She groans and plants her face against my sternum. “I’m tired of eating. It seems like it’s all I do nowadays. I’m going to be as big as a house by the time he gets here.”
I chuckle at her mumbled words, then bend and scoop her into my arms. “Wouldn’t matter,” I tell her. “Hey, boo. We’re going to feed Mom and Junior. I’ll be back to check on you in a few.”
She doesn’t even indicate she heard me, her mind already focused on the new design. Aria takes after me in so many ways, one of them being her complete dedication to her art, whether it be drawing, painting, sketching, or working with the tattoo machine.
I carry Jules to the kitchen and set her on the counter beside the fridge. When she makes a move to get down, I point my finger at her and order, “Stay.”
She pouts at me and snarks, “I can make my own food, you know? I’m not an invalid. Just pregnant.”
I open the fridge and pull out a can of sliced pineapple, a jar of mayonnaise, and a package of bacon. Yes, my wife has some bizarre-as-shit pregnancy cravings. Bacon, mayonnaise, and pineapple sandwiches. That shit turns my stomach, but if it satisfies her and Junior, that’s all that matters.
I deposit the items on the counter beside her hip and pop open the can of pineapple before wedging myself between her legs. I hook one slice of pineapple with my finger, bite away half of it so it’s not too big to fit in her mouth, then offer the rest to Jules. Her lips skim across my fingers and it sends shockwaves straight to my dick. Her moan when she chomps down on the juicy fruit doesn’t help my growing erection. Unable to help myself, I lick away the residue of juice from her lips.
“You know taking care of you is one of my favorite things to do.”
Her legs hook around my waist and her heels dig into my ass to pull me closer. “I do. It’s one of the many things I love about you.”
This pregnancy is very special for Jules and me. Neither one of us got to witness or be a part of her first one, so we’re both enjoying the experience to the fullest. Part of that for me is waiting on her hand and foot. So what if I take it a bit too far sometimes?
I grab another slice of pineapple, bite off a portion, and give her the rest.
“Are you ready for your exams?”
She blows out a breath, her fingers tracing over my shirt. She’s been taking online courses to get her degree in interior design and she’s nearly finished. I left the decision up to her on whether she wanted to attend a physical college, but she said she’d rather do it from home, where she could be with her family all the time. We’ve been working on a business plan for her to start her own company once she has her degree.
“No. Yes.” She laughs. “I don’t know.”
“You’re going to do great.” I squeeze her hip in reassurance.
Her lips twist to the side. “I’m glad you have confidence in me.”
I cup her cheek and bring her face up. “You’re going to do great,” I repeat. “Say it.”
She smiles and nods. “I’m going to do great.”
“How did Teresa do on her driving test?” I ask once she’s done with her bite.
Her hand moves to the locket around her throat, another piece of evidence that Kale took for me. Theo took out the picture of Jules and me when he found the locket. It now carries the one of Teresa on one side and a picture of Jules, Aria, and me on the other.
“She passed and now thinks she’s the queen bee.” Jules laughs with an eye roll.
“Your mom and dad are going to have a hard time reining that one in.”
Her fingers crawl up my stomach, the tips grazing my nipple rings, pulling a hiss from me. “You just wait for Aria to reach that age.”
I scowl. “She knows the rules of no boys until she’s thirty.”
She bursts out laughing, and her legs tighten around me. I can’t help but smile down at her, even if she doesn’t believe me. What I said is gospel, whether they want to believe it or not.
“You’re delusional, Luca,” she informs me with a giggle.
“Am not. My girl isn’t dating until I say she can.”
“And when will that be?”
“Forty,” I answer with a straight face.
She laughs again. “But you just said thirty.”
“I changed my mind.”
She shakes her head. “Silly man. Our daughter has you wrapped around her little finger. All she has to do is give you her big blue eyes and you turn to putty. She’ll be using those eyes to get her way with boys too.”
“Lies. All lies. My girl is sweet and innocent. She’d never manipulate me like that,” I declare. She’s partially right though. Aria does have me wrapped around her finger, more so now that she’s my daughter and no longer my niece.
Jules snorts. “I’ll remind you of that in a couple of years.” Her hands fist my shirt. “Now, kiss me.”
Discussion over, I move in as close as I can get and land my lips against hers. She tastes like Jules and pineapple, one of the many combinations that have become my favorite. My hands snake up her thighs and under her skirt, not stopping until I get to the juncture of her thighs.
Our kiss is lazy, but no less passionate. Pregnancy has made both of us ravenous, something we take advantage of as often as we can.
I slip my thumb underneath the edge of her panties and graze it against her clit. She’s drenched, just as she always is for me.
She releases a low moan, and I swallow the sound, not wanting little ears to hear and come to investigate. I know we can’t take it any further than what we’re doing now, but I’m not done with her yet. I listen and still hear the light buzz of the tattoo machine and know we’re still good.
Her elbows go to my shoulders and she surrounds the back of my head with her arms, effectively caging me in.
Fuck, this woman drives the sane right out of me.
I pull my hand from her panties, grip her ass to tug her to the edge of the counter, and try to grind my cock against her. Her belly is in the way, and it makes me want to weep. Thankfully, she releases the caged hold she has on my head and leans back, moving Junior out of the way.
Right fucking there. That’s what I needed. With her hands on the counter behind her, her hooded amber eyes watching me, biting her lip, I rock against her. Her skirt is pushed up; the only thing between us is her panties and my jeans, so I feel her heat. It’s damn near scorching me.
A nudge on the left, a poke on the right, and Junior makes his presence known once again, reminding us he’s waiting to be fed. I look down and scowl at her stomach, and Jules giggles huskily.
“Patience, little man,” I grumble. It’s all a front. I love every single one of his nudges.
I bend down and kiss the spot Junior just kicked. I lift her shirt higher, seeing the heart tattoo. The one I gave her two weeks after we met. Theo claimed she got it to signify their love, but it’s was actually our love it represents. It’s her light and my dark. Two halves of a heart mending into one. I kiss the beautiful piece of art before lowering her shirt.
“Duty calls,” I tell Jules once I’m standing straight.
“Hey.” She tugs me back to her by my jeans pocket before I can walk away to start the bacon. Her fingers slide through my hair. “Have I told you today how much I love you?”
I gather her hair into one hand and pull the mass over her shoulder. I smirk. “Yes, but tell me again anyway.”
When she smiles, it damn near knocks me on my ass. “Infinitely. There’s no beginning and no ending. Forever and always.”
That’s what she always says, from the first time she told me she loved me, and every time she does, I thank my lucky stars. Many men have thought it, but I know down to my soul I’m the luckiest man alive to have found the woman in my arms, to have our child in her belly, and the one she gave me in the next room.
“Eternal, everlasting, and bottomless,” I repeat what I always say back to her.
She smiles, I smile, and we’re both rewarded with another kick from Junior. We laugh against each other’s mouths, then I get my ass to feeding my woman and baby.
The end
Turn the page for the first chapter in WHISPERED PRAYERS OF A GIRL BY ALEX GRAYSON
CHAPTER ONE
Gwendolyn
“IT’S SUCH A SHAME what happened.”