Helena
The month of August trudged along, hot and demanding on my six-month pregnant body. Time spent with Dominick in the backyard was a welcome relief, either under the shade of a massive umbrella or even in the small pool we'd set up. Ali was busier than ever with her projects, whether it was building something with Grampa, hanging out at Laurie's place, or even going on bike rides with Dominick.
I wasn't exactly happy that they were out on the road like that, but I trusted Dominick. He'd immediately bought her a huge pile of safety gear, ranging from a special helmet for kids down to a thick belt-like strap that anchored her to him whenever they were riding together. Between that and Dom's careful driving, it seemed as safe as anything else, and the short excursions seemed to really strengthen the bond between Ali and her dad.
Aside from her new padded leather wardrobe, though, Ali seemed to finally be back to her old self. She was the joyous, playful kid that I remembered, deeply curious and easygoing. Her escapade across Boston into the Ristuccia Memorial Arena seemed to be a one-off event, now mostly forgotten. Even if I was still horrified by the risks she'd taken that day, I couldn't deny that we'd all been incredibly lucky by the way it had turned out.
All four of us.
The morphology scan had gone well, confirming that the baby was a boy and in excellent health. Dominick and I had told Ali about the pregnancy later that night, news that she'd taken very well. Her scientific interests were slowly gravitating away from the mechanical and into the biological, her budding curiosity growing to keep pace with the life that was developing inside of me.
Ali's interest wasn't just academic, either, and I could spot in her endless questions both scientific and personal curiosity. She asked questions about herself, whether or not she'd have kids later on and what I was going through. Occasionally she'd show an unexpected burst of naiveté, asking questions about old wives' tales she'd heard, like how the moon could possibly control if the baby was a boy or a girl.
My father seemed to be having a great summer, too. He'd liked Dominick from the moment they met, and time had only strengthened that opinion. Even Mrs. Lauer kept talking about him, bringing him cookies and so many other assorted pastries that I almost wondered if she had a crush on the man herself.
Not that it mattered if she did; he was all mine.
We'd settled into our new life now, however unexpected and unlikely our little budding family was. And we loved every minute of it, discovering each other and our new roles—partner, parent, lover.
The only dark spot in our lives was the constant threat of the media finding out and making us into the next story of the month. Our entire relationship was unlikely enough to raise eyebrows all on its own, but the fact that Dominick was already a public figure ensured that the paparazzi would've swarmed us like flies if they ever got wind of it.
So far we'd only had one close call, the day we found out that Maggie Talbot had gotten a few pictures of us together after all. Nothing too salacious—just the two of us together in the hospital parking lot—but it could've been the start of a much larger storm. I'd fumed that such a private moment had been exposed and was being sold to the highest bidder, but Dominick told me that these things happened every day in his world.
Maybe it was silly of me to assume that his world and mine could stay separate forever, but at least for the time being things were holding up. Dominick's friend Alton had managed to make the problem go away, although I still wasn't quite sure how. Dominick had simply remarked that it'd involved a little money and a lot of alcohol, although I had my suspicions when Alton appeared in the headlines a week later after getting into a fistfight at a local bar.
Trying to thank Alton for the help had been a dead end, however. Even if I was beginning to think I might've misjudged the man, it was obvious that he had no such thoughts about me. He'd quickly made it clear that he had been helping Dominick, and only Dominick.
Regardless, it had been great news when the threat of those pictures vanished. Dominick and I had celebrated our good fortune after a cozy evening by the pool, followed by a bottle of alcohol-free sparkling apple juice in bed that night.
Luck was on our side, both with the media and in the way that Ali had been invited to numerous slumber parties over the summer. As wonderful as it was to see her and Dominick growing closer, I certainly cherished the opportunities for privacy that those nights alone offered.
"Did you sleep well?" I asked one morning after such a night, lazily twirling swirls on Dominick's chest with my finger as I spoke.
Neither of us had gotten out of bed yet.
"Great, as always," Dominick said contentedly, grunting as he stretched his arms and legs out wide—so wide that it filled the whole bed and then some, dwarfing me with his presence.
I loved it.
"And you?" Dominick asked.
"Same," I said with a happy sigh.
"I can't believe that summer is almost over," Dominick said after a moment. "I'm going to really miss being able to sleep in like this with you, you know."
"Yeah," I agreed, feeling a bit sad. "I can't believe we'll be facing our first snowstorms in just a couple of months. It's unreal. But at least we have other things to look forward to."
"The baby," Dominick agreed quickly, a warm smile touching his lips. "I can't wait to see him with my own eyes. It's just a shame that both of us will be so busy, not to mention Ali going back to school."
"We still have around ten days, you know," I said, trying to stay positive despite feeling disappointed for all the same reasons. The coming season was going to be a mixed bag indeed.
"I'm not sure if ten years would be enough, honestly," Dominick said, and I giggled in complete agreement. "But speaking of work, I've got a thing coming up in September. The team always has a beginning-of-season dinner in town together, and usually they make it into a pretty big deal. Formal wear and all that."
"You must love that," I said with sympathy, knowing how much Dominick hated anything that involved a tie—let alone a tuxedo.
"I'll admit, there have been a few times when I considered having a freak accident on the ice just to get out of it. Compared to a charity banquet, an evening at the hospital sounds downright relaxing," Dominick agreed.
"So it's a fundraiser, too? You poor thing," I said.
"Yeah, we try to raise awareness for a charity every year. This whole thing with a red carpet, being swarmed by reporters, the whole nine yards. Then there's an auction where the players sell their personal belongings, or their time. You know, like a bachelor auction."
"And have you ever sold yourself?" I asked, bemused by the idea.
"Well, it's not quite as bad as you make it sound," Dominick said with a laugh. "Usually we just end up on some highly publicized day trip with the wife of some executive or another. Typical publicity stuff. I guess all things considered, that part of it could be worse. It's the actual dinner that I usually dread."
"Usually?"
"Can't slip anything by you, can I?" Dominick teased. "I was thinking that maybe this year might be a bit better. Formal wear or not, it's a chance to do something with you."
"It is?" I asked, taken aback by the suggestion. "I love it when we get a chance to go out together, but willingly doing it in front of the media? Isn't that a big like putting your head in a lion's mouth and hoping it doesn't notice that you're delicious?"
"Oh…yeah," Dominick said after a pause, his voice glum. "I'm just so used to reporters, I kind of forgot that they were the enemy now."
"That's a hell of a thing to forget," I said cautiously. "Weren't you the one who warned me about them in the first place?"
"They're bound to find out sooner or later," Dominick winced. "It might be best if we stopped hiding and chose when and where it happens. It's the only option I see working long-term, short of…uh…"
"Short of splitting up," I finished for him, and he winced again. "But I have no intention of doing that."
"Neither do I," Dominick agreed quickly. Despite his reassurances, the air around us suddenly felt tense. "But that still leaves us with a problem," he added.
"Just, doing it while I'm so obviously pregnant seems like it would only add fuel to the fire. And I don't think I'm quite ready for the spotlight yet," I said carefully. As much as I wanted to stop hiding and be officially with Dominick, I still felt sick at the idea of exposing both Ali and the baby to so much public attention.
Dominick's presence in my life felt so right, so natural that I could hardly imagine ever being without him again. But even so, the idea of the media trampling all over our carefully-sheltered lives made me deeply nervous. As committed as I was to Dominick, giving up control like that felt like a nightmare waiting to happen. Most importantly, I wasn't too sure of how to approach the question of Ali's paternity. How would she react if it was made public? And how would she feel if it wasn't? It seemed like the questions swarming in my head had no right answer to them. I ran my hands over my face, praying for an easy answer that wasn't coming. Feeling defeated, I just hoped that having more time would help.
Judging by the concern on Dominick's face, I wasn't entirely sure it would.
Neither of us spoke, instead communicating physically as he held me in his arms. He was warm and reassuring as always, and after a while it seemed we'd both put the problem out of our minds.
"Jason is going to Provincetown soon," Dominick said, abruptly changing the subject. "It's his first bike trip alone, and he wanted to know if he could take Ali."
About fifty different expletives came to mind, each one a variation of hell no. Before I could decide on which one to say, however, Dominick continued.
"I said no, obviously," he explained quickly. "But it did get me thinking, maybe we could go there too. That was probably his plan all along, actually, but still. Obviously Ali would love to go, and I think we'd enjoy it as well. They make great donuts, and we could all go to Herring Cove Beach. What do you think?"
"Like a family outing?" I asked, genuinely excited at the idea. Not only did it sound wonderful, but it was also a chance to reassure Dominick after my earlier reluctance to attend the charity dinner. "That sounds great. When is Jason's trip?"
"Tomorrow, actually. Typical teen, he only thought to ask me about it last night."
"Damn," I frowned. As summer continued to dwindle down into fall, time with Dominick and Ali was becoming more precious by the minute. But as much as I wanted to go, there was no way I could fit a long trip into an already busy day. "I can't. I've got a meeting on Skype tomorrow with a colleague in Ireland. We set it up months ago, and finding a time that worked for both of us wasn't easy. I can't just cancel on her at the last minute."
"I could tell Jason to reschedule his trip," Dominick suggested.
"Maybe…Or, how about this? You go with the two of them tomorrow, and then we do something together the day after that without Jason. Then it'd be a real family outing, just the three of us."
"I love that," Dominick beamed, his voice back to playful as he climbed on top of me. "And what about this morning? Any important plans you haven't told me about today?"
"Of course there are. I've got a very important meeting this morning," I laughed, emphasizing my bad pun by reaching down between us and sliding my hand beneath Dominick's boxer shorts. Wrapping my fingers around his already firm cock, I continued. "It's been a long time coming, you see."
"Has it, now?" Dominick teased, licking his lips as he stared into my eyes.
"Oh yes," I said, my heart thumping into my throat. It was getting harder and harder to respect Dominick's strict no intercourse rule, even after the doctor had emphasized that we'd almost certainly be fine. So far, my attempts had been met with stern scolding from Dominick, but that didn't stop me from trying to drive him over the edge.
Or into it, as the case may be.
As much as I respected Dominick's decision to play it extra safe, I was still craving him like I never thought I would, or could, crave a man. But there it was; the soft touch of Dominick's lips set a trail of heat against my skin, and I didn't dare move out of fear he might stop. A deep growl came from his throat and I felt his cock jerk in my hand.
"Temptress," he said with a sigh as he backed away, his own fingers wrapping around mine. He squeezed, gentle but firm, applying more pressure to the spots I'd begun to identify as Dominick's most sensitive areas. He was already thick and hard, and I loved to feel the bulging veins just below the skin of his shaft. I wasn't in the right position for it, but I already knew that if I ran my tongue slowly against the thickest one, I could make him struggle to keep his composure within moments.
Trying to make Dominick lose control had been one of my favorite games of the summer. I'd yet to win completely, but I felt like I'd come very close on several occasions. Moving my hand up and down, feeling the beads of moisture pearling out the tip of his penis and onto my hands, I could hear Dominick groaning through gritted teeth.
"Temptress," he repeated, his voice already labored.
Of course, I had no idea what I would've done if I'd actually won our little game. It was fun to beg, but neither one of us wanted to put the baby at even a tiny risk. Luckily for me, Dominick's iron will seemed strong enough to support all my attempts at seduction, throwing them back at me in what amounted to months of constant foreplay.
Of course, we still got to have fun in other ways.
Sliding down to a kneeling position, I slowly lowered my head towards Dominick's lap. He released my hand and ran his through my hair, twisting it through his fingers as he guided me closer. The feeling of ceding my control to him was intoxicating, second only to the satisfied grunt of approval when my tongue finally made contact with him.
I loved the feeling of Dominick's cock in my mouth.
The way it radiated heat, the way those veins pulsed with the beating of his heart.
The feeling that, no matter how perfectly hard he was before I began, he always seemed to grow even bigger after passing between my lips.
The salty, masculine taste of his arousal as my tongue greedily slid along the tip.
Working at his sensitive nerve endings, I slowly picked up the pace in rhythm as more low growls came from Dominick's throat. I felt him swell, once again somehow finding a way to grow even harder than before.
His other hand joined the first one at the back of my head, and with a ragged gasp he finally took total control. Guiding me down even further, I felt a little pop as his cock pushed to the back of my mouth and beyond, something we'd done for the first time after a night of particularly intense teasing. I loved the feeling of helplessness, the rush of giving all your power over to a man you trusted with every breath you had.
And every breath you didn't have.
Judging by the sounds he was making, Dominick loved it too. He pulled back and allowed me a few moments of recovery, then pushed his way back inside of me. We repeated the process again and again, picking up the pace until my eyes were watering and the tip of my nose almost touched his firm body. He was keeping himself on the edge, I knew, enjoying the sensation and making it last.
I reasserted myself, taking back a tiny fragment of the control I'd given to him. Not to pull myself away, but the opposite. When he tried to pull me back once again to let me catch my breath, I resisted and pushed myself forward unexpectedly.
There was no way I was letting him go, no way I wasn't going to have him inside of me for a little while longer. I wanted to be with him, wanted to drive him over the edge and surprise him with a release he wasn't expecting. Wrapping my arms around his backside, I bucked myself forward deeper than I ever had before, taking his entire length and burying my nose deep into his skin.
"Oh shit!" Dominick yelled, the surprise in his voice quickly transforming into lusty approval. His grip changed as he stopped fighting me, no longer trying to pull me away but instead pushing me down as far as possible. I felt him moving his hips subtly, shifting himself back and forth by fractions of an inch. Immediately I felt a familiar sensation as Dominick groaned loudly, his pleasure pouring forth and filling me in a way I'd never even imagined before meeting Dominick.
I looked up at him and saw he was staring down at me, the unspoken bond between us stronger than ever. We released each other at the same time as I slowly pulled myself back, proud of the job I'd done and happy I'd been able to satisfy the lust that my teasing had ignited.
"Damn, woman," Dominick said as he finally fell away from my lips, and at that moment I couldn't tell who was more surprised by what I'd done. "That was…amazing."
I climbed my way back up Dominick's body and nestled my face into his now-sweaty neck, huddling close enough to hear the wild beating of his heart. He wrapped his arms around me, and I shivered in spite of the heat.
There was nowhere else I'd rather be, and nothing else I'd rather do.
For so many years I hadn't known what I was missing, but now I could see it clearly. I felt like luckiest woman alive, and I couldn't have asked for a better life.