Recovery (9 page)

Once our lips finally meet again, he plunges his warm tongue deep into my mouth and I close my eyes. I meet him greedily stroke for stroke, stealing each breath from him. My hands travel downward to hastily unbutton his jeans and tug them over his hips, hooking his boxer briefs on the way down. As soon as they hit the ground, he steps out of them, and turns us around until my back hits the cold wall behind me. Our lips never part, and as his naked body caresses every part of mine, I open my eyes and meet the green eyes of a man on the brink of losing control.

“You are mine forever. Mine,” he whispers into my mouth, giving my lips a chaste peck before briskly turning me around to face the wall. I place my forearms and palms flat against it, rolling my forehead against the wall and enjoying the cool surface on my burning skin. Feeling his warm chest on my back and his hardness pressing against me, my stomach tenses as his fingers slowly trace up my sides, over my shoulders, and over my arms, his body enveloping mine. Lacing our fingers together, he squeezes my hands tightly, keeping his mouth to my ear. “Mine,” he gasps.

He dips himself down, his warmth hovering over my entrance. I instinctively arch my back, allowing him the access he needs to bind us together, as one. He sucks in a breath and plunges inside me with a growl. I moan as he fills me, our fingers tightening instinctively. His lips find the crook of my neck and his teeth painlessly sink into the tender spot between my shoulder and neck, subconsciously completing his hold of me. He keeps diving into me with deep rhythmic thrusts, his teeth never loosening their gentle hold.

A deep raspy breath escapes his throat and with one last lunge into me, my entire body convulses around him while he shudders and collapses onto my back. His teeth release my skin and his tongue lazily licks the sensitized area, followed by gentle kisses.

“I guess it’s safe to say I missed you,” he laughs, withdrawing slowly from my body. I turn, wrapping my arms gently around his neck, and embrace him. Letting out a content and relaxed sigh, I concur. “I’ve missed
you
. All of you.”

As I move toward his ear, I say the only thing left to say. The one thing I hope he never forgets.

“It’s
our
family, Blake. Please, never doubt that.”

Looking me directly in the eyes, he reaffirms with emphasis, “
Our
family.”

Scooping me up, I giggle as he carries me to our bedroom, where we spend the next few hours making love, holding each other, feeling the baby kick, thinking of names, and laughing and joking about almost everything.

For the first time in a long time, I’m not worried about the mess we left all over the living room floor. There’s only one thing that I
am
concerned about.

No more wasted time.

“Rylie! Please come pick up these skates before someone gets hurt!” I yell from the top of the God awful stairs. I used to hate them, but there is no word in the English language that could possibly describe the way I feel about them now.

“Mommy, can’t you get them?” Rylie whines, jumping her way up the steps in her Hello Kitty rainbow striped swimsuit. I don’t think she’s quite ready to let go of summer just yet.

“Wait, was it me who took them out of your room, rolled them down the stairs twenty times in a row, crashed them into the wall every single one of those twenty times, and then left them sitting there for someone to trip over? Was that me?”

Rylie, catching onto my massive sarcasm, just smiles during my interrogation. “Mommy! You know it wasn’t you! It was me!”

I try to contain my smile. “Well?”

“Oh, okay,” she huffs, dragging out the last word. “I’ll put them up, but it was forty-two times, not twenty.” She continues her journey up the stairs and I belt out a laugh.

Sarcasm mastered.

I grab onto the railing and make my way down, the smell of brewing coffee waking my groggy senses. Entering the kitchen, my heart swells with the sight before me. Blake, dressed in his white v-neck t-shirt and red and navy plaid pajama bottoms, sitting at the kitchen table with Nycole and Kyndall. He smiles contently as he watches them play a game of checkers.

“Who’s winning?”

I walk up behind him and wrap my arm around his neck, bending down to kiss him. I feel him smile when my lips touch his cheek. After taking a tiny whiff of leather and soap, I run my fingers through his hair
because I can
and walk to the cabinet to grab a glass.

“Me, of course,” Kyndall says, not even bothering to look up as she concentrates on the board. Nycole lets out an aggravated sigh, rolling a black checker piece between her fingers. The only black checker piece in her possession. I glance over at Kyndall’s overflowing collection and then back at her. “She cheats. Remember that.” Nycole gives me a half-smile in return, before once again focusing her attention on the game.

My gaze is broken by a not so little, but still cute, yellow ball of fur as he trots into my path. “Cooper, sit.” Immediately he obeys, sweeping his tail across the floor, eagerly awaiting my reward. I look over my shoulder at Blake and smile before petting Cooper behind the ear. “Good boy.” He rises off his haunches and trots to lay by Nycole’s feet under the table, most likely waiting for a scrap or two from the plate next to her. I have to admit, he’s been a wonderful addition to our family, and I think he will do just fine with our next new addition.

Speaking of which…

“We have my thirty-four week doctor’s appointment tomorrow, don’t forget. I already told Harlow I’m taking half a day off. Maybe you should too? We could make it a
date
.” Blake looks up, cocking his brow. I nod my head and he crooks a sexy smile. “Consider it done. What time?”

“Eleven o’clock. We should have plenty of time.” I add with a wink and a wide grin.

He chuckles under his breath before continuing to watch the girls’ super exciting checker match. After happily snatching a glass, I open the fridge to retrieve the gallon size orange juice. It’s all I seem to want to drink lately. Normally, I loathe O.J., however the little man residing in my tummy seems to love it.

Rylie skips into the kitchen with a handful of tiny plastic creatures in her hands. I have no idea what they are, what their purpose is, or why they seem to be all the rage right now. They don’t do a damn thing, but she just got a whole bucket full of them and insists on carrying them everywhere. I watch her brown eyes light up and a mischievous smile play on her lips as she lays the pile down on the table and climbs up onto Blake’s lap. I know what she’s going to do before she does it, and I can’t fight the smile breaking across my face.

She places the purple turtle looking thing on the board, in the uninhabited black square nearest to her. Eyes dancing with anticipation, she looks up at her sisters, who are still concentrating on the game. Her face falls when they don’t seem to notice her attempt at distraction.

She stretches her little arm out and using her tiny fingers, she slowly pushes the animal into the corresponding red square. With her sisters still not paying attention, I can see the frustration mounting on her face. After a few seconds of patiently waiting for any type of response from them, she does the only thing left to do. She quickly snakes her hand into Kyndall’s pile of red checkers, grabs a handful, and bolts off of Blake’s lap into the living room, giggling and squealing the entire time, her left butt cheek hanging out of her swimsuit as she runs.

“Rylie!” Kyndall shrieks loudly, jumping out of her seat. She takes off after her, and I can hear the scuffling as she is most likely wrestling her baby sister to the ground. Nycole just rolls her eyes and reaches over to move a couple of the checkers to a more favorable position.

Cheater
.

Blake lets out a laugh as he rises from his chair, scooting the seat out from underneath him with the backs of his legs. He gives her an encouraging pat to the head, mussing her hair before sauntering over to me, coffee mug in hand. Once he’s directly in front of me, he places one arm on each side of my very pregnant belly, bracing himself against the counter, and leans in closely. After placing a very gentle kiss on the hollow of my neck, he raises himself, his green eyes meeting mine. “I love you, Alex.”

“And I love
you
,” I respond. My heart is flittering from the recent contact. One touch from this man and I turn to mush.

And I love every second of it.

“Mommy! Kyndall pushed me!” Rylie screams from the other room, half crying and half laughing through her attempt to escape her sister’s wrath. I lean my forehead into Blake’s neck. “Make it stop, Blake.
Please
.” He snickers as he lifts one arm from the counter, and runs his fingers through my brown tresses. The light touch sends an electric jolt through my veins.

“You relax. Go take a shower and I’ll get them dressed. Nancy’s coming to get them, remember?”
Oh, yeah.
Pregnancy brain strikes once again.

“Yes, of course I remember.”

Blake chuckles once again, and then pushes his body away from mine, turning to take care of the altercation
still
occurring in the living room. I look over to Nycole, who’s watching me with a smile beaming on her face. “What?”

“Nothing,” she states with a shrug of her shoulders. “I love you, Mom. That’s all.”

I walk over to her chair, and she stands up as I approach her. She wraps both arms around my stomach, embracing both me and her little brother. He kicks as soon as her cheek hits my tummy and she moves her hands to the sides of my belly, feeling for his next movement. He shifts around a bit, then delivers another powerful one on my right side.
I think he just cracked a rib.

Setting her chin on my stomach, she looks up at me. “I can’t wait to meet him. I hope he turns out better than Rylie.”

Laughing, I explain to her the inevitable. “Oh, he’ll be worse. Count on it. You guys tend to be getting more and more ornery as you come along.”

Her big brown eyes dancing with joy. “Then that makes me the best, right?”

I lift my hand and place it on her soft cheek. “In-dubitably.” I respond. Still smiling, she releases me from her embrace.

“Better go get dressed, Grandma Nancy’s on her way to take you costume shopping, remember? What are you going to be
this
year?” I ask, always interested in her costume selection.

She bats her eyes at me and I already have a feeling I’m not going to like her response. “I’m thinking belly dancer?”

The image of my child dressed with her mid-drift exposed assaults my brain. “Um, no. Try again.”

With a roll of her eyes and a
humph
, she responds, “Fine. Draculaura?”

“Better.” I run my hand down her long, curly hair. She’s growing up so quickly.

I smile when I hear a very manly “oomph” from the other room; pictures of Kyndall and Rylie crawling all over him run through my mind. Sounds as though the two have joined forces against him
.

I couldn’t be more proud.

I look back down at my growing girl. “I love you, Nyc.”

“Love you too, Mom.” She turns away and I watch her disappear up the stairs.

Shortly after, the doorbell rings, scaring the bejeezus out of Cooper, who lets out a couple of deep barks with a low growl, noting his protest.
Nancy.
I guess we’re running a little late this morning. Making my way through the living room, I pass Blake along the way. Rylie’s infectious giggle makes me smile once again as I watch her, hanging upside down over his shoulder, laughing and kicking—left butt cheek
still
hanging out—and Kyndall happily hopping up the steps after them. I guess she got her checkers back.

Opening the door, I’m greeted by a huge grin and a super-sized hug. “How are you, my dear?” Nancy asks, stepping back to look me over. “You look absolutely beautiful.” I glance down at my “Birth Control is Over-Rated” t-shirt and reach up to touch my ratty hair. The hair that I meant to put in a ponytail.
Nice.

Giving an appreciative smile in response to her attempt to make me feel better about my appearance, I reply, “Thank you. And so do you.” She gives me a genuine smile that grows in size as I hear the pitter patter of little feet running behind me across the hard wood.

“Rylie!” Nancy exclaims, scooping her up in her arms. I watch her feet dangle as Nancy sways her back and forth during her embrace. I guess Blake just threw a dress on over the swimsuit.

Typical.

“Where are your sisters?” Nancy asks Rylie after planting a huge kiss on her chubby cheek.

“They’re comin’.” She leans in to whisper into Nancy’s ear. “I still have some of Kyndall’s checkers, but don’t tell her, ‘kay?” Nancy gives me a questioning glance, and I just shrug my shoulders as though I don’t know what she’s talking about. It’s a long and unnecessary story.

Nancy sets her down and her eyes take in the living room. “This place is really coming along. It’s looks really great in here, Alex.” I look back over my shoulder, where my eyes find our most recently purchased item, the bright candy apple red lamp, a replacement for the one Blake shattered just months ago. I bought it with a bright color in mind so that it would always serve as a reminder to us of just how close we came to losing each other, but instead, we happily found ourselves immersed
in
one another.

My body twitches happily at the thought of our make-up session.

I turn back to face her. “Yep. It’s a still work in progress, but I couldn’t be happier with the way it’s turning out,” I say, fully aware that I’m speaking, not of the room, but of our marriage. She just smiles and continues to look around.

After a few seconds, the loud clamor of footsteps coming down the stairs causes us both to turn our heads. Kyndall and Nycole enter the room, all smiles, and rush over to greet their grandmother. More hugs are exchanged along with a kiss on the cheek for them all, including Blake.

I walk over and wrap my arm lovingly around his waist, leaning in to take a whiff, further feeding my addiction to his scent. Looking up at him from underneath my lashes, I see a flicker of desire pass through his eyes.
I think our lunch date was just moved up.

A sinful smile spreads across my face and he laughs, the same thing obviously going through our minds at the same time. He leans down and whispers in my ear. “Meet me in the shower?”

“Yeah, I left the towels upstairs. I’ll grab two.” He nuzzles his nose behind my ear before bringing his gorgeous face into my line of sight. “I’ll get them for you. No reason for you to have to do it when I’m here to do it for you,
right
?” he asks, left eyebrow arched obviously for emphasis. “Just let me take the girls out and get them buckled up for Nancy first. You go start the shower and I’ll meet you in there.”

“Okay,” is all I can get out because it seems my ability to speak has been lost to particularly distracting thoughts of us,
together
, in the shower. A sly grin crosses my face, and I give him a quick wink, releasing my arm as I turn towards the girls. Telling them goodbye, I give them a hug and quick kiss, before doing the same with Nancy. As they open the door to head out, I turn on my heel to the bedroom.

Passing the baby’s room, I try not to peek in. I can’t believe that I only have a few weeks to go and we’re
still
at a standoff about the color. Making a mental note to pick up any color other than his putrid yellow, I continue down the hall.

I’ll take care of it this week.

Once in the bathroom, I turn on the shower, letting the water wash over my hand as I adjust the temperature. When it’s the perfect degree of warmth, I get undressed and throw on my old pink fluffy robe, just in case one of the girls decides to make a trip back into the house. This happens at least once every time they leave to go anywhere, so I expect to see one of them in a matter of minutes. Sitting on the bed, I run my hand over the comforter to smooth it.

Where is Blake?

I wait a little longer before going back into the living room. I move the curtain to the side and peek out the window. Blake’s laughing with Nancy, his forearm up on the top of her car door.
Hello!
Sex crazed pregnant woman waiting.

Fine, I’ll get the damn towels myself.

After a long and grueling climb, I’m finally able to retrieve the towels from Nycole’s bathroom where I left them earlier this morning. Over my heavy breathing, I hear the door shut and the sound of Blake’s bare feet heading into the kitchen. Which reminds me of the refrigerator and my constant craving for the orange juice inside of it.

“Bla–” I start, but my voice is lost when my feet shoot out from underneath me. My movements seem to be in slow motion as I reach for the railing now above my head. Casting a glance to the top of the stairs, my eyes lock on the one thing that I should have noticed when I made the trip
up
them.

It seems I have a new nemesis.

I now hate skates
.