Suddenly a Bride Read online

  He got out of the car and collected as much of the milkshakes and sundaes as he could and headed for his apartment. As he reached the door, Caitlyn opened it.

  “Sorry. I tried to wait for you, but then I got so hungry, I couldn’t resist.” She motioned to the half-eaten pizza in her hand.

  “I don’t mind.” He entered the apartment where four boxes of pizza were on the kitchen table. One box was opened and a slice was missing.

  “It’s been crazy,” she said as she sat down and grabbed a milkshake. “It’s like I can’t get enough food. I figured if I ordered a lot, then we could save some for later.”

  “I don’t recall how much women on my world ate while pregnant, but I know they ate a lot because the pregnancy hormones made food taste better than it was.”

  She chuckled. “So that’s why Jack’s food tasted better than usual. I wondered about that. You know, I ate so much of his food, he was getting worried.”

  “It’s going to be like this until you give birth.”

  Pausing in drinking her shake, she placed her hand on his arm. “Tell me the truth. Am I going to gain a ton of weight?”

  Her worried look amused him. “No. This is all necessary for the child.”

  “Yeah, but you said the baby only weighs seven pounds when it’s born. It feels like I’m eating enough for a twenty pounder.”

  He slipped his arm around her waist and kissed her. “Most of the food will go to the child’s brain development.”

  “Hmm… So is this kid going to be a genius?”

  “Well, I wouldn’t say the kid is going to be superior to his or her peers because he or she won’t have the benefit of learning on my world.” He caught the subtle sigh that escaped her lips and gave her waist a slight squeeze. “Let’s just say that our kid will be above average.”

  “I guess that’s good.”

  “Of course it is.”

  “I hope our kid won’t be a big show-off.”

  Laughing, he asked, “What’s a show-off?”

  “Someone who thinks they’re a lot better than everyone else and brags about it.”

  “Oh. There’s no way to predict something like that. Those things are determined more by environment than genetics, aren’t they?”

  “I hope so.”

  He thought she might say more, but then she turned her attention back to the pizza so he went back to the car and got the rest of the milkshakes and sundaes. When he returned, she had finished off another slice of pizza and was drinking her second milkshake. He stood still and watched her as she ate the next slice of pizza with surprising gusto. She assumed they were going to have leftovers from this, but he wondered if they’d have enough food to last her for the rest of the night.

  “So,” he began as he loosened his tie and sat across from her, “did the realtor call?”

  “She did, but there’s another couple who’s interested in the house so they’re going back and forth right now in who to go with.”

  He picked up a slice of pizza and nodded. “I guess we’ll wait and see. Even if this one isn’t for us, I’m sure we’ll find another house that’s just as good.”

  “Probably. But I really like this one.”

  He did too, but as long as he was with her, he didn’t care where they lived. Biting into his pizza, he had to admit this was actually pretty good.

  “Why did you get sundaes?” she asked after she swallowed the last of her pizza and wiped her hands on the napkin. “Did I ask for them?” She reached for the one closest to her and opened the lid so she could put her spoon into it.

  “I thought you might like the treat.”

  She smiled at him. “That’s very thoughtful of you, Chris.”

  His face warmed from the compliment. “It was nothing. I was right there at the drive thru window.”

  “Well, it’s still nice of you.”

  “You know, I heard that pregnant women on my world likened eating to having a sexual experience.”

  Her eyes grew wide. “You’re kidding?”

  “That isn’t how you feel about it?”

  Shrugging, she said, “I guess it is kind of like it. I’m not having an orgasm or anything, but I’m enjoying it a lot.”

  He laughed. “I can tell.”

  “I’m that obvious, huh?”

  “I’m afraid so.” Reaching forward, he squeezed her hand. “But it’s worth it, right?”

  She squeezed his hand in return. “Right. I’m excited about having a baby.”

  Relieved, he turned his attention back to the pizza. Just as he suspected, she polished off all but one large pizza and a milkshake. He finished those food items and helped her clean up.

  After she wiped down the table, she went over to him and hugged him. “I have a surprise for you. Actually, it’s a surprise Sandy bought for you.”

  “The gift she got us.”

  She giggled. “No. The gift she got you. Sure, it’s something I wear, but it’s really for you.”

  “I’m not sure I understand.”

  Patting his butt, she whispered, “You will. Why don’t you get into the car, and I’ll surprise you.”

  “The car?”

  “Yeah.”

  “We’ll be in the car like we were the first time we were together?”

  “No. This is something different.” She winked at him in a suggestive way.

  Intrigued, he decided he liked the suspense. “Okay.” He walked toward the front door but realized she was heading for the bedroom. “You are coming with me, aren’t you?”

  She halted her steps and giggled. “I’ll be there. I just need to slip into something a little more comfortable.”

  He scanned her uniform. Naturally, she had to change, but he didn’t see what that had to do with her coy expression. Shrugging, he left the house and went to the car. He slipped into the passenger seat, sure that whatever she had in mind, she’d want to drive. When he saw her come out of the apartment with a rolled up blanket tucked under her arm, he wondered what in the world her surprise could have to do with a blanket.

  She put the blanket in the backseat before she got into the driver’s seat. “Technically, we can do this in the bedroom, but I always wanted to try some place a little more adventurous.”

  “Adventurous?”

  With a shrug, she started the engine. “Yeah. Sometimes it’s nice to do something different. You know, add a little spice so life doesn’t get boring.”

  At that, he laughed. He could hardly imagine life on this planet ever getting boring, especially with her there. “Where are we going?”

  “You’ll see.”

  “Come on. Not even a hint?”

  “When we get there, it’ll become self-evident.”

  With a sly grin, he reached over and caressed her thigh. “One tiny hint?”

  She took his hand and squeezed it. “Fine. Just one. I wanted to wait until after dark so that we won’t risk getting caught.”

  Chris’ curiosity was piqued by the time she drove up to an isolated area of the beach. She gave him a wicked smile as she got out of the car. He followed suit and watched while she collected the blanket.

  She closed the door and asked, “Are you coming?”

  Of course, he was. He’d go anywhere with her. He walked with her down the beach and watched as she unrolled the blanket in the moonlight. “Do you want help?” he offered, noting the way the wind coming in off the surf made the blanket toss about on the sand.

  “Yeah. Could you take these paperweights and put one on those two corners, and I’ll get these.”

  He took the two glass weights in the shape of cats and obeyed her. “Can I ask why you have different cats for paperweights?”

  She shrugged. “I went through a phase where I collected glass animals, and Randy thought one day we’d get a cat.” Rolling her eyes, she added, “He went a little overboard. One cat is enough, don’t you think?”

  “I guess.”

  Staring at the cats on the blanket, he wond
ered why they bothered him. They were inanimate objects, and she didn’t seem to have any attachment to them since he hadn’t seen those on her shelf of favorite things. He recalled her mentioning her special shelf. On it, she had her favorite two books, a crystal rose from her friend Sandy, and a gold clock she’d bought for herself a year ago. So these gifts from Randy didn’t have a place on that special shelf, and that reminder made him feel somewhat better. He wondered if she’d put something he bought her on that shelf. But what would he buy? He couldn’t think of anything she might like except for those cheesy romance novels, which she already had a ton of in her bookcase.

  “Okay. We’re all set.” Caitlyn patted the middle of the blanket as she slipped off her sandals. “Come on and get comfortable.”

  Her mischievous grin caught his attention. Intrigued once again, he took off his shoes and sat on the blanket. She pushed on his shoulders until he was on his back, and then she straddled him. Leaning forward, she kissed him. This was nice, he thought as he returned her kiss. Already, he could feel his body temperature rise, signaling that his body was getting ready to ejaculate. But that event was still a ways off, so he could take his time and enjoy their lovemaking. It was a relief to not have to ejaculate every six hours.

  Straightening up, she unbuttoned her shirt and revealed the black lace bra. “Sandy bought a bra and panties for your enjoyment.” She took his hands so he could trace her bra before she slid his hands under her skirt where he felt the lace trim of her panties. Her grin grew wider when his fingers brushed the soft folds of her flesh. His eyes grew wide, and she giggled. “Crotchless underwear. What do you think?”

  Clearing his throat, he said, “It’s nice.”

  “Nice?”

  With a sly grin, he squeezed her hips. “Really nice.”

  “I bet you didn’t have anything this advanced on your home world.”

  “Creativity wasn’t my world’s strongpoint,” he admitted.

  “It’s good to know Earth has something your world didn’t. Well, besides women.”

  He laughed. “Does that still bother you?” Slipping his hands from under her skirt, he pressed them on her abdomen. “I’m connected to you, Caitlyn. I’m aware of the life we created growing in your womb.” Meeting her gaze, he whispered, “Earth is more wonderful than the place I came from.”

  She caressed his face with her hand, and he likened the sensation to a feather brushing his skin since her touch was so light. There were other things he wanted to tell her—things of a more personal nature, but he stopped himself. The timing was right, he was sure. Even so, he wasn’t sure if she reciprocated his feelings, and the feelings weren’t something he’d experienced before. He had the sensation he was flying and falling at the same time. In his orderly way of thinking, it was a contradiction, and the uncertainty of it all scared him. It was easier, instead, to focus on the child and the moment they had together on the beach. Those were tangible things—things he could grasp.

  She leaned forward and kissed him, and he was glad for the distraction. He brought his hands up to her bra and traced the outline of it, brushing her nipples which hardened in response.

  After ending their kiss, she wiggled down to his knees and unzipped his pants. “I’ve always had this fantasy of having sex on the beach.”

  “Oh?”

  She helped him wiggle out of his pants and pulled down his underwear. She gave a low moan as she took his erection into her hand and stroked him in one slow motion that made him throb with pleasure. “Yeah.” Her eyes met his and she licked her lips. “I see you’re ready for me.”

  Even through his heavy breathing, he chuckled. “What was your first clue?”

  Smiling, she got on her knees and unzipped the side of her skirt. “You cracked a joke.”

  His eyebrows furrowed. “Did I say something wrong?”

  “No. It’s just that when you first got here, you were so serious about everything.” She removed her skirt and straddled him again.

  He let out a soft moan and ran his hands along her thighs.

  “It’s nice to see that you’re no longer taking life so seriously,” she teased before she kissed his cheek and then gave him a series of kisses along his jawline before she blew in his ear.

  He shivered from pleasure. Looking up at the clear sky, he briefly took note of the stars, reminding him that he’d come a long way to be in this place. Then she kissed him on the mouth, and all thoughts to how far he’d traveled departed from his mind. His hands traced the soft curve of her back, and he pulled her closer to him so he could deepen the kiss. She parted her lips. Accepting the silent invitation, he brushed her tongue with his.

  Despite the cool breeze that blew in from the surf, his body warmed as she moved her hands under his dress shirt and ran her fingernails lightly up and down his chest. The sensation tickled him as much as it aroused him. He brought his hands back down to her waist and felt along the panties so that he could slip his fingers through the opening that allowed him to touch the sensitive folds of her flesh. Her hips began rocking against him, signaling that she was getting ready for him.

  With a mischievous grin, he rolled her over, thinking it might be fun to change the rules a bit on what she had planned. Before she could react, he resumed their kiss, letting his tongue mingle with hers. She cupped the back of his neck and arched against him. He traced the edges of the crotchless part of her panties before he inserted his finger into her. She gasped in pleasure and moaned.

  “I could make love to you nonstop and still not get enough,” she rasped and moved her hips so that he could slide deeper into her. “Get me off this way. With your fingers.”

  “That’s the plan,” he playfully growled and lowered his head so he could kiss her cleavage while he slipped a second finger into her.

  With a contented sigh, she reached down and lightly caressed his hair, encouraging him to keep going. He smiled at the fact he brought her pleasure and let his mouth descend to her bra so he could find her nipple. It was a new experience to tease her nipple through the lacy bra, but she seemed to like the friction, so he lingered at her breasts.

  His fingers plunged deeper into her. He loved the way she moaned and rocked her hips. Her breathing came fast and heavy, and her legs widened for him, fully welcoming him to her. His mouth left her breasts and left a trail of kisses down to abdomen and lower still until his lips graced her sensitive nub.

  She groaned as she moved her hips in subconscious rhythm to the thrusting of his fingers. His tongue continued to tease and brush over her nub, and she grabbed his shoulders and asked him to continue. He did as she wished, delighting in each moan and wiggling of her hips as she sought the release that his fingers and tongue would give her.

  He noted her shortness of breath, her murmuring “yes” over and over, and the increased squeezing on his shoulders. And still he continued. He loved being this close to her, knowing that she welcomed him into her body and letting him receive his pleasure the way she was now receiving hers.

  And then she cried out and jerked against him while his fingers softly continued to move while his tongue reverted back to the teasing of her nub. She was incredible. Her entire body called out to him to satisfy it in every way he could. He had a feeling that no matter how much they had sex, he could happily keep going.

  Still breathing heavy, she urged him to enter her. Getting up, he knelt before her and settled between her legs, noting the sweat glistening off her skin and the seductive way she looked in a bra and panties which had nothing preventing him from sliding into her.

  He almost pulled completely out of her until just his tip remained in her before he pressed forward, driving fast into her. She urged him deeper and shifted her hips to give him better access into her. No longer afraid he’d hurt her by getting rough, he pulled out again and dove back in, repeating the cycle. The mounting tension in his body demanded he find completion, and he threw his head back and gave a muffled cry, his body shuddering as he sought to h
old onto the orgasm for as long as he could. It never seemed to last long enough, and in the moment, he always felt connected to her as if they were one unit. As much as he tried to hold onto it, he lost the battle and collapsed into her arms and remained there until their bodies resumed to normal.

  “Thanks for satisfying my fantasy,” she whispered and kissed him on the neck.

  “Anytime,” he murmured and brushed her lips with his.

  After a moment of silence, she said, “I think I’m hungry again.”

  Chuckling at her incredulous tone, he pulled out of her and kissed her again. “Well, you did work off a lot of those calories.”

  “Maybe, but it wasn’t like I ran a marathon or something. It was just sex.”

  “Which does use up a lot of energy.” He got up and handed her the shirt and skirt she’d been wearing. “We’ll stop by the drive thru on the way home.”

  “That shouldn’t excite me as much as it does.”

  “It’s the pregnancy hormone in your body. It makes food taste better than it really is.”

  She giggled. “It works surprisingly well.”

  He pulled up his underwear and put on his pants and shoes before he recalled the cat figurines that Randy had given her. A momentary thought of chucking the figurines into a trash can at the drive thru flashed through his mind, but he shrugged the thought off. It wasn’t like Randy was still alive or anything. The least he could do was let the figurines remain wherever they’d been in the apartment. Content, he threw the figurines into the blanket while she dressed and waited until she was standing before he rolled the blanket up, the figurines, once again, out of sight.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chris glanced at his watch and decided it was time for lunch. He logged off his computer and glanced up at Mark as he stopped by his cubicle.

  “You ready to hightail it out of here?” Grinning, Mark lowered his voice and added, “I heard someone use that expression yesterday and wanted a chance to try it out.”

  Chris nodded, thinking it was taking him longer to catch onto all of the phrases people used. “At least that one makes sense. I heard someone mention how it was raining cats and dogs, but the only thing falling from the sky was water. I don’t understand why someone would refer to raindrops as cats and dogs.”