“You’ve got it.” I needed a task. Something to keep me busy and focused. I walked into the over-sized marble bathroom and turned on the massive tub.
“Not too hot,” Annabelle called from the living room.
I tested the water and filled the tub, adding in bath salts and flower petals. Annabelle walked in a few minutes later.
“It’s ready for you,” I announced.
“Thank you.”
I sat on the edge of the bath while she stepped out of her pants and unbuttoned a crisp white shirt. I held in the groan when her breasts popped free from her bra. She was fucking amazing. She stepped toward the tub. I held my hand for her to take while she climbed in the bath.
“Oh God, Luke. This is perfect.” She slid to the end and rested her head on the spa pillow.
“Good. I’m going to fix a drink while you soak. There’s a bottle of water for you.” I pointed it out to her.
“Thank you.” She smiled. “We haven’t been here long, but I already feel better. This was a great idea.”
I closed the bathroom door behind me and headed straight for the bar. I twisted off the cap to a bottle of bourbon and poured it in a glass over a few ice cubes. It burned the back of my throat, waking me up to the situation I was in.
I convinced myself I had created this trip for Annabelle. To get her away from the stress in Evans Mill. To give her a chance to breathe far away from the gossips and prying eyes. I sat and looked at the mountains, nursing the bourbon. But now, I wondered if deep down I had booked this trip for me. I was starting to see life in a completely new way.
“I heard this restaurant was one of the best in Denver,” I explained to Annabelle as we walked through the door. “I hope you like it.”
“Actually, I’ve been here before,” she admitted.
“We can go somewhere else,” I offered.
“No. It’s really good. We don’t have to leave. You went through a lot of trouble.”
The hostess seated us quickly. I had called ahead for reservations.
I waited until we had our menus in our hands. “Did you come here often when you used to live in Denver?” I asked.
Annabelle placed the menu on the table. “It’s one of my dad’s favorite places.”
“Oh.” I didn’t know if I had stepped on a landmine.
She sipped from a crystal goblet of water. “This is where he likes to celebrate birthdays, anniversaries, special events. It’s his go-to special restaurant.”
Shit. “You sure you want to stay?”
“The food is excellent.” Annabelle smiled. She looked over her shoulder. “And I don’t see my dad. We’re safe.”
I wasn’t sure whether I was relieved. “You want to tell me about him,” I urged. I remember months ago she had told me in my office she had lost her mom, but I didn’t pry back then.
She shrugged. “There’s not much to say. My mom died three years ago. It took him less than six months to find her replacement.”
“Did you just say replacement?”
“I’m so thirsty.” Annabelle gulped the water. “Yes. Harriet. My stepmom. They married before the anniversary of my mom’s death and that was that. He has a new happy life.” She closed her eyes for a moment. “It was hard being around them. It made sense to move. He started over, so why shouldn’t I?”
I nodded. “I don’t know how I’d feel if my mom remarried.”
“How long ago was it when your dad died?”
I examined her. It was the first time someone had asked about him and my instinct wasn’t to get up and run from the table.
“It’s been five years,” I answered. “Some days it feels like it just happened. Others, it’s like I can’t even remember having a dad.” I shook my head. “It’s shitty, but I think I’ve forgotten so many things about him.”
“I understand. I feel the same way. I can’t remember what my mom sounded like.”
I believed her. I knew other people wanted to help. They wanted to absorb the pain or the burden for me, but they couldn’t. No one knew what it was like. Well, maybe someone did—Annabelle.
“I take it, you don’t like your step mom?”
The waitress took our orders and I handed off the menus.
“It’s not that I don’t like her,” she explained. “Maybe under other circumstances I would have, but she just butted into our lives. And she’s so pushy. About everything.” Annabelle exhaled. “I don’t want them to know I’m pregnant.”
“You don’t have to tell them.”
“Not tell them?” Her eyes widened. “I moved to Evans Mill, not Singapore.”
I laughed. “You’d rather tell my mom first?”
“Oh shit. You have a mom that’s going to be a grandmother.”
“That is how it works. And I have a sister.”
“A mom and a sister,” she whispered.
“But it’s your call. We’ll tell people when you’re ready.”
“By those calculations, that would be never.”
I huffed. “Funny.”
“You said tonight I could relax and not worry about Evans Mill. Can we do that a little bit longer and not make any big decisions?”
I saw the fear in her eyes.
“I did make that promise. I’m keeping it.” I grinned as our dinner was served. My mouth watered at the size of the steak placed in front of me.
Annabelle ordered salmon. “I read somewhere it’s good to eat fish in small amounts.”
“For the baby?” I asked.
She nodded, taking a careful bite. “And no more cold sandwiches, or hotdogs.”
“You don’t take me as the kind of girl who loads up on hotdogs. Not with a body like yours.” I winked.
“Cute, but I like a hotdog as much as the next girl.” She took a bite of bread next. “There are so many things to learn. Do you think we could stop at a bookstore before we leave Denver tomorrow? I’d like to stock up on some pregnancy books. And I’m really tired of having to request concealed packaging on all my shipments.”
“That’s something you do? Why? Buying some naughty toys?” I waggled my eyebrows.
“No, I was buying pregnancy tests and I didn’t want it flying through the grapevine.”
“Good point.”
I sliced into my steak.
“Are you feeling better?” Annabelle asked.
“Me? I’ve been fine.”
She giggled. “Like you were when I mentioned having a baby girl?” Her eyebrows rose.
I swallowed hard. “I hadn’t eaten.” It was a fucking lie.
“It’s okay if you’re nervous or even scared. It would make you human, Luke.”
“I’m going for super human, okay?” I teased, but she wasn’t buying it.
We ordered dessert to go. Annabelle wanted to take it back to the suite. I paid the bill and we walked the few blocks back to the hotel. The night air was crisp. I threaded Annabelle’s fingers through mine. I was always amazed how our bodies fit together, even when it was something as simple as holding hands. It was as if this was where she was meant to be.
Eighteen
Annabelle
Dinner had been amazing. It wasn’t only the food. It was Luke. He was a gentleman. Protective. Funny. Romantic. I wondered if the candlelight between us had made me a little giddy. I couldn’t blame alcohol this time. Something was changing between us. I couldn’t help but believe him when he said there was more to us than sex. Maybe he was right.
He inserted the keycard into the suite’s door and we walked inside.
“Thank you for dinner.” I turned to him.
He stored our desserts in the fridge. “You’re welcome. Can I get you anything?”
“Maybe.” I giggled.
He strolled toward me, taking his time with big heavy steps. I reached for the buttons on his shirt, popping them open one at a time.
“Dessert later?” he asked.
“Dessert now.” I lowered to the floor, dragging my nails along his exp
osed chest and tugging roughly on his belt buckle.
I pushed him playfully until he sat on the white leather sofa. His dress pants wrapped around his ankles, but I was on a mission. I worked the elastic band on his boxer briefs until his cock sprung free. I sighed when I saw it.
He smiled. “All for you.”
I licked my lips and leaned over him, taking my time to tease and torture him with long swirls of my tongue. He bucked forward and I shook my head.
“No. My dessert,” I purred.
I had never been this assertive, but it was the new me since Luke had come into my life. He embraced what I wanted. He gave me what I needed. He didn’t make me feel ashamed for asking for pleasure. Right now, he was my captive audience.
His fingers curled at the back of my head, loosening the upswept bun I had made. He coaxed me over his shaft and I began to suck him inside my mouth with greedy gulps.
“Oh fuck, Belle,” he groaned.
My eyes opened. Did he just give me a sex nickname? But I was so turned on, I couldn’t stop to process anything. His cock was driving me wild as he thrust to the back of my throat. I grunted with satisfaction when suddenly Luke lifted me from the floor and his shaft popped from my mouth.
“Oomph!”
His palm curved against my ass, as he slipped my thong away from my slit. His fingers rounded along my thighs, spreading my legs open.
“Oh shit, Luke,” I whimpered. He nipped behind my ear. His cock was wedged between my cheeks and I was lost in ecstasy.
He worked my clit, massaging and tugging, keeping his palm flat against my navel. My knees opened wider for him. His cock was hard and bulging. I panted for him. I wanted out of this dress. It was in the way, clinging to my breasts. I lifted my hands in the air and Luke growled, breaking his concentration to free my tits.
“Oh God, thank you,” I whispered.
His rough hands moved to my breasts, holding one in each hand. I leaned into his chest while he flicked my nipples to attention. The pain was electrifying. Every sensitive part of my body turned to bliss once I handed it over to Luke.
I’d only been having pregnancy sex for two days, but there was something to the rumors I’d always heard about it. It was true. My body soared like it never had before. And Luke knew it. He was quickly becoming a master at giving me exactly what I needed in this new heightened state.
His mouth traveled along the side of my neck. He shifted me off his chest and I moaned, missing his touch on my nipples.
“I’m taking you to bed,” he announced. His feet landed on the floor and he quickly scooped me in his arms.
I hooked my hands around his neck as we moved silently through the suite.
He lowered me to the gigantic king bed, lined with expensive cotton sheets and the most heavenly duvet I’d ever slept under. My afternoon nap had restored my energy and good mood.
“Look at you,” he growled as a fingertip trailed from my throat, over my tits, past my navel, and to my pussy.
I hissed. “Do that again,” I taunted him.
He traced the same path on my skin and I covered his hands with my own when he stopped between my legs. He crawled on the bed, one heavy knee after the other, taking my wrists and pinning them over my head.
“Is this what you want?” His cock hovered between us.
I nodded. “So much.”
He grinned wickedly. “Fuck, you’re amazing.”
And then he thrust into me. I growled, trying to break free like a wild animal, but Luke’s grasp steadied me. Our rhythm grew. My hips matched his own frenzied pace. He thrust in and out and we called each other’s names.
He had once offered to do everything with me in reverse. Sex, then dinner, then drinks. I turned him down like an idiot. If only I had known what I had deprived myself of for the past two months. He grunted, grinding deeper inside me.
“Is this okay?” he asked. I knew he was asking about the baby. I nodded, wanting more. Needing it like air or water.
His mouth covered mine and I kissed him with fury and passion I didn’t know I had inside me. Something new had been unleashed. A raw urge to belong to this man. After all, I was carrying his baby.
“Over,” I pleaded.
He looked at me, but quickly flipped me on my stomach. My hips tilted and he sank deep inside me. I moaned with the fullness of him.
“So fucking deep like this,” he growled in my ear.
I nodded, not being able to form coherent words. As his stomach grazed my back I knew we had both taken a leap. Whether it was a leap of faith or lust I couldn’t say. We had jumped headfirst into something without a label. Without a definition.
His fingers curled through mine and I bucked upward as he drove home.
“Luke,” I purred.
Our climaxes exploded in unison. I felt him quake along my inner walls as his release spilled inside me. I shook under his body, useless to stop the flames licking beneath the surface of my skin.
“Oh fuck,” he groaned, rolling to the side and pulling me to him.
My eyes closed lazily.
He kissed the tip of my nose and I giggled.
“That tickles.”
“You know what else tickles?” he teased, rubbing the pad of his thumb over my nipples.
“Mmm. Not as ticklish as you might think.” I opened one eye.
“What if we stay in Denver longer?” he asked, propping himself on one elbow.
“What do you mean?” The afterglow clung to our bodies.
“Dinner was nice.”
I nodded. “It was great.”
“You needed that bath and nap today.”
“I still agree with you.”
He tipped my chin toward his lips. “Let’s do this a little while longer.”
“It’s not real, Luke. The suite is beautiful. And dinner was beautiful. The sex is orgasmic—it always is.” I grinned. “But we can’t hide out in Denver. I have clients. You have a business.” I ran my nails over his taut forearm. “We’re here for my prenatal visit and then back to Evans Mill.”
“It’s almost the weekend. We’re going to spend that at my place anyway. What if I want to trade that in for a few more days with you in Denver? Right here in this suite.” His hand slid to my hip and rested protectively on my heated skin.
“We can trade days now?”
He laughed. “We’re making this up as we go. The only rule is there are no rules.”
“This place has to cost a fortune. It’s one thing to splurge for a night. It’s something else to stay for days,” I argued.
“I can afford it.”
I considered his answer. The truth was I couldn’t. I had put so much money into securing the loan for the studio, I was barely getting by. I knew the first two years in a new place would be the toughest. Spending a few thousand dollars on a fancy suite seemed extravagant to me.
“Through the weekend,” he stated. “We’ll head back Sunday.”
I rolled onto the feather pillow. “This bed is like sleeping on a cloud.”
He grinned. “That’s a yes?”
I giggled, rolling on top of him. “Yes.” I kissed him. His hands canvassed my body. “What are you doing?” I groaned.
“Round two.”
“Maybe we won’t leave after all.”
He laughed, pulling the sheet over our heads. “That’s the plan.”
Nineteen
Luke
I wasn’t the one who was supposed to be nervous. It was Annabelle’s appointment. But as she sat on the table wearing a thin polka-dotted gown, she seemed calmer than she had been since we met.
It didn’t help that this was my first time in an obstetrician’s office. Everywhere I looked there were pictures of pelvises or babies. I was out of my element. Shouldn’t they do something to make dad’s more comfortable? But as I looked at her, I knew that was a stupid request. This was about her. And our baby.
The door opened.
“Hi, Annabelle. I’m Dr. Barnes.” A s
hort woman with bright red hair walked in.
“Hi.” Annabelle sat forward and the two women shook hands.
The doctor turned to me. “And you are?”
I stood. “Hi. I’m Luke. I’m with Annabelle. It’s mine. My baby.”
Dr. Barnes smiled. “You don’t have to explain your situation. I’m just glad Annabelle has someone with her for the first appointment.”
I sat next to Annabelle and took her hand.
“Okay. According to your chart, you believed you conceived eight weeks ago, but adding gestational age that means you should measure ten weeks. Do you have any questions before we take a look at the baby?”
Annabelle shook her head. “No. I just want to know everything is okay.”
Dr. Barnes smiled. “I’m sure it is. Lie back and we’ll see how things are progressing.”
I sat in stunned silence as the exam began. I was afraid I’d say the wrong thing so I watched the two women interact. Annabelle remained calm and I never saw her panic, the way I was beneath the hard exterior.
Within minutes the doctor had inserted a wand and there was a picture on the screen. Dr. Barnes smiled. “There’s your baby.” She pointed to a perfect circle on the screen and something wiggling wildly inside it.
“I’ll take measurements and a few pictures and then you two can listen to the heartbeat on your own.”
Annabelle nodded. I saw the tears in the corners of her eyes. I reached over and brushed one away. She caught the expression on my face. I didn’t know it would be like this. Hell, I didn’t know seeing a blob on a screen would be emotional at all. But it was our blob. That blob made me a dad.
Dr. Barnes continued to mutter to herself, taking measurements.
“This baby sounds wonderful and is measuring exactly ten weeks. I’ll turn up the sound and give you two a minute.”
“Thank you, Dr. Barnes,” Annabelle whispered.
We waited until the door closed. Annabelle clasped my hand. I could almost feel her nails digging into my skin. We stared in disbelief at the blinking light. It was a solid steady heartbeat.
Hard Love (An Evans Mill Romance Book 2) Page 7
