Love?
The word wasn’t close enough to what I was feeling.
“For the first time in my life, I’ve got people that depend on me, and not just for support but for protection. Lauren, I can’t deal with that pressure. If something ever happens to you or the baby because of me—”
“Nothing’s going to happen,” she interrupted, placing her hands around my wrists. “Riggs, we’re okay, we just want you.
The last words she spoke were the ones that broke me; split me in two. I picked the man who loved Kitten and Pea, the man who wanted the family over the monster who sought vengeance. I covered her mouth with mine, giving us both what we wanted and damning everything else to Hell. She tasted like all the good things you wish for but don’t think you’ll ever have.
Her arms wrapped around my neck, pulling me closer, her belly pressing against me as she struggled to get us as close as possible. I pulled my lips from hers, letting my tongue taste her lips one last time before I lifted her into my arms.
“What’re you doing?” She whispered, as I cradled her, carrying her to our bedroom.
“Proving to you nothing was a lie.”
It was the only truth I knew.
I followed my heart to Riggs’ doorstep, knowing I’d probably lose it—but if there was the slightest chance I could get him to admit the truth, then it would be worth it.
Wouldn’t it?
He set me down on the foot of the bed and kneeled before me, spreading my legs apart as he moved between them and ran his hands up my thighs.
“Let me see you, Kitten,” he said, for the second time since I came here. I looked into his eyes and saw the desperation reflected in them and knew I’d never be able to deny him. Aside from that, I wanted this just as much as he did, if not more. I hated being alone, I hated not having him. I didn’t only miss him emotionally, but physically too. I craved his touch, his comfort, his existence.
There was no sexy way to undress for him. I lifted my maternity shirt over my belly, revealing the blue stretchy material of my jeans that covered my bump before I finally pulled it over my head. He stared at my breasts that were straining against my lace bra. I was a whole cup size bigger than the last time he saw me like this. He licked his lips, slowly, tantalizingly before reaching down and cupping his dick.
Clearly, he enjoyed the change.
And that gave me the confidence I needed.
I slipped my fingers beneath the stretchy fabric of my pants and lowered the band, exposing my belly. I lifted my hips and pulled the pants down to my thighs, knowing it would get awkward and I’d have to lift my leg to get the pants off.
Riggs laid his hands over mine and stopped me from going any further.
“Can I?”
I nodded thinking he was asking to finish removing my pants but he lifted his hands off of mine and splayed them across my belly.
“Oh, wow,” he whispered, lifting his eyes to mine. I was taken aback by the emotion conveyed in his eyes, something I thought Riggs was immune to.
Then he broke my heart.
Or maybe he picked up the pieces.
I couldn’t be sure.
But when he pressed his lips to my belly, my heart ached for the time he missed and the time he still might.
Please choose us, I pleaded.
A message from my heart to yours.
I reached behind me and unclasped my bra, letting my breasts fall from their confinements of the lace, giving him another piece of myself. He reached up and cupped the back of my neck, pulling me closer and pressing his lips against mine.
“You’re beautiful, Kitten. So fucking beautiful,” he whispered against my mouth.
His mouth left mine as he took my shoes off and maneuvered my pants down my legs. I tucked my thumbs into the waistband of my underwear but he pushed my hands away and brought the silk down my legs.
“Lie down, let me look at you,” he said huskily.
I was completely nude, everything on display for him to see and still he asked me for permission to see it all, to take everything in, all the changes in my body. This moment we were sharing, the truth…we’d always be Kitten and Tiger.
“Aren’t you a little over dressed?” I rasped, leaning back on my elbows. “Take your clothes off, Riggs. I want to feel you.”
I wanted him pressed against me, skin to skin, chest to chest, one broken heart beating against another.
He reached behind him, pulling his shirt over his head and throwing it to the floor before he unzipped his jeans and dragged them down his legs. I let my eyes greedily travel the length of him, taking every inch of him in.
I missed him so much.