“Stop pacing,” Max grunts. “You’re making me nervous.”
I scowl but slump into a chair. “It’s taking too long.”
Max’s girlfriend Dorian shoots me a supportive smile but I can’t find it in me to smile back. Not when I’m freaking the fuck out here.
I wish Miles were here. He and Olivia went down to the cafeteria for a bite to eat. Normally, he knows exactly what to say to distract me.
“I’m going to grab some coffees for us,” Dorian says as she stands. “I’ll be back.”
As soon as she’s gone, Max grumbles. “You love her.” Not a question, a motherfucking statement.
“I do.” No sense lying. “More than I ever thought I was capable of. I didn’t think I had it in me to love anyone. Now, I love her so much it makes me feel like I’m losing my goddamned head.”
Max grunts. “She’s my baby.”
“She’s my everything.”
Our eyes meet in challenge. His green-eyed stare that’s exactly like Soph’s penetrates and dissects me. I’m flayed open for him to see my true intentions. I have nothing to hide. What I feel for Sophia isn’t anything to be ashamed of. He must find what he’s looking for because he lets out a resigned sigh.
“My little Sophia has had a rough life,” he says, his brows pinched together as though he’s in pain.
“The softball accident stole her happiness,” I agree.
He gives a slight shake to his head. “It was before that. With her mother.”
Leaning forward, I rest my elbows on my knees to have a better listen. “I knew she’d died but Soph doesn’t speak much else of her mom.”
His palm scrubs across his face and sadness flickers in his gaze. “I fucked up. That day I took my wife to the hospital, I should have told the girls. I should have warned them just how sick their mother was. I stole their goodbye from them. My stubborn ass was sure that they’d fix her right up at the hospital and send her back home. She was ours. There was no way she’d die on us. We were all too young. I had a six and eight-year-old. That’s just too soon for them to lose their mother.”
I frown and my gaze skims over to the clock. She’s been back there for two hours.
He lets out a ragged sigh and then continues. “Soph knew. My smart little girl saw something in my eyes and she knew.” His voice cracks. “She begged for me to promise we’d go for ice cream…”
My blood runs cold.
Last night she begged to go. I fucking told her no.
“I told her I’d take them,” he chokes out. “It wasn’t good enough. She wanted me to promise her mother would come too. But I couldn’t lie to her. I just left. I let the babysitter tear her from me and then I left.” A rogue tear races down his cheek. He looks so broken right now. The pained look on his face is one I’ve seen on Sophia a thousand times when she was suffering. Fuck, I don’t want her to ever suffer again.
“She stood on the porch glaring at us. Accusation in her stare. I…I…I should have told her,” he mutters, his jaw clenching. “I should have told her so she could have said goodbye.” He pinches the bridge of his nose and squeezes his eyes shut. “When I got in the car, I told my wife, ‘Tomorrow we’re taking that little girl for ice cream. All four of us. Promise me, babe.’” He lets out a choked, strangled noise. “But she told me the same thing I told Sophia. ‘I don’t want to make promises I can’t keep.’ Then she waved to Soph. That was it. That was the goodbye my girls got. It wasn’t two hours later that my wife died on the operating table. The cancer had spread. It was critical they operate right away but it wasn’t good enough. She wasn’t strong enough.”
Dorian returns and rushes to his side. She sets down a drink carrier with three coffees in it on the table beside her before hugging him. My mind shuts down.
She wanted fucking ice cream.
All I had to do was give her the ice cream.
It all makes sense now. Her seemingly irrational fear of surgery seemed stupid at the time. Now, I realize I was the stupid one. I should have made her talk about why she felt that way instead of shutting her down.
God, I fucked up.
“She’s going to be just fine,” Dorian tells me firmly. “You both realize that don’t you? I’ve had the pleasure of knowing that little firecracker. She’s tough and frankly, she scares me sometimes. Soph will kick this tumor’s ass and she’ll get better. We’re going to all see her smile a lot more. The pain won’t be her keeper anymore.”
My head throbs. Dorian’s words don’t resonate with me. All I can do is regret my last moments with her.
I should have gotten her ice cream.
I’m ripping at my hair when I hear it. The panicked call on the speakers sends ice freezing every moving part of my body.
Code Blue.
Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.
I should have gotten her ice cream.
Jesus. Don’t leave me, crybaby. I need you.
The doctor says shit that doesn’t make sense. Shit I cannot comprehend—not while my mind is focused on one thing. What I do hear is one very important word.
Stable.
Alive and stable.
Her body, much like her mother’s, shut down while under the knife. It started off simple enough. She was bleeding more than they expected as they removed the tumor. Because of how it was pressed against her obturator membrane, it was cutting off supply to the small arteries there. As they began to detach it, some of the arteries blew out. And while they were able to patch up the destruction in the wake of the tumor removal, they had more problems on their hands when her blood pressure dropped to unsafe levels.
I’m not sure how long I zone out for but I started my descent into the darkness of my mind when the doctor spoke of having to use the defibrillator. I mentally checked the fuck out.
“You can see her now,” Max mutters, his voice gravelly from lack of sleep and overflow of emotion.
I blink away my daze to meet the bleary eyes of Dorian, Olivia, and Miles staring back at me. The morning sun—when the hell did that thing come up anyway—blinds me through the windows. Max touches my shoulder to indicate I should follow him.
“Olivia has already gone with me to see her. You were…” he trails off as he walks along the corridor. “You were asleep.”
No, I was freaking the fuck out.
“Is…Is she okay?”
“Sleeping but she’s fine. They got all of the tumor out and repaired her hip. Of course they’ll send it off to a lab to check for cancerous cells but she’s going to be okay. Lots of physical therapy in her future.”
I let out a sigh of relief. That, I can understand. Under my care, I’ll get her better. One day she’ll be back to her old self. She’ll be happy.
When I step into her room and see her lying there on the bed looking so pitiful, my knees weaken beneath me. I somehow manage to make it over to her without crashing to the floor. Seeing her so helpless makes my stomach churn. I want my brave, beautiful, strong girl back.
I sit beside her on the bed on the side of her good hip. Her hand is warm when I take it in mine. Warm is good. Warm is alive.
I kiss her knuckles and close my eyes.
“Get better for me,” I whisper, “and I’ll take you for ice cream every night if that’s what you want. Every night, baby. Just get better.”
When I reopen my eyes, her green ones are visible through small cracks between her lids. She’s still intubated and can’t speak so I speak for her.
“I love you, Sophia Rowe.”
She squeezes my hand. I love you too, Drew Hamilton.
“You can’t possibly want ice cream in the middle of a snow storm.” I arch my brow in question.
My stubborn girl laughs at me. “When do I ever not want ice cream? You started this, so you’re going to finish it.”
She’s my last appointment for the day before the holiday break. Each year, I close the practice down for a week at Christmas time. Soph’s been out of school for a week already which means she’s been bugging the shit out of me ever since.
“Why are you smirking?” she says, her green eyes that dance with clarity, narrowed at me.
“Just thinking about how annoying you are since you’ve been out of school.” I push her thigh up as far as it will go. Her mobility now is astonishing.
“Ass,” she grunts. “I’m bored all day while you work. I told you I could come work here any time. Dr. Wilkinson cleared me, remember?”
“Maybe after school for a few hours each week when Christmas break is over but you’re not going to work here all day for free when you just got cleared.” I pull her thigh back down and straighten her leg. As soon as I pop open the cap of the oil to rub her down with, she shivers. Our eyes meet for a heated moment knowing this will end only one way. With her orgasming all over my fingers.
“You should take your pants off,” she suggests, her words breathy as I massage her healing hip. It’s been eight full weeks since surgery. Soph has recovered beautifully. She can walk easily without her cane. Her limp is hardly noticeable unless she’s tired. But most importantly, she’s not been on her pain medication since a week after surgery. With Dr. Wilkinson’s help, we put a stop to her reliance on the pills quickly. It wasn’t an easy task by any means, but my girl is strong. Just like everything, she powered through and conquered the addiction. The best part of it all is the tumor was benign—a growth created after the injury because of the weakened area. They removed it in its entirety and the chances of it returning are nil.
“So you can suck on my cock like a good girl?” I quip with a devious grin.
She laughs and swats at me. It’s a half-ass attempt to shut me up. There was a time when she’d beat the shit out of me in this room for touching her painful hip the wrong way. Now, her flirty slaps usually turn into something dirty where I end up coming all over her sexy stomach with people just on the other side of the door.
“I’ll suck it later,” she promises, her dark lashes batting against her rosy cheeks. “Right now, I want you to put it inside me. Doc said it was fine.”
My dick jerks at her words. “The doctor specifically said you could handle my fat cock?”
Her eyes glimmer with mischief. “Actually, yes. Not exactly like that but I did flat out ask him when I could go back to having sex. He made me wait the full eight weeks. I’m now cleared for your wicked ways.”
My wandering hand abandons her therapy and slides over her silky panties that barely cover her perfect cunt.
“You’re in love with a sadist,” I say with a smirk. “You sure you’re ready for me to start punishing your pussy again?”
She groans when my thumb runs along her clit through the fabric. “It’s all I’ve thought about since I woke up from surgery.”
I roll my eyes at her but don’t let up on my slow, teasing massage on her clit. “You asked for a burrito smothered in melted cheese the moment you woke up. My sexy sadism didn’t start getting begged for until at least a week after you were home.”
Her face brightens at the mention of the word home. Max is being a stubborn shit like his daughter. Says she can’t move out officially until she graduates. I just laughed because the moment she says yes, I’m going to marry her ass and drag her back to my cave where she belongs. I don’t give a fuck if she’s still in school or not. Oh what a day that’ll be when I waltz into the office and tell her principal, and one of my long-time friends, Adam, that she has a new daddy now.
“You’re smirking again. I don’t have to beg for this do I?” she demands, her attempt to be fierce failing as she gives in to the expert way I am bringing pleasure to her. “You’re going to defile me anyway.”
In answer to her question, I slip my finger past the edge of her panties to touch her skin. Her breath hisses out sharply. “I like it when you beg.” My lubed finger slips easily into her tight heat. A loud moan escapes her and I wonder if anyone is left in the building. “Beg, baby. Ask me to do bad things to you.”
She spreads her legs to give me better access. I push another finger inside her. “P-Please, Drew. I’ve missed your cock.”
My cock strains against my dress slacks, eager to pump inside her. “It’s been too long for me to be gentle,” I warn. “I’m going to go blind with lust at finally being in your perfect cunt again. I’ll hurt you.”
Her eyes are manic as they meet mine. “So hurt me. You know I can take it.”
I slip my fingers from inside her and smear her wetness along the inside of her thigh before I set to unhooking my belt. As soon as my slacks hit the floor, I shove my boxers down my thighs to free my desperate cock. “Get off the table,” I bark, my harsh words making her jump. I stroke her thigh reverently before giving it a soft slap. “Now, crybaby.”
She sticks her tongue out at me. One day I’m going to bite it when she does that. Her movements are quicker than they once were but still slow due to healing from surgery. Eventually, after a bit of manhandling on my part, we get her bent over the table and standing on a stool so I can reach her pretty cunt.
“Beg,” I growl, my palms roaming her ass roughly.
She wiggles her bottom. “Please fuck me, asshole.”
I snort and swat her fleshy ass several times in a row until it turns nice and rosy. With the tip of my cock, I tease her wet lips but don’t enter her. It drives her fucking bananas because she jerks her head over her shoulder and glares at me.
“Fuck me, Drew Hamilton, or so help me, I’ll find someone who will,” she threatens, her nostrils flaring.
I slap her ass again because she deserves it after that comment. And without warning, I slam deep inside her. She bellows at the top of her lungs and grips the edge of the table hard enough that her knuckles turn white.
“You won’t fuck anyone else,” I snarl, my fingers tangling in her long dark hair. I yank it hard and twist it to the side so she’s forced to look at me when I fuck her. “Isn’t that right?”
“Y-Yes. Only you,” she chokes out, a moan clawing at her throat.
Goddamn beautiful girl always looking so hot when she tests me.
“Touch your clit and make yourself come. I want to feel your cunt going crazy when I spill inside you, pretty girl.”
She whimpers but obeys. Deep down, Soph likes it when I boss her around. It gets her hot and horny as fuck. Soon, with my body slapping against hers and making all kinds of noise, she begins to tremble. Her fingers work quickly against her clit. It’s such a turn-on to see her at my mercy and yielding to my commands. Thank fuck her pussy starts clenching with her orgasm because I don’t have to wait long. I come inside her with a loud, guttural groan that has my ass muscles tightening.
“Oh, God!” she cries out.
“Fuuuuuck,” I roar, my hips bucking against her.
It takes a few moments to fully drain my orgasm inside her. The moment I do, I feel as though I’m in heaven. Sure, she’s gotten me off with her mouth and hands and tits for the past eight weeks but nothing compares to being inside my girl.
“Do you want a family?” she asks suddenly, her voice soft.
I pull out and revel in the way my cum runs down the inside of her thighs. “Of course I want a family,” I tell her. I help her to a standing position and turn her to face me. We’re a mess with our underwear around our ankles and cum dripping all over the place but when she gets somber, I react. I fix her heart because sometimes it cracks. I’m always there to glue it back together with ice cream and long talks in the dark and reassuring kisses. A real motherfucking Romeo.
Her blazing green eyes have dimmed and she won’t meet my gaze. With a firm grip on her jaw, I tilt her face to look up at mine. Goddamn those pouty lips.
I kiss them.
Kiss.
Kiss.
Kiss.
And then I growl. “Talk to me, Soph.”
She bites on her lip that’s mine to bite. “When?”
With narrowed eyes, I study her. Tears sit on her lids but haven’t leaked out. Her pert nose has turned slightly pink. Those perfect fucking lips are parted as though she has so much to say but nothing escapes. “Whenever you want a family,” I tell her, completely honest, “because you’re the only person I want a family with.”
A tear slips out and races down her cheek. “Are you sure? What if I said now?”
I laugh and kiss her salty cheek. “I’d say stop taking your goddamned pills and let me put a baby in you.”
This makes her giggle but then she’s serious again. Frowning. I hate when she frowns. Sophia Rowe was created to smile. That’s what she’s supposed to do.
“I took them. I never missed a pill,” she breathes, shame coating her features.
My heart rate quickens. A deep, male part of me starts thundering inside. Feral as fuck. Mine. Mine. Mine. The chanting has already begun and she hasn’t even said the words yet.
“We must have…it must have happened that week before my surgery. The antibiotics…we didn’t use other protection…” Her teary eyes implore me to understand.
I fucking get it all right.
She’s carrying my kid.
We made a baby. She almost died. And it’s still here. They’re both still here.
Mine. Mine. Mine.
I can’t stare at her another second and not kiss her plump lips. My tongue seeks entrance and I devour my woman. My future wife. The soon-to-be mother of my child. Possessiveness like never before surges through me. She pulls away from our kiss and her words are breathy.
“I was so focused on getting better. I didn’t realize I’d missed my periods. Sometimes on the pill, they are barely there anyway. When I absently mentioned it to Dr. Wilkinson, he ordered a blood and urine test.” Happiness shimmers in her pretty greens. It’s a look of overwhelming love that I’ve never seen before. A look I’m going to try to put on her face every damn day.
“You’re pregnant.”
Mine. Mine. Mine.
She nods, a small smile on her lips. “And it makes me happy. I’m not trying to trap you—”
I growl, ending that sentence before it even began. “The only one getting trapped around here is you when I push a ring on your finger and bind you to me with my last name. What do you think? Do you think your daddy judge will marry us today?”
She laughs. “You’re really okay with us having a baby? I’m not even out of high school yet, Drew. I don’t know how you feel about all this.”
I lift a brow at her. “I feel fucking happy as hell. I’m the old man here. Having a family is something that’s been weighing heavily on me for years. It wasn’t until I had you that it felt possible and attainable. Of course I want a family with you. I want it all with you.”
She smiles. Beautiful. Bright. Mine. “I still want to go to college. I like working here and helping out. I think I could be good at what you do. I’ll try not to molest the patients like you, though.”
I growl and kiss her smart mouth again. “You’ll go to college. You’ll do whatever the fuck you want, Soph. We’ll do this together.”
She sniffles and my rough kissing turns sweet. I want her for always. After a long kiss that promises her the world, I pull away. Her green eyes are glassy as tears shine in them. I stroke her cheek and lean my forehead against hers.
“I love you, crybaby.”
She smiles and hugs my middle. “I love you too, ass.”