Kitchen Promises (Riverside Trilogy, #3) (The Riverside Trilogy) (2 page)

“I know. Just not as fast as I can!” he yelled back with amusement. Damn
, he was right. I had been off my game lately.

I didn’t have to work until the afternoon, so I enjoyed my breakfast in bed. I was trying to eat healthy, moderate meals, but it was as if my body was working overtime. Always wanting to sleep and eat. Didn’t really help that I worked on my feet and around food all day.

Drake walked in wrapped in only a towel. The toast I was bringing to my mouth suddenly dropped from my fingers as my eyes roamed over his perfectly toned body. My eyes followed down to his perfect V that went just below the towel.

“Breakfast in bed and a show? I’m one lucky gal,” I teased, leaning back against the headboard enjoying the view.

“Someone sounds like they are feeling better.” He smiled.

“Well, I for sure am now.”

“Really? Well, perhaps I should take advantage of that.” He grinned, slowly unwrapping the towel from around his waist. I smirked as I watched him tease me, putting on a show as he finally released the towel. I watched it fall to the ground. I let my eyes wander up and down his body—appreciating every single chiseled curve of muscle.

“It’s not nice to tease,” I reminded him. “You better put out or get out.”

“Oh, I love it when you talk dirty,” he quipped, laughing. “I can’t decide if I love or hate your pregnancy hormones.” He grinned. It was true—I had a love/hate relationship with them as well. On top of always wanting to sleep and eat, I also wanted sex—
all the time.
Not that Drake minded, but some days, I was all over the place. I felt like I had no control over them. They were beginning to drive me mad.

“Can you be a little late for work today?” I asked, placing the tray of food on the bedside table. I didn’t take my eyes off him as I watched him walk over to the bed. “I’d hate for you to get into trouble.” I grinned.

“I could probably weasel my way out of it with the boss.”

“You are the boss.”

“I know.” And with that, he made his way on top of me, brushing the covers off. “I think I can spare a few minutes…” He pressed his lips across my jaw, slowly moving to my neck. He bit it gently, making a moan escape my mouth at his touch and eagerness. “…for you.”

His hands slid up my sides, taking my shirt up with them. I arched my neck to the side, giving him better access as the sensations riveted through me.

I reached down, pressing him harder into me. I felt his hardness against me, making me desperate and needy for him.

The hormones made my body respond to him so much more—not that I didn’t before—but it was magnified. It was intensified, and I felt desperate to have him.

“Screw the foreplay. I need to have you right now,” I demanded, pushing his body harder against mine.

“Such a romantic, aren’t you?” I could feel him smiling against my neck as he continued softly kissing.

“I mean it. I’m going to explode,” I breathed out rapidly. Just his touch could undo me completely.

“Alright, hold on, baby.” He lowered his body and in one swift motion, slid my panties down. I wasn’t looking for romance right now. I needed him just as much as I needed to breathe.

I threw my shirt over my head and unclasped my bra. It was still weird seeing my body naked with the way it was changing so fast, but it was also a constant reminder of the love Drake and I shared.

Instead of pressing into me like I wanted him to, he tenderly laid kisses over my stomach and in between my breasts. He was torturing me. He knew it, too. I was practically grinding against him, yet he refused to give in.

“Baby, please,” I moaned out desperately.

“I can’t help it. You are just so beautiful. You have the most beautiful pregnant glow.” He continued to lay kisses around my bump, slowly, taking his time.

“That’s great,” I huffed, cupping his face up to look at me. “I’m going to handcuff you to this bed and straddle you if you don’t—”

He forced two fingers inside me before I could finish what I was saying. I moaned loudly at the surprise sensation, arching my hips up to greet his fingers.

“You’re feisty when you’re desperate.” He laughed as he worked his fingers in and out of me, hitting the perfect spot over and over.

I ignored him and grabbed the bedrail behind me, arching my body up to him as I needed and wanted to feel him inside me.

“How badly do you need it, baby?” Drake whispered with a hint of humor in his voice.

“You know how badly,” I snapped, unable to open my eyes. Still, I could hear the amusement in his tone. He enjoyed torturing me and secretly loved it.

“Say it,” he demanded, pressing harder into me, twisting his wrist, and practically taking all the air out of my lungs. “Say what you need, baby.”

“I need you! I need you inside, right now. God, I swear, I’ll do anything,” I pleaded, willing to do just about anything to get what I wanted from him.

“Anything for my sweet girl,” he hummed, lowering his lips to where his fingers were. He sucked hard, leaving no time for me to retaliate. My back arched, enjoying the sensations that released inside of me. My body shivered with pleasure, unable to control my own breathing as I moaned out.

He lifted his head and covered my body with his. I watched as he licked his fingers, moaning out pleasurable sounds.

“Keep your hands up,” he ordered. I continued hanging onto the bedrail, tightening my grip as he finally pushed himself into me. The feeling was overwhelming as I took him all in, finally feeling full and satisfied.

He leaned down and kissed me gently as he rocked his hips into me. His breathing quickened as the air blew over my lips. His mouth wandered to my ear, blowing and licking over my lobe, making it harder to leave my hands up. I wanted to dig my nails into him and drive him insane as much as he was doing to me. He lowered his hand and cupped my breast, squeezing gently. I screamed out his name, pushing my breast into his hand urgently, desperately needing the release.

He lowered his face and took it into his mouth, swirling his tongue around my peaked nipple. He grabbed one leg and placed it on top of his shoulder, allowing him to get deeper inside me. That was enough to set me off. I screamed out, not holding back as I greeted his hips with mine, soaking up every pleasurable second.

It wasn’t long before Drake did the same, milking his own release as he grinded into me. He lay on top of me as we both tried to get ahold of our breathing, panting into each other.

“Well, if this wasn’t the best morning I’ve ever had—breakfast in bed
and
sex all before my shower.” I grinned. My legs felt like jelly as all my muscles were stretched and aching.

“Glad to be of service.” His voice was filled with amusement. I’ve been like this for the past few months—needing sex on demand. I felt bad, as if I were using him, but I figured it wasn’t much different from before I got pregnant.

“Must be horrible for you, always needing to fulfill my needs, and all.” I stroked his back with my fingertips as he continued lying on top of me.

“It’s not always easy being the boss. Sometimes I have to do the dirty work.” I could feel his smile against my chest as we bantered.

“Oh, you poor thing. I almost feel sorry for you.” I rolled my eyes.

He kissed me lightly on the lips before rolling off the bed. I just watched as he walked to the bathroom. I listened as the shower started and steam began filling the room.

“Come on, let’s shower together.” He smiled, holding his hand out for me.

“Definitely the best morning ever.” I grinned, taking his hand in mind as I followed him in.

And it
was
the best shower ever.

-----<>-----

2

Drake

Watching Molly unravel
beneath me is by far the sexiest thing on Earth. The way her eyes rolled in the back of her head, and the way she sucked in her bottom lip between her teeth, undoes me every time. The way she moaned and screamed through the pleasure gave me a high. I loved hearing her little voice scream out my name as she clawed at the bedrails. I loved everything about her—pregnancy hormones and all.

The day we went to her first ultrasound is a day I’ll never forget. Molly was only eight weeks along, but they were easily able to determine that she was carrying twins.

“Are you sure? I mean, maybe it’s just one big sack?” I asked, sweating nervously.

I heard the ultrasound technician chuckle. “Yes, I’m sure.
There are two heartbeats.” She pointed to the bottom of the screen where the heartbeats were being recorded and turned up the volume. I heard two fast beating pulses, strong and perfect.

I never
before felt scared, nervous, and happy all at once. The way Molly’s face lit up as she watched the screen made everything worth it—the struggles, the pain, being shot—all worth it for this very moment.

Since the beginning when we found out, Molly’s moods have been all over the place. I
knew she couldn’t help it, and mostly I just tried not to laugh when she has her outbursts because it’s just the cutest thing ever, but deep down I knew she had a hard time with it. She didn’t like not having control over her emotions. She was used to everything being a certain way and on schedule.

There have been countless nights where
she woke me up and demanded sex. Typically, I wouldn’t mind, but after a while, it was becoming routine. I loved her, so I wanted to please her, but between the cravings, random horny moments, and crying, I didn’t know how much longer I’d last through this pregnancy—and she still had 4 months to go…

As Molly got dressed after our shower, I just stood in the doorway and watched. She was so stunning, so beautiful
, and she didn’t even realize it. I think she knew she was pretty, but to me, she was simply gorgeous. And seeing her with a swollen belly made her even more beautiful—
if that were possible.
The way her shirt lay over her stomach with just enough fabric to cover made me anxious for our babies to be here. I knew she had a while to go yet and that she’d get much bigger, but I was definitely enjoying the journey of watching her grow.

“How late do you have to work tonight?” I asked as she buttoned up her chef’s coat. I didn’t want her working anymore so she could take care of herself, but she insisted.

“Blakely and I both close,” she said, smoothing her hands over the coat, ridding all the wrinkles. After everything that happened with Nikos, I made sure the hiring process was much more in depth with screening applicants. I wasn’t going to allow another Nikos in my restaurant.

“Please take it easy,” I begged. Although I knew Molly could still work while being pregnant, and that many other women do too, it still made me nervous knowing hot stoves, ovens, and sharp objects surrounded her. And kn
owing how clumsy she could be, it made for a not-so-pretty picture in my head.

“I will, don’t worry. Colin and Blakely don’t let me do much anyway.” I liked Colin. Good chef, good worker, and best of all, wasn’t into my girl. Last I heard from Molly, Blakely was trying to dig her nails into Colin, and he wasn’t pushing away.

“Good.” I smiled. “Well, I’m off to work. Don’t want to be much later, or the boss will ring my neck,” I joked.

She walked over and wrapped her arms around my neck. I kissed her lightly
, and then knelt down to kiss her belly. “Be good for mommy.” I smiled. There had been a few instances where the smells of certain foods at work have made her sick and she’s had to leave early. I knew she hated it and wanted to do her part instead of having everyone else work extra hard to compensate for her.

“Yeah, you tell
’em, babe. Baby A is jammed up my ribcage.” She chuckled, but was serious. “And Baby B is somewhere in the other rib.”

“Well, soon enough, they’ll be here,” I reminded her. I stood back up and kissed her once more. “I’ll come down and visit you when I’m done at the office.”

“Okay. Love you,” she called as I began walking down the hallway.

“Love you three!”

As I walked down the hall to the staircase, I paused in front of the nursery. It wasn’t set up yet, but Molly was having a blast designing it. Michael insisted on being the decorator, making sure it was all set up and designed perfectly. I had no idea of all the small details that went into having a baby. I especially didn’t know how much work went into getting the nursery ready. I figured a crib, some clothes, and diapers. However, Michael informed me of how wrong I was.

We
had looked at baby cribs and everything else we’d need—bassinets, swings, bouncers, changing tables, dressers, clothes, toys, diapers—the list seemed endless. There was still a lot left to plan and get ready, but as long as Molly was happy with it, I was happy.

Stella and Liam took the news amazing. I knew they would, but now that we were in the planning process, they were over the top excited. Violet agreed to let me have Liam twice a week and every other weekend now that she was living in Chicago with Stanley. I’d pick him up from school Mondays and Wednesdays. Then, I’d pick him up Saturday morning on my weekends. I loved having him in my life, regardless of the fact that I had to share him with his mother; I was just happy to be given a second chance at being his dad.

Having Liam in my life made me extra excited about the twins coming. I hadn’t known I even wanted to be a dad until the day I found out about Liam. When I heard about Violet’s secret, I was determined to have my son in my life. The visions of baseball games, movie nights, and birthday parties flooded my mind the entire year I searched for them. My dad and I didn’t have that kind of relationship; we never bonded like that. He was a good dad in that he provided for me and taught me what I know now, but I really felt that I missed that in my childhood. I was never going to let any of my children grow up with a dad like that. I wanted to give them everything they deserved and more.

*   *   *

I walked to my office feeling great. I loved that Molly was working just floors below me. Not that she needed to be watched, but if anything happened to her, I wouldn’t be far away.

“Your messages, Mr. Stagliano.” My assistant walked in and set a handful of notes down on my desk.

“Thank you, Carla.”

As I scanned through them, I saw an interesting one catch my eye.
Stanley Webber.
What did he want? I only spoke to him if it pertained to Liam, and usually, Violet would text or call me if it were important.

It was weird knowing Molly’s secret about Stanley. I knew she didn’t want to tell him or anyone else for that matter, but a part of me felt like she should. Perhaps it was because Stanley was a good man
, and maybe I thought he deserved to know, but it was Molly’s decision, and I’d never force her to do anything she didn’t want to do. Stanley was good to Liam, so for now, that’s all that mattered.

I decided to ignore it for now and catch up on my emails. Things have been crazy busy lately, the holidays approaching soon and the restaurant expanding. I’d have to hire another chef to cover the expans
ion and another to cover Molly when she goes on maternity leave. If I had my way, she would stay home and never go back to work at all. But I knew it was important to her, so I never pushed the subject too much.

I worked on my computer through the morning, catching up on financial statements and documents when an eager knock startled me. “Yes?” I called out.

“Mr. Stagliano, there’s a Mr. Webber here. He says it’s urgent.” Her eyes were fierce letting me know she was uncomfortable with him just showing up. She had worked for me for many years now, so I was accustomed to her facial expressions.

“Sure, let him in.” I waved in my direction. I stacked the paperwork on my desk and put it in one neat pile. I watched as she escorted him in and offered a beverage. He denied and thanked her kindly. She closed the door quietly as Stanley walked
toward my desk. “Come, sit down,” I ordered, motioning to the chair.

“I apologize for just showing up, Drake, but I wanted to catch you before you left for lunch.” He sat down across from me.

“Is everything okay? Is Liam alright?” I asked.

“Oh yes, he’s fine. Nothing like that. I’m actually here on business.”

“What is it?” I crossed my arms, looking intently at him.

“I’m hoping you’d be willing to help me out with something.”

“Go on.” I nodded.

“I have a new business partner, and I want to host a welcome event
into my company. I was hoping to be able to do it here at the Riverside, keep it low profile until his partnership is announced.”

“I’m sure we could work something out. You don’t want to use one of your hotels?” I asked curiously.

“Well, the ones in the city I have are all booked for holiday events coming up, and I wanted to do this in a few weeks, if possible.”

It seemed odd to me, but Stanley was a nice enough guy, so I decided to go along with it.

“I’m sure we can plan something on short notice. What kind of things are you looking to do?” I grabbed a notepad and pen to write some notes down. I’d have my assistant book the hall and get everything ready.

“Something on the casual side, but nice. More like a meet and greet.”

“Do you want the caterers?”

“Yeah, I was thinking a sit down event; we’ll eat, and have a couple speeches, just something to welcome him into my company. Mostly businessmen will be there networking.” I nodded as I wrote it all down. It sounded simple enough. It was always good to network with other financial experts and hotel owners. Stanley was very professional on the outside, but I’ve gotten to know his soft side around Liam.

“Great, I think I’ve got it all. I’ll give this to my assistant and see when she can squeeze it in.” I smiled, setting the pen down. We both stood up and shook hands. “I’ll be in touch.”

“Thanks, Drake. Appreciate it.” He nodded back at me and turned to leave. I ripped the sheet off the pad and called for my assistant.

*   *   *

“How are you going to pull that off in only a few weeks?” Molly asked, rinsing potatoes in the sink. I had just finished telling her about my meeting with Stanley. She hadn’t said too much about him since she confessed the truth about him, but I guess there really wasn’t much for her to say about him. She didn’t know him. She didn’t want to get to know him, and whenever he was with Violet dropping Liam off, she would be sweet, but guarded. I always felt it was her way of keeping her distance, not wanting to get too close.

“It’s small, nothing too big. Plus, I think Stanley wants to enjoy the evening rather than always feeling like he’s at work.”

“That’s nice of you,” she said in a surprised tone.

“Aren’t I always?” I answered with an amused grin. I stood behind her, nuzzling my face in the nape of her neck.

“Well, it’s better than Violet showing up at your office…
again.
” She tensed. I blew air over her ear and nipped it with my mouth. Her body relaxed and shivered underneath me, making me grin at how easily her body reacts to me.

“Stop it. I’m trying to make dinner.” She giggled, pushing her neck down.

“Yes, please stop it. I don’t want to throw up before I even get a chance to eat,” Michael interrupted, making a gagging sound.

“Oh, like you’re any better?” Molly fired back. “I swear, I walk in on you and Trey one more time—”

“Hey,” he interrupted, putting his hands up in surrender. “No one told you to walk in. Ever hear of knocking?”

“Ever hear of shut the hell up?” She made a face at him and swatted him with the wood spoon in her hand.

“Alright, you two. Play nice,” I interjected. I backed away to let them bicker it out. Michael’s boyfriend, Trey, had been coming over a lot more recently. Michael finally decided to settle down and date. Molly liked him, but lately she was a little edgy about it. Personally, I think it was because she was jealous of all the time Michael spent with him instead of her. And add that to the pregnancy hormones, you had one emotional recipe for disaster.

On top of planning Stanley’s event, I wanted to surprise Molly with an engagement party soon. She hadn’t mentioned a lot about the wedding with focusing on the babies and work, so I thought I’d do all the organizing of getting a party together.
We’ve been engaged five months now, so I figured we needed to do it soon.

Christmas was coming up, so I thought a holiday engagement party would be the route to go. I had a party planner already on top of it. I didn’t want Molly to stress about it—and I knew she would—so I didn’t plan to tell her until the night of. Risky, yes. But in my experience, it was better to ask for forgiveness than to get permission. So a party was in the works.

I set the table and called for Stella to come down. Michael and Molly were still teasing each other in the kitchen, so I sat at the table with Stella.