Rags to Riches Baby

by Andrea Laurence

  He brought his hand up to her face. His fingertips traced the curve of her cheek, then trailed across her swollen bottom lip. “You are so beautiful. I never want to close my eyes when you’re near me.”

  How did this amazing man come into her life? Things had been so surreal since Alice died. The estate, the future...that was hard enough to believe. But Oliver—being with a man like him was beyond her wildest imagination. He was handsome, smart and successful. He was everything she’d dreamt of but never believed she would have. And yet here she was, straddling his bare hips and feeling his desire for her pressing against her thigh.

  She sheathed him with a nearby condom, and shifting her weight, Lucy captured Oliver’s firm heat and eased him inside of her. She closed her eyes and bit her lip as her body expanded and enveloped him. His palms cupped her hips and held her still. They both took a moment to savor the sensation of their bodies joining. Then at last, she moved her hips forward and back again, settling into a slow, steady rhythm.

  They’d come a long way since that first day at the attorney’s offices. It was hard to believe it had only been a few weeks since they’d met for the first time. Now she could hardly imagine her life without him. Just the thought was enough to make her chest ache in a way she could hardly describe. She’d never felt anything like that before. Lucy had spent more than one night lying in bed beside him, wondering what it could mean.

  But now as she looked down at Oliver, she knew the truth of it—she was in love with him.

  Did that mean she was making love to him for the first time? The realization intensified the sensations already building inside of her. She’d had a few partners in her life, but nothing she would call serious. Nothing that created the kind of emotional bond to the other person the way this did. This knowledge changed everything and she could feel it down to her core.

  The pleasure started rippling through her, radiating from deep inside. She could feel her muscles tighten around him as her body tensed and prepared for her much-needed release.

  “Yes,” Oliver coaxed, his fingertips pressing into the flesh of her hips. “Give in to it.”

  It was a demand she couldn’t help but follow. Her orgasm exploded through her like a shockwave. She gasped and cried out to the ceiling as the sensations pulsated through her like never before. Even as the pleasure filled her, it was the warmth in her chest that truly gripped her. That feeling of peace and happiness being here with Oliver seemed to envelop her. She bit her lip and savored it, even as Oliver’s hoarse groans began to mingle with her panting breaths.

  She collapsed beside him in exhaustion and contentment. After a moment, Oliver gave her a soft kiss. “I’m going to go get a drink from the kitchen. Do you want anything?”

  Lucy shook her head. She had everything she wanted in this moment. It couldn’t be more perfect. As she watched Oliver and his perfectly round tush saunter out of the bedroom, all she could think of, all she could feel, was this overwhelming sense of love. She loved him. Really, truly.

  She hoped that wasn’t a huge mistake.

  Ten

  “I don’t understand why we’re back in Connecticut looking at apartments,” Harper complained.

  “I’m too old to live in a dorm or a sorority house,” Lucy explained. “If I’m going back to school, I’m getting my own place near campus.”

  It was a cool, crisp day in New Haven. Summer had lingered longer than expected this year and the first signs of fall were finally arriving even though it was late September. Soon it would be time for changing leaves, oversize sweaters and boots. And when she started in the spring term this January, she would’ve moved on to heavy coats, hats, scarves and gloves.

  “I really don’t know why you’re bothering with any of this. I mean, once the inheritance goes through, do you really need to worry about going back to school? You don’t have to work another day in your life if you don’t want to, much less move into a cheap off-campus apartment with loud jocks living upstairs.”

  Lucy could only shake her head and look at the map of nearby apartments she’d been given by the campus housing office. No, moving from a Fifth Avenue apartment to one of these places wasn’t ideal, but it was reality. No one else seemed to be functioning in reality except her.

  “This has got nothing to do with my inheritance. Whether I get it or not, I want to finish my art history degree. That’s been my plan all along. When I dropped out, it was so disappointing. I’ve saved up all these years to pay for school, and with Alice gone, now is my chance. If that means an old apartment with shag carpeting and a run-down laundromat I have to share with a hundred other residents, so be it.”

  Harper halted her complaints as they approached the closest of the rental complexes near campus. “This doesn’t look too bad,” Lucy said. “Since it’s so close, it’s probably the most sought after and expensive place, too.”

  They found the front office and the manager walked them to an empty one-bedroom apartment they could tour.

  “I’ve got a one-bedroom just like this one coming up after the fall term,” the manager explained. “They’re graduating and moving out before the holidays. I have a couple two-bedroom apartments coming up, too. Any chance you would be interested in one of those?”

  “No thanks,” Lucy replied. She’d basically lived in a bedroom the last five years and a shared sorority bedroom the years before that. Spreading out into her own apartment would be luxurious. “It’s just me. I’m not interested in roommates.”

  “Okay. Go ahead and look around. I’ll be here if you have any questions.”

  Lucy and Harper stepped inside and she breathed a sigh of relief. It wasn’t that bad at all. To the left, there was a spacious living room with a patio. To the right, a dining room and the kitchen. Down a short hallway was the bedroom and bathroom. The fixtures weren’t the newest and fanciest, but it looked clean and well maintained.

  “I could make this work.”

  Harper wrinkled her nose. “Have you considered buying a condo or a townhouse instead?”

  “With what money?” Lucy asked. “I swear you rich people can’t quite come to terms with what it’s like to be broke. After I pay for classes, books and fees, I’ll have just enough for this apartment and food. That’s it. I can’t pull a down payment out of my rear end.” She held up her finger to silence her friend. “And don’t you dare bring up the inheritance again. I haven’t heard two words from the attorney since Oliver filed a dispute. I can’t plan my life around money that may never arrive.”

  Harper sighed and crossed her arms over her chest. “Okay, fine. What about Oliver then?”

  Lucy frowned. “What about Oliver?”

  “You two are...together. Dating? Whatever you want to call it. Things seem to be pretty good between the two of you. Are you really going to want to leave him behind in the city come January?”

  That was something Lucy had tried to ignore. Not even her recent emotional revelation had changed that. Her plan before Oliver was to go to school and her plan remained the same. “We’re hardly in what you would call ‘a relationship.’ Certainly not a serious enough relationship for me to give up my dream in order to be with him.”

  “I don’t know. It hasn’t been long, but you two seem pretty serious. It might not be love yet, but at the very least you’re twitterpated.”

  “Twitter-what?”

  “Twitterpated,” Harper explained. “It’s from the movie Bambi. It means you’re infatuated. Maybe not ‘in love’ yet, but excited and optimistic and definitely ‘in like.’”

  Lucy ignored her observation and turned to study the appliances in the kitchen.

  “You could transfer to another school that’s in the city. Columbia? NYU? You don’t have to go back to Yale.”

  Lucy turned to Harper with her hands planted on her hips. “I worked hard to get accepted to Yale and I want that degree fram
ed on my wall with Yale University emblazoned across the top of it.”

  Harper didn’t seem convinced. “It’s not as though the schools I mentioned are community colleges, you know.”

  “Yeah, I know. But before Oliver or money came into the picture, I made plans to come back here. I’m already registered for the spring. It’s happening. So are you going to help me find a place to live or complain the whole time?”

  She rolled her eyes and pasted on a smile. “I’m going to help you find an apartment in New Haven because I’m a supportive friend who loves you.”

  “Good. Let’s go.”

  They walked out of the apartment together with a brochure from the manager and her card to call when Lucy made a decision. They toured two more apartment complexes before they went to Vito’s Deli, one of their former college haunts, for lunch.

  “I’m starving,” Harper declared as they lined up at the counter to place their order.

  Lucy had loved this shop when they were in school, but suddenly, the idea of it wasn’t as exciting as it used to be. The smell of meat and pickles hit her like a blast of unwelcome air when they walked inside. She hadn’t been feeling great the last couple of days, but she figured it was something she’d eaten. Now she wasn’t so sure.

  “Lucy, are you okay?”

  She turned her head to her friend. “Why?”

  Harper cocked her head to the side with concern lining her eyes. “You look a little green around the gills. Do we need to go somewhere else?”

  Lucy hated to do it, but she really needed some air. “Maybe if we just step out a second. The smell of dill pickles is really getting to me for some reason.”

  They stepped out onto the street, where Lucy sucked in a big lungful of fresh air and felt a million times better. The queasiness was still there, but she didn’t feel like she was about to make a mess in the deli during the lunch rush. “Thanks. I don’t know what’s gotten into me lately. I felt puny yesterday, too. I thought maybe it was the chicken sandwich I’d had for lunch, but I should be over that by now. I had a bagel and coffee for breakfast. Pickles have never bothered me before. I love pickles.”

  “My dad told me that when my mom was pregnant with Oliver, she couldn’t abide the smell, taste or sight of pickles. I always thought that was funny, considering it’s the stereotypical pregnancy thing. Oliver has always hated pickles, too. When she was pregnant with me, she couldn’t get enough of them and I love pickles.”

  Lucy chuckled nervously at Harper’s story. “Well, that’s weird, but of course, I’m not pregnant.”

  “I’m not saying you are. It would be a funny coincidence if you were repelled by pickles, though, since it would be Oliver’s baby.” Harper paused for a moment, then turned and continued to eye her critically. “Lucy, are you pregnant with my brother’s baby?”

  Lucy lowered herself down onto a nearby bench as she mentally ran through her biological calendar. How many days had it been? It was before Alice died. She counted on her fingers and shook her head. “No,” she declared at last. “I couldn’t be. I mean, we used protection. I am certain that I am not pregnant.”

  Harper sat down on the bench beside her. “Well, what if we popped over to the drugstore and you took a pregnancy test just so we know for sure whether you need an antacid for a stomachache or a baby registry? You haven’t been feeling well. I’m sure it’s just the stress of everything going on, but if you take the test, then you’ll know. If it’s negative, then no worries, right?”

  No worries? That wasn’t exactly the state of mind Lucy was in at the moment. The truth was she’d lied just now. She was anything but certain. If her math was right, her period was over two weeks late. She was never late. Her uterus was made in Switzerland. With everything else going on, she hadn’t even thought about it. But she was late. And they had used protection. It was just her luck that she’d fall into the three percent failure rate.

  She couldn’t be pregnant. Pregnant! And with Oliver’s baby. How was she going to tell him? How was she going to handle all of these changes? Just as she was about to go back to college and start her life new. This was a major complication. One she simply wasn’t prepared to think through on a bench in downtown New Haven.

  “Come on,” Harper said. She reached out for Lucy’s hand and tugged her up from her chair. “We’re going to the pharmacy, you’re taking that test, and then we’re going someplace less smelly to eat and celebrate the fact that you aren’t about to give birth to my niece or nephew.”

  Lucy stood up and followed Harper down the block, but in her heart, she already knew the answer. Like it or not, she was going to be Oliver Drake’s baby mama.

  * * *

  Oliver was surprised to get a message from Lucy, asking if he would meet her for dinner. He thought she’d gone away for the weekend with Harper, but apparently they’d cut their trip short. That was fine by him. He didn’t want to admit it, but he didn’t like not seeing her, even if it was just for a day or two. Since she left, it seemed like she was constantly on his mind and he couldn’t focus on anything else.

  The place she’d chosen for dinner was busy and on the louder side. Not exactly what he would’ve selected for a romantic dinner for two, but he wouldn’t complain about it. Traffic wasn’t the greatest, so he arrived to the restaurant a few minutes later than planned and Lucy was already seated at their table.

  He smiled when he came around the corner and spied her sitting there. He couldn’t help it. It had only been a few weeks and yet just the sight of Lucy made his whole body respond. The smile on his face, the increase in his pulse, the bizarre feeling in his stomach when she looked at him...he’d never reacted to a woman like this before. Could it be that this was what all the poets and musicians wrote about?

  Then she looked up at him. When her gaze met his, he instantly knew there was something wrong. She wasn’t beaming at the sight of him the way he was at her. He tried not to frown and take it personally. It was possible she was tired. Or maybe something had happened. He didn’t know much about her family, but perhaps an emergency had brought her back from her trip early.

  “Hello, beautiful,” he said as he leaned down to give her a soft, welcome kiss.

  She smiled and kissed him back, but he could sense some hesitation there. “Thank you for coming tonight.”

  “Of course,” Oliver said as he unbuttoned his suit coat and sat down. “I was surprised to hear from you. I didn’t think you were coming back until tomorrow.”

  Lucy nodded, her expression unusually stoic. “We decided to cut the trip short. Something...uh...came up.”

  Oliver stiffened in his seat. He was right. He didn’t like the sound of that. “Is everything okay?”

  The waiter arrived with imperfect timing to get their drink orders. Oliver was forced to drop the subject for a moment and scanned the menu. “Would you be interested in sharing a bottle of cabernet with me?”

  “No, thank you. I think I’m just going to have a Perrier, please.”

  Oliver opted for a single glass of wine instead and the waiter disappeared. “What happened? Is it something serious?”

  “Everything is okay. I’m fine. Harper is fine. Serious? I would say so. Whether or not it’s good or bad news depends on how you take it. I just...” her voice trailed off for a moment.

  Oliver had never seen Lucy so distraught. Not even at Aunt Alice’s funeral. She seemed to be tied in knots over something. “Whatever it is, you can tell me. Let me help.”

  “I’m sorry, Oliver. I’m just going to have to come out and say this because I don’t know how to do it any other way. I spent the whole train ride back from Connecticut trying to find a good way, and there just isn’t one.” She took a deep breath and let it out. “I’m pregnant.”

  Oliver’s breath froze in his lungs and his heart stuttered in his chest with shock. He sat for a moment, not breathing, not th
inking, just stunned. This wasn’t possible. The restaurant was loud; maybe he just hadn’t heard her correctly. He grasped at that straw in desperation. “I don’t think I heard you right. Could you say it again?” He leaned in this time, praying to hear anything other than Lucy telling him she was having his child.

  Lucy winced slightly and move closer to him across the table as well. “You heard me just fine, Oliver. I’m pregnant. With your baby,” she added, presumably to ensure he was clear on that part of the news.

  He was crystal clear on that point. She wouldn’t be telling him like this otherwise. The pit of his stomach wouldn’t ache with dread. No, it was obvious she was having his baby. His baby. He didn’t even know what to say to that. Formerly stunned, his brain finally kicked into overdrive with a million thoughts running through his mind all at once. He couldn’t settle on one, couldn’t say a word until he’d come to terms with what she’d just said.

  “I don’t know what happened,” Lucy continued, apparently uncomfortable with his silence. “We used protection every time. It didn’t even occur to me that it was the cause of why I wasn’t feeling well until Harper brought it up. I bought a pregnancy test at a drugstore and took it in the bathroom thinking it would come up negative and I could stop worrying, but it was positive. I have a doctor’s appointment on Wednesday, but I don’t think it will change anything. The test was pretty clear. We came back early so I could tell you right away.”

  He tried to listen as she spoke, but it was hard to focus on anything but the punchline. When the wheel of emotions stopped spinning in his mind, it landed on anger and betrayal, which burst out of him all at once.

  “Of course you wanted to tell me right away,” he said in an unmistakably bitter tone. “Who wouldn’t want to inform their rich boyfriend that they got knocked up the first time they had sex? It’s exciting news. Worst case scenario, you’ve locked down eighteen years of child support payments. If you’re going to get pregnant, you might as well make sure the daddy is a millionaire, right?”