Feeling a sense of pride that I was doing something Mitchell had asked me to do, I nodded enthusiastically. “I’d love to!”
“Do you have a cell number or email I can send you the meeting details?”
“Oh of course, yes.” I searched through my purse for my business card and handed it to her. “I’m sorry, I didn’t catch your name.”
“Susan Powell.”
As I reached my hand out to shake hers, the hair on the back of my neck stood up. I quickly looked around for Joshua, but saw nothing. “Um, it was a pleasure meeting you, Susan. Tell your daughter—”
“Kate.”
“Tell your daughter Kate I hope to get to meet her again.”
Susan took my card and put it in her purse. “Will do. Have to run now though, I’m late for a nail appointment.”
Susan took off across the street as I watched her walk off. Melissa walked up to me with a perplexed look on her face. “Who was that?”
My stomach was still feeling upset, but the walk and fresh air had helped. I rolled my neck around trying to shake off the nausea. “Just a mom from the high school I spoke at a few weeks ago. Her daughter told her about my visit.”
My neck had gotten so stiff as I rubbed the back of it with my hand. “You ready to go in?”
Melissa looked over her shoulder at Susan as she made her way down the street. “She must have had kids late in life, she looked a little old to have a high school kid.”
I watched as Susan bounced away. “I didn’t think she was that old. Maybe this is her last kid in school or something.”
“Maybe,” Melissa said with a concerned look. “What was her name?”
I opened the door to Derby’s and said, “Susan Powell. Her daughter’s name was Kate. She invited me to a meeting a bunch of moms are putting together in an effort to stop bullying in school.”
That made Melissa light up. “Really? That’s awesome. Maybe I can come along as well.”
The hostess grinned as we approached her. “Welcome to Derby’s. Just the two of you?”
“Yep!” I said as I turned to Melissa. “I think that would be great if you came. With your knowledge and connections in the community, you would be a great asset to them.”
Melissa pulled out her chair and tossed the small bag onto the table as she thanked the hostess. “Onto other subjects now.”
I rolled my eyes as I took the menu and looked it over. The only reason I was pretending to read it was so that I didn’t have to look at Melissa. “You know damn well what you’re getting to eat so stop avoiding eye contact with me.”
My mouth dropped open as I lowered the menu. I gave Melissa a I don’t know what you’re talking about look.
Widening my eyes, I leaned over and stared at her. “There. Happy?”
Scrunching her nose, Melissa said, “I bought you something!”
I lifted an eyebrow. “Really? What?”
She pushed the bag over to me and said, “Open it.”
I cautiously reached for the bag and pulled it over to me and opened it.
“What the fuck?” I said as Melissa started clapping and laughed.
Frantically looking around, I pulled out the box and stared at it. “Why did you buy me a pregnancy test?”
The waiter walked up and gave us a big toothy grin.
“Ladies, good afternoon. Oh! Oh wow.” Pointing to the test, the waiter smiled. “So please tell me you’re going to do that here.”
Melissa and I both looked up at our waiter. “Here? As in right here?” I asked.
With a chuckle, he rolled his eyes and looked at Melissa like he thought I had said the stupidest thing ever. “No, I expect you to at least go into the restroom.”
A small laugh escaped my lips as I dropped the box onto the table. “No. I don’t need a pregnancy test because I’m not pregnant.”
Melissa and our waiter asked at the same time, “Are you sure?”
My eyes widened as I looked between the two of them. “Yes! I’m on the pill!” I said in a hushed voice.
Our waiter let out a huff and waved his hand in dismal. “Girl, that is not full proof. Unless your man shrouded his trout before he made you shout.”
“What?” I asked as Melissa started laughing and my mouth dropped open as I stared at the waiter. A man I had never seen before, who was now not only talking about me taking a pregnancy test, but condoms and sex.
“Oh my gawd! I have to keep you!” she said as they high fived each other. “Even when I’m eager, I protect my beaver.”
Closing my eyes, I shook my head. No. Just no.
“If you’re gonna get between her thighs, condomize.”
Melissa pointed to our waiter and said, “No glove, no love.”
His head went back in a roar of laughter as I sat there stunned.
“Are the two of you about finished?”
Melissa pressed her lips together as she whispered, “Sorry.”
The waiter turned and looked at me with a questioning look on his face.
“So?”
“So what?” I asked.
With a frustrated moan like I was wasting his precious time, he asked, “Did he cover the stump before he humped?”
Melissa lost it and laughed as I fought to keep my smile in.
I had no idea why I felt the need to say what I said next to a complete stranger. “If it’s any of your business, we stopped wrapping his pickle before each tickle a few months ago.”
Our waiter grinned from ear to ear. “I like you girls. Now let’s get your drinks, food order, and then we are taking one pregnancy test.”
Melissa began jumping in her seat as I jerked my head back and said, “No. No we are not.”
“Why not?” Melissa asked with a pout.
“Yeah, why not?” The waiter turned to Melissa and asked, “What are you drinking love?”
“I’ll take a Pepsi. Oh and I already know what I want. Ham and swiss on rye with a side of fruit.”
As the waiter wrote it down, my eyes drifted over to the pregnancy test.
There is no way I’m pregnant.
None.
“Okay, water for you and what would you like to eat?”
Pulling my eyes from the box, I said, “Wait. I didn’t order water.”
“Oh, honey, now that you’re pregnant, you need to drink more water.”
Melissa lost it laughing again as I shot our waiter a dirty look. “Stop it! I’m not pregnant.” With a frustrated sigh, I rolled my neck again to ease the aching pain. “I’ll take an iced tea with a cup of French onion soup and a turkey and swiss on wheat.”
“All righty, I’ll get this in and get those drinks.”
Finally he was moving on from this pregnancy nonsense.
Melissa stared at me as I continued to pretend like she didn’t exist.
When the waiter came back, he set our drinks down and grabbed the test.
“The name is David, ladies, and if you end up having a boy, I expect it to be named after me.” Reaching for my hand, he pulled me up as Melissa jumped up like a five-year-old set loose in a candy store.
“Wait! This is mutiny!” I cried out.
“Sweetie, you’re not in control here,” David said as he pulled me along behind him while Melissa practically skipped behind us. Stopping outside the women’s restroom, David handed me the test and said, “Pee straight!”
I was positive my expression was one of confusion. “Who are you?”
Looking at Melissa she was covering her mouth and fighting to keep her laughter in. “I hate you both and I don’t even know you, David!”
I grabbed the box and pushed the door open as I walked to the end stall. Melissa must have decided to wait with David.
With a long drawn out groan, I opened the box and took out the test. Pulling my dress pants and panties down, I let loose and peed straight on the stick as instructed.
I grabbed toilet paper and pulled a bunch off as I placed it on the floor and the test on top
of that. Pulling my panties and pants up, I flushed and sat back down on the toilet.
Smiling, I thought about Grace. She was due in August with her first child and I couldn’t wait to go home and visit this June. Libby’s little boy, Trey, was already four months old and it killed me I hadn’t been home yet to see him.
I pulled my phone out and sent Grace a text.
Me: I want to see your pregnant belly!
Less than a minute later my request was filled by a picture of Grace’s precious baby bump. As I stared at the picture, I was overcome with emotion and started crying.
The idea of having a part of Grayson growing inside me someday had me leaning over sobbing. That’s when I saw it.
“Holy. Fucking. Shit,” I whispered as my crying came to a full on stop.
Picking up the test, I slowly shook my head.
“I’m pregnant.”
Grayson
“DUDE, WHERE IS the fire?” Derrick asked as I quickly gathered up my shit.
“Big plans tonight.”
Leaning back in his chair, he wiggled his eyebrows. “Oh man, I remember those nights. Back when the sex was hot and sweaty.”
“I didn’t need that visual dude, really?”
With a chortle, he shrugged. “Tell me it’s not true.”
“Sorry, I cannot tell a lie.”
His head fell back as he let out a moan. “Damn. The good ole days.”
“I’m gonna be late. Call me if anything develops with anything.”
Derrick rolled his eyes. “Yeah, I’m sure you’ll be waiting by the phone.”
The knocking on my door was loud and fast and not letting up. “Just a second! Son-of-a-bitch!”
Wrapping the towel around my waist, I unlocked the door and pulled it open.
“This better be good!”
Claire stood before me with her mouth parted open while her eyes raked across my body.
Fuck.
“Claire? What are you doing here?”
When she finally managed to pull her eyes off my chest, she closed her mouth and looked into my eyes. “I didn’t know where else to go, Grayson. You were the first person I thought of.”
Cocking my head to the side, I raised my eyebrows. “This ought to be interesting.”
Claire frowned and tried to take a step forward but I didn’t budge. I knew Meagan would be walking up any second and there was no way in hell I was letting Claire into my apartment.
“I really need someone to talk to. I’ve just received the worst news I have ever gotten in my entire life. My parents . . . they . . . oh God!”
My stomach dropped a little. Shit, I hoped her parents weren’t in a car wreck or anything.
“They’re getting a divorce!” Claire cried out as she buried her face in her hands and sobbed. There was one thing I figured out quickly; Claire would never make it in Hollywood.
Blowing out a quick breath, I glanced down the hallway and then back to Claire. “Listen, Claire, I’m really sorry about your parents, but I think you might be better off talking to someone else, like a girlfriend or someone who can relate.”
Claire’s hands dropped to her side. “But I don’t really have any friends here, Grayson.”
“Now I know that’s not true, Claire. I’ve seen you out with them.”
Her eyes lit up as she flashed me a seductive look while she took a step forward. “I was kind of hoping you might help me out in another way . . . if you know what I mean.”
My eyes widened while my entire body stiffened. Was she for real?
“Um . . . listen, Claire, I’m very much in love with Meagan, so just you being here is inappropriate. I think the best thing for you to do is find a friend you can talk to about this.”
“Meagan doesn’t have to know, Grayson.”
I could not believe my ears. With a dry laugh, I shook my head. “And you called Meagan a whore?”
Claire took a step back and as her mouth and eyes widened. “How dare you.”
“You need to get one thing straight here, Claire. I am not interested in you. Stay the fuck out of my business and don’t ever come to my house again.”
Taking a step back, I shut the door in her face.
I couldn’t help but smile. “Damn, I’ve always wanted to do that.”
Heading back to my room to change, there was a knock on the front door again.
“Damn it all to hell. This girl needs to go!”
Yanking the door open, I went to talk and was stunned into silence. Standing before me was the most beautiful woman I had ever laid eyes on. Her smile was stunning, her body amazing, and her eyes were dancing with passion.
“I’d say you handled that very well, Mr. Bennett.”
Placing my hand on the door frame, I let Meagan’s hungry eyes look me over. “You heard that huh?”
She walked up and placed her hands on my chest, causing a warm rush to race through my body.
“I so cannot wait until I get my little private show.” Biting down on her lip, her fingers moved down my chest to the edge of the towel. “Do I get a preview?”
Knowing how weak I was for this girl, and how hard my dick already was, I grabbed her hands and pulled her into our apartment, kicking the door shut. My lips pressed against hers as I slammed her against the door. Her hands immediately dug into my hair where she pulled hard, eliciting a long deep moan from my mouth.
“Gray, I want you so much. Please.”
With a naughty smile, I quickly pulled back, instantly missing the heat from her body. “Not yet, baby. I’ve got something special planned for you.”
With a sexy pout, Meagan pushed off the wall. “I have something special planned for you too.”
With a questioning look, I asked, “Do I get a hint?”
The look that moved over her face had my stomach flipping. Her cheeks flushed and her eyes lit up. I’d never seen her look more beautiful.
“Trust me, no matter how many hints I gave you, you’d never be able to guess it.”
“Hmm, I’m intrigued.”
Meagan lifted an eyebrow before walking up and kissing me on the lips tenderly. “I don’t know if I’ve ever told you this before, but I’ve never felt this way with anyone else ever.”
My arms wrapped around her waist as I pulled her to me. “The same goes for me, Meg. My heart belongs to only you. If I ever lost you, I’m not sure what I would do.”
“Would you come find me?” she asked with a shy smile.
Kissing the tip of her nose, I leaned my forehead against hers. “I’d scale every wall looking for you and wouldn’t give up until I found you.”
Her eyes closed as she drew in a deep breath and slowly blew it out. “I want to be in your arms forever.”
“Meg, you saved my heart when you gave me your love.”
Meagan pulled her head back and looked into my eyes as a tear spilled over and slowly ran down her cheek. Using my thumb, I lightly brushed it away before reaching down and picking her up. “I need to make love to you.”
With a giggle, Meagan said, “I thought I wasn’t getting a preview.”
“Things changed.”
Meagan and I walked into the dark club as I reached over and flipped on the lights. I couldn’t help but smile when I saw the chair and table set up in the middle of the stage.
Meagan walked further into the club and ran her hands along the rows of chairs while she took everything in.
“So . . . this is where you did your thing, huh?”
Taking a look around, I nodded. “Yep.”
With a glance over her shoulder back to me, Meagan asked, “Do you miss it?”
Without skipping a beat, I answered. “Fuck no.”
Meagan chuckled as she walked up to the stage and climbed the stairs. “Good answer, stripper boy.”
I lifted my eyebrow as I walked toward her. “You’ve been dying to say that haven’t you?”
Shrugging her shoulders, Meagan took a seat in the chair and gave me a come hi
ther look that had my dick instantly getting hard.
“What do you have planned for me?”
Straddling the chair, I ran my finger down along her jaw. “To make your panties wet.”
Meagan swallowed hard. “That should be rather easy for you since I’m so turned on.”
I sat down some as I moved my lips along her neck and kissed her gently. “Earlier wasn’t enough for you, baby?”
Dropping her head back, Meagan moaned. “Not even close to being enough.”
“You want it dirty, baby?”
Meagan’s eyes widened as she sunk her teeth down into that plump lip.
I jumped up. “Let me make sure no one is here before we start. Stay here.”
With a quick nod, Meagan smiled.
After making a quick round around the club to make sure we were alone, I locked the front door and made my way over to the sound booth.
Searching through the songs, I found one that I had danced to plenty of times. Loading it up in the queue, I quickly made my way back to the stage. I had two songs loaded, the first one was just to get us started.
Meagan looked over to me when the first song started. “The Fix” by Nelly started playing as I started to dance some. I would never forget her smile for as long as I lived.
I pulled out every dance move I could to impress her as I danced my way up to the stage. I pulled my T-shirt over my head as Meagan began to whoop and holler. Moving closer, Meagan reached into her shirt and pulled out money as she winked.
I couldn’t help but laugh as I shook my head. Stopping in front of her, I leaned over and said, “You came prepared.”
“I’m always prepared, Mr. Bennett.”
“You ready?” I asked as I ran my tongue along her lower lip. Meagan gripped my arms as she let out a low rumble from the back of her throat. “Don’t touch me, Meagan.”
“W-what?”
The music changed and “Cookie” by R. Kelly started as Meagan’s eyes lit up and I shook my head. “Don’t. Touch. Me.” I knew by telling her not to touch me, it would drive her desire up even more.
Backing up, I started giving her exactly what she wanted as I danced to the beat of the music. I moved back over her in the chair and rubbed my body against hers as I quickly got lost in the song. Had this been just some girl sitting in this chair, I wouldn’t have been touching her like I was touching Meagan, I was pushing my hard dick against her every fucking chance I got.