I wake up slowly, feeling a tick in the back of my mind. There was something I needed to do this morning but I’m not quite awake enough to remember—

I sit up and my lips twitch into a smile.

It’s baby-making day.

I roll over, feeling along the covers toward Jake’s side of the bed… but it’s gone cold.

I look to the bathroom. The door is closed but a faint light shines in from the bottom.

I hop out of bed and walk over to slide the door open.

Jake stands in front of the sink in a white button-down shirt and black pants. He holds up two ties in the mirror, silently choosing which to put on.

“Hey.” He smiles, catching my eyes in the mirror. “Good morn—”

“Where are you going?” I ask, squinting.

“To work. I know we did this yesterday but — one last time — blue or red?”

“Red. You’re going in now?”

“Yeah.”

“Why so early?”

He flops the red tie around his neck and stares into the mirror ahead of him. “Vin wants me there by six to go over a few last-minute things before the grand open—”

“But we need to have sex!”

His fingers pause mid-knot. “We do?”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“Because my hormones have spiked,” I say. “I’m dropping an egg at any moment here.”

He glances at his watch. “Will ten hours really make a difference?”

“I don’t know…” I stutter. “But I do know that I’m over thirty and my fertile window ain’t what it used to be. My cervical mucus is thin, white, and runny, meaning I have one or two days tops to—”

“Anna, you really need to work on that dirty talk.”

I slide my shorts and panties down to the floor and hop up onto the counter in front of him.

Jake sighs as I tug on his belt. “Anna…”

“We’ll be really quick, I promise.”

I pull his shirt free and he groans softly.

“I just got that tucked the way I wanted it,” he says.

I kiss the edge of his mouth. “You can tuck it back in. I believe in you.”

“So, why are you late for work, Jake?” he quips. “Well, Vincent, you see, Anna is ovulating and she demanded my seed.”

I shrug. “Sounds good to me.”

“Oh, it might sound good to you but you’re not the one who has to tell your giant, mobster-killing, ex-SEAL boss that you just plugged his sister.”

I push his zipper down. “You’ll be fine. Just come up with a different excuse for being late.”

“Like what?”

“I don’t know.”

“Eh— Eh—” He grabs my hands before I can get into his briefs. “Gotta pay up if you want extra sauce.”

My cheeks flush with frustration. “Tell him that there was an accident on the 93.”

“And why would I take the 93?” he asks, squinting.

“You didn’t.” I jerk one hand free. “You were driving along Southampton when you saw the accident on the 93.”

“Oh, yeah?”

He lets me slip a hand into his pants. He’s already semi-hard.

“Yeah,” I say, stroking him. “And, being the brave man you are, you stopped to help those poor people trapped inside their vehicles.”

“Damn right, I did.”

He kisses me with a hint of heat on his breath.

“Then,” I say, gasping, “a car caught fire!”

“It did?!”

I hug his waist with my knees, drawing him closer to align my slit with his cock. “And you—” He kisses me again, hard. “Being the—” I feel his tip sliding into me. “Big, strong man—”

“Anna,” he says, our lips entwined.

“Yeah?”

“Shut up, please.”

I laugh and wrap my arms around him as he thrusts deep. He bucks his hips, grinding into me. I brace myself on the counter, pushing up to meet his moving body and feeling the edge of pleasure take hold of me.

“Just like that,” I whisper in his ear to turn him on. “Fuck me just like that…”

He grunts and I know it’s working.

“You feel so good,” I say. “Don’t stop.”

His head falls to my shoulder. I raise my legs a little higher on his hips, changing his angle in me. It hits us both just right and we moan together.

“Are you close?” he asks, breathing hard.

I shake my head. “No.”

“What do you need?”

“Huh?”

“Do you want it harder?” he asks. “Faster?”

“Uh…”

Jake raises his head. “Anna, you’re supposed to come, too.”

I laugh. “I mean, it’s not really required—”

“You want your cervix to suck up my sperm, right?”

“Yes…”

He kisses me, nibbling on my lips. “Then, orgasm. That’s what you did before, right?”

“It is.”

“So…” His hands dig into my hips. “Harder, faster, slower?”

I hum. “Let’s try slower.”

Jake adjusts his speed, slowing down to gentle and smooth fuck. I feel everything, every subtle movement of his body and cock. It turns me on even more. I look down and moans build on my tongue while I watch him enter me over and over again.

“Yeah,” I breathe. “Just like that.”

“Fuck, you feel amazing,” he says.

“Don’t stop, Jake. Seriously…”

I let out a sharp moan and his head drops to my shoulder again.

“Anna, I’m getting close here…”

“Don’t pull out!” I gasp.

He laughs. “Obviously.”

“And go deep. Like, really deep.”

“Anna, I think I got it—”

“If you slip out—”

“I’m not gonna slip out.”

“You know what—” I grip the counter beneath me. “Maybe we should just use a syringe. It worked before.”

Jake halts his thrust. “Excuse me?”

“Can you go get a cup to come into?”

“No, I will not go get a cup to come into.”

“But we—”

He lifts me off the counter and I yelp as he carries me into the bedroom.

“Anna Silva.”

He drops me on the bed and leans forward, towering over me on both arms. I bite my tongue.

“I am a healthy, fertile man,” he says, “and you are a healthy, fertile woman.”

“Okay, but—”

“No cups. No syringes. I want your second child to be conceived the old-fashioned way in a moment of bliss and passion for each other. Do I make myself clear, Anna?”

My smile grows. “Yes.”

“Good. Now…” He licks his fingers and places them on my clit. “Tell me when you’re close.”

I lay back as he works me with his hard fingers. He enters me again and begins that soft grind, gently rocking his hips to the same rhythm of his slow-churning hand. A pleasure sparks deep within me and my body naturally sways to meet his thrusts.

“Oh, god…” I whisper.

“That’s a good girl.”

I look up at him. “This isn’t taking too long, is it?”

“Anna, I could spend all day in you and not complain.”

I chuckle. “Fair enough.”

He puts a firm pressure on my clit and I twitch beneath him. A sharp moan slips out of my throat. My core throbs around his probing cock.

“Okay,” I say. “That right there felt super good.”

“This?”

He does it again and my back arches.

“Yep!” I cry. “That’s the good stuff.”

“Tell me when.”

“When, when, when, when—”

I reach climax out of nowhere, my tightness gripping his shaft. Jake moans with me, no doubt feeling all of it from the inside. He looks down and watches as he comes.

I gasp for air. “Make sure it—”

“I got it,” he says, staying inside.

I feel the subtle pump of him as it syncs with my own natural throbbing. My entire body tingles, riding his orgasm as much as mine.

“Okay,” I say, catching my breath. “The old-fashioned way is so much better.”

He laughs. “I can’t say I disagree.”

“Holy shit.”

I drop my head back to stare at the ceiling. He leans over and kisses my cheek, drawing my lips toward his like a magnet.

“See you again in ten hours?” he asks, smiling.

I cup his stupid, handsome face. “Absolutely.”

We kiss again and he slowly slides out of me. I cross my legs tightly to lock-in every possible drop and slide a pillow under my hips.

Jake retreats into the bathroom to clean up, flicking on the faucet. I privately chuckle to myself, hidden beneath the sound of running water. A moment of bliss and passion for each other. Sounds about right.

He turns off the water and I bite my lips to kill my chuckle. I raise my head to look around as he walks back into the room.

He zips his fly. “Do you need anything before I head out?” he asks.

“No, I’m just gonna lay here for…” I glance at my alarm clock, “another half hour or so. Let the magic happen.”

“Well, I wish you all the bibbidi-bobbidi-boos,” he quips.

I sit up on my elbows. “Wish me?”

He straightens his tie. “Yeah.”

“Not wish us?” I ask.

“Well, my job is over,” he says, chuckling. “It’s literally all up to you now.”

I fiddle with a loose string on the comforter. “Hey, Jake.”

“Yes?” he asks, grimacing in the mirror at the uneven tuck on his shirt.

“Do you want this new baby?”

He pauses and turns around to look at me. “Do I want it?”

“Yeah. I just mean…” I hesitate, digging my nails into the bed. “You always said that you’d donate again if I decided that I wanted a second baby.”

“Right,” he says. “And I did.”

“You did. You definitely did.” I nod. “We just never really discussed what would happen afterward…”

He smirks. “You’d have a baby.”

“Uh-huh.” My cheeks burn. “And you would…?”

“I would…?” His lips purse, elongating his w-sound. “Wish you luck?”

“Oh.” I look down, hiding that crushing feeling taking over my eyes. “Okay, then.”

He puts his hands in his pockets and furrows his brow. “Is that not okay?”

“No, no. It’s okay. It’s, uh…” I force a shrug. “It’s what we agreed to.”

“Yeah, I wasn’t really planning on doing much more than that,” he admits.

I swallow the lump in my throat. “And that’s fine.”

His hand emerges from his pocket. “Or I can just give you this ring I bought and you can make an honest man out of me.”

He tosses the small box at me. My reflexes take over and I catch it with both hands before it hits the bed. It fits in my palm, completely covered in smooth, black velvet.

My mouth opens, stunned and confused. “Wait, what?”

Jake sits down on the edge of the bed next to me, grinning wide. “Open it,” he says.

I crack it open, nearly dropping it the moment I see the diamond ring resting inside.

“Jake, when did you…?” My throat clenches, cutting my voice.

“Last week after you said you were ready for another baby,” he answers. “I got up the next morning, drove straight to the nearest jewelry store, spent about a half hour pacing around outside of it until I got up the nerve to actually walk in, and then I bought it.”

I laugh, shaking my head. “Jake, you don’t have to—”

“Yes, I do,” he says. “You said so yourself. If you were going to have a second kid then you wanted to have it with a partner and, honestly, the entire time I paced around outside that store, I couldn’t come up with one damn good reason for me not to be that partner.”

My eyes water. “Not one?”

“Not one,” he repeats. “I love you, Anna. You bring out the best man in me and I’m kinda starting to like that guy.”

I bite my lip. “I am, too.”

He rests his hand on my belly. “So, to answer your question…” He leans over and kisses me. “Yes. Yes, I want this new baby. I want to watch it grow in you. I want to hold your hair back when you’re spewing your guts out.”

I recoil. “Don’t remind me.”

“I want to be there for everything I missed the first time around with Charlotte,” he says. “I want to earn being a father on day one.”

A tear escapes down my cheek and he wipes it away just as fast. “Really?”

“Hell yeah.”

I kiss him, holding his face and bursting with laughter. “I love you, too,” I say.

“Is that right?” he asks.

“Yes.”

“You really want me?”

“Yes.”

“This guy?”

“Yes.”

“You want this guy to help raise your kids?”

“Yes!” I laugh.

“Then, Anna Silva…” He pinches the ring and slides it out of the box. “Will you marry me?”

I watch as he slips the ring on my finger. My heart pounds so hard and I can’t stop the wave of tears from falling down my cheeks.

“Wow, it’s beautiful,” I say.

“Yeah, she is.”

I look at Jake and he’s smiling at me.