With Brave Wings (4 page)

Chapter 5

Los Angeles
 

While Sophie waited for the dispatcher to connect her call with the radio show she was being interviewed by, she set up her laptop on her kitchen counter and went online to find cookbooks.

Brooklyn was a great teacher, but Sophie couldn’t always depend on her.

"You there, Ms. Pierce? We're ready for you after the commercial."

"I'm ready."

*

Los Angeles
 

Practicing lines for an animated comedy would probably be easier if Sophie weren't a hormonal mess, but it had to be done.

"
Oui, oui
, we will start a revolution!" she said, reading her script. "Follow me!"

Zane had been kind enough to help her, so he read the other lines. "Can someone inform Frenchy over here she's not really French?"

Sophie let out a horrified gasp. "
Sacre bléu!
What do you know—you are nothing but a common sack of rice! I bet you are cheap too, made in China." She sniffed derisively.

"Well, duh." Zane chuckled and then covered for the next character. "Frenchy, I hate to break it to you, but you're from a factory in Buffalo."

"No, no, this cannot be!"

*

San Francisco
 

"Thank you for coming, Sophie."

"Thank you for having me." Sophie grinned and waved to the audience.

"First of all, congratulations on your success in
Unrecovered
. It's certainly changed things in your career, hasn’t it?"

*

Los Angeles
 

"Let's go!" Brooklyn hollered. "And quit whining, Pierce. If you're not working your ass off, you're hiding. We're gonna go down to the beach and relax a little. No fucking argument!"

"But my stomach—"

"Here. Wear this." Brooklyn threw a hoodie at her.

*

"You could name him Noah," Noah suggested.

"Or Daniel," Daniel said.

Sophie snorted and left the guys in the baby's room. They'd forbidden her to go in while they were painting, in case it wasn’t good for the baby.

Daniel and Zane were like wedding planners¸ but for a child—who was less than four months away from joining the world. And Noah… Christ, Noah was almost worse. He'd come home from Italy yesterday, though he'd fly back after the holiday, and he wanted to turn the baby's room into a man cave for Penguins fans.

Heading back to the kitchen, Sophie joined Brooklyn and Maliah.

Sophie opened the oven and took a whiff of potato skins with garlic butter. "
Delicious
."

Christmas was one of those holidays where two meals could be prepared at once. Lunch was almost ready, but most of the focus was on dinner, and soon the place would smell like turkey.

"Oh—" Shit. Sophie would probably never get used to the baby kicking. It filled her with butterflies and made her emotional ninety percent of the time. "I think he's hungry." It was late, after all. The baby didn’t find it acceptable that lunch would be served at three. But they'd done so much with the kiddo's room today, so they were running late.

"Is he kicking now?" Maliah ran over and excitedly put a hand on Sophie's bump.

"Here." Sophie pressed Maliah's hand a little firmer right below her belly button. The butterflies returned. "You feel that?"

It had only been a few days since others could feel the baby's movements. Before then, it was just Sophie, and the guys liked to tease her and say it was gas. Jerks.

"Yeah. Freaking cool." Maliah beamed. "Does he know it's Christmas tomorrow?"

"Too soon for that, baby," Brooklyn chuckled. "Can you go across the hall and get Josh? Time to eat."

Oh right, Sophie had almost forgotten Noah's roommate was joining them. Josh was always working, so she rarely saw him. It seemed to be a running theme for the men in the loft across the hall. Josh was a physiotherapist, married to his business, Moshe and Eli traveled the world as photographers for
National Geographic
, and Noah went all over the place, too.

In the months Sophie had lived in this building, she'd only seen the Israeli brothers twice. Their initial meeting had been a brief hello before they were off to Indonesia with their camera equipment.

"You should put your feet up, honey," Brooklyn said. "You're tired. Or go stare at the Christmas tree with Max."

Sophie chuckled and looked over to the living room. Sure enough, Max was still guarding the tree, which he'd been doing since they'd decorated it a couple weeks ago.

"Okay, five minutes." She conceded and plopped down on the couch. She groaned in pleasure as her feet hit the coffee table. Lately, they'd been a little swollen and sore.

Otherwise, she had no real complaints about her pregnancy. She'd heard horror stories from Brooklyn, so Sophie was pretty sure she'd gotten lucky with her sprite.

She smiled sleepily to herself, feeling him shifting inside her belly.

In the past month, she'd gotten…attached. More than words could describe, really. The whole situation was so bizarre, but a sense of serenity had also covered her like a blanket. It was difficult to explain.

"Sophie!" Daniel called from down the hall.

Nuh-uh.

"She's not home!" she hollered back.

"Phone for you!"

"I'm
really
not home!"

She'd made one mistake. One tiny fucking mistake, and suddenly the world knew she was pregnant. For that reason, she only left her loft when she had to, and all her calls went through Daniel.

She felt bad for rescheduling interviews and moving them closer to home, but she had to put her son first.

"It went to voice mail," Daniel said, joining her in the living room with the phone in hand. "It's Asher, darling. As your humble manager, I strongly advise you to call him back."

Ugh. Did she have to? Today? It was Christmas Eve.

"How can I explain myself without telling him I'm pregnant?" she asked, frustrated. "I know you've told me I should just be up-front, but I'm not budging, Daniel. Tennyson deserves to learn about the baby through me, not his brother."

Tennyson also deserved a swift kick in the crotch, but whatever.

Sophie knew him well enough not to doubt him. He would never dodge her intentionally, and when he said he was going off the grid, he evidently meant it literally.

Some days, Sophie took each call that went to his voice mail with grace.

Some days, she cried and threw something at a wall.

"I am calm today, Daniel," she said clearly. "Don’t make me uncalm."

He quirked a smile. "I don’t think that’s a word."

"Jesus, Daniel." Brooklyn shook her head. "Stop while you're ahead."

"What she said." Sophie pointed to her girlfriend. "Now, get Noah so we can eat. I'm starving. Oh, and help me up, please."

"Yes, ma'am." Daniel held out a hand for her and pulled her off the couch. "I'll go check Zane's flight."

"Yeah…you do that." Sophie was already zeroing in on the dining room table. As she sat down, Maliah came back with Josh, Noah emerged from the baby's room, and Brooklyn brought over the last of the food.

Sophie was on her second roll when Daniel sat down and said he was picking up Zane at the airport in an hour.

"Mind if I catch a ride?" Josh asked. "I was gonna call a cab."

"I'll take you." Daniel nodded.

"Where're you going?" Sophie wondered, cramming some delicious potato skins into her mouth. Buttery heaven.

"Home to visit my family." Josh smiled at her. "And you have butter on your chin."

Oh.
Sophie wiped a napkin over her mouth and chin, but she was too hungry and tired to be embarrassed.

She didn’t know what was best, the food or the amazing nap she'd have afterward. It was only in the past few days it had gotten a little difficult to get comfortable, but once she was asleep, she was completely gone. She'd never slept heavier than while she was pregnant.

Unfortunately, she got tired
fast
. It hit her like a wall, and there was no fighting it.

"Sleepy?" Brooklyn smiled knowingly.

"Yeah," she said sheepishly. "Is there anything I can do before—"

"Girl, don’t even think about it." Brooklyn pointed toward the bedrooms. "Get some rest."

*

Sophie woke up in her bed hours later with a small smile playing on her lips. It was dark outside, and she could smell the delicious turkey.

Christmas music played softly in the living room. Maliah was laughing at something. Maybe she was playing with Max; it sounded like it—but…hmm. There was a low murmur of a voice she couldn’t place. Zane? No, his voice wasn’t as gruff. For some reason, it sounded like Asher.

Stretching and yawning, Sophie rolled over onto her back and blinked drowsily.

"Sophie?"

"Holy fuck!" She shot up in a seated position and saw someone sitting in the armchair in the corner next to her closet.
Tennyson.
"Tennyson?" She placed a hand over her pounding heart.

"I'm sorry." He switched on the small lamp next to the chair. "My only thought was to barge in here and speak to you, but…you looked so peaceful." In contrast, Tennyson looked weary and guarded. "I've only been here for twenty minutes or so."

Sophie tried to let the shock settle, but it wasn’t easy. "That’s good news—that you've only been a creep for twenty minutes." It was a joke, mostly.

"Or so," he added.

"Or so." She nodded and looked down. Shit, he was really here. "I've been trying to get in touch with you for like a month."

"Fuck," he whispered. He leaned forward and rested his elbows on his thighs. "I'm so sorry. I was going to check in once we got to New Mexico, but I forgot my damn phone. It's still at home." He scrubbed his hands tiredly over his face. "We were on our way out to dinner yesterday—Asher saw the photos of you."

"Oh," she mouthed. He already knew. "I hope you're not mad." She pulled up the duvet a bit more, feeling protective.

Tennyson frowned. "Why on earth would I be mad? I'm…I'm surprised, which…" He chuckled quietly, though it was sorta hollow. "That’s an understatement, but I'm definitely not mad." He gave her a hesitant smile. "Is…is it mine?"

"That’s funny." She snorted, but then she realized he was serious. That angered her. "Oh my God, you're not kidding. Of course you're the father, you stupid shit!"

"Oh, thank fuck." Tennyson blew out a breath and hung his head. "Jesus
Christ
, you have no idea how relieved I am right now."

Sophie had no idea how to react to that, either. Well… "I think I'm mad." In fact, she was furious. "You think I'd move on that fast? For fuck's sake, haven't we already covered this?"

"You don’t look very far along in the photos," he reasoned. "I admit my own insecurities got the best of me. My initial thought was that you'd fallen in love and started a family. I was beyond shocked. Then Ash knocked some sense into me and told me I should consider it could be mine."

Sophie crawled over to the foot of the bed and kneeled, letting the duvet fall away. Wearing nothing but a threadbare top and boxers, her belly was right there for him to see, and it had grown since those pictures were taken.

"Less than four months to go," she said.

Tennyson didn’t answer. Instead, he stared. As if he was transfixed, his gaze was glued to Sophie's baby bump, and it was so intense that she couldn’t help but shiver.

"I…" Tennyson exhaled and stood up. With a shake of his head, he closed the distance between them and gently placed his palms over her belly. "I'm speechless," he whispered.

Sophie swallowed hard and, in a way, it felt like she was getting ready to let go of some of the tension she'd been shouldering.

"We're going to be parents, sweetie," Tennyson murmured thickly.

That was it. The levees broke, and for the first time in months, she didn’t feel alone. Her heart was full of appreciation and love for the wonderful family she'd found in her new friends, but this was different. This was for Tennyson, too. It was their baby, and he was finally here.

Tears welled up in her eyes, and it wasn’t long before they were streaming down her face.

"Come here." He picked her up. "I'm so incredibly sorry I haven't been here for you until now."

"I needed you," she cried.

Tennyson carried her over to her side of the bed and lay down with her, holding her tightly and yanking the duvet over them. "I know. I know, Sophie." He kissed her hair over and over. "I'm sorry. I hope you know I'd never ignore you intentionally, though."

She hiccupped and nodded, burying her face in the soft fabric of the Henley that covered his chest. God, he was just so warm and full of comfort and…and…abs?

He'd been in shape in Vancouver, but this was new. He hadn't been
this
solid before.

Even so, he was the perfect pillow right now. She could relax. She didn’t have to be strong all the friggin' time.

"I'm glad you're here now," she mumbled, sniffling.

"You won't get rid of me. Tell me what you need from me—anything you want."

Sophie couldn’t help but grin slightly. Trust the man to wanna hammer out details before even finding out the sex of the baby. "I want
this
, Tennyson." She gave him a squeeze. "Your support, friendship, and comfort. I don’t want us to tiptoe around each other or get awkward just because we're not together."

It seemed some tension loosened from his body. "Sounds perfect to me. I…" He sighed quietly. "It's not easy getting over you. I think about you more than I care to admit, but I've been neglecting so many things that used to matter a lot to me. I need to find my way back to that."

No one understood better than Sophie. The only difference was that she needed to find her way in her new life, not get back to anything in the past. She was finding her way, so she got it.

"I feel the same." She lifted her head and rested it on his bicep. "You're like my biggest crush, but my head is swimming. And now with the baby…"

Tennyson smiled softly and kissed her nose. "I do enjoy being your crush. But before we continue, may I kiss you? There's very little else I can say that will express how I feel at the moment—"

Sophie pressed her lips to his before he could finish. She wanted it just as much as he did, and he was right. How else were they supposed to express themselves? The word
love
was terrifying, and it could be misunderstood.

She kissed him fiercely. She kissed him passionately, receiving the exact same passion in return.

Her body came alive.

"Oh, fuck…" She arched into him and whimpered when she felt his cock.

Stupid horny hormones.

"I want to know everything." Tennyson spoke between drugging kisses. "Christ, it's overwhelming." He rolled them over so he was on top, though there wasn’t much pressure. "When did you find out about the pregnancy?"