as he unlocked the door.
As soon as he had closed it behind them, she rid herself of her clothes and moved to undress him. He put a hand on her arm. “Baby don’t you want a little romance?”
“Nope. Not now. Very little foreplay will be required the first time either. The second time, you’re more than welcome to blow my mind like you did the last time we made love. No condoms.”
“Babe you’re not on birth control. Are you sure you want to take the chance of getting pregnant so soon?”
Sierra shot him a dirty look. “I understand the consequences of having sex without a condom Paul. We have an appointment with a counselor. You’re picking your stuff up and coming home as soon as we get back to town. We’re going to put all of this shit behind us and make our marriage work. And making our marriage work includes you pleasing me in the bedroom. I’m more than willing to please you too of course, but you have to at least try to satisfy my sexual needs.”
“Sierra I sometimes wonder if any man could satisfy your sexual needs.”
“Ha ha. It’s okay for you to want me Paul. I’m your wife. If you want to have sex and the baby’s awake, whisper something dirty into my ear. Or if you don’t feel comfortable talking dirty whisper into my ear that you want to make love when the baby’s down for the night. Even if I’m not in the mood, I’ll give you the chance to try to turn me on. And if that doesn’t work, I’m the kind of wife that will still help you get off. But I don’t see that as happening very often and getting you off turns me on anyway.”
Sierra finished stripping him and pressed him gently back to the bed. “No condoms. If I get pregnant, I get pregnant. I feel like we can work through this now. I will work my hardest to make our marriage work. I think I might like to go back to work soon though. I love taking care of Nathan, but sometimes I feel like I’m not doing what I’m really supposed to be doing. You understand that don’t you?”
“Yes baby. I love you Sierra.”
“I love you Paul.”
She kissed him. She let all of her pent up sexual frustration out and let herself get lost in the feel of his lips on hers. She was soon very excited and moved to straddle him. She took him inside of her slowly but her movements above him weren’t slow. She couldn’t take taking it slow with him the first time. It had been far too long.
She collapsed on top of him minutes later. He held her. She still felt a little like crying, but she wasn’t going to let the misery that had threatened to overcome her in the past few months get to her on this day of all days. Her man was her man again. She wondered if since the baby was Luke’s that Kimber’s and Paul’s secret would have been better left unsaid, but she knew that their marriage needed to be built on a strong foundation that included honesty.
As Paul took her hand and led her to the shower, she was content in the fact that she and Paul were both going to try harder. Counseling would be good for them and she didn’t think that either of them would really mind if she got pregnant. They had weathered quite a storm in the past few months, but she was looking forward to a bright future with the man that she loved and their beautiful son.
Run To
You
Misty Reigenborn
Copyright 2013
By Misty Reigenborn
Kimber
Kimber Stone knew that her marriage was over as soon as she heard the other woman’s voice on the phone. Life had thrown some crazy curveballs at her, in addition to some twists of fate that she chose not to think about, but this was just too much.
She paced her bedroom as she waited for her husband to return home, thinking that she had to figure out what she was going to say to him. But her mind was a blur, worse than it had been when she’d found out Luke had been cheating on her, worse even than when she had come to the decision that she had to tell him that the child she carried may not be his.
It all seemed so coincidental. Kimber was off of work that day and normally the book store ran well without her. But today there had been a problem with an order. So instead of going to the grocery store with Luke, she’d stayed behind to try to straighten out the mess that had been created when somehow the only books that hadn’t come in her order had been the new novel out by the author that was doing a signing of that very book at the store in three days.
Kimber had no idea what she was going to do about the issue with the books, but she did know that it was going to be easy enough to straighten out her problems with Luke. It was going to hurt like hell, because she didn’t honestly believe she’d ever love another man the way she loved him. But Kimber knew that if she stayed in her marriage now, she’d never be able to live with herself.
Even more coincidental was the fact that she and Luke, unlike so many others these days, still had a home phone. She absentmindedly told herself that she needed to call and cancel the home phone, because it hardly ever rang anyway. Then she wondered if she would have ever known about what Luke had done if they hadn’t still had a landline phone. The woman that had made the phone call that had ended her marriage once and for all had done an internet search and came up with their phone number.
Misty Reigenborn Romance Boxed Set Page 27
