The Key West Anthology (46 page)

Chapter Thirty-Two

Avery

My phone ringing woke me up. I had fallen asleep on the couch, hoping to hear from Kade. The thought of him hurting or being rejected haunted me. As I scrambled to reach it, I knocked it to the floor. I quickly grabbed it from the floor and answered. “Hello, hi, I’m here,” I rambled.

A deep chuckle filled the other end of the line, and relief rushed through me. His laughter warmed me instantly. That could only mean one thing—it went well.

“Hey, pretty girl, sorry I woke you,” he said softly. He sounded exhausted, but his voice was laced with a happiness I had rarely heard in the past.

“It’s okay. I’ve been worried about you,” I confessed.

“There’s no need to worry, baby,” he replied. “I’m good. Everything is good.”

“Yeah?” I asked excitedly.

“Yeah,” he assured me. “Real good, sweetheart.” He took in a long, deep breath. “I’m coming home. I miss my girl.”

Tears filled my eyes, and I bit my lower lip.

“You ready for this?” he asked.

“Ready for what?”

“For me.” He chuckled. “For us?”

I nodded enthusiastically, even though he couldn’t see me. “Kade Thomas, I’ve been ready for you for a long time. I’ve just been waiting for you to catch up.”

“I’ll be home tomorrow night.”

“I can’t wait,” I replied, smiling so hard my cheeks hurt.

***

“Avery,” Brad called from the breakroom doorway. “They need you out at the front desk.” He disappeared before I could ask any details. I placed the lid back on my water bottle before putting it back in the refrigerator and walked out into the hall.

I got a few weird looks as I passed the nurses’ station and rounded the corner toward to the double doors that led out to the front desk. When I pushed through them, I stopped with my hand still pressed against the door, propping it open as my mouth also hung open.

Kade was leaning back against the edge of the front desk. He had obviously charmed Lydia and Rose, the ladies that greeted the patients, because they were both all gooey-eyed. He held a large bouquet of red roses in one hand and a small tan stuffed animal in the other.

“Hey, pretty girl,” he cooed, and yes, I think I may have swooned just a little. He looked suave, inviting, and so damn sexy all at once.

“I thought you said tonight?” I asked as I eyed his body, which was highlighted quite nicely by his fitted shirt and worn jeans.

“I wanted to surprise you,” he said as he pushed off the countertop and walked in my direction. Once he was within inches of me, he bent down and kissed me. “I missed you,” he whispered against my lips. “What time do I get to steal you away from this place?”

“I have another hour,” I replied. I looked over at the roses, and his gaze followed mine. His smile grew even wider as he lifted them toward me.

“For you,” he said.

I took them and lifted them to my nose. Taking in a deep breath, I let my eyes shut as the fresh floral scent filled my nostrils. Everything seemed more enhanced with this pregnancy.

“And this little guy is for our little bitty,” Kade announced as he held out the little tan stuffed dog. It wore a little yellow t-shirt that read
Baby Thomas
.

I immediately looked up at him and cocked an eyebrow. “Seriously?”

“What?” He pulled off the
I’m innocent
act a little too well. Not only did he continue to stake his newfound claim on me, he was now doing it with the baby too. After all that time I envied Quinn for capturing a domineering caveman, I now had my own, and if felt amazing. It was definitely a feeling I could get used to.

“I’ll meet you at your place in a little over an hour,” he added before he leaned in once more and offered me a heart-stopping kiss. One that gained the attention of Lydia and Rose, and I was sure I heard one of them sigh.

Chapter Thirty-Three

Kade

I left Vermont feeling settled, and for once in a very long time, I was happy. I was ready to begin my life. To some that may seem strange, but it was true. For so long, I had run from any possible chance of happiness and chosen to blame myself for Jenna’s death. I had chosen to be miserable, but that was going to stop now.

The moment Avery walked through those doors and smiled at me confirmed I had chosen the right path. She was my future, her and our child. Now I had over an hour to waste before I could hold her in my arms. First, I had another woman who needed to hear from me that things were going to be okay.

When I pulled up to my mom’s house and found her and Aunt Jackie sitting on the front porch drinking tea, another jolt of happiness hit me. As soon as Mom saw me, she waved and smiled widely. After everything I put my mother through, she still had her spirit. She still loved my visits. I could hear their laughter as I walked up the drive and held out another set of flowers for her, this time daisies.

“Afternoon, ladies,” I said as I leaned in, offering a kiss to my mother’s cheek. Turning toward Aunt Jackie, I then offered the same. “If I would have known you were here, I would have grabbed some lilies.” Those were my aunt’s favorite, and the fact I knew that seemed to surprise her. She looked over at my mother and smiled brightly.

“Okay, handsome,” my mother said, “you’re smiling. So I guess that means the trip went well?”

I nodded and took a seat next to them. “Went really good. I think we all had things we left unsettled. We talked, and I got the closure I needed to move forward.”

Their smiles only grew more intense. My mother’s, of course, was accompanied by the tears rushing down her cheeks. She placed her hand on mine. “So when do I get to officially meet my future daughter-in-law?”

“She gets off work in a half hour. What are you doing for dinner?” I asked. “I could pick something up from Jett’s, and we could be here around six.”

She nodded. “Sounds perfect.”

With that, it was settled. Tonight the two women in my life would finally meet each other.

***

I jumped up from the front step of Avery’s apartment as she pulled into the parking lot and hurried down the path toward her. Once her car door was open, I held out my hand to help her out. She watched me closely, and I knew she was evaluating my mood. I couldn’t remember the last time I felt this great, this relaxed.

“That smile sure looks good on you,” she said.

I pushed the hair back from her face and wrapped my hand around the back of her neck. “I’m happy, pretty girl. Things are about to change. You’re not gonna know what hit you.” I placed my lips against hers in a slow, reassuring kiss. “I’m ready for this, for our little family.” I trailed the fingers of my other hand over her stomach, just beneath the hem of her scrubs. I heard her take in a shuddering breath and knew the effect my touch had on her. I was feeling the same thing.

“We have a little over an hour before we have to be at Jett’s to pick up dinner.” She had been focusing on my lips until I brought up dinner, and then her gaze lifted to meet mine, her eyebrows crinkling in confusion. “It appears my mother is more than ready to meet the mother of my child and her future daughter-in-law,” I explained. Just saying the words made my heart race. I could only imagine what they were making her feel.

“What do you think about me helping you get cleaned up from work? I could use a shower myself.” I was still skimming my thumb along the waistband of her pants as our eyes remained locked on one another’s.

A simple nod from her was all I needed. Lowering my hand from her stomach, I took hers in my other hand and led her toward her front door.

Once she stepped in, I locked it and began to guide her to the bathroom at the end of the hallway. As she stepped through the open doorway, I stopped her just before the vanity. I gripped her waist from behind, the curve of her hips fitting my palms perfectly. Sliding my hands forward, I allowed them to span out over her stomach as I leaned forward and began to kiss the side of her neck. Her head fell back to rest against my shoulder, a small whimper falling from her lips.

I was growing hard against her as my mind began to race. Slowly, I brought my hands upward, lifting her shirt along the way, then cupped her breasts through her bra.

“Kade,” she panted as she pushed her ass against my growing erection. Grinding against me, she begged for more.

“Let’s get in the shower,” I whispered against her ear before sucking on the side of her neck gently.

Nodding was the only response she offered before she began to shed her clothes. I almost laughed at her urgency. It was as if she couldn’t get naked fast enough. Her body was slim and still showed no signs that she was carrying my child, except for her breasts. They were bigger than a handful now, much fuller than they had been before.

I smiled as I stepped into the shower with her, letting my eyes roam over her perfection.

“What are you smiling so big for?” she asked with a matching smile of her own.

I moved forward, placed my hands on her hips, and pulled her body flush against mine. “I can’t wait until you start showing,” I whispered just before burying my head in the crease of her neck. She moaned, and I grinned against her. “I’m gonna make you so deliriously happy, pretty girl.”

“Promise?”

“I promise, baby, you and our child won’t know what to do with all the love I’m gonna give you. All the happiness I’ll bring you,” I assured her, and I meant every word. I was beyond ready to begin my life with Avery and leave all the darkness my heart once held in the past.

“Love me now, Kade,” she whispered as she trailed her hands between us and wrapped her fingers around my cock. “Show me now.”

Those words were all it took for me to do just that. Avery needed my touch, and I wanted nothing more than to give her what she needed. Our life together started now, from this moment forward. We were
us
now, and that would never change.

I twisted her around so her back was against me and gently pressed my hand to the center of it. She bent forward and leaned against the tiles, giving me an open invitation.

The moment I slid myself inside her, we both moaned in unison, and our bodies took over as we began to slowly move as one. Her ass pressed back against me each time I thrust my hips forward.

Leaning over her back, I wrapped my right hand farther around her hip until I found her clit. As I created the friction she needed, she brought her arms up and braced herself against the shower wall.

“Oh my God, yes,” she moaned as she opened her legs wider.

“How does that feel?” I asked in a breathy groan. I was on the verge of combustion, and I needed to get her to the finish line before I lost it.

“So good, I’m so close. Please don’t stop,” she demanded as she began to rock back against me. I stopped thrusting, allowing her to take over. Avery was a little wild in the heat of the moment, and she knew what she wanted. “Yeah, baby, just like that,” I told her as she continued to fuck me.

“Yes,” she moaned. “Kade, please.”

I applied a little more pressure to her clit, and she went off like a rocket, bucking against me. Her pussy throbbed around me, and I no longer had hope of holding on. We came together as my eyes rolled back into my head and my toes curled from the intensity.

Chapter Thirty-Four

Avery

Kade’s mother wrapped me in her arms and held me close. “It’s so good to finally meet you. Call me Wynona.” She stepped back and looked me over closely. “Kade, if you two have a little girl and she looks like her momma, you’re gonna have to fight the boys off with a whip.”

“Oh hell no,” Kade said. “If we have a little girl, she isn’t leaving the house until she’s twenty-five.”

I laughed at his response. With everything that had gone on between Kade and me, and then with how crazy things were after my mother’s accident, I hadn’t really given much thought to what sex the baby would be. Yet as I listened to them talking about a little girl, I finally let myself imagine. She would be a little blonde, green-eyed angel who no doubt would love her big, protective daddy.

Kade carried the bags of food to the kitchen counter and began removing the containers one by one.

“How’s your mother doing?” Wynona asked.

“She’s doing better. She goes to speech therapy twice a week, and I’ve noticed a big difference,” I replied as I helped set the table.

“Good. I’d like to meet her and your father after things settle. With the baby, I’m sure in the future we’ll see a lot of each other.” She smiled.

Life had really taken a turn. I never thought Kade and I would reach this point. He’d held back so strongly and shown no signs of ever being able to move forward, and now here we were. We’d moved past the mountain of heartache that had separated us, and now we were together.

“That would be nice,” I said. “I know my mother would love to meet you too. Maybe we can set up something in a couple weeks.” A thought occurred to me. “I’m getting close to the sixteen-week mark, and we should be able to find out the sex of the baby at our next appointment. Maybe we could all get together for dinner to announce it.”

Kade’s smile grew wide, and he placed the food at the center of the table before leaning over and kissing the side of my head. “I like that plan. We can have everyone there. Maybe at Jett’s.”

“That sounds perfect,” I said as I looked up at him while fighting back the emotion boiling inside me. Kade had come so far, and I don’t know if our child was what forced him to make the necessary choices to get there, but I was so proud he took those steps. When this all began, I said I could raise our child on my own, but deep down, I knew I needed him. I wanted to be able to share every moment of our child’s life as a family.

***

“Drop the burger, dude,” Kade growled. Yes, he growled as he narrowed his eyes at Jude.

I looked between the two of them, unsure of what exactly to say or do. I had no idea what had fired Kade up.

Jude had offered to make me a mouthwatering burger—his words, not mine. So I stood at the side of the table full of food while he began to create this so-called amazing burger. We had been invited to a cookout at Easton and Harper’s place, and the entire gang was there.

“No, man, your woman wants a burger, so I am making her a burger.” Jude continued to work his magic, unaffected by Kade’s obvious irritation.

Jett’s chuckle caught my attention, and I turned to see him and Easton watching Kade with interest. I knew instantly they were somehow responsible for the scene unfolding before me.

“I don’t need you to feed my girl. I can do that myself.” Kade squared his shoulders and took a step closer.

Jude looked up to meet his stare, and a smirk stretched out over his lips as he looked back over his shoulder toward Jett. A deep chuckle shook his chest as he turned back to face Kade.

“That jackass fired you up, didn’t he?” Jude asked. “He told you about the nachos and ice cream.”

Kade’s aggravation faltered just a little as a grin pulled at the corner of his mouth. “Yep,” he replied. “And as I said, I can feed my woman without your help.”

Jude hung his head and chuckled as he pushed the plate, holding a half-made burger, toward Kade.

I watched in confusion as Kade took the plate and Jude slowly backed away. He made his way over to the other two guys, and all three began to laugh.

“What was that all about?” I asked.

Kade looked me straight in the eyes. “I’m responsible for your salty and sweet,” he said with authority, “and everything in between. Got it?”

I looked over at Jett, noticing he was still watching Kade closely. Then it clicked. Jett, still smiling, offered me a reassuring wink, and I knew instantly he was responsible for the testosterone-driven display.

I stepped toward Kade and placed my hands at his waist. “I got it,” I whispered before raising up on to my toes and placing a soft kiss against his lips. “I love you, Kade Thomas,” I said without hesitation or regret. “Now make me that burger, Daddy. Your baby’s hungry.”

His features softened. “One burger coming up, pretty girl.” He offered me one last kiss before he busied his hands.

Men. And they say women are dramatic.