Friends & Lovers Trilogy (44 page)

He carried her over the
threshold, trying to pay attention to where he walked as he kissed
her senseless.

“
Wow,” he said simply, when
they got to the back of the bungalow.

Nicole turned her head and
her breath caught as she took in the beautiful four poster bed,
surrounded by glass walls that opened up to a deck with a hot tub
bubbling seductively.

The view showcased teal blue water crashing
against the sand. Kent opened the doors leading from their bedroom
to the deck and the sound of the waves crashing brought a beautiful
smile to his face. Nicole felt her stomach flip and a hot flash
seemed to zip through her. He had never looked as gorgeous as he
did in that moment.

“
Wanna go in the hot tub?”
She suggested.

He turned and grinned at her,
“Absolutely.”

Nicole grabbed her bathing suit out of her
bag and took it into the bathroom to get changed. She wasn’t quite
ready to change in front of Kent yet, husband or not.

She looked at the skimpy white bikini, and
didn’t know if she should curse or thank Briana for talking her
into buying it. Nicole inhaled deeply, before opening the door to
join Kent. When she walked out, she saw him stepping gingerly into
the hot water, his eyes focused on the gorgeous scene before him.
She padded softly out onto the deck, willing herself not to cover
her exposed skin with her arms.

Kent turned towards her
even though Nicole was certain she hadn’t made a sound. His eyes
widened, along with his smile, and his pupils dilated
slightly.

“
You look
amazing.”

“
Thanks,” she said
shyly.

He scooted over and sank into the water,
giving her room to enter the Jacuzzi.

Nicole lowered herself into the hot water
and sighed softly as it slid silkily over her skin.

“
That feels wonderful,” she
murmured.

Kent cleared his throat and she opened her
eyes to see him looking at her hungrily. She followed his gaze and
was mortified to see that her white bikini was practically
transparent in the water.

She moved to cover herself, but Kent
growled, “Don’t,” and she stilled her movements. The look he was
giving her turned the blood in her veins into molten lava. Her
hands fluttered out over the water nervously and she gasped as Kent
pulled her swiftly into his arms. His mouth was on her before she
had time to register what was happening.

Their mouths fused as their bodies came
together. The sounds of their passion mingled with the bubbling tub
and the waves behind them, but they didn’t hear any of it.

Nicole whimpered against Kent’s lips as the
friction of their bodies threatened to drive her wild.

Kent stood, lifting her and
exiting the jacuzzi in one swift movement. They entered the room
and he brought her softly down to rest on the bed.

“
I’m so happy I waited
until I found you,” Nicole said breathlessly, her eyes shining with
unshed tears.

“
God, so am I,” Kent
exclaimed gruffly, then proceeded to claim Nicole as his wife.
Forever.

Roni & Rich

Roni stood staring at the pink plus sign,
willing it to be correct. Her heart felt like it was about to burst
with joy and disbelief.

The doctor had said she’d probably never be
able to have children. Roni had made sure Rich understood that, and
one of the reasons she loved him was that he wanted to be with her
even knowing they may never have kids.

Roni had tried to come to terms with that
fact, but deep down the possibility was a source of great sorrow
for her.

Now here she stood, hopeful
that the doctor had been wrong and terrified that it was a false
positive.

A persistent knock sounded at the door.

“
Well,” Nicole asked from
the other side. “Is it ready yet?”

Over the past few weeks
Roni had been experiencing fatigue and her breasts were sore. She
hadn’t thought anything of it, until she realized she was a few
weeks late getting her period. At first she’d been in denial that
pregnancy was even a possibility. Even when she’d confided her
symptoms to Nicole and her sister in-law had suggested that may be
the case.

“
You know what the doctor
said,” Roni had said to her friend at the time. “I’m sure I’m just
late.”

“
Have you ever been late
before?” Nicole asked, pushing her blonde hair behind her ear as
she spoke. Being married suited her beautifully.

“
Um, no… I guess I
haven’t,” Roni admitted.

“
Well, can you think back
about six weeks and pinpoint a time when you and Rich could have
gotten pregnant?”

Roni had blushed when she
remembered the night she’d finally told Rich that she was in love
with him. It had been about six months after Kent and Nicole’s
wedding. She’d been diligently attending counseling sessions,
teaching dance, and spending every extra minute with Rich. Through
it all he had been so supportive and caring, and their relationship
had progressed beyond a blossoming romance and had become a stable
happy relationship.

She’d stopped by the Rec Center after
closing at the Bar & Grill, and had found Rich in the boxing
ring sparring with Jason.

She’d watched him, getting turned on the
more she watched his body move around the ring. By the time he
finished up, Roni had worked herself up into a frenzy.

Rich had climbed out of the ring and she’d
surprised him by jumping into his arms and kissing him thoroughly.
His arms had come around her and he laughed.

“
Happy to see me,
sunshine?” He’d said between breaths.

He’d called goodbye to Jason as he carried
her off towards his room in the back. Roni had taken the
opportunity to devour his handsome face with her eyes and run her
hands through his damp hair, which was in desperate need of a
haircut.

Roni had thought about the
day they’d met in the Bar & Grill, and how far they’d come
since then, personally, professionally, and romantically. She
looked into his hazel eyes and saw everything that she’d ever
wanted staring back at her.

“
I love you,” She’d said,
holding his face with her hands as she spoke, so she could see the
grin that broke across his face and his eyes light up with
pleasure.

“
I love you
too.”

“
Yes,” Roni replied to
Nicole, breaking out of the memory. “I know when it could have
happened.”

Now here she stood, the evidence in her
hand, as Nicole eagerly waited on the other side of the door.

Roni opened the door swiftly, causing Nicole
to fall into the bathroom.

“
Well,” Nicole asked again,
catching herself on the bathroom sink before she did any
harm.

Roni’s eyes welled up as she showed the
stick to Nicole. Nicole let out a squeal and pulled Roni into her
arms, jumping up and down.

“
Oh my gosh,” Nicole said
excitedly, tears starting to form in her eyes as well. “This is so
great.”

Roni nodded and smiled, then voiced her
worries aloud.

“
What if it’s a false
positive?”

“
You know, most clinics
offer free pregnancy tests. We can go and get your blood taken, and
you will know for sure.”

Roni nodded again.

“
I just don’t want to get
Rich’s hopes up, only to find out that the doctors were right after
all,” Roni admitted.

Nicole turned her embrace into a hug and
patted Roni on the back.

“
That makes sense. Let’s go
call some clinics.”

An hour later Roni and Nicole walked out of
the clinic and the two girls embraced once again.

“
I have to get to my dance
class,” Roni said. “I’ll talk to you later.”

“
Okay. Once they call you
with the results, will you let me know?”

“
Absolutely,” Roni said
with a smile as they walked to the parking lot and got into their
respective vehicles.

The trip to the Rec Center was a short one,
but it felt like it took forever to Roni. She wished she could get
immediate results, but the lab had to run the test. At least they
had told her she would find out before the end of the day. The
uncertainty was torture.

Now that she felt a glimmer of hope that she
would in fact be able to have kids, Roni really wanted it to be
true. She knew with absolute certainty that Rich would be the best
father ever, and that she was ready to show a child all of the love
and affection that her parents had never been able to give her.

Kent would be a terrific uncle, she thought
with a smile.

She wanted this so badly that her heart
ached with the need.

Roni stuck her head into the office when she
entered the Center, and saw Rich sitting at his desk, hands in his
hair as he went over some paperwork.

He looked so hot.

She cleared her throat and he looked up. It
took him a few seconds for his eyes to focus on her, but when they
did; his face blossomed just like it always did when she entered a
room.

Roni knew how lucky she was to have a man
like him; after all, she’d once been married to his polar
opposite.

“
Hey, babe,” Rich said as
he got up from his seat and strode purposefully to her. He gathered
her in his arms and she inhaled the scent of him deeply. Spicy,
sweet, and totally male. “Headed to class?”

“
Yeah,” she responded,
pulling back so she could look at his face. “I’ve got the little
ones. We still on for dinner?”

“
Nowhere else I’d rather
be,” he said with a smile. He gave her a kiss on the lips and a
quick pat on the ass as she turned to leave.

Roni giggled at that, then went to her class
to get ready for her pupils.

The beginning dance class was one of the
most rewarding and fun, and by the end of the class, Roni’s spirit
was flying high.

“
Thank you, Ms. Roni,” one
of the girls said as she walked out of the studio with her
mother.

“
You’re welcome, Sophie.
Great job today,” Roni responded with a smile.

She cleaned up her studio and went to the
kitchen in search of dinner. The last time Briana was in town,
she’d cooked a bunch of meals and froze them. That was Briana’s way
of thanking Rich for allowing her to use his deluxe kitchen
whenever she was in town, so Roni and Rich ate like kings for weeks
after Briana went back to Austin.

Roni looked through the freezer and chose a
pasta sauce. She put some water on to boil the noodles and got a
pan out to thaw the sauce. She was cutting up the makings of a
salad, when Rich walked up behind her and kissed her neck.

“
Mmmm, smells good,” Rich
said softly in her ear, before taking a nip.

Roni felt the heat spark up and shoot
straight down to her toes.

She was about to turn into him when her
phone sounded off in her pocket.

Rich took over cutting as she pressed the
button to receive the call.

“
Hello?” Roni said softly,
terrified of what news would be relayed to her. She kept her back
to Rich and walked a few steps away.

She listened for a few moments, then hung up
the phone. Roni stood stock still for a moment, before turning to
Rich.

Roni looked at him, chopping vegetables in
his sparkling kitchen. He wore a rumpled blue t-shirt, jeans, and
flip flops. And knowing him, that’s all he wore.

Rich looked up when he noticed that she
hadn’t spoken or moved for a few moments.

“
Everything okay?” he
asked.

“
Come here,” Roni said,
turning to head out of the kitchen and into his room.

“
Don’t you have food on the
stove?” Rich asked as he came in behind her.

“
Sit down,” she said,
pointing to his bed.

“
Okay…” He sat and looked
up at her, a little wary.

Roni looked around his room.

It was a mess.

The bed was unmade, his dirty clothes were
on the floor next to his hamper, and his furniture was old and
tattered.

“
This isn’t going to work,”
she began. “You’re a total slob. You need to make your bed and
start cleaning up after yourself. I know you can do it, just look
at the rest of the Center, it’s pristine, but this room… not so
much.”

Rich shifted uncomfortably
as he looked around his space. “You’ve never said anything about
the way this place looks before, why are you worried about it
now?”

“
Because you can’t raise a
baby in conditions like this,” Roni said softly, unable to stop the
smile that took over her face.

She watched the shock settle in as her words
began to register, and Rich popped off the bed in a shot. He
gathered her to him and tried to hug her tightly, without squishing
her.

“
Are you sure?” he asked,
his face in her hair.

“
That was the doctor on the
phone,” she said as tears began to slide down her cheeks. “She said
we’re six weeks along.”

She heard Rich breath in deeply and his
breath catch and she knew he was trying to compose himself.

Roni pulled back and looked into the face of
her beautiful, sweet man, who was trying unsuccessfully, to contain
his tears of joy.

Rich cupped her face in his hands and kissed
her sweetly, their tears mingling together as they held each other
close.