at the over-priced jewelry store on the ship that he’d found earlier, take her back to their room where he’d lay back and let her show him just how much she loved him, hopefully with her mouth…
God, the things that she could do with that mouth of hers, he thought, groaning long and loud as his cock started to rise to the occasion, remembering all too well what it felt like to slide inside Zoe’s extremely talented mouth. The way she wrapped her lips around the tip of his cock and sucked was fucking incredible.
He absently ran his towel over his eager cock and stomach as he left the bathroom, wondering if she’d be up to-
Getting out of bed in time for dinner.
Biting back a frustrated groan, he dropped the towel and walked over to the bed. “Zoe, sweetheart?” he said softly as he reached over and gently shook her shoulder. “It’s time to get up.”
Nothing.
“Sweetheart? It’s time to get up,” he said a little louder as he leaned over and kissed her cheek. When she didn’t even bother to swat at him in her sleep, he realized just how tired she really was.
“Shit,” he hissed softly as he reached back and rubbed his neck, wondering how he was going to salvage this night now.
There was no way that he was going to be able to get her going in time to make their reservations, but they could still grab food and spend the night in each other’s arms, dancing by the moonlight as he told her just how much he loved her. It wasn’t how he’d hoped to spend the night, but he could make it work, he decided as he dropped the towel and climbed in bed with her, pleased when she rolled over in her sleep and curled up against him, bringing her leg up over his and-
“Shit!” he bit out with a grunt when her knee made contact with the body part that loved her the most and brought tears to his eyes.
When she released a pleased little sigh and snuggled in closer to him, he decided to take it like a man and hold her while he pretended that his poor cock wasn’t suffering in silence.
*-*-*-*
“What time is it?” she whispered, not bothering to open her eyes because she simply wasn’t sure that she could manage to do even that.
“A little after ten,” Trevor answered, sounding a little grumpy and if she wasn’t struggling to stay awake at the moment, she would probably ask him what was wrong.
She yawned as she snuggled closer to him and instantly felt herself relax even more, which was surprising since she was already…
“Zoe?” Trevor whispered, but it was too late. She’d already fallen asleep.
Leaning down to kiss her forehead, he glanced at the clock above the television and sighed. So much for that romantic dance beneath the moonlight, he thought as he pulled her closer and resigned himself to trying to make the best out of room service. He’d be able to order candles, a romantic dinner for two and maybe some roses, but it was probably going to cost him a fortune, but if it saved their romantic evening then he’d do whatever it took.
*-*-*-*
“Trevor?” Zoe whispered a little louder, this time earning a soft groan as he shifted behind her, which of course caused that large erection that had teased her awake to brush up against her in just the right way.
Licking her lips, she had to force herself to resist the urge to push back against him. God, she wanted him so badly that she felt like she would literally die if she couldn’t have him in the next minute, but unfortunately for her, nature was also calling and she couldn’t ignore that call no matter how much she wanted to and God, did she want to. It felt like it had been years since the last time she’d had sex when in reality it had only been a few days thanks to Trevor’s adverse reaction to being on a boat.
She really wanted him, but she really needed to use the bathroom. So, it was with a heavy heart and a pathetic whimper that she reluctantly pushed Trevor’s large arm away, forced herself to climb out of that warm, comfortable bed and headed for the bathroom. After she took care of business, she decided to brush her teeth and take a hot shower, hoping that it would help wake her up so that she could properly take advantage of her husband.
Oh, and she fully planned on taking advantage of him, she thought with a wicked smile as she closed her eyes and dropped her head back, enjoying the feel of hot water running through her hair and over her body. There was just something intoxicating knowing that the incredibly handsome man asleep in the next room belonged to her. She still couldn’t believe this was how her life had turned out, happily married to the man that she loved with two babies on the way.
She’d always dreamed of having a family, but she never really thought that it would happen for her. She’d had friends over the years, people that she cared about, but after growing up in foster care she’d gotten used to people coming in and out of her life, sometimes without so much as a goodbye, so she’d never really cared if anyone stuck around, never expected it.
Not once.
She always just counted herself lucky to have had them in her lives for as long as she did. Friends were always like boyfriends, they came and went and maybe if she was lucky they’d remember at Christmas time and send her a card. Other than that, she’d always been fine with the way that her life was until Trevor came into her life, annoying the hell out of her even as he entertained her.
Thanks to Trevor, she now had uncles, cousins, good friends, a family of her own and more importantly, a best friend. He was the best friend that she’d ever had or probably ever would. He made her happy, made her smile even during those moments when it was hard to believe that someone could feel that way about her, that someone loved her so much that he was willing to do whatever it took to keep her. She loved him and she couldn’t wait to show him just how much.
“Good morning, Mrs. Bradford,” Trevor whispered hoarsely in her ear as his large arms wrapped around her and pulled her back against him.
Smiling, because she really couldn’t think of a better way to start her day….or night, she really had no clue what time it was, she leaned her head back in silent demand and sighed with satisfaction seconds later when he took her up on her invitation and leaned down and kissed her.
“Good morning, Mr. Bradford,” she said, smiling against his lips.
“Well,” he said, pausing to tease her bottom lip with a gentle nip and a kiss, “I think it might just be too soon to start with the ‘Good mornings’ since it’s barely one in the morning.”
Wincing, she brushed her lips against his in silent apology for making him miss dinner. “I’m sorry about dinner. Do you think the kitchens are still open?” she asked, right around the time her stomach released an embarrassingly loud growl and her cheeks started to burn.
It was going to be a long pregnancy, she thought miserably, deciding that if he commented on either her blush or the growl that she was going to have to kill him, which she hoped that she wouldn’t have to do since she really wasn’t thrilled about the possibility of becoming a widow.
Thankfully, mostly for him, because it meant that he would be allowed to live to see another day, he didn’t mention anything or even give her one of those sexy chuckles that she normally loved as he leaned back down, brushed his lips against hers, adding a firm nod as he released her. “I’ll go order us a late dinner. What are you in the mood for?”
Everything, but she just couldn’t admit that even to a man that would understand probably better than anyone about how hungry she was, more like starving. God, when was the last time she ate? There was the breakfast buffet this morning that Trevor made her go to before they left his morning, then they’d grabbed lunch while they were out picking up his medicine, grabbed a snack after that because she’d still been hungry, grabbed another one on the way back to the ship, hit the buffet once they got on the ship, and then she grabbed a sandwich a bottle of chocolate milk on the way to their room. That was less than twelve hours ago, so she’d understand being a little hungry, but she was absolutely starving. She could probably eat everything on the ship and still be hungry, she realized miserably
as she did her best not to pout.
“I’ll surprise you. How does that sound?” he asked, placing his hand over her bottom and gave it a squeeze as he pressed a kiss to her shoulder that had her licking her lips and reminding her that there was another hunger that she could really use his help with.
“I’ll be quick,” he promised her as he gave her ass another appreciative squeeze, letting her know that he planned on taking care of that other hunger just as soon as he got back.
Smiling with anticipation, she ducked her head under the water and-
Slapped her hand over her mouth, shoved past Trevor and dropped to her knees in front of the toilet seconds after her stomach violently turned on her, adding another lovely memory to their trip.
Chapter 9
“Shhh, it’s okay, baby,” he said, feeling completely useless as he knelt there, rubbing her back and pushing her long wet hair over her shoulder.
“P-pill,” she said between gasps as she hung her head, closed her eyes and breathed in slowly while it took him a moment to figure out what she wanted.
Her pill…
Shit!
Of course she needed her pill and he was kneeling on the floor like an idiot. She was supposed to have one every twelve hours and she hadn’t had one since she woke up yesterday morning. She’d been so terrified of being laid out another day with morning sickness that she’d practically jumped from the bed and dove for the bottle of pills.
He should have tried harder to wake her up earlier, given her a pill and made her eat something to make sure that it didn’t upset her stomach. Instead he’d been so focused on giving her the perfect honeymoon that he’d fucked up and had forgotten to take care of her.
Now she was paying for his mistake.
Some husband he was turning out to be, he realized, shaking his head in disgust as he pushed her hair out of her face, awkwardly got to his feet in the cramped bathroom, turned around and within seconds realized that the bathroom door was locked.
“Shit,” he groaned, because this was just getting better and better.
“W-what?” Zoe managed to get out before she started dry heaving again.
“Nothing,” he said, praying that was true, because otherwise things were about to get a lot more fucking interesting.
He tightened his grip on the latch and tried to yank it up, but it wouldn’t move. He wiggled it, put his weight against the door and yanked, but the damn door wouldn’t move. Not one single fucking inch.
“T-Trevor?” she said, sounding absolutely miserable as she sat on the tiled floor and leaned back against the wall with a small groan. “What’s wrong?”
He yanked on the handle and shoved on the door, but the damn thing wouldn’t budge. “Shit,” he said, closing his eyes in defeat as he dropped his forehead against the door and for the first time in his life, wondered if all those stories that his uncles and cousins had told him over the years might be more than just typical Bradford bullshit.
A Bradford curse, he thought with a snort of disbelief as he closed his eyes and banged his head against the door. A fucking Bradford curse…
“What’s wrong?” Zoe asked with a slight groan as she pulled her knees up, wrapped her arms around her indrawn knees and promptly dropped her head on her knees.
He shook his head as he pushed away from the door. “You wouldn’t believe me even if I told you,” he said, shaking his head as he turned around and dropped down on his ass next to his wife.
“Try me,” she muttered as she leaned over until her body was pressed up against his.
He put his arm around her and kissed the top of her head. “It’s just bullshit.”
“Is the door jammed?” she mumbled against her arm as he pulled her closer.
“Yes,” he reluctantly admitted, feeling like an ass for somehow managing to lock them in the bathroom.
There was a heavy sigh before she pointed out, “Then we have plenty of time for you to enlighten me.”
Knowing that he was going to sound like an idiot and wondering why he was telling her this, he kissed the top of her head and decided to share something that he had to admit had actually scared him when he was a kid. Like most of his cousins, he’d always thought that the men in his family were bullshitting him to amuse themselves, but even believing that it was all bullshit hadn’t stopped him from worrying about the day when he actually got married and tried to take his wife on a honeymoon.
He’d always tried to tell himself that it was bullshit and for the most part he’d believed it, especially since he knew how much joy the men in his family took in fucking with the younger generation’s heads, but there was another part of him, the one that still made sure that at least one light was on when he watched a horror flick that had always been terrified that it might actually be true. When Jason came over to remind him of this curse, he’d brushed it off, deciding that it didn’t apply to him, because he’d done something no other Bradford had done before.
He’d brought in professional help.
The others had made half-assed, fucked up plans on their own, waiting until after they’d tricked their brides into saying, “I do,” before deciding where to take their new wives to make up for the terrifying experience they’d put them through getting them to the altar. He’d been so damn positive that he’d figured out where they’d gone wrong, figured out how to do this right that he’d instantly dismissed the possibility that the same fate awaited him.
He’d been so damn sure of himself…
He’d done everything right, made sure to leave all the decisions in the hands of a professional, someone who knew how to find the best places, the best deals, knew which cruise line had the best reputation, the best times to travel and most importantly, he’d made sure that she’d never planned a vacation for another Bradford, which had made her perfect. She was untouched by the Bradford curse so any trip that she planned for them should have been safe.
This trip had been nothing but a fucking nightmare from the start. Zoe was carrying twins and having a hell of a time doing it. When she wasn’t starving, she was sick, and when she wasn’t sick, she was fucking exhausted. He thought with the help of the pills that his uncle had prescribed for her that she would at least be able to enjoy the cruise, relax, catch up on her sleep and just enjoy herself.
Instead thanks to him, she hadn’t had the chance to rest or relax since she’d spent the last few days taking care of him, making sure that he got to the bathroom in time, keeping him hydrated, running her fingers through his hair when he thought that he was going to die, holding his hand when the stomach cramps became too much, violently shovinglore pills down his throat when he refused to take them, and had spent most of the morning navigating a tropical island trying to fill a prescription for him when she should have been relaxing on the beach with the rest of the passengers.
Once the medication kicked in, he’d hoped to salvage what was left of their honeymoon, but unfortunately she passed out before he could pull out all the stops and properly romance her. During the entire time that he’d been falling in love with her, he’d failed to show her just how much she’d come to mean to him. He’d treated her like a fuck buddy when she’d been so much more than that. He’d planned on rectifying that on this trip, but nothing seemed to be going his way.
Every time that he got a chance to do right by her something else would happen to fuck up his plans. Morning sickness, seasickness, exhaustion and now it seemed that they were trapped in their suite bathroom without her pills. For a minute he considered trying to break the door down, but quickly realized that there wouldn’t be enough room to allow him to slam into the door and do any real damage. He could try yelling, but he doubted that anyone would be able to hear him. Since the cabin steward wouldn’t be checking on the room until later in the morning, this was going to make for a long, interesting night, especially since he’d just realized that his patch had fallen off and his medication was on the nightstand right alongside Zoe’s.
*-*
-*-*
“Are you going to start talking?” she asked, squeezing her eyes shut tightly as she waited for the nausea to pass.
“Give me a second,” Trevor said roughly, cluing her into the fact that she wasn’t the only one struggling not to give in and lunge for the toilet.
“Are you o-”
“I’m fine,” he promised her, cutting her off before she could finish and gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze, silently asking her to just let it go.
“So, this bullshit?” she reminded him, hoping that it would be enough to distract herself from the fact that she was starting to feel hungry, which of course was aggravating her morning sickness, which promised to be a good time.
He chuckled weakly as he pressed his lips against the top of her head. “You really want to know?”
“Wouldn’t have asked if I didn’t,” she pointed out on a small gasp as she desperately fought against the urge to drop onto her side, curl up into a ball and pray for a quick, painless death.
The long-suffering sigh would have normally had her rolling her eyes, but she just didn’t have it in her at the moment. “Fine, but remember that I didn’t make this bullshit up.”
“Duly noted,” she said, matching his sigh as she turned her head and opened her eyes so that she could look at him as he shared this riveting tale with her.
What she saw had her biting her lip as a wave of sympathy hit her right around the time that another wave of nausea slammed into her, making her close her eyes as her heart broke for him. The last couple of days had been pure hell for him, but he’d done it for her. He knew how much having a real vacation meant to her so he was putting himself through hell to make it happen for her. He really was a sweet man, she thought as she tried to think of anything else