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  I had one major logistical problem. I was five foot nothing, and he towered over me. It was hard to call the shots while we were standing, so I needed to maneuver him towards the couch. I grabbed hold of his shirt and reached up with my mouth to connect with his, eager to show him how much I had missed him. At the same time, I needed to distract him long enough for me to gain some momentum and swing us in the direction I wanted to go.

  He totally got my drift and actually picked me up, allowing me to wrap my legs around him and kick my shoes off while we turned and landed on the couch. I could feel him holding back, not giving me the full weight of his body.

  “Ryan, you’re not going to break me.”

  He wasn’t listening, but trailing delicious kisses down my neck, nipping my skin along the way. “Ryan! Listen to me.”

  “No listening, busy.”

  Fine, he could have it his way. I was starting to lose my train of thought anyway.

  We lost our clothes in a hurry, eager to reconnect after all that time spent apart.

  “I can’t go slow, Chlo. Next time.”

  I lifted my arms up above my head and arched into him as he entered me, hard and fast. For a moment, we were suspended there, joined in the most intimate way, fighting to figure out our next steps. I exhaled and settled into him, skimming my arms down the side of his hard body, landing on his perfect ass, where I took a hold and pushed him forward. It was all the direction he needed. Shifting to take more of him inside me, I grounded myself with one foot on the floor while giving him as much access to my body as he needed.

  It was hard, it was fast, and it was wonderful. I craned my body to find the connection I needed to finish this on a high note, arching and moving against him seeking my climax. I found it just in time, as he and I came together, sighing into each other’s mouths, finally letting down our guard and sinking deep into one another.

  Ryan propped himself up on his forearms, keeping us joined as best he could. “I love you, Chloe Murphy.”

  “Yeah, about that. If you sent those papers to my father, we’re going to have to rectify that. You’re going to need to marry me again.”

  “Wow, that the best proposal you’ve got?”

  I smacked his ass. “You’re the one who’s supposed to do the proposing, buddy.”

  He raised an insolent eyebrow. “Saucy. I like it. Being pregnant is making you cheeky.”

  “Ryan? We need to get this straight.”

  “What?”

  “We’re going back to Ireland. We’re going to get married in a proper ceremony, and we’re going to have a baby.” He started to protest and I laid a finger against his full lips. “Uh, uh. No talking. I’m the pregnant one. I say we’re leaving. Indulge me. I have every confidence in Dr. Carmichael to find me the care I need. You’re just going to have to trust me. I know what my body can and can’t handle.”

  I softly kissed the spot where my finger had been, keeping our eyes connected, trying to persuade him with a look to give in to me. He shifted, disconnected from me and sat back, staring at my belly. His hand trailed over the non-existent bump, a spot that would one day soon swell with the growing little bug inside me.

  He knelt down and placed a kiss on my belly, rubbing his rough chin across the area, causing my insides to warm and want more. He looked up at me and I saw he had tears in his eyes that he was trying in vain to hold in. As one fell, I reached up and swept it away, trying my hardest not to mirror his actions.

  “Chloe, love, we’re going to have a baby. We’re starting our family that we never thought we would ever have. And I’m scared. So fucking scared. What if the cancer comes back and takes you from me? What do we do if it comes back while you’re pregnant? What would I ever do without you?”

  “Ryan, all those are normal fears for us to have, but what we can’t do is give in to them. We’ve been given this miracle. We created a life, for crying out loud. Let’s live and teach our child how to live a full life while we’re able to. This little monkey is coming, whether we’re scared of it or not.”

  I pulled him up towards me so we could lie side by side, facing each other. “I love you. Can you do this for us? Can you just push aside your fears and live?”

  He smiled and leaned in to fuse our lips together. “We’re going to have a baby! Shit, what in the hell? I’m going to be a dad? I can’t promise to push my fears aside and I’m going to be so cranky and protective of you and that baby, you’re going to scream at me constantly, but yeah, I’m taking my family home. We’re going to be surrounded by our family, and loved and supported and so spoiled.”

  He tucked me into his chest and I could feel and hear his heart beating and believed, wrapped here in this cocoon, that we would make it. Those vows we said as teenagers so long ago, we were finally going to get the chance to try them out. Mr. and Mrs. Murphy…oh, and baby. Together, forever.

  The End

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