Christopher just kept assuring me that the day would come when all of our family members would come to realize that what they were doing was hurting them more than us. He and I were happy, whether they were pleased with us or not. We still had each other, and nothing could shake that happiness.
With no job, I stayed home and went to work setting up our son’s bedroom and a playroom too. And as I worked through the decorating process, I found that I had a real knack for it. According to the interior decorator Christopher hired to help me, I had a natural instinct for colors and setting up a nice flow.
Eventually, Lawrence asked me to join his design team. I’d been thrilled, and Christopher had been so proud. I’d accepted the job, but only on the condition that I’d start after the baby turned six months old and then only part-time. I didn’t want the nanny to raise our son.
We’d hired a sixty-three-year-old nanny to help us in the early stages of our son’s life. The goal was having her help me learn everything I would need to know to raise a child and then we would let her go with a tidy pension to make the rest of her days a little bit easier.
Being married to Christopher was better than I could’ve dreamed. He made my life so much more than I ever thought it could be. It wasn’t his money that made me happy, either. It was definitely the man himself.
One week when I’d been feeling particularly tired, I’d spent much of the time sleeping. He’d come in with a handful of flowers for me, waking me with a kiss. “Good evening, Mrs. Taylor.”
Rubbing my eyes, I sat up on the sofa I’d fallen asleep on. “Oh, I fell asleep watching TV again. What time is it?”
“Six,” he said as he wiggled the flowers in front of my face. “I stopped and picked these wildflowers for you, baby. When I saw them, I thought of you and knew I had to get some for you.”
Taking them from him, I smelled them. “They smell so good, and they’re so pretty.” I kissed him on the cheek. “Thank you, sexy.”
“Thank you,” he said then scooped me up in his arms. Even though I was over eight months pregnant, he was still able to carry me around.
And people called him old? This man was in his prime.
I laughed as I wrapped my arms around him. “For what? I didn’t get you anything.”
“For being you.” He kissed my lips softly. “For making my life so damn wonderful that I walk around whistling all the time.”
“Whistling?” I’d never heard him do that.
“Yes, apparently I whistle a lot at work now.” He shook his head. “I didn’t even realize I was doing it until Mrs. Kramer pointed it out today. She said I seem like a new man. A very happy man.”
Resting my head on his chest, I loved to hear that. “I’m so glad we found each other. Even if our families aren’t.”
I realized he was taking me upstairs, most likely to our bedroom. When his foot touched the first step, something strange happened. A weird cramp began in my back, and it went all the way around to the front of my body.
He felt it too as my body tensed. “Baby, are you okay?”
“I have a cramp that’s kind of weird.” I looked at him with confusion. “Do you think…?”
He interrupted me. “That you’re in labor?”
I nodded then thought about the dream I’d been having before he woke me up. “You know what, I was just having this bizarre dream that a gorilla was coming out of nowhere and grabbing me, squeezing me.”
“I bet you’ve been having contractions in your sleep.” He carried me up to our room then laid me on the bed. Pulling out his cell, he made a note. “Okay, this contraction started at ten after six. I’ll keep track of them, and we’ll head to the hospital when they’re ten minutes apart, the way the doctor said.”
“But we’re a week before the due date,” I said, recalling what the doctor had told us. “She’d said that first births are usually late, not early.”
“Yeah, usually. Not always,” he said as he went to the closet, retrieving the bag we’d packed for the hospital. “I’ll have this ready to go, just in case.”
I ran my hand over my leg. “I need to shave my legs, Christopher.”
He held up one finger, gesturing for me to wait as he went into the bathroom. Coming back out with a towel, shaving cream, and a razor, I saw he meant to shave my legs as I lay in bed. “Let me tend to your hairy legs, my lady.”
For some reason, I found that so sweet it rendered me speechless. All I could do was smile at him as he set to work, getting my legs all smooth. And just as he’d finished, I got another weird crampy thing. “Here comes another one.”
He took note of the time then looked at me with wide eyes. “They’re already fifteen minutes apart, it seems. How long were you asleep?”
Thinking back, I remembered watching the first part of a movie that had started at three. “Um, about three hours I think.”
“I bet you’ve been having contractions that whole time and slept right through them.” He looked excited as he ran the towel over my legs to get rid of what was left of the shaving cream. “We’re going to meet our son tonight, I’d bet money on it.”
Two hours later, the contractions were coming in ten-minute intervals, and he called the doctor to let her know we were about to leave for the hospital. I took his phone from him after he ended the call. “I’m calling your daughters to tell them about this.”
He looked at me with wide eyes. “I don’t want them to upset you, baby. I’ll call them when it’s all over.”
Shaking my head, I found Lauren’s number and swiped it. “No, I want to let them know about this. I won’t let them upset me, don’t worry.”
Lauren answered the phone, “Daddy?”
“No, it’s Emma, Lauren.” I took a deep breath to make sure my voice didn’t crack, as I was beginning to fill up with emotion. “Your father and I are about to go to the hospital. The baby’s coming. I just wanted you and your sister to know. You and your sister are welcome to come up there any time you want to. We’d love to have you there when your baby brother is born.”
“I don’t know,” she whispered. “But thank you.”
I’d done what I wanted and handed the phone back to Christopher. “Okay, I guess I’ll let you call my father and tell him the same thing.”
He nodded, then made the call from my phone. Dad answered, “Emma?”
“No, it’s Christopher.” He put his hand on the small of my back, steering me to the door that led to the garage. “Emma and I are on the way to the hospital. The baby is coming. We wanted you and Celeste to know that you’re welcome to join us for the birth or to come whenever you want to.”
Dad didn’t say anything. He’d hung up the phone. I saw that as a sign that he didn’t want to know any details about the birth of his first grandchild. That hurt.
But on the ride to the hospital, Christopher had raised my spirits again, making me laugh as he made funny breathing noises while helping me through the contractions, which had quickly gone from ten minutes apart to five.
Not long after getting into the hospital bed and hooked up to all kinds of things, the contractions began to get stronger and closer together. And I started to get irritable with the pain. “When can I have the epidural?”
The nurse who’d just come on shift looked at me like I was crazy. “You wanted an epidural? No one told me that. We can get you one right away.”
“For the love of God!” I squeezed Christopher’s hand as another bolt of pain took my breath away.
She took off to get someone to do the epidural, and I moaned with the pain. “Breathe, baby. Come on,” Christopher coached.
I couldn’t do it though. It hurt to breathe. Thankfully a doctor arrived not much later and gave me the epidural, and in no time at all I was cool as a cucumber. The hour was midnight when my parents walked into the room.
To say I was surprised just didn’t cut it. “Mom! Dad!”
Christopher smiled and hurried to shake Dad’s hand then hug Mom. “I’m
so happy you two came!”
Mom came to me, hugging me. “Of course we came. This is our grandchild. How’re you doing, baby girl?”
“Fine now.” I ran my hand through hair that Christopher had lovingly brushed for me. “Now that I’ve got the epidural. I gave them hell up until then.”
“That she did,” Christopher agreed.
Mom sat down on the long window seat as Dad came to me. He placed his hand on top of mine. “You look pretty good for a girl in labor.”
“Thanks,” I said, trying hard not to cry. Seeing them there meant the world to me, even though I’d tried to ignore my disappointment when I thought they wouldn’t be there.
The nurse came to check me, pulling the curtain around me to give us a little privacy in the room. Christopher stayed right by my side. “I’m getting the doctor. It’s time to start pushing this boy out,” she told us.
My eyes went to Christopher. “You ready?”
He nodded. “You?”
“Sure, why not.” I’d just wished that his daughters would’ve come, but I didn’t say anything.
Right behind the doctor, two blonde heads came into the room. Christopher couldn’t believe it. “Lauren? Ashley? You came!”
The girls hugged their father, and I started crying, I was so overwhelmed. Lauren looked at me with concern. “If we’re making you upset, we’ll leave, Emma.”
I found that very nice of her to say, and it made me cry a little harder. “No! No, I’m so happy you guys came.” I looked around the room at our families, who finally seemed to have gotten it through their heads that we really did love each other—and them, too. “I’m so happy all of you came. This means more to me than you will ever know. To bring little Colin into this world with his entire family around is a dream come true—I never thought it would happen.”
Christopher agreed. “Yes, it is a remarkable feeling, having you all here to welcome Colin to our family.” His hazel eyes glistened as he looked at them all.
And then my heart erupted as my parents and his daughters gathered around my husband, hugging him. “You guys!” I wailed. “I love you all so much!”
Thirty minutes later, Colin was born. He was quickly passed around to his sisters and grandparents, and then his father before being nestled in my arms again. Our little bundle of joy had brought us all back together.
We finally had our happily-ever-after ending. But really, it was just the start of a happy beginning.
The End
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She had it coming to her. Everyone knew it, too…
A little princess at work, she was anything but that when I got her home.
She was required to strip down to her underwear as soon as we entered our apartment.
At work, she was my intern. At home, she was my slave.
And a very good slave at that.
But it was time things changed. Would she be able to conform to what I now wanted her to be?
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His Secret Virgin Extended Epilogue
Christopher
For Colin’s fifth birthday, we’d decided to make it an adventure-themed, week-long party. Our son invited his grandparents, his sisters, and of course his two-year-old little brother, Cody on his birthday adventure. “Come on, Cody, let’s race to the pool!”
Scanning the wooded area of our campsite, I admired the way the snow-capped mountains reflected off the crystal clear lake. Emma had never been to Colorado, and her idea of having the camping party in Estes Park had turned out to be one of her best ideas ever.
I kissed her cheek as I wrapped my arm around her shoulders. “Great job with this birthday, baby.”
I watched as her eyes ran over our family. “I’m just so happy everyone could make it. Having Mom and Dad here, as well as Lauren and Ashley makes this so much better.”
My daughters had finally found their way in the world. Both joined a volunteering program and worked in Madagascar as Marine Conservationists. At least they had until they met men, married them, then came back to Manchester to make homes for themselves.
Lauren and Ben were expecting their first baby in only a few months. We’d have our first granddaughter soon. Emma was having fun coming up with her grandma name with my daughters. Grandma and Granny had been vetoed on the spot.
Ashely and Eric were in the early stages of their pregnancy. We didn’t know what sex their baby would be as she was only a couple of months into it. But she already glowed, and I had to admit that she’d never looked happier.
As far as Emma and I were doing, well, we were about ready to try for our girl now. Three children had been our agreed upon limit as Emma didn’t want to have so many kids that some ending up feeling left out. But even at that, she’d already hinted that if we had another boy, she might extend the limit if it meant she might get the chance to have her own daughter.
Of course, we were keeping our plan a secret. We didn’t want to step on Lauren’s or Ashley’s pregnancy toes after all. And we never liked to tell anyone about a new baby until we were sure we had a bun in the oven. That was bad luck in both our opinions.
Pulling Emma around to stand in front of me, I moved her back so I could run my arms around her, nuzzling her neck from behind as I whispered, “Tonight I say let’s let the boys bunk with their sisters or their grandparents so you and I can try to make a baby sister for them.”
She giggled as I kissed her neck. “Sounds like a plan to me, sexy.”
It didn’t matter that a little over five years had passed. She and I still couldn’t seem to get enough of each other. And the way our families had finally come around made life that much better.
Ashely grabbed Cody as he streaked by her, having pulled his diaper off to jump into the small blowup pool in the middle of the campsite. “Whoa there, bubba. You’re going to need a little swimmer to cover your bottom, boy. We don’t want anything floating in the water.” She wrangled his wiggly body to our RV to put on a swim diaper, blowing her blonde bangs out of her face as she went.
“Aw, man,” Colin called out as he stopped just outside of the pool. “I need someone to get in with me.”
Lauren asked, “Why can’t you get into that little pool on your own, Colin?”
“Cause,” that was his answer to most things.
His oldest sister knew that and walked over, kicking off her sandals then stepping into the pool. “Here, I’ll be in here with you.”
“Yay!” he jumped in, splashing her. “Thanks, sis.”
Wiping water off her face then pulling her sunglasses off, she rolled her eyes as she cleaned the water spots off them. “Seems you just want someone in here so you could splash them.”
He put his small hands in the water, then splashed her again. “Yep!”
Not one to just stand there and take it, Lauren splashed him right back. “Well, two can play at this game, little bro.”
Laughter filled the air, making my heart soar. “This is what I never knew I wanted, but have fallen in love with now that I have it.” I kissed my wife’s cheek. “Thank you again for making this all happen, my love.”
“You had a little to do with it, my sexy man.” She turned her face to kiss my cheek. “It’s like Heaven, isn’t it?”
“To me, it is.” I couldn’t believe how wonderful things had turned out, after all the ugly things that had been said and thought in the beginning.
To me, it proved that if something is real and worth saving, then even the fiercest critics will see the beauty, given time. As my daughters played with their little brothers, smiling, laughing, all of them loving one another, my heart swelled even more.
Emma’s hand trailed down my arm; then she took my hand. “Let’s go for a walk. The boys are in good hands.”<
br />
“I know they are.” I intertwined my fingers with hers then pulled them up, giving hers a kiss. “I love you, girl. You’ll never fully understand just how much.”
“Oh, come on, you big softy.” She nudged me with her shoulder. “The older you get, the more sentimental you become.”
I couldn’t even argue her point. It was just too true. “I think you’ll be about the same way I am once you get over thirty. Life begins to move at a greater speed after that.”
She laughed. “Time doesn’t get faster, Christopher.”
“Oh, but it does, sweetheart. It begins to fly by. It’s moments like these that you’ve got to soak into your brain because before you know what’s happened, you’re attending a high school graduation, watching your son walk across the stage to take his diploma. And then the next thing happens, and you’re in a hospital, holding your first grandchild.”
“Sounds like a slippery slope,” she said as she smiled.
Picking her up, I tossed her over my shoulder, making long strides down a trail to the lake where I planned on running into the cold water with her. “You have no idea how slippery the slope is, baby. No idea.”
Emma
I felt like Jane as my Tarzan carried me into the forest after he’d flung me over his broad shoulder. “Really, Christopher?”
He smacked my behind. “Yes, really, Emma.” Picking up his already fast pace, I had an eerie feeling he had a devious plan for me.
“I hope this won’t disappoint me,” I teased him. The man never disappointed me. He always more than exceeded my expectations in every way.
“It won’t.” A few minutes later I heard water splashing then looked down to find his bare feet treading through shallow water.
I’d avoided getting into the crystal clear water of the lake because of the frigid temperature of that water. But it seemed my husband was going to force me to confront the icy water. But not without much protesting. “Christopher! No!” I pounded my fists on his back.
His Secret Virgin: A Forbidden Romance (The Sons of Sin Book 3) Page 19
