Chasing Perfection: Vol. IV

by M. S. Parker

  “Joey’s parents have been very sad and have been looking for him all this time.” She paused a moment before continuing, “I know that woman said she was your mother and that your name was Emmett, but that’s not the truth. Your real name is Joey Turner and your real parents are flying here from Minnesota. They are so happy you’re okay.”

  Silence fell as we all waited for Joey’s reaction.

  “She wasn’t my mom?” His voice was quiet.

  “No,” Madeleine kept it simple.

  “I never have to live with her again?”

  A lump formed in my throat as I heard the hope in his voice.

  “No. You’re never going to live with her again.”

  “And I have parents. A real mom and dad?”

  “Yes.”

  A wide smile broke out across his face and he threw his arms around Madeleine. “Thank you!”

  We stayed for another half-hour, wanting to be sure Joey was comfortable before we left. His parents had left St. Paul as soon as they’d been able to get on a flight, but it’d be at least four hours before they arrived. Neither DeVon nor I had the energy to stay that long. My heart twisted as Joey threw his arms around DeVon to tell him good-bye. I couldn’t imagine how DeVon must have been feeling at that moment. He’d been through so much. Thinking he had a son. Being told he’d have to choose between me and the boy. Then learning that the child he’d been thinking of as his, wasn’t.

  As the two of us left, I slid my arm around his waist and leaned my head on his shoulder. “I’m so sorry, babe.”

  “For what?” he sounded tired, but curious.

  “I just feel bad about what happened. Everything you had to go through these past two weeks, only to find out you have to give him up anyway.”

  Our usual driver gave us both concerned looks as he opened the back door of the town car. I managed a small smile before sliding in. I was glad DeVon had called for a car. I wanted some privacy right now.

  “It was bittersweet, you know.” DeVon put his arm around my shoulders and pulled me against him. “Finding out that Emmett – I mean, Joey – wasn’t my son.”

  “Really?” I kept my voice carefully neutral.

  “I’m really glad I didn’t have a kid with Sasha, and I’m even more grateful that she’s not anyone’s mother.”

  That was a sentiment I could definitely agree with. Some people should never reproduce.

  “But I was just starting to get used to the idea of being someone’s dad.”

  I pushed myself up straight so I could look at him. This was a conversation I needed to have face-to-face.

  “Had you ever thought of it before?” I knew he’d been engaged when he was younger, but he and I had never talked about what he thought about having kids. I wished we had.

  “Not really,” he said. “Family always seemed like it’d be more of Franco’s thing than mine. Look how long it took me to figure out that I could be happy with just one person.” He smiled at me. “As long as it’s you.”

  I gave him a weak smile in return. “Good thing you added that last part.”

  “Besides, Joey is a great kid. Anyone would be proud to have him as a son, no matter if they wanted kids or not. He’s smart and sweet. Especially when you consider how hard it must’ve been, growing up thinking Sasha was his mother, it’s a miracle he’s not completely screwed up.”

  I nodded absently. I agreed that Joey had to be a special kid indeed to have done so well with such a nutcase, but he wasn’t at the forefront of my mind at the moment. I put my hand on my stomach. Was that it? Had he only decided that he wanted to be Joey’s dad because of what a great kid Joey was? Even now, was DeVon thinking about how nice it was going to be to go back to the way things had been? Just the two of us with work and our houses and amazing sex.

  “Babe?” He brushed the back of his fingers across my cheek. “What’s wrong?”

  This wasn’t where or how I’d wanted to have this conversation, but the moment had presented itself and I had to know the truth. I couldn’t settle back down into a routine with him if he didn’t want things to change.

  “Did you only want Joey because he’s such a great kid and he was already here? Was it only because, short of walking away, you didn’t really have a choice in the matter?”

  He cupped the side of my face. “No. Meeting him just made me consider the idea, forced me to decide what I want.”

  “And what’s that?” The question came out in a near-whisper. I almost didn’t want to hear the answer.

  “I don’t want kids,” he began and my heart nearly stopped. “Unless they’re with you.”

  I took a shaky breath, not wanting to dare to hope.

  “It’s not about having a son or daughter,” he continued. “It’s about being a family, and you’re the only person I’d ever want to have a family with.”

  Tears spilled over and I cursed my hormones. “That’s good,” I said as relief rushed through me. DeVon’s bewildered expression made me laugh.

  “It’s good because I’m pregnant.”

  Chapter 21

  Krissy

  I was pretty sure our driver thought DeVon and I were crazy as we got out of the town car laughing and kissing each other, especially considering how somber we’d been getting in. He was professional, though, and merely gave us a nod and got back into the car.

  I was glad we’d gone back to the house because this was where I wanted to celebrate. I liked the penthouse and I knew it was a good idea to have it, but this house was where I wanted to raise our child.

  I’d barely gone three steps towards the door and DeVon was scooping me up in his arms, laughing when I gave a surprised sound that I vehemently denied was a squeal. I wrapped my arms around his neck as he carried me into the house and directly to the master bathroom.

  He undressed me quickly and efficiently, not taking the time to linger before stripping off his own clothes. The water was hot as we stepped under it and it felt amazing against my tense muscles. One of the best things about central air was the ability to still take a hot shower in July.

  As he reached for my shampoo, he asked, “I am curious, though. How did it happen?”

  I picked up his shampoo as I teased, “Well, when two people love each other very much...”

  He laughed. “You know what I mean. And don’t get me wrong, I’m thrilled. Just curious.”

  “Let’s just say there’s a birth control company that didn’t recall their product fast enough and are going to have a whole lot of lawsuits on their hands soon.”

  “Maybe we should send them a thank you card,” he joked.

  We lathered each other’s hair, the mood light as we rinsed and he then worked conditioner through my thick mess.

  “How far along...I mean, when...?”

  “I’m guessing sometime in April,” I answered the question he hadn’t actually managed to get out. “I haven’t been to the doctor yet.”

  “You have to schedule the appointment right away,” he said. His previous playfulness had disappeared. “We need to make sure everything’s okay.”

  I squirted soap into a washcloth. “No one’s open today. I’ll call on Monday.” I began to make small circles across the defined muscles of his chest.

  “Do we want to know if it’s a boy or a girl?” He frowned. “Should we wait until then to start talking about names? Which room’s going to be the nursery? Do you want to go with the traditional pink or blue or should we do something more neutral in case we want more kids? Do you want more kids?”

  “DeVon,” I interrupted him. A smile was playing around my lips, but I didn’t want him to think I was laughing at him. “We don’t need to make all of those decisions right now. We’ve got time to talk about them.”

  “Nine months goes by really fast,” he said. He looked down at me. “What if something goes wrong?”

  “Shh.” I walked around him and began to wash his back. “We’re not going to worry about that.”

  He
watched me finish cleaning him, his eyes dark and full of so much love that it was almost painful to bear. When I was done, he poured my lilac-scented soap onto another washcloth and began to mimic what I’d done. His movements were slow and gentle. Unlike other times when we’d showered together, there was no teasing, no sexual advances.

  Then he went to his knees to wash my legs and feet. I put my hands on his shoulders to balance, expecting him to stand as he finished, but he didn’t. He looked up at me, his thick lashes dotted with water. His hands slid around me to the small of my back as he looked back down. I caught my breath as he pressed his lips against my stomach and then turned his head, resting his cheek against me. I moved my arms so they were behind his neck, holding him against me.

  We stood there for what seemed like a long time and then he stood. Neither one of us spoke as we rinsed the last of the soap off and then climbed out of the shower. He toweled me off first and it was all I could do not to lean forward and lick the drops of water off of his chest and abs. I tucked my towel tightly around me and moved to return the favor.

  “No,” he said quietly as he took his towel.

  Not that I didn’t enjoy watching him dry himself off, I was curious. “Why not?”

  He smiled at me. “Because if you do that, I’m going to want to do more than sleep when we get in bed.”

  I grinned. “That sounds good to me.”

  A pained expression crossed his face. “I...I don’t want to hurt you. Or the baby.”

  “DeVon, we’re not going to stop having sex for the next nine months. It’s okay.”

  “Krissy–”

  “We’ll ask the doctor some specifics, but I can promise you that we can still make love.” I took a step backwards towards the door and reached for the edge of the towel. “Unless, of course, you’re not interested anymore.” I let the towel fall.

  DeVon made a sound in the back of his throat. I smiled and cupped my breasts. My nipples hardened with just a light touch. I shivered. I’d suspected before that they were more sensitive. Now I knew for sure. That was going to make things fun. When I ran my hand down my stomach, DeVon’s eyes followed.

  “In which case,” I continued my taunt. “I’ll just have to take care of this myself.”

  With a growl, DeVon stalked towards me, his cock already hardening. I laughed and ran for the bed, barely making it before he grabbed my hips and turned me to face him. He cupped the back of my head and took my mouth with a fierce possessiveness that took my breath away. His tongue tangled with mine as he lowered me onto our bed.

  Our bed. Our house. Our baby.

  I pulled him down on me. I didn’t want foreplay and sweet torture before he slid inside me. I just wanted him. I wrapped my legs around his waist and reached down between us. He groaned into my mouth as I wrapped my fingers around him.

  “Wait,” he gasped. “Let me go down on you first.”

  “No.” I shook my head even as I squeezed the firm flesh in my hand. “I’m wet enough.”

  His eyes locked with mine and I saw that his need was just as great. After everything that had happened, what we were doing wasn’t about the pleasure. It was about us joining together, becoming one.

  I released his cock and he entered me. My eyelids fluttered, my nails digging into his shoulders at the nearly overwhelming sensation of initial penetration. I let him take me slow, reveling in each exquisite inch that stretched me. My entire body was thrumming, like every cell was tuning in to the same frequency, one that responded to his touch and nothing else.

  He didn’t stop when he reached the end of me, but began to withdraw almost immediately. The steady drag made me moan, and then his lips were surrounding a nipple and the moan became a cry. My back arched as he began to suck, his body curling over mine as his tongue and teeth worked the sensitive flesh even as he maintained his pace.

  Fireworks burst behind my eyes and I called out his name, an orgasm exploding through me. He swore as my pussy tightened around him, my muscles spasming as I came. He waited until I’d begun to come down before he started to move again, this time with more force, though not even close to his usual pounding. He raised his head until our eyes met.

  We didn’t speak. We didn’t have to. We could see everything the other one was feeling and it was the exact image of what we felt. We truly were soulmates. Everything about us fit perfectly together. Our bodies, hearts and minds. Everything we’d never thought we’d want or have, but now did.

  We came together, not with a bang or a whimper, but with a rush of love and desire so intense that it took our breath away. We clung to each other, our bodies as closely entwined as a pair could be, riding the waves of pleasure until we both had tears in our eyes. Even then, we didn’t pull apart. Only when the chill of the air conditioning began to reach us did we untangle long enough to slide underneath the blankets.

  DeVon lay on his side next to me, his head propped up on one hand. His other hand was lazily caressing my curves beneath the sheet, sliding over each of my breasts before settling on my stomach.

  “You know it’s too early to feel anything,” I said as I traced his jaw with my finger.

  “I know.” He nipped at my finger, smiling as I dropped my hand to his chest. “But he’s in there. Or she.” He snuggled down next to me and pulled me into his arms, still managing to get a hand on my stomach. “It doesn’t matter to me which. Maybe one of each.”

  I turned my head to glare at him. “Twins? Seriously?”

  He grinned. “Go big or go home, right?”

  My eyes narrowed even more. “You do realize that using the word ‘big’ in a sentence with a pregnant woman is a dangerous thing, right?”

  He winked at me. “Does this mean you’re going to have to punish me?”

  I loved DeVon dominating me, but I couldn’t deny the bolt of arousal that went through me at the idea of him in the submissive role for once. I filed that away for future reference.

  “One, two, boy, girl, it doesn’t matter.” He brushed my hair back and kissed my forehead. “And I don’t care how big you get or how weird your cravings are. You’re perfect. They’ll be perfect. No matter what.”

  I rested my head on his chest, listening to my favorite sound in the world.

  “Because you’re mine.” His arms tightened around me. “My family. The only thing I’ll ever need.”

  I wanted to tell him that I felt the same way, but I was already half-asleep. It could wait, though. I’d tell him tomorrow. And the day after that. Neither one of us was going anywhere. We were a family. Always.

  –– The End ––

  I have several new books and series planned for the 2015 including several free books. If you would like an email when my next book is ready Click here to sign up to my newsletter.

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  Acknowledgement

  First, I would like to thank all of my readers. Without you, my books would not exist. I truly appreciate each and every one of you.

  A big thanks goes out to all my Facebook fans, street team, beta readers, and advanced reviewers. You are a HUGE part of the success of my series.

  I especially have to thank my PA, Shannon Hunt. Without you my life would be a complete and utter mess. Also a big thank you goes out to my editor Cindy at smashingedits.com and my wonderful cover designer Sinisa. You make my ideas and writing look so good.

  About The Author

  M. S. Parker is the author of the Erotic Romance series, Club Privé and Chasing Perfection.

  Living in Southern California, she enjoys sitting by the pool with her laptop, writing her next spicy romance.

 

 

 
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