Just Her Luck (28 page)

I hopped off the bed and ran to my desk drawer, rifling through it for my calendar.

Stupid! Stupid! Stupid!
I berated myself, searching for my...
Ah-hah! I found it!

How the hell did I forget something like
that
?! I thought, eyeing the page.

Might have had something to do with a cute cowboy, his hot bod and a foot long dong...
but there's no excuse!!!!

My shoulders sagged in relief.

Phewww, I should be okay. If I'm figuring this out right, then I'm not fertile at the moment.

"I'm sorry, Genny," Ephraim whispered, arms wrapping around me tight, "I wasn't thinkin'. I'll remember next time."

He kissed my temple and waited, tense, until I leaned back against his chest and let him hold me.

"I think we should be okay, but it's my fault too. I guess I wasn't thinking either."

"Would it be so bad if we did make a baby?" he asked tentatively, his hand going straight for my tummy, "I already know I love you. I want to be with you... now, tomorrow, next year, five years from now. If we
did
make a baby, that would be just fine with me. I want you to be the mother of my children someday anyways, what's now or a few years down the road?"

He shrugged like it was the simplest thing in the world.

"I can't have a baby
now
. I... I... A baby..." I groaned and put my face in my hands, muffling my pitiful dying cow groans.

"It wouldn't be the end of the world, Genny," he chuckled, pulling my hands from my face.

"How could I think of bringing a baby into the madness that has become my life?!" I asked seriously, searching his face for answers, "Where would we live? Here? The ranch? How would that even work? Reeve hates my guts... Thatcher keeps giving me the stink eye... Sawyer wants to talk about me slapping his testicles, and sucking face with me regrets-
of which, I'd rather not discuss
. Reeve's going to hire a new housekeeper to take over and kick my ass out... Barry is well,
Barry
... Ruthie is..." I paused, unable to finish as I unloaded on him, giving him a big ol’ stress dump, saying all my worries and doubts out loud, all except one.

"Ruthie?" he prompted, rubbing my shoulders.

"Not to mention
me
in general," I continued to babble as if he hadn't said anything, "What kind of mother would I be? Would..."

He silenced me with a quick, hard kiss.

"You're thinkin' too hard. I can practically smell the wires short circuiting in here." He tapped my temple gently.

"Would you live here with me?" I mumbled, voice muffled against his chest.

"If you really wanted me too, yes, right after I married you."

"Married?!" my head shot up, "We said babies not marriage!"

"They go hand in hand." He smiled, playing with my ring finger.

Marriage!!

Babies?!!

I felt a little dizzy and put a hand to my forehead, waiting for the room to stop spinning.

Oh, this is all going so fast...

What happened to men not being ready to settle down? When did I become the man in this scenario?

Wait, doesn't that make him the woman?

Getting off track, Vieve! Focus!

Did he really just say babies and marriage with something akin to talking about the weather?

"You look pale." He frowned, worried, and scooped me up, settling me back into bed, cuddling in right next to me. "Better?"

I nodded after a few minutes and pressed my ear to his chest, enjoying the steady 'thump thump' that I've found comforts me.

"We'll save all that talk for later," he said on a yawn, gently rubbing my back. "You're gonna get yourself all worked up. For now, let’s just, you and me, catch some shut eye."

He gave me one quick peck before he threw his leg over me and let out a deep even breath, drifting off quickly, the tiny snore and steady rise and fall of his chest sending me fitfully off after him.

I slept restlessly, everything that's going on manifesting into weird dreams of babies that grew up to be just like Reeve, hating me with the same scary intensity, leaving me all alone once they were old enough, then to dreams of Ephraim and Bowen forcing me, round with child, into a shot gun wedding.

We were in some kind of a western, it seemed, complete with historically accurate outfits, shotguns and everything, the preacher shaking in his boots as we said our vows.

I made a mental note to myself that when I woke up, not only would I be buying them their Halloween costumes this year-
yee haw
- but I am
so
going to make it my personal mission to know where they keep all the guns.

Hey, you never know, they can be a little odd at times. I could actually picture them doing it if I resisted,
I thought humorously, picturing that for a moment.

Plus, if I
am
pregnant I can make doubly sure ol’ Ephraim doesn't decide to suddenly grow cold feet on me, try to make a run for it on me or something.

If I
should
ever agree to marry him, that is.

After the first few odd dreams and pop ups, I finally managed to drift off into a dreamless sleep, thankful for the respite, cuddled close to my blue-eyed cowboy, safe and secure in his arms, warm in his loving embrace.

Pushing Buttons

"No. No. No," I groaned, slapping at the alarm clock as it went off.

I smacked a bearded face instead and my eyes popped open wide.

"Well, uh, good morning to you too, baby," Ephraim squinted, closing the eye I'd just accidentally poked, a hand running through his hair.

"I thought you were the alarm," I mumbled, still bleary eyed with sleep.

"Oh, good. I'd hate to think you greet all your fiancés like that."

"What?!" I barked out incredulously, wide awake now.

He just grinned.

"Try again." I glowered at him.

"Intended?" he asked hopefully. "Future husband?"

I pursed my lips and tapped my hand on my arm.

He sighed and plopped back on the bed, staring at me through the one un-maimed eye.

"Possible baby daddy?"

I shrieked.

He ducked before I could smack the other eye.

My phone started ringing, and he chose my distraction to pin me down.

"Say I'm your boyfriend," he demanded, my arms pinned over my head.

"What?" I laughed, wriggling in his grip.

He gave me his best hang dog look.

"Baby, ya gotta give me somethin'."

"I don't
got
to give you any..."

I moaned when he latched onto my nipple and sucked, taking as much of my breast into his mouth as he possibly could.

His tongue snuck out and whipped across my nipple, making me call out, crying as I writhed on the bed.

"Ephraim," I panted, grinding my hips into his, butting up against the underside of his shaft.

"Hmmm?" he hummed, mouth full of breast.

I laughed at the picture he presented, and he grinned around my breast, giving it a hard suckle as I watched, our eyes locked onto one another's, lost for a minute in the sensual haze we were creating.

My phone went off a third time, and we both looked at it.

"Maybe I should get that..." I fought a whimper as I looked back at 'E', who hadn't moved a muscle yet, except to steadily suck and lash at my distended nipple, but he stopped at my announcement.

"I can't," he said, letting my breast go with a wet 'pop'.

"Why not?" I asked breathlessly, eyes only for him as he traced a tantalizing path down my belly, tongue and lips nipping and licking, blazing a trail to my sex.

He stopped right when he got to the top of my pubic bone.

"I'm still trying to convince the woman I love to let me love her." He kicked the sad puppy dog eyes up a notch. "She could be carrying my love child for all I know and she won't even let me call her mine. Is that so much to ask?"

"Ephraim! If you were any
more
full of shit, it would be oozing out of your ears!"

He dropped the act and grinned.

"Can't blame a fella for tryin' can ya?"

"You're terrible!" I laughed.

My phone went off one last time and I jerked, a thought suddenly occurring to me.

"Oh, god! Let me up, Ephraim! What if it's Ruthie?!!"

He let go when he saw the look on my face, watching me as I hopped up and ran to my cell phone, hands trembling slightly as I checked my missed calls.

I had several missed calls from different people, but one caught my eye.

There was one from Barry.

I quickly hit the talk button, waiting for him to answer.

"Hello?" Barry's voice came on the other end of the line.

"Barry?"

"Oh, hey, cous' I tried to call you and..."

"Is it Ruthie? Is she okay? Where is she, Barry?"

"Whoa! Whoa, there! Hold your horses!"

"Speak!" I practically screeched, gripping the phone to my ear.

Ephraim came and plucked me up, sitting me down in his lap, plopping us down into my vanity chair.

He stroked my back comfortingly and rested his chin on my shoulder.

"She's fine, as far as I know. She's not going to up and die on ya yet, Vieve."

"That's not even fucking funny, Barrington Arnold Ferguson the third! So you tell me exactly why you called, right this minute, or I'm going to hunt you down and gut you like the slimy little toad you're being!"

"Sorry," he quickly apologized, "No need to hunt, maim, wound or do any killing of any kind. That was my
very,
can't stress that enough, very bad attempt at making light of everything. Have I ever told you I have absolutely no talent in that department and lack the comedic timing necessary to pull off such a feat?"

"I dunno," Ruthie guffawed in the background, "from where I'm sitting right now, you're down right hilarious!"

"Quiet, old woman!" Barry grumbled, "Nobody asked
you
."

Ruthie cackled even harder.

"Oh, lord," she cried, "Vieve, hun, you should see his face! Looks like he went in his pants!"

I laughed and smiled at that, loving the laugher in her voice.

"So everything is okay then?" I asked much calmer now.

"I was just calling to let you know that your boyfriend called and said he needed directions to your house."

I looked up at Ephraim.

"My boyfriend called you, huh?"

Ephraim grinned, winked, and kissed the tip of my nose.

"Yeah, he wanted to surprise you, he said. Did it work? Were you surprised?"

"Oh," I cleared my throat, running my hands along Ephraim's thighs, reaching between his legs to pump his cock, "I was surprised, alright."

Ephraim bit his lip to hold in the moan he was trying not to let out.

He gripped the arm rests when I kept my phone to my ear with my shoulder, my other hand reaching down to play with his balls.

"I'm glad then," Barry murmured happily from the other line, "I didn't even know you and 'E' were dating. He's a good guy."

"Yes, he is," I purred, licking my lips hungrily as I eyed Ephraim's cock.

"Uhhh, you sound kinda busy. Was it a bad time?"

"I was just... preparing
sausage
."

Ephraim about choked on his own tongue.

"Oh, okay. Do you want me to let you go then?"

"It might be best," I said firmly, sliding off Ephraim's lap, turning around to face his manhood, eye to eye with the tip of his shaft.

I gave it an experimental lick, grinning lasciviously when he broke out in gooseflesh.

"Alright, talk to ya later, bye."

"Bye!" I called cheerfully and hung up.

I gripped his thighs, my phone forgotten somewhere on the floor now, giving his junk an experimental lick.

"Oh, god, baby. Do that again," he groaned, arching himself up towards my mouth.

"You're my boyfriend, huh?"

"Uh-huh...uuuunnngg!!!" he cried out as I attempted to swallow him whole, relaxing my throat muscles to take more of him in.

"Ah, fuck!" he shouted, the tip of his cock trying to fit down the back of my throat.

The house phone suddenly started ringing but I ignored it, too busy at the moment to worry about who was calling.

I'll check the caller ID later
, I promised myself, focusing back on my current task at hand.