I would never hit a woman, but I’d kill her aunt if I ever got the chance to meet her.
“I don’t expect you to stand by me and I sure as hell don’t expect you to accept me back. But you deserved to know what was going on.”
My eyes raked down her form, noticing how baggy her shirt was on her. I took the mug of coffee from between her fingers and slowly laid her back into the cushions of the couch. My hand ran up her thigh, my eyes watching her as my fingers slid up her shirt.
I felt my palm descend around the small bump protruding behind her belly button as my world came to a stop.
I was going to be a father.
My eyes connected with Ava and I could see how scared she was. How panicked she looked and how young she seemed again. Her marred hands trembled, but her skin puckered at my touch. A heat drifted along her cheeks, painting her skin a beautiful pink as I leaned toward her stomach.
My lips pressed into her stomach as her breath hitched, the warmth of my lips penetrating her cold skin.
“Hello there, little one. I’m your father,” I said.
I kissed Ava’s stomach one last time before I rose my face to settle in front of hers.
“What are you doing?” Ava asked breathlessly.
“I need you to listen to me closely, okay?” I asked.
Ava nodded as a tear escaped the corner of her eye, traveling down her cheek and finding its death on her shoulder.
“Do you have your stuff in your car?” I asked.
“I do,” she said breathlessly.
“Are you still planning on going back to your family?” I asked.
“No,” she said with a whisper. “I can’t. Not even for my brothers. My father would—”
“Enough with your father. He doesn’t control you any longer, is that understood?”
“Yes,” she said. “I get it.”
“Here’s what’s going to happen. You’re going to bring your stuff inside and set up in any room you want. You are carrying my child, which means you are under my protection. Whatever you need, I’ll make sure you have it. Whatever doctor’s visits you need, I’ll make sure I’m there with you. I want to be a part of this child’s life, Ava. But more importantly, I want to be a part of yours.”
Ava let out a shuddering breath as another tear fell down her skin.
“Are you serious?” she asked.
> I leaned forward and encompassed her lips in a heated kiss as my cock swelled for her.
“Yes,” I said. “I’m dead serious.”
I looked into Ava’s sparkling eyes and saw my entire world. This beautiful, passionate soul was carrying my child, and there was nothing that was going to stand in my way of being a part of this. Ava’s hands rushed to my hair, yanking me back down to her lips as my hands traveled up her shirt. I could taste her passion for me. Her zest for life and her want for me still. I wanted her more than I could stand. I craved her more than I should have.
And now, we were going to have a baby.
The mountain was safe, Ava was back in my arms, and I felt more impregnable than ever. I tasted the whole of my future on the tip of her tongue as I picked her up, cradling her closely into my body. She shook with desire as her skin heated against mine. Our lips swelled underneath the pressure we bestowed upon each other as I carried her back to my room.
I had Ava back, and there was no way I was letting her go.
There was no way I was letting either of them go.
Twenty-Four
Ava