Two of everything.
And that’s just when they get here. What about all of the appointments between now and then? Living and trying to keep my head above water really put a damper on making any friends, so I can’t look for help from nonexistent people.
Transportation. What am I going to do about transportation? If Silas leaves and takes the car, there’s nothing I can do because it’s in his name, not mine. And taking off of work for the appointments? That means even less money.
Insurance. Ohmigod, I’ll have to see about Medicaid. My family never had insurance growing up, but I can’t afford to have these babies without financial assistance. I’m lucky enough that I managed to pay the clinic, but there went grocery and gas money.
Something in my hand crinkles and draws my gaze down. My breath catches, a little sob leaving me when I see the ultrasound pictures, each with a heartbeat printed on the bottom.My babies.
It’s all I think about as I start the car and head back to work on autopilot, pictures clenched in my hand.
Two babies. Baby A and Baby B until I choose names.
Oh, God.
And to top it all off, I’m starting to feel queasy again. Who knows if it’s because of worry or the babies? But then, the worry is becauseof the babies, so it’s all connected, anyway. How am I going to support them? I’m pretty sure I was given some pamphlets with information on assistance for low-income mothers, but I have no idea how much help it’ll actually be.
I groan as the nausea worsens.Please...let me make it back to work without throwing up. Please be nice to Momma, babies.The feeling comes and goes intermittently, but by the time I pull up to Wright’s Furniture Shop, I prepare myself to make a mad dash to the restroom in the back.
As if my body knows I made it to my destination, the urgency deepens. I throw open the car door, barely taking note of the black truck I parked beside. Head down and hands crossed over my stomach, pictures still in hand, I make it four steps before running into a body and bouncing back.
Strong arms wrap around me and envelop me in a masculine smell that I have no doubt would drive me insane with lust at any other time, but all it does now is heighten my urge to get to a toilet.
Pushing against an unrelenting chest, I croak out, “Excuse me, but I...” Bile bubbles its way up, a metallic, sour taste seasoning my saliva as it washes over my tongue.
“Rosanna?”
Connor?Raising my head, I open my mouth to tell him to let me go, but all that comes out is vomit.
All over that muscular chest.
Chapter five
Connor
The night before
Amuffledcurseleavesme as I flip my pillow to the cool side and punch it into shape. Why won’t Rosanna leave my mind and let me sleep? She’s taken up residence in my head, and I’m not sure if I resent it or not. I lie back again, crossing my hands behind my head and watching the ceiling fan make shadows on the exposed ceiling beams as it circulates the warm air. I can’t stand stale and stagnant air. It could be twenty degrees outside, and I’d still have the fan going right alongside with the heat, just to keep it moving.
Rosanna.
Do I quit fighting against the pull of Shay tradition? All my life, I’ve managed to keep it under control. But now...now I’m beginning to understand why my dad and brother couldn’t stop themselves.
It’s all about creating a family. And if I give in, I could make a family with her. A small one, sure, but it wouldn’t stay that way for long. No, I’d put my baby inside of her as soon as possible, and that feeling I had with Leilani in my arms could become a reality.
I could build a glider big enough for three, just like I did for Amos and Mercy, so Rosanna and I could rock our little one to sleep each night. And then I’d carry my kitten to our own bed, where I’d rock her to sleep, too, but with my cock deep inside of her, giving her orgasm after orgasm until she passed out in my arms.
A hot, doggy snore sounds in my right ear while a long, feline sigh hits my left, breaking into my thoughts. Hmm. They might present a problem. While my bed is certainly big enough for the three of us and Rosanna, they can’t be in here when I’m making love to her. Baggy would just be irritated at the noise, but Toto would probably think we were hurting each other, and then he’d be confused.
Before I made a family here with my animals, it was just me here in my private sanctuary.
My lonely sanctuary.
But it’s different with Rosanna. So different. I can see her here with me, night after night. She’d be my little spoon, and I’d surround her, imprisoning her within my arms. The image burns onto my brain, waking my cock up. My hand shoves the covers aside and travels down my chest to my briefs, where I give myself a firm squeeze as Toto grumbles and moves away. “Rosanna,” I grit out into the quiet of the night.
Unable to help myself, I shuck my briefs and roll to my left—without disturbing the sleeping cat on my other pillow—to pump some lube into my palm. The coolness doesn’t bother me as my hand glides up and down my thickening length, sliding the foreskin down to reveal the head so I can palm it.Sensitive.My other hand joins in, cupping my balls and tracing the seam. Closing my eyes helps me envisionhersoft hands instead of my rough ones.“Mhmm...kitten...”
I move from my balls to my abdomen, pretending it’s Rosanna’s soft stomach I’m touching. The powerful imagery sends more blood pooling into my cock, and I pick up speed and thrust into my fist, the lube squelching wetly into the darkness as my hips lift up and down. A drawn-out groan builds deep within me, then vibrates my chest as it leaves.
