Courage in the Kiss (25 page)

Walking along the street, Maxx buried his right hand in his pocket as he thought about how happy Hadley was. He’d never forget the look on her face as she gazed through the window at the ring she wanted and knew straight away that it was the one.

They stopped off for dinner at a little restaurant on the way back to the car, and spent a happy hour enjoying time alone together.

Hadley spoke of her guilt that Conway and Abelie were coming home to see her, while expressing her concern that Micah and Rowan wouldn’t take the addition of a baby well.

Maxx tried to soothe her worries, but knew that no one could do that but Conway and Micah. They had to be the ones to reassure her. Besides, he knew that Conway was returning to see her and make sure she was taking care of herself, not for any negative reason. He knew what it meant for them to get engaged, and that it was everything she’d ever wanted – if they ignored the whole ‘because she was pregnant’ part of it.

Conway was coming home to be a friend. He was doing what Maxx had asked; stepping up and being the shoulder Hadley needed to cry on.

Linking her arm through his, on the way back to the car, Hadley snuggled into him, waking him from his thoughts. He looked down at the top of her head. It was hard to believe that, this time last year, they’d both been wandering about, thinking of each other, but unable to do anything about it for fear of rejection.

He could hardly believe that it had been nearly three months since he’d first kissed her and just a few hours after that before they ended up in bed together. It felt like a lifetime ago.

“Had,” Maxx spoke up, with another thought of something important they should cover while they were alone. “Do you want to sit by the lake for a while? There’s something I want to talk about,” he admitted, tightening his grip on her hand.

“Okay. Why don’t we grab some bread for the swans?” she suggested, pointing to the newsagents across the road.

He couldn’t help but smile and adore the sweet side of her personality that always shone through. Even when she was confused, happy, or just plain distant, she always had time for other people and animals. She was such a beautiful person, inside and out, and he couldn’t have been prouder to be the man she chose for herself.

Maxx watched Hadley with a sense of contentment, as they sat on a bench by the lake and fed the swans. Taking the day for themselves was one of the best things they’d done lately, other than having someone else handle the day to day business at work.

This was what they needed, to plan their future and figure things out. He knew Hadley was struggling with the concept of marrying him for any reason other than love, but Maxx was trying his best to make her feel wanted.

“Baby, I want to talk to you about your work for Dad,” Maxx began, not sure how she was going to take this, but adamant that it had to be said. “It just isn’t going to work for me, and I don’t think it will be good for the baby,” he explained, having thought of everything in detail. He’d considered all possibilities and the consequences of doing nothing against speaking up.

“What exactly do you mean by ‘it just isn’t going to work for me’?” Hadley asked, with a challenging tone that suggested he was tottering on a cliff edge.

One wrong word and he’d be sleeping alone for a very long time. But Maxx wasn’t worried about that; he’d always been able to anticipate Hadley’s temper and, despite her tone, she seemed more playful than angry.

“Baby, it’s up to you if you want to work, but I’d rather it wasn’t for my father,” he confessed, with a need to settle the matter before the baby came along. His father was being kind and considerate of her pregnancy right now, but once the baby was here, he was pretty sure that things would go back to how they’d always been.

Hadley was quiet, so he decided to keep talking, hoping that would help her come to a decision.

“Do you understand what I mean? I’d hate to think he’d use our marriage as some sort of cop out for treating you fairly or take advantage of your position,” Maxx explained softly. “I understand that you want to work. I’ve always known that. You’re not a wall flower to sit back and raise babies your entire life; you need to be active and stay busy,” he said in understanding.

“But it would please Dad too much to have you doing all the hard work for nothing,” he complained, well aware of how selfish and oblivious his father could be. Emerson wasn’t a bad person, at heart, but he’d spent so long getting his own way that he often didn’t notice what he was doing. “If you want to work then would you please consider doing something else, or even just for
someone
else?” he requested.

Hadley looked up and smiled at him, while tossing another sprinkling of bread crumbs toward the swans. “I promise I’ll think it over. You’re completely right about your father, but I just need a little time to think about it,” she answered with a sigh.

“Thank you.” Maxx cupped her chin in the crook of his finger, and ducked down to kiss her in appreciation. She always stayed calm long enough to hear him out, even if she didn’t like what he was saying.

Hadley’s hand came to rest on his forearm, as she responded to the kiss with a little more passion and insistence than he’d expected. He couldn’t help but smile and break away, recalling her bargain from earlier.

“Shall we go home, or do you want to stay here a little while longer?” he asked, willing to give her whatever she wanted.

Hadley looked out over the lake and lay her head against his shoulder. “Just a little while,” she replied, throwing the last of the bread from her hand into the water.

Maxx kept his eye on her, gently pulling the open jacket tighter around her arms. The wind had died down, but was picking up again, and he didn’t want her getting a chill.

She let out a sigh and ran her hand over her stomach. She looked so happy, even if this wasn’t what she’d planned for her life. She was taking it all so well and never complained or blamed him, though it was clearly his fault.

He couldn’t have been luckier.

Maxx added his hand on top of hers and longed for the day when he felt their baby kicking and making a fuss. Now that she’d agreed to think about her job, he didn’t need a promise or an answer right away. All that mattered was that she’d consider it and possibly come round to his way of thinking.

He just wanted her to be happy, and if Hadley kept working for his father, he’d make her miserable. Eventually, he’d take away all her vitality and spark, and Maxx couldn’t allow that. She was his sunshine and he wouldn’t let anyone steal that from her.

When they arrived home, Hadley felt better. More settled and ready to accept this new twist that life had sent her way. With Maxx’s enthusiasm and careful planning, they finally had a path to follow and the determination to get there.

She couldn’t say how much relief it brought to know that she wasn’t in this alone.

“We should start looking at which room to use for the nursery,” Maxx said, as they walked into the hallway. He had that far away look that said his mind was ticking away with ideas. “I mean, we’ll have to move eventually, but it’s better to be prepared early, right? Rather than wait until the last minute,” he admitted.

Hadley smiled and gave her agreement. “Absolutely. We’ll discuss it later. Right now, I should probably put these away…” she said, indicating the shopping bags they carried.

They’d stopped by a few shops on the way home to get some last minute buys for the baby. She hadn’t wanted to buy anything for the baby until she reached her second trimester, but Maxx had been very convincing.

He caught her hand, as she made her way to the stairs and pulled her toward him. “Fuck that…” he argued, drawing her into his body. He took the bags from her and threw them into the corner.

Hadley didn’t bother protesting, as everything was soft and there was nothing breakable inside. Knowing they had time alone together, she willingly kissed him back, wrapping her arms around his neck.

Maxx wasted no time undoing her shirt and pushing it from her shoulders, as his mouth opened hungrily above hers.

She responded slowly, making the most of their time together. She let her hands press against his chest, feeling those strong muscles, before she gripped the lapel of his jacket and slowly inched it off his shoulders.

Maxx backed her against the wall with a deep groan, as his hands wandered to her waist and over the top of her exposed bra.

The feel of his hands on her, after nearly eight weeks, was some kind of heaven. She’d missed having this time with him, and worried that he wouldn’t touch her again. Ever since he found out she was pregnant, he’d been treating her with kid gloves and had barely kissed her, never mind done anything more.

When hands caressed down her back and cupped her backside with a tight grip, Hadley wound her fingers into his thick hair and held on tight. Just as she’d expected, Maxx lifted her off her feet, where she was able to wrap her legs around his waist and let him support her weight.

A wave of self-conscious doubt ran through her, realising that she’d put on weight since getting pregnant. She was probably really heavy, but he didn’t seem to notice. He lifted her as easily as he had done every time before.

He moved his body against hers, breathing hard as Hadley undid his jeans. She’d been looking forward to this for days, while Maxx kept his distance and let her adjust to the news. In all that time, Micah and Emerson had been around every corner, ruining any chance of privacy they might have.

“Had,” Maxx muttered as he kissed along her jaw and down her neck. “God, I’ve missed this,” he whispered, curling his hand around her neck to pull her hair aside.

She wished she’d put it up into something reasonable, that kept it out of the way, but it was too late for that. But when Maxx kissed her again, with a slow, burning passion that had her spellbound, she stopped caring. There were more important things than her hair.

Hadley held on tight as she was lifted from the wall and carried over to the stairs. Then she broke the kiss and allowed Maxx the majority of his senses to find his way upstairs.

“You know, you’re the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen,” Maxx professed, with a startling smile as he carried her up to his bedroom. “This baby is going to be a bundle of perfection. He’ll be the best parts of both of us, while getting none of Dad’s bad habits or my workaholic nature,” he promised.

Hadley smiled, not caring what good or bad habits their baby adapted. “I only care that the baby is healthy. He or she, class clown or straight A student...they can be whoever they want to be,” she explained, having thought about the future of their baby and who they might be.

“Agreed.” Maxx nodded briefly and kissed her, as he reached the top of the stairs. “And we’ll make sure he grows up knowing that,” he promised.

With a nod, she closed the space between them and initiated another kiss, relieved they were on the same page. This baby was theirs, and they had to make these kind of decisions the same way they’d created their baby. Together.

Maxx kissed her back with a light chuckle, as though he’d read her thoughts. He didn’t say anything as he carried her into the bedroom and lay her on his bed.
Their
bed. Even when he broke away and they started undressing each other, an odd silence fell between them, though it wasn’t uncomfortable.

It was a stillness, a sense of there being nothing left to say, because they were of one mind and one body.

Hadley watched his blue eyes raking over her as he helped her off with her jeans, letting his fingertips brush along her skin as it was revealed to him. When he caressed his hand over her stomach, already looking more prominent than she thought it should be, his gaze found a focus.

Maxx lowered his head and placed a delicate kiss just an inch above her bellybutton. “We made a miracle, Had,” he whispered, glancing up at her with a growing smile. He looked so proud that all she could do was smile back, speechless.

His smile turned more mischievous as he looped his fingers over the top of her panties. He pulled them down carefully, letting his fingertips follow the trail again, as though to add an extra torment.

Hadley closed her eyes and took comfort in the touch. The minutes went by in blissful pleasure, as Maxx teased every inch of her with gentle kisses and caresses. He worshipped her as though it was their first time together, constantly mindful of the baby growing inside of her.

As his mouth met hers again, now that she was naked, Hadley turned her attention to the man she’d loved her entire life. In the rush to get undressed and then being adored so completely, she’d fallen into the moment and forgotten to return the incredible sensations Maxx sent rushing through her body.

“I love you,” she whispered against his mouth, between kisses.

Maxx hummed as she wrapped her hand around his hard cock to stroke it with her fingertips.

The weight of his body on top of hers became more pronounced as he shifted, to intensify the kiss. He pushed into her hand, clearly pleased with her choice.

Hadley held him close and wrapped her legs around his waist, drawing his hips down and toward hers. Her patience had worn thin and they could play around for hours any other time, but not today.

“Kiss me, Maxx,” she asked, though they’d been doing that before she spoke. “Kiss me...love me...let’s just escape for today. Just you and me,” she begged him, not sure how else to say it. She wanted so much; everything all at once, yet she wanted each moment to last forever.

“And the baby,” he added with a smile. “We’re a family, Had. From now on, it’s always going to be the three of us,” he promised.

It was everything she’d always dreamed of.