Road to Passion (16 page)

I
WOKE THE next morning to Mack’s lips
drifting down my back. “Well, good morning.”

He rolled me onto my back and
leaned down to kiss me. “Good morning. It’s a gorgeous day outside, so get your
cute ass out of bed.”

I yawned as I stretched. “Bossy
this
early in the morning, butthead?”

“It’s almost eleven.”

“What? Seriously.”

He chuckled. “Yeah, baby. I’ve
been up for three hours already. I’ve fed Barney, he’s peed six times, and I’ve
written an entire brief for a client.”

“Mmm, you’re amazing.”

“I know. Okay, up with you. We’ll
go for a ride, then come back so we can grab the car and shop for the house
warming tomorrow.”

I yawned again. “Ten more
minutes.”

He kissed my cheek. “You’ve got
five.”

He left the room and I dragged
myself out of bed. As I waited for the water to heat up, I stared at myself in
the mirror. My breasts were bigger and they were also tender. Not unusual
around the time of my period, but I realized that although, I hadn’t been
overly regular, even on the pill, but I was late. I grabbed my pill case and
did the math. I was a week late.

I lowered myself to the edge of
the tub and took a deep breath.

“Babe?” Mack pushed the door open
and frowned. “What’s wrong?”

“I’m late.”

“For?”

“My period. It’s late.”

He smiled, kneeling in front of
me. “I know.”

“Shut up, you do not.”

Mack chuckled. “You forget I know
your body better than you do.”

“It’s probably nothing.”

“Yep.” He rose to his feet and
grabbed a towel from the linen closet. “You take a shower and I’ll run to the
store and get a test.”

“No, it’s fine. We’ll grab one
while we’re out.”

“I don’t mind.”

“I know. But I don’t want to rush
to the store and have it be nothing. It’s totally fine.” I kissed him quickly
before stepping under the water and taking the shortest shower in history.

I dressed in jeans and boots,
along with a long-sleeved T-shirt, pulling my hair into a ponytail before
meeting Mack in the kitchen. I downed a cup of coffee and a piece of toast
before securing Barney and following Mack out front.

“Trust me?” Mack asked, and
handed me my helmet and jacket.

I smiled. “Of course I do.”

He’d already pulled the bike out
of the garage and I climbed up behind him. I was a little more prepared this
time, and wrapped my arms tightly around his waist.

“Ready?” he yelled.

I gave him a squeeze and we
pulled out of the driveway. This time was totally different for me. I don’t
know if it was just that I felt more comfortable in my own skin or that it was
because I trusted Mack more, but we rode down WA-14 toward Camas and it was
clear with barely any traffic. We drove for over half an hour before he turned
around and brought us back.

I climbed off the bike and
clapped my hands with a squee. Removing my helmet, I grinned. “That was
awesome
.”

Mack laughed as he opened the
garage and pushed the bike in. “Have I converted you now?”

I followed him inside and set the
helmets on the shelf. “Yes. Ohmigod, that was incredible. I’m a little
surprised I was so scared before.”

He pulled me close and kissed me.
“I’m really proud of you, honey.”

“Thank you for not giving up on
me.”

“I couldn’t. Can’t be in a
motorcycle gang and have my old lady afraid of motorcycles.”

I laughed as I smacked his butt
and followed him into the house. “You get the shopping bags, I’ll get Barney.”

“You got it.”

We found a box on our front porch
and I was excited to see my new “toys” had arrived. We left them in the
bedroom, ready to be used later and the rest of our day consisted of domestic
bliss. We shopped, we cooked dinner, we sat in front of the television and
watched a movie, and the whole time, I avoided taking a pregnancy test while
pretending not to notice the box sitting on the kitchen island.

Mack let me have that.

Well, he let me have that until
the first row of movie credits rolled. “Time to pee on the stick, babe.”

I didn’t hesitate, although I
really wanted to. I figured I had to know one way or the other so might as well
know sooner so I could plan.

Mack followed me into the
bathroom and I sighed. “Not real romantic, honey.”

“It’s nothin’ we don’t do on a
daily basis in front of each other, Dare. Now here.” He handed me the stick.

I peed, handed him the test,
washed my hands and then we stood in the bathroom and waited. Mack wrapped an
arm around my waist and kissed my temple. We didn’t speak, just stood listening
to tick of the clock on the wall while we waited.

After what seemed like
forever
,
Mack leaned forward and I closed my eyes. “Babe?”

I opened my eyes to find him
facing me. “What does it say?”

“Pregnant.”

My breath escaped me in a big,
loud whoosh and I slid onto the edge of the tub. “Wow.”

He knelt in front of me and took
my hands, kissing each palm. “What are you thinking?”

“Lots of things.”

“Break them down for me.”

“Um, I’m thinking that I’m going
to totally suck as a mom, you know, considering I didn’t have a good one. I’m
thinking you’re going to figure out I’m as crazy as my mother was and run as
far the hell away from me as you can, and I’m thinking about the fact that
pregnancy makes you super fat.”

“Darien,” he whispered, trying
not to laugh.

“And then, I’m thinking about the
fact that I’m crazy in love with you and we made a baby, and he or she is going
to look like you and I’m going to love it like I’ve never loved anything
before, and I can’t believe I’ve been so unbelievably blessed to find you.” I
burst into tears. “I mean, seriously, I must have rescued nuns from burning
buildings in a past life, because otherwise, I would have never deserved you.”

Mack wrapped his arms around me
and pulled me up so he could hold me close. “I love you, baby. You’re going to
be an incredible mom and I’m not going anywhere, and even if you gain a hundred
pounds, you’re going to be the most beautiful pregnant woman in the world. And
it’s me that rescued the nuns. Obviously.”

I laughed through my tears and
looked up at him. “Maybe we both did.”

“Maybe so.” He wiped my tears
from my cheeks and chuckled. “How do you feel about the courthouse?”

“To have our baby?” I cocked my
head. “I was hoping for a hospital.”

“I want to get married before
you’re out of your first trimester.”

“I really wanted a dress and a
proper wedding.”

“How about we do all of that next
week?”

“I can’t find a dress and plan
everything in less than a week, Logan.”

He smiled his smug smile and
kissed me gently. “The club can.”

“They can find me a dress?”

“How about you get your girls,
head downtown and find a dress on Saturday... I’ll take care of the rest.”

“Let me explain something to you,
butthead.” I fisted my hand in his shirt. “It is impossible for a woman to find
her perfect wedding gown in one day. It can take months...
years
to find
one.”

He smiled again. “If you don’t
find a dress on Saturday, we’ll wait on the plans.”

“You have an answer for
everything.”

“I’m a lawyer, baby. If I didn’t,
I wouldn’t be good at my job.”

“Well, be prepared to wait on the
plans, Logan, because there’s no way in hell I’ll find a dress in one day.”

“We’ll see.” He patted my bottom.
“Let’s go to bed. We have new toys to play with.”

I grinned. “You get the batteries
and I’ll brush my teeth.”

Mack left the bathroom and I took
a minute to compose myself (and brush my teeth). I washed my face and
moisturized, my mind spinning with how unbelievably backwards we were doing
everything. On paper, I was your average cautionary tale, and yet, with Mack,
it was perfect and just how it should be.

I dropped my jeans in the hamper
and removed everything else as I headed back into the bedroom. Mack was
stepping out of the walk-in closet, naked and perfect, just as I hit the bed.
“How do they look?” I asked.

Mack smiled. “I don’t think I can
answer that question until we play.”

“So much for being my teacher in
all things sex related.”

He held up the vibrator and
laughed. “I think this is a piece of shit, actually.”

“Oh, really?” I complained. “Dang
it!”

“It moves far too easily.”

“Isn’t it supposed to move?”

He bent it in half. “Not like
this.”

I giggled, managing a snort as I
couldn’t catch my breath. “You’re telling me your cock isn’t able to do that?”

Mack raised an eyebrow. “I don’t
think you want me to try.”

I shook my head. “No, no I really
don’t.”

“Climb up, baby. On your back.
We’re gonna play.”

I jumped onto the bed and got
comfortable. Mack settled in front of me, between my legs, and slid my panties
off. Before he did anything, he kissed me gently and then sat back, flipping
the vibrator on and settling it against my clit. I giggled, my legs shutting
inadvertently. “Ohmigod, that tickles.”

“In a good way?”

I shook my head, unable to stop
laughing. “No, I don’t think—oh!” He moved the wand and my body came alive. I
arched against it and Mack kissed my thigh as he continued to use the vibrator
against me.

“You like that.”

“Mmm, yes,” I panted.

He slid it inside of me and
settled his thumb on my clit. I screamed his name as I came and he removed the
wand and slid inside, slamming into me over and over, building another orgasm
almost as quickly as the first.

“Now, baby,” he rasped, and I
exploded around him as he pulsed inside of me.

Keeping our connection, he rolled
us onto our sides and kissed me.

“Wow,” I said. “Okay, I think I
like that.”

He chuckled, reaching for the
discarded toy and flipping it off. “Yeah, I figured that. I do think you need
something a little sturdier.”

I shrugged. “If I have you, I
don’t need anything else.”

“Well, you’ll always have me.”
His arm grazed my breast as he slid out of me and I gasped. “Tender?”

I nodded, blinking back tears.
“Yes. God, I hope it won’t be like this the entire pregnancy. I need my boobs
to be touchable.”

He gave me a gentle smile. “We’ll
figure it all out as it comes, Dare. You’re gonna call the doctor in the
morning, right?”

“You don’t think we should wait?”

“For what exactly?”

I shrugged again. “I don’t know.”

“You get in, get on that vitamin
shit or whatever you’re supposed to take, and then we can plan.” He kissed me
again and then climbed off the bed, heading to the bathroom. He returned with a
warm washcloth and settled it between my legs. “This okay?”

I sighed. “It’s heaven.”

He finished with me, discarded
the towel, and then climbed into bed with me, kissing my neck and wrapping
himself around me. I fell asleep almost immediately and slept without waking.

* * *

A slobbery wet
tongue woke me the next morning, and it wasn’t the slobbery wet tongue I would
have preferred. “Ugh, Barney. What are you doing?”

Barney jumped up and down on the
bed, running his nose along the comforter and growling for me to get up. I
pulled him close and scratched his belly, craning my head to look at the clock.
I sat up. It was noon. “Mack?” I called.

“Yeah, babe?”

“It’s noon.”

He walked into the room, a grin
covering his face. “Well done, Darien, you’ve learned how to tell time.”

I rolled my eyes. “Why didn’t you
wake me? We have so much to do.”

“We’ll get it all done, Dare.”

“I don’t think you understand
exactly how much there is,” I countered. “We have to clean the bathrooms, make
the bed, vacuum—”

Mack chuckled, cutting off my
rant. “Party starts at six, Dare. We’ve got more than five hours to take care
of everything.”

“Exactly. We’ve only got five
hours.”

Mack leaned down and kissed me.
“Shower and I’ll make you something to eat when you get out.”

“Does nothing
ever
faze
you?”

He raised an eyebrow. “You want
me to get fazed over a dirty toilet?”

“No, because I cleaned the
toilets yesterday.”

He laughed. “You want me to get
fazed over shit we’re gonna take care of as soon as you get your cute ass out
of bed?”

“Well, when you say it like that,
I sound a little dramatic.”

“
No
,” he droned,
sarcastically. “My Darien is never dramatic.”

I smiled. “I love you, butthead.”

“Love you too, baby.”

He left the room and I decided to
forego the shower for the moment. There was too much sweaty work still to be
done. I hit the shower around four, and Mack and I put the final touches on the
house just as Millie and Pauley arrived.