“That was my water,” she speaks between her fingers, before lowering her hand to her side. “Or at least I think my water broke.”
I smile and rest my forehead against hers for a few seconds before taking a step back. “Either that or you pissed on my shoes.”
“I was supposed to have a few more days.” She waves her hand in front of her face to fan herself. “I’m not ready for him.”
“Listen to me, Kitten,” I say, gripping her by the arms. “We’ve planned for this day for months. You can do this, okay? You got this.”
“Right,” she breathes. “I can do this.”
“I will be here if you need an assist.” I wink, and she returns my smile.
“There’s no one else I would want to do this with than you, Dean.” She kisses my cheek. “I love you.”
“I love you, too.” I release her from my grasp. “We need to get you to the hospital.”
“I have to take a shower first.”
“Of course, you do,” I deadpan.
“I don’t want to be all gross. I am covered in fluid. Help me into the shower, and then we can leave.”
A mixture of panic and excitement stirs in my chest, as I walk Kat to the bathroom. My son is almost here. Having a baby at twenty-three was the last thing I’d ever planned, but now that I’m about to become a father, all the missing pieces in my life are falling into place.
After spending months preparing for Noah, he’s almost here. Noah’s birth is the complete opposite of what I’d imagined. Standing at Kat’s side, as she squeezes my hand for dear life, I tell her to breathe.
She glances up at me, with her teeth clenched in either pain or anger. It’s hard to tell with all the yelling she has done since the doctor told her to start pushing. Her hair is a mess, with little bits of blonde matted to her face, and her cheeks and chest breaking out in blotches.
“Almost there,” I say under my breath, echoing the doctor’s words. “You’re doing great, Kitten.”
A few more minutes pass, with the curses flying out of her mouth like a sailor. She can say whatever she wants to me when she’s about to bring my baby boy into this world.
“Push,” the doctor says, and Kat squeezes my hand with her superhuman strength, forcing my eyes shut.
A few seconds later, Noah’s screams fill the room, and Dr. Walcott announces, “It’s a boy.”
But we already knew that.
I smile like a fool as my gaze travels between Noah and Kat. Dr. Walcott holds Noah up to show him to us, before passing him to the nurse.
The nurse asks me if I want to cut the umbilical cord, and I nod, nervous. What if I screw this up?
I know I can’t hurt Noah, but still, I am terrified. After the doctor and nurse make their preparations, the nurse hands me the scissors, as I stand over my son, freaking out. He’s tiny and beautiful, a mini version of me. My eyes fill with tears that I blink away.
Kat deprived me of months of her pregnancy, but she gave me this moment. Cutting into the cord is weird, sort of like slicing through a thick, wet rope. But I feel more bonded to Noah. His mother got to carry and nurture him, but this is something I get to do. It all hits me at once. I have a son.
After I finish, the nurse takes Noah to clean him up, and I stand next to Kat, my hands still trembling. I sweep the hair off her forehead and bend down to kiss her slick, salty skin, telling her how much I love her.
I follow her line of sight to the nurse who is holding our baby.
“We make cute kids, huh?” Kat asks, unable to peel her eyes away.
“He takes after his dad.”
She turns to face me, her smile reaching up to her watery blue eyes that have tears of joy in them. “He sure does.” Kat presses her palm to my cheek. “I can’t wait to take Noah home and start my family with you.”
I kiss her fingers that brush my lips. “Me, too, Kitten.”
“You should let everyone know that we’re okay and that Noah is healthy.”
“I’m not leaving your side.”
She tips her head toward the door. “Stop being weird. Go ahead. We will be fine. My dad, brothers, and your mom are probably worried sick.”
“I still don’t like Duke,” I admit.
“You will always be the man who knocked up his baby sister, so I would say the feeling is mutual. You guys are family now. Both of you will have to put aside your differences for Noah and me.”
I bring her hand up to my lips and plant a kiss on her soft skin. “I’ve been an asshole lately, but I would do anything for you and our son.”
“I know that, Dean. Now, go. Let everyone know they can come see the baby and me.”
I release her hand, not wanting to leave the room. “I’ll be right back.”
As I walk into the waiting area, the entire Baldwin clan comes to a standing. Theo and Tucker speed walk over to me, with Austin and Duke in tow. Nick helps my mom up from the chair and hooks his arm through hers.
“Did Kat have the baby?” Theo asks, smiling.
“The nurses are cleaning him up now.”
“Congratulations, bro,” Theo says, slapping me on the back, followed by Tucker.
“Thanks.”
“I guess this makes you an official member of the family,” Tucker says.
I laugh. “Yeah, I guess.”
“Now, we can actually call you our brother and it will be legit,” Theo says.
I smile at his words. “Do you guys want to see Noah?”
“Yeah,” they both say, excited about meeting their nephew.
After the news broke about Kat’s pregnancy, it took the twins a while before they would talk to me on the phone. Ever since, we have slowly repaired our friendship. Austin, always the more friendly and civil of the brothers, holds out his hand for me to shake. Duke frowns at me, his angry look slowly changing to a closed-mouth smile. He mutters his congratulations.
My mom is a sobbing mess, held up by Nick, with his bulky frame and strong arms. She hugs me and chokes out, “Congrats, baby. I can’t believe my baby has a baby, and I’m a grandmother.”
I kiss her on the cheek. “Thanks, Mom. You are an amazing mother. You’ll be an even better grandmother. Noah will love you just as much as I do.”
She smiles. “I guess it’s about time I leave Florida. My boys need me.”
I nod. “We do.”
When Nick hugs me and welcomes me into their family, the feeling is surreal. For most of my life, I looked up to Nick Baldwin. He was my childhood idol and now the grandfather of my child. The reality of the situation still needs to sink in before I can process all the changes.
The biggest change, I am a father.
Chapter 23
Six weeks later
Kat
Six weeks after delivering Noah, the doctor finally gave me his approval to have sex. Waiting this long to be with Dean again has felt like an eternity. A small part of me is nervous, despite having done this before. Still, it has been almost eight months since Dean and I were together. It’s even more bizarre to think that we only had sex a few times and now we have a child together.
Hours ago, Dean left the apartment for a team meeting, with every intention to spend tonight in bed with me. So, where the hell is he? I called several times and left him messages, all of which have gone unanswered. He even ignored my text messages, which is strange.
We moved past our anger toward each other weeks ago. Dean has changed so much since Noah was born, yet he bails on me the night we have plans. I rocked Noah to sleep over an hour ago, and now he’s taking one his many newborn naps. He never sleeps for more than a few hours, making it impossible to close my eyes for a minute, before I’m dragging my ass down the hall to feed him.
When I hear a loud bang at the front door, I jump up from the couch. Dean comes stumbling into the living room, tripping over his feet.
“Hey, Kitten,” he slurs, coming toward me. “Sorry, I’m late.”
“You smell like a brewery, Dean. Where
have you been?”
He kisses me on the cheek, slowly making his way down to my neck. “I went out with Shane and Liam. They had a happy hour special at McFadden’s.”
“I wanted you sober. Tonight was supposed to be special, Dean.” I push him away from me. “You are so stupid.”
“I was nervous, okay?” He clutches my waist. “I needed some liquid courage.”
“Courage for what? To have sex with me?”
He nods. “Yeah, I didn’t want to fuck this up. The more I thought about it, the more nervous I got.”
“Well, you are doing a damn good job at fucking things up. So, there goes that brilliant idea.”
“I’m sorry, Kitten.” He threads his fingers between mine and drags me toward the kitchen. “Have a drink with me.”
I could use a beer or two to take the edge off.
He opens the fridge and flips the tops on two beers, handing one to me. I tip the bottle to his and take a sip. Dean steps forward to pin me against the counter with his body, staring at me beneath his dark brows. Reaching behind me, he sets his beer on the counter and does the same with mine.
“Are you sure you’re all healed? I don’t want to hurt you,” he says, pushing my hair behind my ears.
“Yeah, we’re good to go. Maybe take it easy on me the first time just in case.”
“And here I thought I would get that hate fuck you still owe me.” He says the words with a wicked smirk that hardens my nipples.
“You can fuck me all right,” I whisper against his lips, “as long as you break me in at first.”
Dean moves his hands up to my hair, and with a strong grip, he pulls me toward him. His soft lips graze along mine. “I love you, Kitten,” he breathes.
“I love you, too. We have about an hour or two before Noah gets up again.”
“Less talking and more fucking,” he says, wiggling his eyebrows at me. I love when he does that. It’s so damn cute, reminding of the early days of our relationship.
I hook my arms around his neck and lean into him, parting his lips with my tongue. He releases his grip on my hair and grabs my ass with both hands. His erection digs into my thigh. Greedy and hungry for Dean, I push up his shirt and run my palm over his muscular stomach, exploring every contour with my fingers. We take turns removing each other’s shirts, eventually making our way to our pants.
I’ve worn yoga pants every day since I left the hospital, making it easy for Dean to push them over my hips and down my legs. I step out of them and kick the pants to the side, fumbling with the button on his jeans.
He groans when I slip my hand into his boxers and take his length in my hand. Massaging his smooth skin between my fingers, I stroke his shaft and watch as he sucks in a deep breath. After wanting to do this for months, I crouch down in front of Dean and stick out my tongue to glide it over his sensitive skin.
Staring down at me, Dean grips my hair in his hands and watches me as I take him in my mouth. With each flick of my tongue, he moans. My juices threaten to spill down my leg from the pleasure I get from making Dean come.
Dean helps me up to my feet and grips me by the hips, lifting me up to lower me onto the kitchen counter. He removes the rest of his clothes before he leans forward to graze his lips along mine. My body shuts down, as Dean takes my bottom lip in his mouth and sucks on it.
He’s so rough and aggressive, yet soft and tender. Every moment that has led up to this one was worth it. Our bodies meld together, with our love fusing as one. As our tongues tangle together, I get lost in the moment and the pure pleasure that comes from being with Dean.
I never want his hands to leave my body or his tongue to stop doing whatever he does to make every nerve ending come alive at once. With each kiss, our relationship strengthens. Our bond grows stronger. The animalistic passion we both crave consumes us, taking our love to new heights.
As Dean slides his hands up my thighs, heat rushes over my body in waves. Our lips separate long enough for him to dip his head down to suck on my nipple, gently tugging it with his teeth. He palms my breasts in his hands, taking his turn with each one.
With my nipple between his teeth, Dean peeks up at me, eventually kissing his way back up to my lips. He stares at me with so much hunger that his blue eyes command authority over me. Spreading my legs wider, Dean grips my thighs and lowers himself between them.
He leaves a trail of kisses as he makes his way to my throbbing core. Like the rest of him, Dean’s tongue has the power to own my body. And he does. My man knows how to send me over the edge, ripping the screams from my body in the process.
“Dean,” I moan and rock my hips against his mouth, as I take a chunk of his dark hair between my fingers.
He stops long enough to glance up at me and say, “That’s it, Kitten. Come for me.”
My entire body comes alive, set ablaze with each flick of Dean’s tongue. It’s not long before I find my release, repeatedly whispering his name in the process. He gives me all of two seconds to open my eyes and try to recoup before he lifts me up from the counter and throws me over his shoulder, as I weigh nothing.
He smacks my ass on his way to the bedroom, careful not to make too much noise. With Noah in his bedroom, we should have enough time before he wakes up for his next feeding. I hope.
Dean lowers me onto the mattress, crawls between my legs, and positions himself at my entrance. He rubs his cock along my folds, forcing a soft moan from my mouth. Trying his best not to hurt me, Dean slides inside me, inching his way a little at a time. But he’s long and thick, which takes a while for me to get used to after so long of a wait.
After I adjust to his size, the pain lessens, each thrust quickly turning to pleasure. He leans forward and places his elbows on both sides of my head and kisses my neck, before making his way to my lips. As Dean picks up the pace, he kisses me just as hard. My body relaxes, and I lose myself with Dean, eventually working in a rhythmic motion along with his body. My body convulses, the grip I have on him tightening, as a ripple of pleasure rocks through me.
It’s hard to believe that I lasted eight months without this. Dean takes me to new heights every time we are together, each time better than the last. Eventually, our moans become one, both of us losing control, as we find our release.
He collapses on top of me and kisses me on the lips, before rolling onto his side of the mattress. Dean tugs at my arm to pull me onto his chest. I curl up into the nook between his arm and shoulder and rest my head on his chest.
“You need to show me how much you love me every night,” I choke out. “I almost forgot how good we are together.”
He flashes one of his sexy smirks. “I would be happy to give you another reminder.”
Out of breath, I mutter, “And this time, don’t go easy on me.”
He laughs. “I’m not even close to done with you. I could have ten more babies with you, Kitten.”
“I don’t think I could handle ten more of Noah.”
He cocks an eyebrow at me. “Really? I thought we could make our own hockey team.”
“Get out of here.” I tap him on the arm, laughing. “If you want that many kids, you can try pushing them out.”
“For all you know, another baby is growing inside you right now.”
“You’re an amazing father, Dean. Our children are lucky to have you.”
“I always knew you would be a good mom. You took care of the twins and me all through college.”
I laugh. “I guess I was like the unofficial house mother to you idiots. Someone had to keep your asses in check.”
“I still need you to keep me on track.” He squeezes me tight against him. “You make me a better man, Kitten.”
“We make a good team,” I confess.
He nods, rubbing his chin against my head. Then, he takes my hand and wraps it around his growing erection.
I peek up at him with a smile on my lips. “Does this mean you want to make another baby right now?”
“I want it all with y
ou, Kitten.”
His words are like music to my ears. After waiting months for Dean to forgive me, Noah has brought us back together. Dean is still my best friend, except now he’s the father of my son and the love of my life.
Chapter 24
Nine months after Noah’s birth
Kat
I make it through the door and rush into Noah’s bedroom with a few minutes to spare before Dean calls out from the living room that he’s home.
“In here,” I say, my fingers working faster to get Noah into his new shirt. I didn’t want to ruin the surprise. A few minutes later and all of my planning would have gone to shit.
“Kitten.” Dean hugs me from behind, just as I lift Noah from the dressing table and hold him tight against my chest. He buries his face in my neck and reaches around to rub Noah on his back. “I missed you two so much this week.”
“We missed you, too, Daddy.” I turn around to face Dean and plant a kiss on his lips.
Noah stirs in my arms, making those cute baby sounds I love so much. He napped all through my appointment and the entire car ride back to the condo. All week, Noah has only taken short catnaps, depriving me of sleep. With Dean on the road, it’s as if Noah senses that he’s not around. At least Dean is home with us now—where he belongs.
My lids are heavy, but the adrenaline that rushes through my veins is keeping me awake. When Dean cups the side of my face with his hand, I lean into his touch and close my eyes. Dean parts my lips with his tongue, leaving me wanting more, before bending down to press his lips to Noah’s forehead.
“Hey, Little Man. Have you been keeping your Mommy out of trouble?”
I laugh. “Noah has to keep you in line, not me.”
Dean peels Noah from my arms and holds him up to make funny faces at him. Noah giggles at Dean.
“Did you notice his shirt?”
Dean looks at me, confused. “Is it new?”
More than Friends: (A Friends to Lovers Standalone Romance) Page 15
