40

Chapter 40
Dominic
I carry her to the bedroom, laying her down on the sheets as carefully as I can. I’m more than aware of her swollen belly, the curve of it utterly divine. We move slowly, ensuring that we savor every second together to make up for my prolonged absence. I slip her out of her clothes, peeling back layers like I’m unwrapping a gift.
In many ways, she is a gift. And she’s all mine.
Every movement I make is gentle, cautious. She means just as much to me as the child she holds within her. Carefully pulling her to the edge of the bed, I get down on my knees and part her knees, kissing a line up her thighs. My hands roam over her belly, her soft skin silky against my rough palms.
“I can’t believe it,” I murmur against her core. “Do you know if it’s a boy or a girl?”
“A boy,” she says with a contented sigh. “I had an ultrasound not that long ago.”
A thrill shoots through me. A son. I’m going to have a son. “Is he…” “Happy and healthy,” she confirms.
Pride stirs in my chest. I can’t even begin to describe how much I adore her. “I love you, Arin,” I whisper against her leg, teasing her folds with the tip of my finger. “I love you with all my heart.”
“I love you, too,” she breathes. “So much.”
Her pussy glistens with want, her clit red and begging to be touched. I’ve thought about this moment for months. There were days when the only thing keeping me going was the promise of getting to hold Arin in my arms again.
“I should have been here for you,” I grumble, rubbing my thumb over her sensitive nub. “I’m sorry you had to go through this all alone again.”
She jolts, moaning with pleasure. “You’re here now. That’s all that matters.”
“I swear I’ll be here the whole time when we have our third.”
Arin laughs. “Our third? Getting a little ahead of ourselves, are we?” “I’ve already got names picked out for our fourth and fifth.”
She balks. “You want five kids?”
“I want eight or nine, if I’m being honest, but I’ll be perfectly happy with however many you’re willing to give me.”
Arin squeezes either side of my head between her gorgeous thighs. “We’ll talk about it later. For now, I want you to make up for the five months you’ve been gone.”
A growl rumbles out of my chest. “With pleasure.”
I dive in, placing her legs over my shoulders and grasping her by the hips to give myself access. I lick a stripe up her folds, savoring the taste of her sweet pussy before moving in to tease her senseless. Keeping a steady pace, I draw tight circles against her clit with the tip of my tongue, relishing the way she bucks against my mouth in search of that sweet friction. Her moans become tight and breathy as she grips the sheets, her head tossed back as ecstasy claims her. She comes on my tongue, her back arching beautifully as the rest of her body trembles with pleasure.
I get up off the floor and join her on the bed, our mouths finding each other like moths to a flame.
“Get on top of me, dolcezza. I want to see you ride my cock.”
She climbs on top before piercing herself on my throbbing length. Her walls are deliciously hot and tight, clenching around me as she takes me all the way to the hilt. I’m lost in reverence, staring up at her like a holy idol. I adore the roundness of her breasts and the curve of her belly, in awe of her radiant glow.
“Mother of my children,” I murmur. “So beautiful. God, you really are so beautiful.”
“I don’t think I’m going to last long,” she admits.
“That’s alright, mi amore. I don’t think I’ll last long, either.” I brace my hands on either side of her hips, offering her support. “Go at whatever pace you’d like. I’m all yours.”
“Mine,” she mumbles, moving her hips. She picks an easy cadence, gliding up and down my cock at her leisure. “Mine,” she says again with a languid moan. “All mine.”
“That’s right.”
The tight coil of heat in the pit of my stomach erupts with such intensity
that spots speckle my vision. I’m quick to lay her down on the sheets, kissing her sweetly and slowly. I love the way Arin feels curled up against me, everything about her bringing peace to my soul.
“I’m sorry I hit you with the bat, by the way,” she says around that adorable laugh-snort of hers. It’s the cutest sound in the world, second only to the sound of Felicia’s laughter.
“Twice,” I point out. “You hit me with a bat twice.” She laughs again. I kiss the tip of her nose. “I guess I deserved it.”
“You guess?”
“Okay, okay. I deserved it.”
Arin peeks over my shoulder to check the digital clock resting on the bedside table. “I need to pick up Felicia from preschool. What are we going to tell her now that you’re back? She was at your funeral.”
“Any chance we could tell her it was a game?” “What kind of fucked up game is that?” Arin argues. “I guess I’ll… try and tell her the truth.”
“Probably for the best. Try sugar coating it. You know, like how you’d let a kid know Santa isn’t real.”
I grimace. “I can’t say I’m looking forward to it.”
“Tough,” she says with a smirk. “Consider it your penance for leaving us like that.”
I kiss her tenderly, knowing deep down Arin’s right. Placing a gentle hand on her belly, I say, “I’ll spend the rest of my life making it up to you. All of you.”
“Damn straight, Mr. Wilson. Damn straight. Though I guarantee you that telling your mother is going to be a hell of a lot worse.”
I clap my forehead. “Sweet Lord, my mother.”
Arin cackles. “I’ll start planning your second funeral.”
* * *
I’m not used to having this much free time on my hands, but I can’t say I
mind. Now that I’ve found this little slice of Heaven, there’s no need to give orders and follow commands. I can be present—here with the love of my life, my darling daughter, and my son who’s due soon.
As expected, my mother gives me the tongue lashing of a lifetime. She curses me up and down in both Italian and English, but all is forgiven when I pull her into a tight hug and explain myself the same way I did with Arin.
I spend my days fixing up the house, preparing for our little one’s arrival. There’s something satisfying about working with my hands. I take full responsibility of fixing up the nursery so Arin doesn’t have to lift a finger, repainting the walls a fresh coat of deep evergreen, popping into Arin’s office-turned-studio to check in on her latest creation.
Her talent will never cease to amaze me. It’s fascinating, watching her turn a simple idea jotted down in pencil into a beautiful, tangible thing. I love the way her whole face lights up when she works, so in tune with her craft that she’s never short of awe-inspiring.
My favorite days are the ones I get to spend with Felicia outside. When the weather is mild and the night air is clear, we spend hours playing outside in the front yard surrounded on all sides by tall, towering trees. She’s going through a phase right now where all she wants to play is pirates. She’s a swashbuckling captain, complete with a skull and crossbones hat and eyepatch her mother made out of felt, and I’m…
“Navy seadog!” Felicia growls, pointing the end of her foam sword in my face. “Time to walk the plank!”
I’m not going to lie, it’s very weird playing the part of law enforcement after my years spent working for the other team. But my daughter’s too cute to argue with, so I’m very committed to my role.
“Curse you, Pirate One-Eye!” I step off the edge of a fallen log, laying down in the grass while flailing my arms above my head. “Oh, God! These waters are infested with sharks!”
Felicia laughs maniacally, copying the cartoon villains she so adores on TV. “Arr! Let that be a lesson for ya, scallywag!”
Arin steps out onto the porch with a giggle, calling out to us. “Dinner’s ready. Come inside and wash up, please.”
“Aww,” Felicia whines. “I still need to get the treasure.”
I lift my head off the ground. “Maybe you can ask Mom to help you find
it?”
“Good idea. Mommy, come help!”
Arin laughs, stepping down the front steps of the porch. She keeps a hand on the railing, moving with great care. Her belly is large and swollen, her due date about two weeks away. Felicia quickly takes her mother’s hand and guides her into the trees, not too far away and still within earshot. Felicia gasps at the ground.
“Look at these sticks!” she declares. “They’re like lines on a map.”
“Do you think we should follow them?” Arin asks. “We need to find where X marks the spot.”
“Yeah!” Felicia cheers, tugging Arin along. All according to plan.
While Arin follows Felicia around on the set path I helped build, I get up, dust myself off, and pull the ring box from my back pocket. I’ve been lying on top of the X the entire time. When my girls round the base of the tree trunk, I’m already on one knee with the ring box open. Inside sits my grandmother’s pearl engagement ring.
Arin beams, her smile brighter than the sun as her eyes gloss over with happy tears. “Oh, you two are so silly,” she says with a sniffle.
“Cuore mio,” I begin. “The first time I laid eyes on you, you were screaming bloody murder into your phone in the middle of the first-class lounge at JFK.”
Her cheeks turn a bright, bashful red. “God, please don’t remind me. It was so embarrassing.”
I chuckle, shaking my head slightly. “I thought you were perfect. Before you, I’d never met a woman more beautiful, more feisty, more brilliant. Fate led us to meeting that day, and it was fate when I found you again. When I’m with you, everything is right with the world. I never want to spend another day without you. Marina, will you do me the honor of officially letting me be Mr. Wilson?”
Arin nods, laughing lightly. “Absolutely.”