The days pass and the office just keeps getting more and more tense. The pressure’s building, but I can’t seem to face Samuel again.

Not after the last time. I’m angry about the way it went down, but I also know I can’t keep hiding my secret from him. I feel like a hypocrite, and I know there’s only one way to solve that feeling.

I want him, and I can’t keep lying to him, but I’m terrified. I feel like I know him really well but the truth is, he’s still just that big sexy stranger I first met in a bar. I’m supposed to fix this strike thing, and I’m afraid that this baby news will only make that more impossible. Worse, I’m afraid I’ll love him forever.

But that’s just not fair. I can’t assume he’ll run away. I know it’s hard and it’s scary but I have to believe he’s the kind of man that can step up and do the right thing, even if I don’t know what that right thing is right now.

Each day feels bleaker than the one before it. I want to call Samuel and talk to him, not even about work, just about anything. Maybe that’s childish but I want to hear his voice more than anything in the world, even if the last time we saw each other didn’t go down so well. I need him more than I can really understand, more than I want to admit to myself.

I don’t know how I got here. I didn’t come back to Wheelville thinking that I’d meet some big stranger and fall hard, but here I am falling anyway. Sometimes I feel like a silly little girl, dreaming her days away, imagining that my Prince Charming will come save me.

Except my prince isn’t a prince at all. He’s a miner, and he’s coarse, and rough, and enormous. And I love all that about him.

I spend most of my time trying to avoid Ingram and the board. I want to figure this mess out, but I’m at a total loss. Unfortunately though, I can’t avoid them forever. Late one afternoon, as I’m thinking about leaving, I get a knock at my office door. Before I can say anything, Neal Watt walks in with a smile on his face.

I gape at him for a second. I didn’t expect to see a board member today. He sits down comfortably in front of me, and after a tense second, he speaks.

“You’ve been avoiding me,” he says.

“Can you blame me?” I ask, deciding to be honest.

He laughs. “No, not really. I guess Samuel isn’t too keen on that contract you mentioned anymore?”

“Not anymore,” I say.

“And you don’t have anything new to put in its place?”

“Not yet.”

He sighs, but he’s still smiling. “I figured as much. As soon as that strike started, I figured we were screwed. And that Ingram… he’s not doing us any favors.”

I’m not sure how much he knows about what Ingram’s been doing, so I decide not to respond. But he surprises me anyway by shaking his head.

“I don’t know why that guy thought violence would break the miners,” he says. “Never worked before.”

“You know?” I ask, shocked.

“Everyone knows,” he says, laughing. “Not much we can do about it, though.”

“You could fire him,” I say. “That might bring the miners to the table.”

His smile disappears. “Careful,” he says. “You don’t know which side I’m on.”

I sit back and watch him for a second. “I don’t think you’re on any side,” I say finally. “That’s why you’re here.”

His smile comes back. “You’re right about that.”

“So tell me straight. What do you want?”

“I want an end to this strike,” he says. “And if you can’t make it happen in the next five days, we’re going to fire you.”

I clench my jaw. “Just me?”

“As far as you know.” He sighs and stands up. “Maybe we’ll fire Ingram too. Truth is, I don’t know if we can. All depends on what you do.” He hesitates before heading to the door. “Do you understand?”

“I think so,” I say, although I’m not sure I do at all.

“Good.” He nods once and leaves my office.

I stare after him, not sure what to make of that. I think it was a warning, that I have only five days before they terminate me. But that part about Ingram, I think that was a plea for help.

There must be factions in the board, and some of them are probably loyal to Ingram. I can’t tell where Neal falls, exactly, but he’s making it clear that it’s up to me to give the board a reason to get rid of Ingram. The violence though, that’s not going to be enough.

I gather my things and head out soon after that. I’m pretty distracted on my drive home, trying to figure out what the hell I’m going to do. Part of me just wants to give up and walk away. I don’t really need this job, not with all the money my dad left me. I have an old life I can go back to, back in the city, but the idea of quitting just rubs me the wrong way.

Besides, I’d be leaving the miners in the hands of Ingram, and I don’t think I can do that to them.

I’m so distracted that I don’t even notice the truck in my driveway until I’m parked behind it, and it takes me even longer to realize that it’s Samuel.

I climb out, heart beating fast. He’s standing on my porch, looking down at me.

“You’re back,” I say to him.

He nods. “Wanted to talk to you.”

I bite my lip. I don’t know why I feel so angry with him. “Okay. Come inside.”

He follows me in again, back to the kitchen. This time he sits at the table and I sit down across from him.

“Cards on the table,” he says finally to me.

“I can do that,” I say, my pulse spiking.

“We’re hurting, Amelia. We need to end this strike.”

“We do too.”

“Let’s cut a deal.”

I take a breath and let it out. “Okay.”

“But first, I need to apologize.”

I bite my lip. “For what?”

“For the last time I saw you. I shouldn’t…” He trails off and hesitates. “I was forgetting about what I want.”

“What do you want?” I ask him softly.

He doesn’t look away. “I want you, Amelia.”

I take a breath and slowly let it out. Before I can stop myself, the words tumble from my lips, the worst thing that I’ve been so afraid to say, so fucking terrified of saying out loud.

“I’m pregnant.”

He stares at me for a second, and I feel so much better. It’s done, I said it, he knows, and now whatever happens will happen. I don’t have to worry, or guess, or stress about any of it. I can just sit back and take it all in and actually do something about this. I can finally take some fucking control back.

He stares at me, clearly surprised. “You’re pregnant?”

I nod. “From the first night we met.”

His eyes get wider. “It’s… mine?”

“It’s yours,” I say. “I’m going to keep it. I mean… maybe I’ll put it up for adoption, I don’t know. I haven’t thought that far yet.”

“Have you told anyone else?” he asks me.

“No,” I say. “Don’t worry, it’s still a secret. Your miners aren’t going to turn on you.” He stands up and comes toward me, but I just keep talking. “I didn’t ask for this, you know, didn’t want it to happen. But it happened, and I’m so sorry I didn’t tell you until now. I should have told you sooner, I just—“

He stops me by tipping my chin up toward him and kissing me deeply.

It takes me off-guard, but quickly I melt into his kiss. It’s exactly what I needed in that moment, and I almost want to cry. It feels so fucking good to have him finally kiss me again, the kiss I’ve been craving so desperately.

“You carried this on your own all this time,” he says softly, pulling back, his hand lingering on my cheek.

“I was afraid to tell you,” I whisper.

“Amelia, you could have told me. I’m just sorry you had to go through this alone. But you’re not alone anymore.”

He pulls me to my feet and kisses me again, pushing close against my body. Pleasure rolls through me, pleasure and desire, and I know there’s nothing else I want in this world right now.

I push him back until he runs into the kitchen island. His hands move along my skin and up to the top of my skirt. He pulls up my shirt, untucking it from my skirt, before he unzips me. I unhook his belt and unbutton his jeans as he tugs my skirt down along my hips. He reaches up and unbuttons my shirt, one button at a time, and I’m going insane by the time he finishes.

He turns me around, pushing me up against the island. I put my hands flat as he pulls my shirt off, letting it drop to the floor. I’m in nothing but my bra and panties as his hands graze along my skin. He slaps my ass and drops to his knees behind me.

I gasp as I feel him pull down my panties and start to lick me from behind. I grip the edge of the island as his tongue finds my pussy, and if I wasn’t soaking before, I know I am now. I groan and look over my shoulder as he tongues me from behind, pushing pleasure through my skin, making me lose myself to desire.

He stands suddenly, just as it’s starting to become almost unbearably intense. He pulls my hair back and kisses me from behind, and I feel his cock teasing me, pressing up against my soaking wet pussy.

“I’ve been distracted,” he says softly in my ear. “So fucking distracted.”

“By what?” I groan.

“By this pussy.” He presses himself inside of me, splitting me in half.

I gasp and moan as he grinds himself deep inside.

“I can’t get you out of my head. Even now, knowing you’re pregnant… fuck, I’m going to be a father.” I groan as he starts to fuck me, and I’m shocked to realize that he doesn’t seem upset.

Far from it, actually. It seems to be invigorating him. He fucks me rough from behind, feeling my breasts, teasing my nipples, slapping my ass. It’s like he can’t get enough of every inch of my skin, and I can’t get enough of him feeling me. I need him so badly it almost hurts, and he’s going to give me every single inch, right up until I’m screaming his name.

He reaches around my hips and starts to tease my clit. I groan and jerk my hips back against him, bucking into his large cock, letting him split me in two. I take his thumb between my teeth and bite, and he grunts with a pleasing gasp as he thrusts harder inside of me. I release him and he slaps my ass, grunting his pleasure, and I push back harder.

I’m totally losing myself, but it’s not like it was before. I wanted to forget those other times, run away from my problems, from my pregnancy. I had such a big secret that I couldn’t tell him, and it weighed so heavily on my conscience that it almost hurt. When he fucked me, that weight went away.

Now, that weight’s gone permanently, and he just feels so incredibly good. It’s like multiplying myself, making myself more than I am, all because his big, strong body can take me like this.

“Come on, big daddy,” I whisper to him, and that just makes him groan. He pulls back and shoves some papers, some mail, and a bowl of fruit onto the floor as he lifts me up onto the island. He spreads my legs, diving down with his tongue and teeth, sucking and licking my clit.

I dig my fingers into his hair and groan. I’m moaning so loudly, like I’ve never moaned before, but there’s no sense of self-consciousness here. It’s just pure, unbridled animal pleasure. He pulls back and presses his cock inside of me again, pulling me up against him, hugging me tight as he thrusts up into me.

I gasp and he fucks me hard and deep. I spread my legs wide as he pushes me back. I press my breasts together, leaning back on my elbows, and he rails into me. I want to watch his face while he fucks me, the father of my child, the big man that’s going to take care of me.

I pull him tighter and he fucks me harder, slamming into me. I’m so close it almost hurts, the orgasm hovering just on the edge of my consciousness. I want it so badly, need it to rip through me, make me feel good.

He pushes me back, spreads me wide, and fills me up. “Come for me, you dirty girl,” he says softly. “Come for your baby’s daddy.”

I groan, but I can’t help myself. I come hard, blinding and intense. He thrusts up into me, making my breasts bounce with every rough stroke, and I know I can’t help myself. He comes a moment later, filling me with his hot cum, and I move my hips, wanting every single drop.

Slowly we finish together. I slide down off the island, into his arms. He hugs me tight, leaning up against the counter. We stay like that for a little while, breathing together, sweating together.

Finally, I break the silence. “I thought you were going to be mad.”

“I don’t know how I feel,” he says honestly. “But I’m definitely not mad.”

“I should have told you sooner. I just… with everything…”

“I understand,” he says. “You should have told me. But I understand.”

I nod a little bit, and he kisses me again. “It’ll be okay,” he says. “I promise.”

“How?” I ask. “This baby… what we have… we can’t have it.”

“We can,” he says fiercely. “And we’re going to. Understand?”

I nod, a little meek. He kisses me again and I wrap my arms around his huge frame, hugging him close.

I’ve never felt so vulnerable in my life, but I’ve also never felt so fulfilled. It’s such a strange feeling, knowing this man wants me to have my baby. I don’t know if he’s going to stay with me to help raise it, or if we can even have that kind of relationship. He’s the head of the union, after all. We’re on opposite sides of the table.

Still, I want that. I realize it deep down inside of me. I want to be with him, and I want him to stay and raise this baby with me. I know it’s irrational, but it’s so powerful that I can barely breathe. The thought of being with this man, letting him take care of me, letting him into my life… it’s terrifying, but it’s exciting.

I don’t think I’ve ever felt this excited for something before in my life. I’ve done a lot of things, but never something so difficult and scary and intense. But I wouldn’t trade it for the world, because it’s bringing me closer to Samuel.

He’s my baby’s daddy, and we’re going to be bound together forever. I don’t know how that’s going to look. It probably won’t be simple, probably won’t be clean. But maybe I like messy and complicated, as long as it’s with him. Anything else and it just wouldn’t feel as good.