Done [Running to Love 4] (Siren Publishing Classic)

by Allyson Young

  She placed another pin in the pile of curls on top of her head to finish the job and surveyed the results. She looked nice, elegant even, at least from the neck up, but the dress just wasn’t right. Tears of frustration came to her eyes, and she blinked them away so as not to smear her makeup. She hadn’t applied a lot in anticipation of tonight, but didn’t want to reapply it. She was tired, although work was going well and tax season long over. Lacey didn’t like how out of sorts she felt and wanted to stamp her foot. She reached back to tug the zipper down, deciding to find something else to wear when Greg came in, looking handsome and buff in his button-down dress shirt and dark slacks.

  “Ready? God, honey, you look terrific!”

  The tears spilled over, quite out of her control, and Greg had her in his arms in a second.

  “What’s wrong? Lacey, tell me what’s wrong!” He sounded so worried and anxious that Lacey managed to get herself back in line so as not to worry him further.

  “Nothing, Greg. I just noticed that this dress is too tight, and I don’t want to go to the club looking like I shopped at Whores Are Us! I’m fat.”

  “You don’t look like you shopped at any such place, honey, and you are absolutely not fat. You look freaking hot.”

  “I look like a hooker.”

  “You don’t!” Greg punctuated his statement with a slap on her fanny, but it only served to increase her ire.

  “Well, I think I do, and I’m not wearing this piece of shit!” Lacey shut her mouth and raised her hand to cover it, backing out of Greg’s embrace and staring at him. Her surprise was reflected on his face.

  “What is wrong with me?” she nearly wailed. “I sound like I’m five years old!”

  Greg walked to her closet and pulled out a creamy white dress with a modest neckline and little cap sleeves. He helped her out of the offensive blue one and dropped the white one over her head. It settled around her with a whisper, and Lacey immediately felt more comfortable. She hadn’t worn it for over a year and had forgotten how nice it was. Her mother had given it to her, and of course it was decorous and charming, with a loose fit. She watched in the mirror as Greg fastened the little buttons on the back for her. He ran his hands down her bare arms and up again and she shivered at his touch. His next words doused her arousal.

  “When was your last period, Lacey?”

  Her knees kind of folded like a marionette’s, and Greg caught her, scooping her up to sit her on his lap as he backed to the bed. He kissed her hair and waited.

  She finally said, “Last month, I think. They’ve been irregular since the surgery, and that’s apparently normal. But I had one, a light one, last month. I’m pretty sure. Oh my God. But it can’t be, Greg! You’ve been using condoms. Mostly.”

  He chuckled. “Mostly. Except when you jumped me right inside the door that time. Or the time we tried out the new hot tub and you couldn’t wait. Would it be so bad, Lacey?”

  “I don’t know. I haven’t let myself think about it. We’ve only been back together a few months, and while there haven’t been many glitches, I don’t know if I’m ready! And I’m scared.” Lacey wanted to get up and pace.

  “I’m scared, too, honey. I never want you to go through another experience like that again. But the doctor said it probably wouldn’t happen. And I want kids, Lacey. You’ll be a wonderful mom, and I’ll do my best to be a good dad.”

  Lacey pushed out of his embrace and jumped up to walk the length of the room. She then turned to him and said, “Of course you’d be a good dad! And I want kids, too. I just didn’t expect…well, I guess we’ll find out soon enough.”

  She went to her jewelry box to change out her earrings for a pair of small silver balls and fixed her hair where Greg had mussed it, knowing that her retreat bemused him. She worked hard at pushing this little piece of news to the back of her brain until she could even begin to deal with it. Then she saw Greg’s reflection in the mirror, and he looked so sad that she flew to him and knelt at his feet, laying both hands on his thighs.

  “Greg? Let’s go to the club and enjoy ourselves. I know you feel I’m shutting you out, but I’m not, I promise. And tomorrow we’ll get one of those home tests. We’ll get two to be certain. And then we’ll move forward as we have been, okay? I just can’t deal right now.”

  Greg stared at her for what seemed like an eternity, his face now blank and unreadable, but then he nodded. He stood up and took her hand to lead her out to the truck. Lacey clutched his fingers and hurried to keep up with his longer strides.

  * * * *

  Greg made sure Lacey was buckled in and latched his own seat belt before putting the truck in gear and backing out of the driveway. She turned the radio to classic rock from his country and Western station, and adjusted the balance and the volume. Lacey was the only other person he allowed to mess with his truck. She didn’t get to drive it very often, because he worried about her being able to see far enough past the hood. Even the adjustable pedals didn’t seem enough to allow for her petite frame. Greg finally let himself consider how he had dropped the ball earlier, even if Lacey was making like things were sweetness and light.

  He should have kept his fucking mouth shut, except it went against the grain and his newly turned leaf not to share everything with her. Not that he had withheld a lot of things before, unless you counted the hell he’d put her through for the better part of five months, and he had since resolved to be open with her no matter what. But it could have waited until the next day. She had been like a kid at Christmas to learn that they were going back to the club. He should never have told her about the club either, but there again he didn’t want to keep things from her. But it had forced a situation. He knew what she needed, and now he didn’t know how he was going to give it to her if what he had suspected for nearly a month now was true. Of course it was true, and he was an idiot to think he could pretend. Greg thought his brain might just explode and run out his ears.

  Lacey’s body had changed in little ways, but significant ways. He fucked her every day and sometimes twice a day whether she was on her period or not, unless she wasn’t feeling well, and he knew she hadn’t had a significant cycle. He had asked Dr. Martin on his last visit and came to understand that Lacey’s periods would probably be irregular for some time because of the miscarriage and ensuing treatment, but that didn’t explain her slightly more voluptuous breasts and darker nipples, or the more pronounced swell of her rounded belly. Even her eyes looked different, sleepy somehow, and for sure she tired easily. He was hypervigilant where Lacey was concerned, determined never to miss any of her cues. She was more emotional, too, although she was really still as sunny natured as ever. Dr. Martin had told him that Lacey was probably avoiding the truth, even if she didn’t know that’s what she was doing, to protect herself from the memory and ignore the risk of it happening again. She had just told him she wasn’t ready to deal with it.

  Greg wished he had waited for her to find out on her own and come and tell him. He fantasized about such an event, and how happy they would be with the news. But her response to the fit of the damn dress had seemed the perfect opportunity to raise the question with her. He hadn’t been prepared for her response, and it made him just a tad off-balance. They had discussed everything else under the sun since reconciling, from his therapy and hers, and the areas they needed to pay attention to so as not to repeat the previous pattern that had gotten them into trouble. But they hadn’t yet talked about having a family. That was still too raw for Lacey.

  Greg knew how hard she worked at curbing her tongue when he went all alpha on her outside of the bedroom, and knew how hard it then was for her not to let herself to become totally compliant. It was such a delicate balance for her to maintain. He was also aware that she appreciated his attempts to share always and even how he tried to help her around the house. He was a total loser in that regard, but he knew she gave him an A for effort.

  Their sex life had never skipped a beat. He wanted her with such intensity t
hat no amount or frequency of their coupling seemed to diminish, and she welcomed him with equal fervor. He held himself responsible for this possible issue. He was in charge of birth control, and had allowed himself to ignore that fact on at least three occasions, and once was all it took. She could easily have conceived that first night back together when his sperm had flowed like spring melt because he had been lost in his residual fear and need for her. Regardless, she was scared. She had told him that twice, and he didn’t intend to ignore or minimize it. And now they were going to the club where she obviously wanted to do a scene and Greg could not imagine doing anything that would jeopardize their baby. Because when Lacey came to terms with the fact that she could well be pregnant, she would have expected him to make those difficult choices for her. Sometimes being a dominant male was a royal pain in the ass. Well, he would enlist the help of his friends tonight as he had planned, because his woman was not being put on the cross.

  As they drove to the club, and he forced himself to respond to Lacey’s chatter about her day, and even laughed at her story about Edith’s new tenant, a young man who had rented the apartment chiefly because of how it was decorated, and the fact that David lived upstairs. Greg had no issue with alternative lifestyles. He had no personal interest in men, but like Max, he had participated in various sexual configurations, and was comfortable with whatever others did with one another, as long as it was consensual. He once had little private fantasies about seeing Lacey pleasured by someone he trusted, but he knew better. It wasn’t what she needed. Damn it, they were almost there, and he was no closer to figuring out how he would meet her needs tonight. He would have to get by with a little help from his like-minded friends.

  “And where did you go?” Lacey’s amused voice had his head turning to look at her. The sun was just setting, and the red and purples amongst the final golden glow seemed to wrap around her in that virginal white dress. Greg thought she was the most enticing thing in the whole world and was lost for words.

  “Greg?”

  He pulled into a parking space and shoved the stick into park, switching off the ignition before he answered. “I was just thinking about us, honey. I most always think about us. Or you. Mostly you.”

  Lacey released her seat belt and leaned as far over the console as her small frame would allow and offered him her mouth. Greg hauled her over hard against him to press his lips on hers and steal her breath. When he released her, her eyes were glowing, her lips swollen, and her hair was falling about her shoulders. He wanted to drag her out onto the pavement and push her up against the side of the vehicle and fuck her standing up, right there in public. And he knew she would let him do it, except he would never endanger her that way. She laughed up at him and then frowned when her fingers found her trailing strands of hair.

  “Damn it. This took forever to do.”

  “I like it down better, Lacey. Leave it.”

  Her eyelids flickered, and he could see her arousal spike. It made him feel so manly, the fact that he could make her want just by using a certain tone and giving an order. She responded to him like no other, and he had to push his lust away in order to make his body get out of the truck and not have her ride him to completion right there. He went around to help Lacey down and observed that she had freed the remaining pins restraining her hair. He set her on her feet and smoothed one unruly lock back from her face.

  “I love you, honey, never doubt it.”

  “I don’t, Greg. Just as you never need to doubt how much I love you.”

  They didn’t talk about the little issue that lay between them, and Greg figured they had both decided to wait for a better time. He knew it would happen immediately after they went shopping in the morning. He put his arm around her, and they went up the steps of the club.

  Chapter Seventeen

  The club seemed much the same to Lacey. It had an understated elegance with its careful grouping of furniture and subdued lighting. She saw Max in the corner talking with a blonde woman who had her back to them, and she couldn’t make out who it was. Max was so intent on their conversation that he didn’t even look up when they entered. Lacey saw Greg smile and was about to ask what he found so amusing when Alistair came up to them.

  The reserved club owner smiled at her and Lacey felt the welcome in it, even as she noticed that Alistair was looking not exactly unwell, but different somehow. She impulsively ignored his outstretched hand and walked into him to give him a hug. He was much shorter and leaner than Greg, so she fit closely and after a quick moment of hesitation, his arms came around to envelop her. He smelled like musk aftershave and leather, and it made her senses quicken. He kissed her cheek before stepping back.

  “You look beautiful, Lacey,” he said. “It’s great to have you back, and may I be the first here to offer congratulations?”

  Greg made a strange sound, and she quickly looked up at him. His face was tight, and she wondered if he was jealous of Alistair. The thought was fleeting, but made her feel quite feminine. Then Alistair’s comment registered.

  “Congratulations?” She looked down at herself and wondered if she really looked pregnant. Surely not. Not yet. Lacey knew she was pregnant. She had processed the revelation immediately after Greg had suggested it, even if she had acted like a flighty fool and covered her thoughts with random talk and actions. Yup, he had done it again. He’d knocked her up, and while she was terrified, she was also thrilled and had already figured out a couple of alternate due dates. She worked with numbers after all.

  It was just that she had needed a bit of time to face her denial and avoidance in the face of Greg’s obvious delight. She’d told him she was scared, and he would take care of her, and tomorrow they would confirm it when she peed on a stick. In a perfect world Lacey would have wanted to share the news with Greg, tell him that they were going to have a child. She felt cheated and not a little stupid that she hadn’t known before he did, but she knew he would accept her reasoning when she voiced it, and they would celebrate like couples did. Tonight was just an interlude.

  Alistair arched a brow in that manner he had. The one that made Lacey want to take him down a peg or two just as it spoke to her submissive side. Like Greg, Alistair was dominant, but a true Dom, and while he seemed to be without a submissive tonight, Lacey knew that women tended to line up for him. She had teased Greg once about getting in line herself, and he definitely hadn’t been pleased with her. Her pussy dampened at the memory. Greg had proven to her that she had neither time nor inclination for another man.

  “Congratulations on your engagement, Lacey. Greg finally wised up and locked you down.”

  “Hey!” Lacey only vaguely heard Greg’s protest. Alistair seemed sad, unhappy. She sensed it, and she laid her hand on his arm. He looked into her eyes before gently taking her fingers to place them in Greg’s, and his face became shuttered. Lacey ducked her head instinctively, and Greg made that sound again and drew her away.

  “Later, Alistair,” he announced, as he led her to a small loveseat near the fireplace.

  Once she was seated, he leaned down and said, “I’ll bring you something to drink, Lacey. Stay away from ’Stair. He’s in a space, and you aren’t to get into it, are we clear?”

  Lacey looked at her man. He looked hard and implacable. She loved his demeanor and gave him a flirty, innocent look, working hard at it. “Of course, Greg,” she said sweetly.

  He narrowed his eyes, and she hid a smile and managed not to squirm. She was wet and needy and wished he would do something about it. The look faded from his face as he read her mind, and he touched her cheek. She immediately settled and leaned back to rest against the couch. Greg stepped away, and she nearly giggled at the bulge in his pants. It was like being in a room full of stallions. The testosterone level was high, and Lacey felt that she could ride it. She looked around to see if there were any more familiar faces and saw Stephan and his bitch, and quickly looked away so that she wouldn’t have to speak to them. She owed Alex that after wh
at Melissa had done, although Stephan was hardly innocent. Lacey had heard the whole story about how Melissa had told some lies and convinced Alex that she wasn’t satisfying her men, and then compounded it by dropping some hints to Devon and Jeff so that they had arranged that scene with Stephan, supposedly for Alex’s sake. But in Lacey’s eyes Stephan knew more than he had let on, because she had seen how he looked at Alex. She wouldn’t have been surprised to find out that Stephan had engineered the whole sordid thing. And Devon and Jeff had really let male pride get in the way. She wondered if Alex would ever come back to the club with Jeff and Devon.

  Max and the woman he’d been talking to were gone, and Lacey thought they had probably gone back to the members’ area. Max didn’t usually take his women back there unless they wanted to view a scene, but there was always a first time, and Lacey hadn’t been back to the club for a long time. She had no idea of who was connected to whom anymore.

  She saw Monica with her long-time partner, Robert, another detective, cuddled together in one of the big chairs set against the far wall. Monica had been the most tenacious in her efforts to keep the connection with Lacey, and she felt sorry that she had pushed Monica away. She would try to remedy that in the near future. Monica looked up at that moment and saw Lacey looking her way. She blew a little kiss, and Lacey pretended to catch it, her happiness growing at Monica’s apparent lack of ill will. She waved back, just as Greg arrived with a glass of bubbly liquid.

  “Who are you enticing now, Lacey?” His tone was teasing, and Lacey knew he had recovered from her brief connection with Alistair. She was very curious about what was going on with him, but this club totally respected privacy, and she wouldn’t ask. Greg would tell her if it was his to tell.

  She took the little glass and smiled her thanks before taking a sip. It was ginger ale. Greg had a beer though, and Lacey felt a dip of disappointment. Alistair wouldn’t let anyone drink if they were going into the back of the club. He demanded that they be in control of their faculties, buzzed only by sexual desire and need, if they were going to make use of those back rooms, and everyone complied or were ousted as members. No exceptions. If Greg was drinking, then it meant there would be no scene tonight for her. Lacey fought her disappointment even as she accepted his decision. He was doing what was right, and she knew it. Even so, a little imp of mischief seized her, and she pushed her bottom lip out, faking a perfect pout. He immediately responded.