Ivorie's Surprise [Golden Dolphin] (Siren Publishing Classic) (26 page)

“I’m working on it, baby. I really am.”

They had a great day, lunch in town, a movie, and a late afternoon nap in the hammock on the back porch, cuddled under mounds of quilts. Ivorie snuggled up against Drew’s chest and thought she’d died and gone to heaven. She was trying to keep a lid on her emotions, but it was getting harder and harder. She didn’t know if some of what she was feeling was pregnancy hormones kicking in or just her natural reaction to Drew. She knew she had to be careful.

“I’m going to get up and start supper. Why don’t you stay here and relax for a while longer? Keep Annie warm.”

“Okay,” he said sleepily as he gently stroked the tiny dog curled on his belly. Ivorie had to smile. Then she had an inspiration and reached for her cell phone to snap a picture. She knew that no matter what happened, she would treasure that picture for a lifetime.

Drew and Ivorie were cuddled on the couch watching a movie with Annie stretched across both their laps. Dinner had been great, and Ivorie had made a bowl of popcorn. It didn’t get much better than this. Well, okay, he had one idea that could improve the day, but they had to talk about a few more things first, though.

“Are you going to come back to work?” He waited in anticipation of her answer.

“I don’t think it’s a good idea right now, Drew.” She smiled at him to lessen the sting of her words he guessed. “Let’s see how things go between us first. I think the office atmosphere would be too much.”

“Can you afford not to work?” He had an idea she had assets, but he was worried nonetheless.

“Yes. I’ll be fine.”

“Are you sure?” He had to know she’d be okay no matter what her decision was about them.

“Really, I’ll be okay. I have a trust fund that I can take the income from. I never have before. I wanted to be independent, but I think this is the right time to take advantage of it. My grandparents wanted to be sure I’d always be okay, fair weather or foul.”

He wanted to get one last thing out in the open before he tried to talk her in to bed. “When were you going to tell me about the prenatal vitamins in the bathroom? Or were you planning to tell me at all?”

He could see the shock on her face. Obviously, the vitamins had completely slipped her mind. “Uh…”

“Ivorie?”

“Okay. Busted. I was going to wait to tell you. I didn’t want a baby to be a factor in whether we got back together or not. Not that, uh, we were together before.” He could see she was embarrassed and still unsure of his feelings.

He pulled her around, none too gently, and skewered her with his hot gaze. “As far as I was concerned, even if I didn’t verbalize it, we were together. I’m sorry I didn’t share my feelings with you sooner. But that’s no excuse not to tell me you’re pregnant.” He waited patiently for her response as she obviously tried to spin this in her direction.

“Drew, please don’t be mad. I have more to think about now than just myself. I had to be sure that we’d be together for the right reason.”

“I think my bun baking in your oven is a damn good reason.”

“Yes, but it can’t be the only reason.”

“Look, I was going insane when I thought I wouldn’t be able to find you, and that had nothing to do with a bun in the oven. It was all about you. And the way you make me feel about myself. I know I’m a better person when I’m with you, and I’d already decided on the
Dolphin
to make some changes in the way I interact with other people. I wasn’t always a monster, as you so gently put it, but circumstances and timing had a lot to do with the change in my personality. I don’t want to make excuses for my past behavior. I just want to change it, and I know you can help me with that—you and the bun. I love you, Ivorie. I’m not confused about that. Before you answer, I want you to know that if you don’t want to do the BDSM thing, that’s okay with me. I wouldn’t want that to be a deal breaker. What do you say?”

“The BDSM thing really isn’t an issue. I realized that I can trust you no matter what we’re doing. I kind of like it—not any of that extreme stuff like whipping—but the other stuff was good, even the spanking.” She blushed, and he could see she was a little embarrassed. “I might be willing to try some other things,” she said hesitantly. “I especially liked dressing up and role-playing.”

“That’s good, baby, but I wouldn’t want you to think our relationship hinges on kinky sex, because it doesn’t. I want you for yourself.”

* * * *

Ivorie smiled through the haze of tears in her eyes. His beautiful face was slightly blurry when she clasped her hands against his rough cheeks and brought his mouth down to hers. She brushed her tongue into his mouth and deepened the kiss. “Take me to bed, Daddy.”

“Okay, Mommy. How soon can we get married?”

“Drew! Let me catch my breath first, okay? This is all happening pretty quickly.”

“No kid of mine is going to be born on the wrong side of the blanket, so to speak, and I’d rather you didn’t walk down the aisle with a baby bump. I know it’s the fashion in Hollywood, but that’s not what I want for us. I don’t want to wait, Ivorie. I’m sure about how I feel. Now we just have to determine how you feel.”

“I’ve loved you for a long time, probably even before the trip, but I can’t say that I liked you then. That’s not the case anymore. I can honestly say that I love you, and I like you—just like a normal person. How about we wait at least a couple more weeks before we make a final decision? I’m only planning on doing this once, and I want to get it right.”

“Okay, no more than three weeks—two if we can manage it. I’m not giving you any more time than that to wiggle out of this. How about we talk to Jamie and his sort-of-stepmother who plans weddings and see if we can wrangle a few days on the
Dolphin
. I’d like to get married like Jamie did. It would be a very small wedding, very private, but also very elegant—just like you. What do you think?”

“Do you think they could lock the doors to the dungeon? I don’t think Grammy needs to see that! But other than that, I’d love it.”

He laughed. “You might be surprised, but of course they can. We can do anything you want.”

He gently deposited Annie on the floor and pushed Ivorie back on the couch. He pushed her sweatshirt up and ran his hands down over her belly, which was still flat as a pancake. “I can’t wait to see this belly nice and round with my baby growing in there. What a rush! And to think, it’s all because of one slipup with a condom. I guess God, or Mother Nature, or whatever, is having a good chuckle over this.”

“I think he’s smiling and telling Grampy, ‘See, I told you so.’ I just know God and Grampy have been watching this little drama unfold from Heaven. Ha! And you’re lucky Grampy didn’t come back and kick your butt.”

Drew slowly and gently pulled the zipper of her jeans down as he kissed his way down her belly. She raised her hips, and he slipped the jeans down and off. Ivorie did the honors on his jeans, and he stood up to kick them and his sneakers off. He pulled his sweater over his head and stood looking down at her. “Your turn.”

Ivorie stripped out of the rest of her clothes and stood up. Drew picked her up and carried her to her bedroom. He laid her down in the center of the canopy bed and came down on top of her, spreading her legs open with his hips. He nestled his hard, hot cock into the vee of her thighs and nudged. She clasped her legs around his waist and tried to maneuver him into position for a quick entry. She grabbed the gorgeous butt that was the engine that powered the beautiful, thick cock she was desperate to feel inside her again. It had been too long.

* * * *

As Drew quickly plunged into her aching center, he grasped her hands above her head and began the strong, sure strokes he knew she loved. She arched her back to bring him deeper, and he picked up the tempo, stroking her heated flesh as she whimpered and begged him for more, harder, faster. He angled his cock toward her magic G-spot and pushed her over the edge into a shattering climax. His balls pulled up, and he shot his seed into her core. It had been quick but powerful. He smiled to himself. No more damn condoms!

As their breaths came back to normal, he looked deeply into her eyes. “You’re mine, Ivorie. Don’t ever forget it. We have a lifetime to play, love, fight, make up, and do it all over again.”

Mount Sinai Hospital, New York City, July 6, 2014, Early Morning

Drew looked with awe at the squalling, sticky baby boy who had just wriggled out into the doctor’s waiting hands. Andrew Michael Blessingame III had entered the world with a vengeance. After a quick going-over, Dr. Solomon handed him off to the nurse who waited by his side to take the new infant to be cleaned, weighed, and tagged. Jamie Devereau had sent them a miniature, navy-blue bracelet with a GPS chip for the first baby conceived aboard the
Golden Dolphin
. Little did he know it was going right on the bun’s tiny wrist. Ivorie usually still wore hers, much to Drew’s private relief. He had never fully gotten over the incident on the Amazon.

He smiled at Ivorie, who despite being sweat-drenched and exhausted after four hours of labor, looked beautiful to him. Her hair had been pulled back in a French braid to get it out of the way, and she wore the always very fashionable, wrinkled pink hospital gown, open in the front for easy access.

“I understand from Jenni that a ‘push’ present is in order for an occasion such as this one.” He held out a black jeweler’s box. He waited for her to open it. Her eyes lit up when she saw the carved-black-Tahitian-pearl bracelet with diamond spacers that matched the necklace Drew had given her on the cruise.

“Oh, baby, it’s beautiful,” she gushed as she clasped it on.

“Not as beautiful as you.”

He thought she had never looked lovelier, except the day of their wedding aboard the
Golden Dolphin
in New York Harbor. Ivorie had worn a deceptively simple gown and veil trimmed with the intricate lace she had purchased in the Amazon, and she had looked stunning. She had carried a huge bouquet of daisies, tiger lilies, Black-Eyed Susans, and other assorted wildflowers. The guests were their families and friends, including Jamie and Anne Devereau, Max Warwick and Anamaria Sanchez, the Turners, Ms. Martha Winthrop, who beamed the whole time, and Donnie Hawley, who was the maid of honor. Immediately after the ceremony, they and their guests sailed off for a quick trip to Bermuda.

The ship was full to capacity, and a rocking good time was had by all, although a special key card was needed to access the dungeon and theme rooms. The crew was delighted that one of the couples from their first official cruise had come back to tie the knot.

* * * *

Ivorie smiled a beaming mother’s first smile into the red, angry face of her new son. “Looks like he takes after his father already.” She grinned up at Drew.

“Now, babe, that’s not fair. I’ve been especially good lately, particularly in the office! You know how hard I try.”

“That’s true. You’ve been a real prince. Come and hold your son for a minute before I try this nursing thing. It looks like he’s going to be an early riser like his dad.”

He grinned as he awkwardly held the little bundle wrapped in a blue blanket, wearing a funny knit cap and a navy-blue rubber bracelet. The infant’s face was all scrunched up, and it looked like he was about to let out a mighty wail. Drew’s heart clutched. It felt like it was about to beat out of his chest, and then he felt a flood of love run through him. “Hi, Mikey. Welcome to the world.”

THE END

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I was born in New Jersey and grew up an only child on a small farm in the “Garden State.” My father grew acres and acres of flowers for commercial florists and various produce such as tomatoes. My high school years were spent at Wayne Hills High School, where I was not one of the popular, preppy kids or one of the hoods—which kind of left me in limbo as I wasn’t one of the brainiacs either. Weekends were spent going into “the City” and Greenwich Village with my friends and doing a lot of things I probably shouldn’t have—don’t tell my grandkids!

After attending Katharine Gibbs School in Montclair, New Jersey, I began a career as a legal secretary and then a paralegal. I moved to Florida and currently live in Davie, Florida with my dog, Snickerdoodles. I was married for eight years but have been single for many years. My major addiction is jewelry, but any kind of shopping will do for a fix!

After my longtime job as a paralegal was ended by the economic downturn, I decided to turn lemons into lemonade and finally write the stories I’d had in my head for many years. I had always wanted to write romance novels, but my family and job kept me too busy.

My major interest aside from my family and friends is horses. I enjoy putting an animal character into my stories if possible. I am extremely “low-tech” and probably should have been born in the 1800s as I enjoy driving a horse and buggy for fun. I also enjoy horseback riding, but the ground has gotten harder and further away over the years.