AmayaI took a deep breath as I sat at the desk and then followed it with a sip of my ginger ale. I picked up one of the crackers to nibble on, and some of the nausea began to recede. All right, well, that was a start. If I could get through a day at a time like this, I was going to be fine. The sickness wasn’t going to stop, but I could at least find ways to distract myself. Work was providing a decent excuse for that for now, but I didn’t know how long I would last here before I needed to take some time off to look after myself and the baby.The first thing I had done was let my manager know I was pregnant so nobody could accuse me of hiding this to try to hold on to the position. There was quite a bit of work I could do from home, which was a relief, so I wouldn’t have to give up the job entirely, but I would have to step down and let someone else fill in the gaps for me while I was away. I already had my eye on someone to do just that.“Hey.” Darla stuck her head around the door,
AmayaI headed home as early as I could that day, the nights I’d spent late in the office finishing up work down to the last little detail long out the window. I was starting to feel ill again as I drove home, and I made a mental note to ask Kristo to hire me a driver so I didn’t have to worry about getting myself to and from work. He had been so sweet all day, bless him, bringing me water when he heard me throwing up and talking me through my panicked round of nerves the day before. I couldn’t have asked for a better man to help me through all of this.He seemed as enthusiastic as I was, if not more so, but then, he didn’t have the pukiness to deal with, so maybe he was still a little more optimistic about the whole thing. I would catch up as soon as I was out of this trimester. I had looked up all this stuff about pregnancy hormones and symptoms and how they would hit me and when they would recede. So I knew at least that this wasn’t going to last forever. As soon as I had this out
KristoI tapped my fingers on my elbow impatiently. I felt a little bad that I had called these guys out at such short notice, but it was for the best. I wanted to have everything ready to go by the time Amaya arrived here with her sister. I wanted to show them both I was about as serious about this as I possibly could be.“How much longer do you think you’ll be?” I asked the workman who passed by me, a bag of tools slung over his shoulder and clinking loudly. He shrugged.“Should be another hour, at most?” he offered, and I could tell my impatience was getting to him.“If I put another five hundred on the price tag, could you get it done quicker?” I asked, and he nodded at once.“Sure thing, boss,” he flashed me a smile, and then he disappeared and left me waiting in the kitchen, wondering if there was any way in hell they were going to get this finished in time.It was my fault. If I wanted a stairlift put in, I could have organized it long before the actual day Jolene was supposed
KristoI hurried up the stairs to join them, and Amaya headed to the kitchen as soon as she was inside.“Wow, that smells good.” She inhaled deeply, pulling the lid off one of the pots and looking at what was inside. “I should get you to cook for us more often.”“As if I don’t do all the cooking already,” I replied, shooting a wink at Jolene, who grinned. Amaya rolled her eyes at me and came over to join us on the couch.“How long do we have until the others arrive?” she asked, and I glanced at my watch.“About a half-hour,” I replied. “Enough time to figure out some more details for when Jolene is living here with us.”“I can’t believe this is actually happening.” Jolene shook her head, fiddling with the charms on the bracelet we’d purchased for her a few days earlier. “I’m going to be living here. Here! Have you seen this place? It’s like a palace.”We chatted a little about exactly what we would need to do in order to make the place as friendly to Jolene and her wheelchair as possi
AmayaI lay there in bed, staring at the ceiling. The night had gone as well as I could have hoped, but there was a restlessness inside of me that I couldn’t shake. I had tidied the house, relaxed as well as I could, taken a shower, but by the time I came to bed, I still felt as though there was something nagging at the back of my mind.I didn’t know how long it would be until Kristo came back. He’d insisted on driving Jolene back down the road to her home. I hated to see her leave so much, but I knew it was the right thing. I couldn’t wait for the day when we wouldn’t have to take her back anywhere, when this would be her home, when we could have nights like this and I could stay up late talking with my sister when they were done.I wondered if she’d noticed the way I had that Darla and Cleo seemed to be really feeling each other. Kristo had mentioned that Cleo had dated girls in the past, but I hadn’t expected them to hit it off so completely and obviously. They were probably still
AmayaKristo stripped me down swiftly, tossing aside his own pants and boxers, and laid down on top of me carefully, so as not to put too much weight on me. I ran my nails over his back, loving the feel of his muscles beneath my fingers. Hell, if this was what the rest of pregnancy was going to be like, then you could count me in, nausea or no nausea.“You look so beautiful right now,” he murmured, and I kissed him, starving for his touch, his mouth, for anything I could get.“I need you inside me, Kristo.” I repeated his name once more, and as though it was a charm, he obliged. Sliding between my legs, he parted my thighs and took his cock in his hand. I had a momentary panic about us not using a condom, but then I remembered what he’d mentioned earlier. We wouldn’t need one now that I was pregnant. Skin on skin, together with no barrier between us at last. I ran my hands over his neck and his shoulders, and he looked deeply into my eyes as he guided himself into me.“Fuck,” he groan
KristoFive days till Jolene moved in. Six weeks until the wedding. And about thirty seconds before I tossed my sister out of my office.“Really, Cleo, it’s going to be okay,” I promised her. “You need to calm down. It’s not that big a deal.”“Of course, it is!” she exclaimed, shooting a furious look in my direction. “I really liked this girl, Kristo. And now she’s just gone. Like that. I can’t believe it.”I ran my hand through my hair and tried to center myself. I had never much been good at this kind of thing, but it was my sister, so I would give it a go.“Come on, tell me about it.” I crouched down in front of where she had crashed dramatically into the seat in my office just a few minutes before. “It can’t be that bad, can it?”She wiped the tears away from her eyes and gave me a hard look.“You’re getting married soon,” she reminded me. “You don’t know what it’s like to have your heart broken.”I thought back to the moment when Amaya had walked out on me, when she had told me s
Kristo“I guess I should probably let you get back to work.” She sighed and dragged herself to her feet, as though it was some great trial to even pull herself upright. “And can you get me Darla’s number from Amaya? I guess we were a little distracted the first night we met, and I forgot to ask for it.”“Just drinks, huh?” I teased again.“Just drinks,” she repeated, but she was grinning like she was sitting on a secret. I gave her a quick hug and saw her to the door.“Take care of yourself, okay?” I ordered her. “I’m going to need you running properly these next few weeks. The wedding’s coming up, and then …”“And then we’re going to have to start putting shit together for the nursery.” She clapped her hands together in excitement. “Oh my god, I can’t wait to meet my little niece.”“Or nephew,” I reminded her. “We don’t know the gender yet.”“Yeah, I have a feeling.” She tapped her nose.“Just make sure anything you do get is gender-neutral,” I suggested. “Just on the slight chance y
KristoI went to the window and stretched, running my hand through my hair and grinning. I couldn’t believe we were actually in Greece. We were supposed to be arriving right about now, but I couldn’t wait that long to get her alone and was glad I’d incurred the extra expense to fly us out here at the last minute. It was worth it, so we could just be together after the hectic chaos of the wedding.I had called Cleo when we’d arrived, and she’d told me everyone had an amazing time. Nonna had a little too much to drink that night and had held court with stories about her young adulthood in Greece. Everyone had found it hilarious. And it seemed like Cleo and Darla were officially together, judging by the fact that I could hear Amaya’s friend in the background of the call long after they’d gone to bed.Amaya wasn’t awake yet, and I was glad for that. I still needed a little time to come to terms with the fact that I was actually married to the woman fast asleep in the bed behind me. My rin
AmayaOnce I had changed into something more party-worthy, the reception began, and at last, I could really relax and enjoy myself. Jolene and I spent a good hour dancing together before Kristo cut in to get his hands on me, holding me close and swaying with me as the band played a slow song. He kissed my neck softly, and I felt that burning desire for my husband pick up intensity. I couldn’t wait to get him alone, but we weren’t leaving for our honeymoon to Greece until the next day, so I had a while to wait yet.The food was amazing. There was even baklava, which Nonna had insisted on making herself. It wasn’t quite as good as Kristo’s, but I didn’t say a word of that to her. She would never let me hear the end of it. I ate and drank nonalcoholic cocktails, danced, and watched my guests do the same. I couldn’t believe how perfect this was. Darla and Cleo spent the night basically glued to each other’s sides, and I couldn’t help but coo internally over how cute they were.When I fina
AmayaI couldn’t even put into words how nervous I’d been that entire morning. My mind was taken up with questions about whether everything was going to go right. In my head, I was certain something was going to happen, that Kristo’s dad was going to squirm out of it at the last second and let us down, that the flowers weren’t going to arrive, that the dress wasn’t going to fit, that something was going to throw off this whole perfect day we had put so much time and effort into putting together.Then, I was sitting there in the room they had set up for me to get ready in, and I was staring at myself in the mirror, wearing the dress I had fallen in love with from the moment I’d laid eyes on it the week before. Jolene had picked well. She knew blue was my favorite color, and when I had slipped into the dress, even though it barely fit, I’d known this was the one for me. Sitting in front of the mirror, it was hard to believe this was really me, and this was really happening. How long had
KristoDarla, who had stepped in last-minute as a bridesmaid, followed her a minute later. She was wearing a dress in a delicate mint shade, and I could feel Cleo shift next to me when she emerged from the house.“Easy, tiger,” I murmured to her, and she nudged me playfully and straightened up again. I had a smile on my face, and I was beginning to relax. Then, I saw my bride walking toward me down the aisle, and I could hardly keep the tension out of my body.She looked incredible. No doubt about that. She’d told me she had only really looked at one dress, and I could see why. She looked unbelievable in it. It was cut to just below her knees, a flowing skirt that faded from cream to a pale blue color. The bodice hugged her body perfectly, and she was wearing the sweetest veil that covered her face as she made her way toward me. Even through the fabric, I could see the huge smile on her face, as though she couldn’t believe this was really happening. I knew exactly how she felt.It see
KristoI stared at myself in the mirror, wearing the tuxedo Amaya had picked out for me. I had seen myself in it before, of course, in the hurried fitting earlier in the week, but I felt as though I was looking at myself in it for the very first time. I stared at myself in the mirror for a long moment and pressed my lips together. Why the fuck was I even nervous? I had done this all before with Amaya. And yet, here I was on my wedding day, scared a little bit shitless.There was a knock at the door, and I spun around at once. In my head, I was sure that somehow this was all going to go wrong, that Amaya was going to back out of it before I got her up the aisle, that the speed this had all happened was going to scare her off in the end. Instead, my lawyer entered, and I rolled my eyes.“What is it?” I demanded. He stood there in the door wringing his hands with a panicked look on his face and wearing a slightly rumpled suit.“I just wanted to let you know there’s still time to get a pr
AmayaBefore he could say a word more to me, I leaned forward and took him into my mouth. He tasted so good, even better than normal, the sweetness of the gel lingering on his body. I could taste that hint of vanilla, just a touch, making him taste like the pastry he had spent all day baking. Guiding him as far into my mouth as I could manage, I wrapped my hand around his base and began to stroke him, taking him deep into my mouth and listening to those appreciative little noises he kept on coming out with. I slipped a hand around his thigh, gripping him tightly, letting him know I would have made him come right here and now if he wanted to. I sank my nails into his skin, wanting to leave marks on his body, to remind him who he belonged to and who belonged to him.I wasn’t sure how long I was there on my knees in front of him, the water running over my body and down my back. I could have stayed there all day, but after a while, it became clear he didn’t want to come like that. He want
AmayaWhen I arrived back at the house, I caught the scent of heaven floating through the room at once. I closed my eyes as I stepped through the door, inhaling deeply—cinnamon, sweetness, a little sharpness. Whatever it was, even if it made me sick, I had to have it right there and then.“Hey, where are you guys?” I called into the house, looking around for Jolene or her nurse. She had arrived today, and Kristo had offered to help her settle in, which I was glad for, as I wanted to get as far ahead on my work at the library as I possibly could before the baby came along.“In the kitchen,” Jolene called back, and I crossed the room to the kitchen. All three of them were there, and Kristo was carefully cutting up some pastries that were still in a steaming-hot pan.“We made baklava!” Jolene exclaimed excitedly, pointing to the pan Kristo was maneuvering his knife around.“I can see that.” I inhaled deeply again and smiled my greeting at Pamela. “And what exactly is that?”“It’s a Greek
KristoI took a deep breath, planted my hands on the desk, and tried to center myself. There was no point getting upset about this. At the end of the day, either he was going to make the effort and come to my wedding or he wasn’t, and there was very little I could do to change his mind if he didn’t want to. Short of flying out to Greece and dragging him by his collar back to Nonna’s house to be there for the ceremony, if he wanted to skip it, he would. And I had a feeling he was going to. Amaya wouldn’t want this to be a stressful time for me. She wanted our wedding to be full of joy, peace, happiness, not me yelling into a phone to my father from half a globe away.I focused on the voices outside the room. Well, they weren’t saying anything, but they were laughing, and that was enough to get me feeling a little better. After a slight delay, Jolene’s nurse Pamela had arrived this morning, and the two of them were getting to know each other. I had offered to stay at home that day to wo
Kristo“Malaka,” I muttered to myself, forgetting for a moment that my dad was the one on the other end of the line, and he could well understand I had just called him an—“Did you just call me an asshole?” he snapped at me. I rolled my eyes, tempted to point out that the word didn’t have a specific English translation, but playing the smart-ass was only going to land me in a heap more trouble. As if it wasn’t bad enough as it was.“No,” I lied swiftly. “Look, are you sure you can’t get back sooner than that? You need to be here, Dad. It’s my wedding.”“I know,” he replied tersely. “You think I don’t know that? I’m as annoyed about it as you are.”“Then why won’t you just make the effort and actually come back home?” I pointed out. “This is ridiculous, Dad. Even you must be able to see that.”“I didn’t plan it this way,” he snapped back, but I didn’t believe him. I knew my dad well enough to know he had everything in his life carefully planned out. If he was stuck in Greece right now,