Baby?
My face must have said it all, because Aria gave a weak smile and nodded. “I’m pregnant with your child.”
Jesus, I had been so careful… except that one time. That fucking one time. I was a careless fuck and now she had to pay the consequences for it.
She placed a hand on her belly. “And I’m happy about it. I want the baby, and I want you.” Her smile faded. “But I also understand that if this is not what you want, I’m prepared to do this alone.”
I stormed over to my desk and placed both palms on the cool wood to try to prevent myself from falling. Jesus fucking Christ.
Very slowly, I raised my eyes and looked at her. She was so calm. So serene. So, accepting of this new and shocking fact of impending parenthood.
I glanced at her belly and then back at her face, her lips, her eyes. “You’re sure?”
She nodded and her smile grew more. “Positive.”
Man up, motherfucker. Man up.
“Of course, you won’t be doing this alone,” I said, wishing my voice came out more powerful and forceful than it did. “I take care of what is mine.” I crossed the room and took her hands into mine. “And from this moment on, you and this baby are mine.”
Tears filled her eyes as she looked up at me. “I don’t want you to feel responsible for me just because I’m pregnant. I want you, and I want this baby, but I don’t want to force you. I don’t want to kidnap you.”
I pulled her into my arms and held her against me. Stroking the back of her head, I said the words I never thought I would say. “I love you. I will love this baby. And I will never let you go again. I may make mistakes in my life, but I never make the same one twice. I’m never letting you out of my sight again. I will never stare at your back as you walk away from me ever again. I’ll spend a lifetime trying to prove to you that you can count on me. That you can trust I take care of what is mine.”
I was going to be a father.
I had Aria in my arms.
My head spun and my heart felt as if it struggled to beat. Could I do this? Could I be this man? Could I change who I was and everything that I once believed?
Aria released a deep breath which sounded like one of relief. “So now what? What do we do?”
“Whatever you want,” I answered, and I meant it. I would be a slave to her every whim. She was owed that.
Aria pulled away just enough to look up at me. “Can we go back to the house? Maybe not forever, but for now. Allow us to process and accept. I need to breathe, and the air up there is the air I want in my lungs as I carry this baby.”
I nodded, loving the idea. Yes, that was exactly what I needed right now. Air. I needed the mountain air, Aria, and the time to plan.
21
Aria
The morning light cast its wake-up call through the window. Waking up to a warm body and soft breathing by my ear sent a thrill through my core with the knowledge that the rest of my life would be like this. Even though I was still exhausted from the amazing sex the night before, and every day since we’d arrived back to our mountain escape, I had never felt so at peace before in my life. My body practically hummed in contentment.
Wrapping his arms around my body, Matthew murmured against my neck, “I had a dream that I woke up and you were gone. Don’t ever leave me again. Even in my dreams.”
I turned my head to look over my shoulder, my mind twinkling with mischief. “And if I do?” I teased as I pressed my bare ass to his hardness.
Matthew slid his hands around my waist and pulled me tighter against him. I didn’t resist, but instead, positioned my body so that the entrance to my ass rested against his lengthening desire.
“I would have to punish you,” he said with a nip to my ear. “Again.”
I released a soft moan, tilting my head back in sweet surrender. I pressed my ass even closer, allowing the tip of his erection to enter past my tight opening. Not all the way, but enough to feel the biting sting of my taboo channel. Matthew splayed his hands across my mound and toyed with my clit, swirling his fingertip in circles. He already understood every inch of my body and had already mastered the skill of causing my body to hum.
“Then I’ll just have to accept my punishment like a good girl,” I replied, sighing contentedly.