Panting, practically crying with want, I pressed into his chest as his fingers left their hold on my hip and started a slow, torturous descent between my legs. They traced the bend at the top of my thigh and dipped down over smooth skin and disappeared between damp folds. I jolted in shock at being touched where I swore no man would ever have his hands again, but that quickly turned to a shudder as his clever fingertips tracked over delicate skin and sought out hidden places with the utmost care and reverence. He wasn’t only using his touch to make me feel good, he was using it to soothe me, to calm me, to entrance me. He was erasing every touch that had hurt and giving me a million more that didn’t.

My thighs quivered like I had run a marathon and I stopped breathing as he memorized every secret place I had.

“Move, honey.” His raspy order shook me out of my stupor and I did what I was told. I moved.

I rocked back and forth. I rubbed my still-tight and aroused nipple against his bare chest. I put my mouth on his and rode his fingers and they slid inside of my underwear, his thumb circling my swollen clit over and over again, his movements hampered by the fabric that kept me covered. I moaned and he growled. I partially roared his name and he whispered mine back. I watched him with worried eyes as feeling built, huge and fast, ready to overtake me. He watched me with awe and admiration as I shattered into a million pieces of pleasure on top of him.

His fingers dragged wetness across my skin as he pulled them out of me. He used the same hand to catch my waist so that he could pull me off of him and turn me so my back was to his front. His cock was still hard, still hot and unbending behind me. I felt every inch of it as he nestled it against the curve of my ass. I wanted to push back into it, wanted to give him more, but as if he read my mind he quietly ordered, “I think that’s enough playing with fire for one night. I’m not going to let us burn through each other this fast. We need to get some sleep.”

He let go and turned off the lights only to roll right back and capture my waist again. We stayed silent and still for a long moment but I couldn’t close my eyes and I couldn’t ignore that very obvious reminder that he had given me something amazing and I hadn’t given him anything but a headache and a hard-on.

“If you’re going to make me feel good, shouldn’t you expect the same thing from me?” I’d done my best to make the men that came before him feel good so they would give me the same consideration. It hadn’t worked. I’d given Wheeler nothing and he had given me an entire world I didn’t even know existed.

I felt his lips hit the back of my head and his hips shift tighter into mine. His cock seemed perfectly content where it was at.

“Poppy, you let me in your bed, you let me in your life.” He gave me a squeeze and tucked the top of my head under his chin. “Trust me, you letting me in makes me feel very, very good. The rest will come when it’s meant to.”

As I closed my eyes and settled into his warmth and the darkness that surrounded us, I couldn’t help but think that if getting lost meant he would come find me, then getting lost wasn’t such a bad thing.

Wheeler

I felt like I was having a panic attack.

I could feel the doctor looking at me expectantly and I knew Kallie was fidgeting nervously on the table as we both stared at the black-and-white screen that showed a weird-looking blob that definitely had identifiable human features. The nose poked up in the air as minuscule fingers waved on the end of a tiny little hand.

This was real. So real.

I was going to be a father.

That was my kid growing inside the woman that had shredded my heart and annihilated all my previous dreams of happy-ever-after.

I felt like I was suffocating. There was no air in the room, and each time the small heartbeat, strong and loud, filled the silence, I felt mine race.

The doctor cleared her throat and shifted her questioning gaze between me and my ex. The tension between the two of us was palpable and I’m sure the situation was as uncomfortable for her as it was for us.

“Well, everything looks exactly like it should at sixteen weeks. At this point in your second trimester you’re going to be seeing more significant changes in your body and you’ll be coming in to see me more frequently. In a few more weeks we should be able to tell if you’re having a boy or a girl. That is, if you’re interested in knowing the sex beforehand.” She nodded at the ultrasound screen and gave a reassuring smile. “We’ll get you a printout of your very active baby so you can take it with you today. Do either of you have any questions for me?”

Kallie turned her head to look at me and I immediately looked away. I was having a hard time keeping myself in the chair I was sitting in and not making a mad dash for the door. I heard her sigh as she took the offered towel to wipe off the clear gel that was smeared all over her mostly-flat stomach. I couldn’t believe our baby was living inside there. I couldn’t believe that in all the years we’d been together, seemingly happy and planning a future together, we hadn’t had so much as a scare when it came to pregnancy. That included all the years when we were stupid teenagers fucking without much thought to safety, sex being the first thing on our minds when we were alone. It felt like some kind of ugly joke that it was when our fairy tale fell apart this new life was created. All I ever wanted was a family and a forever of my own. What I got was this clusterfuck that made my chest hurt and my head pound.

“Thanks, Dr. Ehrhardt. I think we’re good. If anything comes up I won’t hesitate to give you a call.” I looked up at the woman that had sent my entire world spinning off its axis and flinched when I realized she was staring at me with open and obvious disappointment. She expected more from me because I had always given her everything, but this time … well, I wasn’t sure I had anything to offer her. She swung her legs off the exam table and straightened her clothes as she got to her feet. I followed suit and paused as the doctor stopped in front of me and extended her hand for me to shake.

I gave it a quick pump expecting her to immediately let go but instead she gave my fingers a tight squeeze and offered me a soft smile. “It can be a lot to take in. Don’t worry, Mr. Wheeler, you’ll get used to the idea of being a father, and before you know it you’ll be anxiously awaiting the moment when you can hold your baby in your arms. You’re here. That’s a huge step, one a lot of young men don’t bother to take.” She looked back at Kallie, who was now standing directly behind me. “Take care of each other. That’s my best advice to both of you, regardless of your circumstances. You’ll need one another going forward and your baby will need both of you.” She finally let go of my hand and gave a cheerful wave as she left the room.