The Baby Proposal

by Andrea Laurence

  Lana gasped in surprise. “In a hurry?” she asked.

  “There’s not enough room to maneuver. I’ll buy you ten new pairs to replace them.”

  He shifted beneath her, undoing his pants and sliding them out of the way. With all the barriers gone, he sheathed in latex and found his home inside her, and she was ready for him. She shifted her weight back, taking him deeper with a sigh of contentment. Having her body wrapped around him in such an intimate way made her feel like, for that moment, Kal was all hers. With his ring on her finger and his need for her buried deep inside, it truly felt like they belonged to each other.

  At the very least, she was his, even if he could never be hers.

  Kal pressed his fingertips deep into the flesh of her hips and rocked her body back and forth. They moved together as the tension built and the windows of the Mercedes fogged up. Lana closed her eyes and tried to absorb every sensation of them together. The scents of leather and sex hung heavy in the air, and the sounds he made were like an arrow straight to her core. He was louder tonight, free to moan, free to whisper erotic words of encouragement when she moved just right.

  Then he slipped his hand between them. His fingers sought out her moist center and stroked her there. With every thrust, he rubbed her most sensitive spot, urging her closer and closer to reaching her release. Her cries grew louder. His touch became harder. His hips rose off the seat of the car to pound into her body with the fury of need.

  When Lana opened her eyes, Kal was watching her. His dark brown and gold gaze was fixed on her face, watching her every expression. He looked at her as though she were the sexiest, most desirable woman he’d ever seen. He didn’t look away, even as his own release grew closer. In the moment, he wasn’t closing his eyes and thinking of anything but her.

  That put her over.

  Bracing her hands on the driver’s seat and the door, she thrust her hips hard against him and came undone. Her whole body shuddered with the force of her orgasm as it exploded inside her, her loud cries interrupted by her ragged, gasping breaths. “Oh, Kal,” she said, nearly groaning his name as the pleasure continued to ripple through her body.

  “Lana,” he hissed between clenched teeth. He thrust hard into her from below, and then he lost it. His back arched up off the seat, his jaw dropping open. He shouted her name the second time as he poured into her.

  He reached for Lana and pulled her down to lie against his chest as they both recovered. Kal wrapped his arms protectively around her and hugged her tight. She was happy to press her ear against the faint, dark curls of his chest hair and listen to the rapid sound of his heartbeat as it slowly returned to normal.

  It felt so normal, so right to be in Kal’s arms like this. She didn’t want to imagine a time where the man she loved was out of her reach. But it was coming. Before she knew it, all of this would be over.

  Ten

  The phone rang and Lana lunged to answer it before it woke Akela from her nap. She didn’t recognize the number. “Hello?”

  “Hello. Lana?” a hesitant woman’s voice replied. It sounded familiar and yet she couldn’t place it either.

  “This is she.”

  “This is Mele.”

  Lana felt a twinge of guilt at not knowing the sound of her own sister’s voice, but it was different. She sounded...sober. Serious. Those were two things Mele rarely was. “Hi,” Lana replied, not quite sure what to say to her. They hadn’t spoken since before the arrest. At first, Lana had been too angry, then too concerned about Akela to try and contact her. Then, the drug program the judge sent her to had strict rules about communication with the outside, so Mele either couldn’t call or hadn’t felt the need to before now.

  “How’s Akela?” Mele asked in a small, quiet voice.

  “She’s doing great.” Lana wasn’t about to sugarcoat this. Her sister needed to know that her daughter was thriving outside the environment she’d lived in with Mele and Tua. “She’s got a bottom tooth coming in.”

  “Really? Wow. Her first tooth.” Mele sounded sad about missing her daughter’s milestones. It was as though she cared. For Akela’s sake, Lana hoped she truly did.

  “What took you so long to check on her?” Lana asked, unable and unwilling to keep the cold tone from her voice. It had been almost a month. “She could’ve been in foster care all this time and you wouldn’t have known.”

  “They told me she was with you, so I knew she was in good hands. I needed to focus on getting better for her.”

  “And how is that going?” Lana tried not to be pessimistic about her sister’s recovery, but it wasn’t easy to clean up. It took some addicts several rounds of treatment if they were even able to kick it at all. Some didn’t.

  “Really well,” Mele said in a surprisingly upbeat tone. “Today is the last day of treatment. They’ll drug-test me this afternoon, and if I pass—and I will—I’ll be released tomorrow.”

  Tomorrow? It seemed like Akela had just come to live with them, but if Mele was getting released, twenty-eight days had gone by. How was that possible?

  Lana knew she should be happy for her sister, but she felt her stomach sink as she realized what Mele was really telling her. She’d completed the program and the judge was letting her out. That meant she would be coming for her daughter. That meant that the reason for her marriage to Kal was coming to an end. That meant everything in her life was about to fall apart.

  “Good for you,” was all she could manage to say.

  “You sound doubtful, Lana.”

  “I’m sorry if I’m not instantly convinced, but you’ve cleaned up before. How do I know that you’ll stay clean this time? I’m not going to just hand Akela over to you to have you go back to using, and neither will the judge.”

  “I’m glad. She needs as many people in her life as possible that care for her that much. But I’m one of those people, too. If I feel like I’m going to blow it, I’ll bring her to you first. I promise. But there’s no reason to worry. I’m in a different place now, mentally and emotionally. Tua is in jail and out of my life for good. I’m starting over with new friends that will be better influences. I’ve cleaned up for good this time, Lana. My probation requires it, and my daughter deserves it. If I fail a random screening, I go to jail and I might lose Akela for good. I’m not going to let that happen. I’m not leaving my baby again.”

  There was a determination in Mele’s voice that Lana had never heard before. She really seemed to be changed. The month of treatment had made a difference. Lana felt hopeful for the first time since Akela was born and Mele relapsed.

  “I’ll be released in the morning. Do you think you could pick me up? Our car is still in the police impound. It’s going to take me a while to be able to pay the fine to get it out.”

  Lana tried not to flinch. Her sister would ask her for money any second now. She just knew it. “I can pick you up.”

  “Great. Thank you.”

  Lana waited, but the request didn’t come. “How are you going to get the money to get your car back?” she asked. Her sister hadn’t held down a real job in years.

  “It’s part of the continuing outpatient program. I go to group and individual counseling each week, pass my drug tests and they help me find somewhere to live and work. They partner with local businesses to place us in stable jobs.”

  That wasn’t the answer Lana had expected. Mele sounded like she was going to handle her transition all by herself. Lana was impressed. She was still hesitant to believe this program had worked a miracle, but it was sounding that way.

  “Kal’s hotel is actually one of the companies. I was going to see about a housekeeping job there, perhaps. Maybe I could work my way up to something better after a while. Do you think you could talk to him about it?”

  Lana bit at her lip. She hated to ask him to do anything else after all he’d done. Mele had no idea what lengths Kal had gone to for her daughter. But she knew he’d do it. Getting her in a stable job and away from Tua was the best thing they
could do to keep her from relapsing. “I’ll talk to him when he gets home tonight.”

  “Okay. Well, I’d better get off the phone. But before I do, I want to say thank you, Lana.”

  “Thank you for what?” she asked.

  “For everything.” There was a moment of silence that lingered between the sisters. “I’ll call you tomorrow morning.”

  The line disconnected and Lana was left staring in astonishment at her phone. She wasn’t sure quite what to do. Part of her was still in disbelief that the conversation had actually happened. She’d gone into this situation knowing it could be over in a month when her sister was released, but deep down, not believing it would happen.

  And yet it did. The sick feeling of dread in her stomach confirmed it. She looked up from the table into the living room. The Christmas tree was gone along with most of the decorations, but she’d left the lights up for New Year’s Eve. Soon everything would come down and be put away, along with the phony life she was living.

  This wasn’t her husband, her child or her home. It was all a carefully crafted ruse that was coming to an end. Akela would go back to her mother. With the baby gone, there was no reason to continue the marriage or to live together. At least, not any reason based on how they’d gone into this agreement.

  Unfortunately she’d been foolish enough to let herself develop feelings for Kal, even knowing this day would come. She would happily continue things the way they were, even with Akela gone, but she had no way of knowing if he felt anything more than physical attraction for her. There were moments when she thought she saw the glimmer of something like love in his eyes, but she couldn’t be sure.

  He didn’t want to marry, so why would he agree to stay married? Especially to someone like her? He deserved better than her.

  Lana dreaded having to tell him. She didn’t want to let all this go. At the same time, she couldn’t just sit around this afternoon and wait for him to come home to find out.

  “Sonia, I’m heading over to the hotel,” she said.

  The nanny just waved her off as she grabbed her bag and jumped into her new Mercedes. She buzzed through the winding streets of the resort, parking in the back area where the employees left their cars.

  “You’re early for rehearsal today,” the security guard noted as she went through the back door.

  “You didn’t see their miserable performance last night,” Lana answered with a smile. She hoped it sounded authentic and that her breaking heart wasn’t audible to passersby.

  She found Kal in his office, mindlessly typing away at something. He was just going about his day as he always did, with no idea she was about to drop a bomb on him.

  He looked up in surprise and smiled when he saw it was her standing there. “Hey. I was just thinking about lunch if you want to join me.”

  Lana bit at her lip and shook her head. “That’s, uh, not why I came over. I just got a call from Mele.”

  Kal’s dark eyebrows drew together in concern. “Is everything okay?”

  “Yeah. Great. Amazing, actually. So great she’s getting out tomorrow.” She barely got the words out before tears started threatening in her eyes.

  Kal leaped out of his chair in alarm and wrapped his arms around her. He let her cry for a good minute before he spoke. “Did she say anything about the judge and the guardianship agreement?”

  “She said she had to pass one more drug screening tonight and it was done. She intends to pick Akela up as soon as she gets out.”

  Kal’s strong embrace stiffened around her. She understood his reaction. He loved that baby. She had become his everything.

  Lana only wished that he loved her that much.

  * * *

  Kal was a ball of nervous energy. Not since his parents died had he felt so helpless. He was used to being in control of every detail of his life, but this was one thing he couldn’t change. The judge’s decree was official—Mele had met all the terms of her plea deal and custody of her daughter was restored.

  Lana had gone to pick up her sister at the rehabilitation center. Kal had remained behind to watch Akela. It was Lana’s suggestion so they could have a little more time together. Once they’d delivered the bad news to Sonia, they’d let her off to search for a new position, so it was just the two of them. With no baby, there was no need for a nanny. Or a nursery. Or a marriage.

  Kal sat cross-legged on the floor watching Akela play with her taggie bear. He’d dressed her in a cute little white eyelet dress that had ducks on it. She hadn’t liked it, but he also put on socks and white Mary Jane shoes. He wanted her to look like the perfect little princess she was when she went home today.

  By the door was a bag packed with things for the baby. The rehab center had arranged for Mele to get an apartment at a nearby complex. He’d supplied a room at the resort for a few days while she picked up some furnishings and got settled in. He’d gotten her hired on in the housekeeping department, so being close would allow her to start working.

  Once she was settled into her new place, he would have all the nursery furniture sent there. Akela’s clothes, supplies and blankets were in the suitcase to leave with her today. He’d damn near gotten teary packing up that bag.

  Akela looked up at him with a wide, one-toothed grin and chubby cheeks, and he felt the center of his chest start to contract as though it were a black hole sucking all his feelings into it. He’d never wanted a family or children, but he never imagined it would be this hard to let this little girl go. She was one of the reasons he left work on time every day. She had become his sunshine. And Lana had become his moonlight.

  He felt all of it slipping through his fingers.

  A sound in the driveway caught his attention. He looked up, listening to the sound of women’s voices come nearer. Every muscle in his body tensed. Then the door opened. No monsters stepped inside, just Lana and another woman who looked like a slightly older version of Lana. Her eyes were narrower, like Akela’s, and she was almost on the unhealthy side of thin. She didn’t look at Kal, though. Her dark eyes sought out her baby the moment she walked in.

  “Akela!” she said, dropping to her knees on the floor beside the baby. She scooped her into her arms and held her tight to her chest. Tears flowed down her cheeks, making Kal feel guilty for every thought he’d had about keeping Akela with them instead of her returning to her mother. Akela seemed content in her mother’s arms, grabbing a handful of her dark hair and giving a tug.

  It was a sweet reunion, but Kal could hardly stomach it. He got up and grabbed his suit coat off the back of the couch. “I’m going to head into the office,” he said.

  Lana regarded him with concern in her eyes, but she didn’t try to stop him. “Okay. I’m going to take Mele over to the hotel to get her settled,” she said.

  Fine. Whatever. He just needed to get out of here. He couldn’t sit and watch Mele walk out the door with the baby in her arms. He left them, holing himself up in his office for a couple hours. When he finally looked at his watch, it hadn’t been a couple hours. It had been seven, and well past the time he normally left.

  What reason did he have to go home with Akela gone?

  Lana was still there. That was something. But he wouldn’t even have that for much longer. He shut down his computer and slipped out. The office area was dark and quiet as he headed out the back door to where he parked. As he pulled up outside his house, it seemed darker than usual.

  When he came in the front door, he found Lana sitting at the kitchen counter, holding a glass of wine. She didn’t look up when he approached the room.

  “Did Mele and Akela get settled in?” he asked.

  Lana nodded slowly. “Yes. Thank you for letting her stay there for a few days. Sonia moved out, too. She found another live-in position and they wanted her to start right away.”

  Kal slumped against the doorway, resting his shoulder on the wall. The emptiness he’d filled with work returned now that he was home and the hollow shell of their house seemed to echo ins
ide him. “It’s too quiet in here now,” he said.

  “I know.” Lana rolled the wineglass back and forth between her palms, not drinking it or looking his way. “Quiet is good for thinking, though. I’ve been doing a lot of thinking today since you left.”

  That sounded ominous. “About what?” Kal left his spot on the wall and leaned his elbows onto the counter so Lana couldn’t avoid him any longer.

  “About what happens next. For us.”

  That was a thought that Kal hadn’t really allowed himself to have for more than half a second at a time. It was hard enough to deal with Akela being gone. “I don’t think we have to make any decisions right awa—”

  “I called Dexter,” she said. “He’s drawing up the divorce papers. He said we can come by in the morning to sign them and he’ll get them filed with the judge. It will take about thirty days to be finalized, but at least the ball will have started rolling.”

  Even though it was a rational thing to say, Lana’s words felt like an emotional sock to the gut. Why was it that he thought he would have to be the one to bring up the inevitable? Why did it bother him that Lana was moving forward to end this? He’d expected that perhaps she would drag her feet. She was the one who wanted to get married after all. And yet here he was, feeling like he was getting dumped for the first time since his freshman year.

  “Are you sure we should move so quickly? It’s only Mele’s first day out of rehab. What if she starts using again in a week? We’ll have to get married again. That’s a lot of unnecessary hassle. Why don’t we wait awhile and see what happens? It’s not like either of us needs to run out and marry someone else.”

  Lana looked at him at last and her delicate brow was furrowed in thought and irritation. “In a week, in a month, in a year...we can’t control or anticipate what my sister is going to do and we shouldn’t live our lives waiting for the other shoe to drop.”