“I’ll do that,” spoke Niamh as she took the glass from the nurse.
Major sipped from the straw slowly. She had been at his side from the second he had been carried into the house and placed on the bed. Thankfully, his eyes were so swollen that no one noticed that he had been watching the man that sat in the corner of the room while he watched his wife nurse him. He had known Cabhan for years. Once he and Niamh started their affair, he had gone to great lengths not to be in the man’s presence. However now, fate had brought them together. Every time Niamh started fussing over him, he wanted to cringe, but the pain his body was in made him do otherwise. Everything Niamh had told him about the man wasn’t true. Even if she truly believed it; the man wanted her. The hurt he hid, seeing her there with him, was obvious. Sure, he smiled and faked the funk, but being a man himself, he was able to pick up on the signs.
Using the fact that she was leaning down to hold the drink, Major whispered, “Get rid of him, please.”
Niamh lowered her eyes. “Ok.”
Ten minutes later, she asked, “Cab, could you make me something to eat? I’m starting to feel light-headed.”
With a nod, Cabhan left the room.
“How can you do that?”
Niamh blinked in confusion.
“Excuse me?”
“How can you be acting like this over me with him in the room?”
“Oh, that?” Niamh waved.
“Oh, that!” mocked Major. “That’s dirty.”
“You don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Don’t touch me,” he said with a hiss.
Her hand paused. “What’s your fuckin’ problem?”
“You!”
Niamh tilted her head. “My marriage is my business, not yours.”
“Why do you treat that man like that? If I were him, I wouldn’t stand for it, but for some outrageous reason, he does. Is something wrong with his dick? Can he get it up? Or is it too small?”
“How the hell would I…” She grunted.
“Because you’re his wife,” Major pointed out. “You never had sex with him?”
Niamh plopped down into the chair and crossed her arms. “No.”
“Wow,” said Major. “Priceless and cold… Damn, you’re giving it away but not to him. That’s some twisted shit.”
“We’re friends. You know why he married me.”
“We were friends. I’m Jakobe’s friend, but that didn’t stop us from fucking.”
“But you wanted me; Cabhan has never—”
“You actually believe that shit?” At her clueless expression, Major continued. “I’ve been watching him. That man loves you, and you’re too dumb or fuckin’ blind to see it.”
Frustrated, Niamh got to her feet. “I’m going to leave you. The pain is making you into a cranky, piss-ass punk.”
“Good! I don’t want you in here anymore. I can’t take you in here after seeing the look on that man’s face.” Major grunted.
She slammed the door. Stopping to find the nurse to send her into the room, she headed for the kitchen. Her asking for food was a lie, but now she really was hungry. The smells assaulted her senses upon entering the kitchen. She nodded at Cabhan as she took a seat at the table to wait for him to finish cooking. Her eyes bore into his back when he went back to his task. Why the hell was Major getting mad at her over something he didn’t understand? Was she just supposed to be lonely all of her damn life? She enjoyed being with Cabhan. They had a lot in common, and she did love him. He had taken her and Jakobe in—when no other person would have dared to out of fear of Faolan. He had protected them and helped to raise Jakobe. It wasn’t her fault that their relationship had never blossomed into anything else other than friendship. Hell, she had tried to move it into more, but he never took what she had offered. Was she supposed to continue to make a fool of herself by offering him her body, only for him to decline? After a while, she just gave up, thinking that maybe he was gay. Or maybe he couldn’t perform.
Her eyes scanned his body. From his dark, brown hair that he kept cut low to hide the fact that it was thinning to his broad shoulders; he had done well over the years by changing his diet and steady exercise to stay fit, trim, and muscular. Her eyes trailed to his small, almost flat ass.
“What’s that frown about?”
Niamh shifted in her seat. She lowered her eyes. She had been so lost in thought; she hadn’t noticed he had turned around.
“Nothing,” she mumbled.
“Don’t lie. You’re pouting like a child.”
“No, I’m not,” she grumbled.
“Yeah, right.” He chuckled.
She raised her eyes and opened her mouth to respond back, but suddenly, she was at a loss for words. The way his light-brown eyes sparkled when he was teasing her, the way his thin lips were slightly crooked on the left side, and his strong jawline that had just enough hair to create the perfect beard was creating a warmth in her she had thought she had overcome. She had seen this man for countless years, since her early twenties, but for some reason, she was struck by how handsome he really was. She recalled the day she mentioned a few years back how sexy she had found facial hair on men.
Was that the reason he grew one? she wondered.
She shook her head to quiet the voice in her mind. Getting to her feet, she grabbed a bottle of wine, poured herself a drink, and drained the glass. She filled it again before she sat back down. He placed the plate with the hot, Reuben sandwich on it on the table. She eyed him when he walked back to the pan he left on the stove. Not being a woman to beat around the bush, Niamh spoke.
“Something has gotten under my skin,” she admitted with a mouth full of food.
“Hum?”
“I was just fussed out ‘cause I was told that I was a cold-hearted bitch—my words— ‘cause you are in love with me, but I’m too dumb or blind to see it.”
Her eyes narrowed at the sight of Cabhan stiffening as if he had been shot.
“Really?” he asked in a deep voice, his Irish accent just as heavy as hers.
“Is that true? Are you?”
Cabhan turned to lean against the stove. The look in his eyes said it all. She gasped, pushing the plate away. The hunger had disappeared.
“When?” she whispered.
He shrugged. “Always. The night that you and I talked at the party.”
“I… but…” She swallowed. “I was still married. I’ve tried to… Many times; I tried to—”
“I know.” He sighed. “I didn’t want you to feel like you owed me for—”
“Fuck that! I wouldn’t have offered you a pity hump. I would never have done that to you. I came to you because I wanted to. Oh, my God, Cabhan! Why?”
“So, he noticed, huh?”
“Damn right, he did!” she roared.
“You’re mad. Why?” he questioned, walking over to stand next to her.
“Not mad. I’m furious because this is stupid that you would hide your feelings from me for all these years and that I’ve been going around fuckin’ other men when you were… Are you gay?
“No,” he answered calmly. His heart was racing as he looked down at her straight, auburn hair. She was so small compared to him. The thought of crushing her as he covered her with his body, to finally do all the things he had fantasized about, was making his mouth go dry. He wasn’t worried about not being able to fulfill her sexual appetite, which he knew rivaled his own greedy monster. He had never had that issue with his past lovers.
“Well is something wrong with your… you know?” she questioned, dropping her gaze to his crotch that was at eye level.
Cabhan had sworn that, if ever given a chance, he would take it. He jerked her out of the chair and pressed his lips to hers. She tasted just as good as he had dreamed. She gave herself over to his kiss, her body melting into his. There was nothing else she could have done at that moment. His mouth was overloading her body with so many sensations to the point that she couldn’t think, only feel. The cock that she felt bulging in his pants against her gave her the answer to her question.
“No, Niamh. There has been nothing keeping me from loving you completely other than fear, and then when you started sleeping around. I don’t know; I just didn’t know how to make you see me as a man and not as just a friend,” he explained.
Niamh chewed her bottom lip. Suddenly, she took him by the hand.
“I know the friend. Now, come show me the man,” she suggested.
He closed his eyes as he processed her words. He felt his feet move as she led him out of the kitchen towards her room: the master bedroom. He closed the door. He had been in here many times, but this time, not to talk.
“I don’t know how long I’ll last. I’m too damn excited,” he admitted sheepishly.
“Then that means we’ll have to go again,” she stated. She opened his pants then took a step back. It was the first time she had seen his dick. The girth of it sent a shiver down her spine. She liked big men, but he was clearly larger than anything she had tangled with. She swallowed hard. “We’ll have to pace it out, though.”
She began to stroke his cock as he reached over her head and pulled off his shirt. “I’ll eat you between acts.”
Niamh moaned. Cahban lasted a lot longer than they both had expected. She marveled at the way he loved her, the way he touched, fingered, and teased her body, and the way he effortlessly picked her up and tossed her around. He watched her in order to figure out just what she needed and how to give it to her. He brought her to a state of need with the words he whispered; there was no doubt in her mind that he was a master lover. He had her howling and panting by the time he was ready to release.
“Cum for me, angel. Let me feel you again,” he demanded.
He leaned up to suckle her breast as she rode him hard. He brushed her damp hair from her moist neck and shoulders.
“Here,” he said as he braced her back while he rolled up on his knees. She wrapped her legs around his waist.
“No, too tight.” He chuckled, slapping her ass to make her loosen up.
He kept her suspended as he fucked her in double time.
“You’re almost there. Just give in.” He grunted.
He smiled when her eyes closed, and she screamed out in pleasure. He didn’t flinch while her nails cut into his flesh. He would wear those scars with pride. At last, she was his in more than a name.
“My turn.” He smirked.
Lowering her to the bed, he put his head down. He rammed into her, bringing her to another release before he followed closely behind.
“Fuck!” he exclaimed as he filled her with his hot, sticky cum.
Lowering his head, he kissed her passionately.
“Pace it out.” She groaned.
“Sorry.” He chuckled. “I’m a striving man.”
His humor was short-lived.
“By the way; I’m not on the pill.”
“You still have periods?”
“Don’t be a daft man. I’m only fifty-one. My ma didn’t stop having hers ‘til her late sixties.”
Cabhan’s eyes widened at her revelation. A wicked smile spread on his lips. His hips began to move, much to her protest.
“No. No, get up!” She punched his shoulder, but she knew it was no good.
“Shh, angel. You can take it. What do you want? Girl or a boy?”
Nakida sucked her teeth while she glared at the open door.
“What’s taking him so long,” she asked with a hiss.
He had said he was going to get her something to eat, so why was it past forty-five minutes, and he hadn’t returned. She glanced over at her cell that was dancing on the night table. She chuckled upon reading her Papi’s name. No doubt, he was checking to see if she was coming or not. She was surprised to hear a woman on the other side instead of his thick Spanish accent.
“Laila.”
“Ugh.” Nakida sighed in disgust.
“Wait! Don’t! Don’t hang up, please,” Nakida could hear her mother, Latecia, begging through the phone that she had removed from her ear.
Her finger paused over the red, disconnect button.
“Are you still there? Please!”
“What is it?” snapped Nakida.
“I knew you would answer his call, but me? Well, you know,” said Latecia, nervously.
“What do you want?”
“I… I wanted to,” Latecia slowly started as she tried to find the right words. “I wanted to say sorry. Arturo told me that you asked about the real reason why you and Jakobe couldn’t be friends.”
“Yeah, I knew you were pretending to be a friend while you were fucking your way on to bigger and better,” drawled Nakida.
“I’m sorry. You know, I’m happy that, in spite of my sins, he was still able to find you. Even as a kid at thirteen and you being ten, he still had the hots for you. He would get so mad when—”
“I can’t stay to go down memory lane with you.”
“I know. I just… Right.” Latecia sighed.
Nakida narrowed her eyes at the sound of Arturo in the background, telling her mother to say something.
“I called for another reason. I called to tell you about Faolan. He—”
“Hold up! You’re still running around with that douche bag? My God, Ma’ma. You’re married! All the shit that Papi has put up with you, and you got the nerve to—”
“Nina! Nina!” grumbled Arturo, getting on the phone. “Listen, she wasn’t cheating, okay? There were other reasons she was sneaking behind my back to see that asshole.” Arturo was fuming.
“Like what?” Nakida demanded to know.
“You tell her. It’s your sin, so confess it,” said Arturo, handing the phone back.
Nakida could tell, by the way that the phone was shaking on the other line and the sobbing, that Latecia was back on the phone. Her ma had gotten up from the side of the bed to pace around the luggage that cluttered the room. She knew her time was short before she boarded the private plane to disappear for a while.
“Well?”
“I... I…” She paused to swallow and clear her throat before she took a deep breath. “I’ve been battling a habit for a little minute. They say guilt is a cruel mistress, and I have a lot of it. Even after I was blessed with a man that knows I was nothing but an ex-prostitute that was prop trading to be a classy lady and still found a way to love me, I still couldn’t stand myself. So, I started taking Meth.”
Nakida rolled over onto her side as if she had just been kicked in the chest. Of course, she was clueless about the drugs, but even the prostitution was news. No wonder her older sister was such a slut and had issues. Nakida was too young. All she could remember was her father, Cedric, which her ma’ma had been married to. She wasn’t around during the hard times, thank God. That would also explain the strained relationship between her and her older sister, too. She always seemed to harbor an underlying hatred towards her that she could never understand until now.
“You need to get some help, Ma’ma,” whispered Nakida.
“I am, and this time, I’m staying clean. That means I’ll have things that I’m going to tell you that I hope won’t make you hate me even more than you already do, but I’m going to trust Arturo. He said it didn’t stick before ‘cause I was still carrying the weight of it all. That I need to let it go, heal, and believe that I am worthy of the love around me.”
“I love you, Ma’ma. Don’t worry about that. Just focus on getting better.”
The line went still. Then, Nakida heard a loud rush of air that Latecia let out as relief came over her. She never feared to lose her oldest. That girl had become the mirror image of her which was another sin she would have to deal with. It was Nakida she had been afraid of turning her back on her once she was introduced to the skeletons in her closet.
“I won’t keep you long. Arturo and I are leaving for the rehab place. I was calling you to give Jakobe some information concerning Foalan. The majority of the people can’t stand him, and with the stuff he’s doing…Well, they want him gone. I was told by one of those people that he’s going to be in a private room at Timmy Nolan’s. It’s an Irish place. He said they’ll have him there at 11 pm after the damn soccer game tomorrow,” she grumbled.
“Shit, the football game. That place better have the game ‘cause—”
“I thought it was about me, Art.”
“It is, it is, baby… But the game,” he whined.
Nakida laughed. “I gotta go. I’ll call you later. Bye… Love you guys,” she whispered.
“Why you laughing?” questioned Jakobe, his hands full of plates.
“I was getting giddy from the lack of food.” She smirked.
She sat up on the bed when three strangers entered the room after him. One was wheeling in equipment.
“This is Mrs. Vista. She’s a midwife,” he explained.
Nakida’s scared eyes darted between the three women in the room as they set things up. She shook her head in confusion.
“Why are they—”
“There’s nothing to be afraid of.” The pretty blonde smiled. “I’m Mrs. Vista. I was called by Dr. Patterson that’s treating the man in the other room to check you over.”
“Hey, hey,” cooed Jakobe as he sat on the bed. “I want to make sure that after the stress you’ve gone through that you and the baby are ok. That’s all,” he promised.
He wasn’t going to tell her that he couldn’t stop thinking about the blood he had seen earlier. Getting off the bed, he stood aside while the midwife pulled on her gloves.
“This is just like your yearly exam, so just open, relax, and let me have a look.”
“Be careful. We’ve been active,” he warned.
Mrs. Vista’s eyebrow went up as she stared at her swollen vagina. “Active, huh?” She paused with her hand out for the nurse to apply the gel to her fingertips. “Now, deep breath,” she ordered.
“You have to breathe, honey,” she said, squeezing Nakida’s knee. Mrs. Vista stared off into the distance as she moved and poked around until she removed her hand. Nakida practically jumped off the bed at the sight of blood. Her hand went to her belly. Tears stung her eyes.
“The baby. Jakobe, we shouldn’t have—”
“Calm down, now. I’m not saying that sex isn’t good. Just the opposite. It’s good for all of you, including the baby,” stated Mrs. Vista.
“She’s lost a baby before.”
The midwife eyes darted over to Jakobe. Her angry gaze bore into his. She was pissed that he hadn’t disclosed that information beforehand.
“In that case, I’m going to backtrack my first reply. While sex is fine, I’m ordering only spooning, with her on top, or the butterfly. None of that plowing her from behind, and no more than an hour. If you can’t pop your load by then, use your damn hand,” the midwife said with a growl.
Jakobe nodded, running his hands through his hair.
“Everything is perfect, Nakida.” Mrs. Vista gave her a reassuring smile. “The cervix is closed up nice and tight. Now, when was your last period?”
Nakida allowed herself to be pulled into Jakobe’s arms. She relaxed against his chest while the staff got the sonogram machine ready.
“It was about two weeks before we started dating, so I’m thinking eight weeks, maybe more. Shit, I don’t know. I can’t think straight,” she admitted in a shaky voice.
“One of the over the counter tests said six weeks,” he pointed out.
“There won’t be anymore guessing, soon. Have you been sick lately?” she asked.
“Yes, all day,” Nakida breathed her reply.
Mrs. Vista smiled as she applied the gel to her lower stomach. However, she knew that being sick didn’t mean a damn thing. If she had miscarried before, the baby, once she took a look, could be dead, and the sickness she was experiencing could be mental. As a trained professional, she hid her dread.
“Oh, thank you, Lord!” Mrs. Vista sighed with a deep eye roll as she glared at the monitor. She glanced over her shoulder at the shocked couple. “When you said she had lost a baby, I was worried, but no worries.”
She turned the monitor for them to see, now that she knew the baby was living.
“It’s a damn alien,” he said with a laugh.
Deep emotion was in his words. He looked at his baby on the screen and felt his throat tighten. It didn’t look human. It really did look like an alien, but it was his. He could see the heart beating fast and strong. He didn’t know if it was a girl or a boy. He didn’t really care. All he knew was that he was in love. He wiped the tears from Nakida’s cheeks.
“Thank you,” she whispered before she turned her attention back to the monitor.
She giggled at the tiny life that wiggled in her belly. She covered her mouth to stem the cry when the sound was switched on. She closed her eyes. She conjured up the day when she had sat in the doctor’s office years ago to experience the same sound that she heard now. Then, she had cried tears of joy while she felt unconditional love towards the baby on the screen with a man she had thought loved her, only to lose that life at that man’s hands. She had mourned that child for years. It had kept her in a constant state of depression at the thought of what if.
The difference between then and now was so obviously different. She listened as Jakobe asked the midwife where the baby was within her stomach. Upon being told, he placed his large, warm, calloused hand on her lower belly and began to speak deep, soothing words. He had given her what she had deemed impossible, while she had given him the life that he thought he never wanted with the woman he had longed for from his youth.
“Well, the test was close, but no cookie. You’re now close to nine weeks. You’ll be getting a baby bump pretty soon. Hell, you must have slipped one over the goalie your first time on the field.” Mrs. Vista winked.
She stiffened at the blinding smile that Jakobe flashed her. She was a lesbian, but he was giving her second thoughts of her sexual preference. His handsome, tanned face was something to behold, and his large chest with those tattoos was… Pulling herself back to Earth, she quickly pushed ‘print’ on the machine, handed them the black and white photo, and got the hell out of there.
After the room had cleared, Nakida moved out of his arms.
“Is that why I’ve been pissing in a pot since we had sex?”
“I thought I had messed you up. You and the baby,” he mumbled, lowering his gaze.
She laughed. “You looked that same way when I busted the piñata before you did.
“It was my party. How the hell you gonna come over and do that shit?” he questioned.
Nakida licked her lips. Leaning over, she kissed him. He opened his mouth to her questing tongue. He leaned back on the padded headboard to make room for her when she straddled his hips. Her pussy was hot on his hard dick.
“I can make it up to you.” She moaned against his open mouth. “But it will have to wait ‘til tomorrow,” she teased.
His gaze went to the plate that she had picked up while she was pressing into his body. He tossed back his head when he realized that her intention was really to get the food. Picking her up at the waist, he sat her back on her side of the bed.
“What are we watching?” she asked as the Netflix logo appeared on the large, flat screen mounted on the wall in front of the bed.
“Marry me.”
Nakida’s chewing slowed to a complete stop. She cut her eyes to the side. Doubting she must have mistaken he had said something, she went back to eating until he grabbed the plate.
“You aren’t going to answer me?” he teased.
She frowned. “Did you just—”
“I know you’re thinking about this food, but I didn’t think it stole your ability to hear. Marry me, Nakida. Sweetheart, are you ok?” he inquired while he slapped her back. She was coughing up the food that was in her mouth.
“Ow!” she yelled as she bowed her back to stop his hard hits. “You’re breaking my damn back,” she yelled.
“Sorry! I’m sorry,” he grumbled.
The room grew quiet.
“I know this isn’t the life you wanted, but I can’t live without you. And now that I’ve seen the baby, I can’t live without it either. I can’t change what I am. The thought of you having to deal with shit like this makes me want to stay away from you, but I’m a selfish son of a bitch, so I—”
“Yes.”
“Yes?”
“Now, who can’t hear?” She laughed.
“I’m just making sure you aren’t clowning me ‘cause you want the plate back.”
“Fuck you, Kobe. But I do want that food back,” she teased.
What she got instead were his lips on hers. Jakobe lifted her to cradle her in his lap.
“I love you, woman,” he said with a growl. “You are so amazing. Every damned thing about you is beyond perfect. Never will I leave you or let anything happen to you, although I know you can take care of yourself,” he whispered.
She saw it. She knew what it was that flashed in the depths of his eyes.
“Hey…Kobe,” she stated, forcing him to look at her. “I’m not mad about what’s going on. I know you are more than capable of keeping us safe. I called my Papi to help you, not to shame you or because you were weak. I’m a strong woman, but I don’t want your place. I’m an enhancement to walk with you, to have your back, and at times, handle shit. I can’t change that,” she explained.
Jakobe bit his bottom lip which hypnotized her. “I’ll tell you a secret about that,” he whispered. “I get so damn horny when I see you in control.” He groaned.
He gave his dick a hard squeeze and enjoyed the rush. She shifted on his lap to feel his hard cock under her ass.
“We can’t. The doctor…” She moaned.
He was already laying her back on the bed. “You know I can make you cum in other ways,” he informed her.
That is true, and the doctor did say it was good for the baby, too, the voice in her head pointed out.
“What about you,” she questioned, eyeing the bulge that was begging to be freed.
“There ain’t nothing wrong with your mouth.”
“Ugh, my throat,” she whined as she clutched her neck.
Their roaring laughter floated down the hall.