Reclaimed (Powell Sanctuary #5)

Chapter 24

24

Isla

Something thumps against my abdomen. I stretch sleepily, shifting my legs and bumping into something warm behind me. Aiden’s arm tightens around my middle, and he lets out a quiet snore.

There it is again. My eyes pop open. The thump hits my stomach and I realize it’s coming from inside.

“Aiden!” I shake his arm, moving his palm down my stomach. “Aiden, wake up!”

“What’s wrong?” His head pops up behind me, gazing over my shoulder toward the door. “Is it Remy?”

“It’s the baby.” The excitement coursing through me chases away the remnants of sleep. “I think he’s kicking.”

Aiden presses a soft kiss against my bare shoulder, his stubble tickling the sensitive skin. I feel him smile there. “You felt him?”

“I think so. It woke me up.” I move his hand around like it’s a stethoscope chasing a heartbeat. “Can you feel anything?”

Seconds tick by in silence while he feels. “No. I can’t feel anything. But if this is only the first time you’ve felt it, it might still be awhile until I can. He’s still so tiny. He’s only the size of a banana.”

Ignoring him, I push his hand harder against my lower stomach. “Still no?”

“Mm, no. But I love where this is going, starshine. Push me just a little bit lower.” His gritty voice is filled with humor and warmth as he kisses a trail from my shoulder to my neck.

“Like this?” I slide the tips of his fingers into the elastic band of my underwear. His rough callouses send electricity through me. Opening his mouth, his teeth graze the skin at the edge of my jaw.

“That’s good, Isla. I can take it from here.” His hand beneath mine becomes a forearm as he advances further into my underwear. His middle finger runs south along the crease, pressing until he splits me open. “So wet this morning.”

“I’m wet every morning I wake up beside you.”

“I know,” he murmurs huskily in my ear. The warm breath accompanying his words sends a shiver down my spine. “You’re always ready for me to fuck you.”

The pillow cradles my head as I tip back at his confident touch. He sucks my neck, slipping his middle finger inside of me. I clench at the intrusion. At the blissful heat pooling deep in my pelvis.

He gathers some of the wetness and smears it over my clit.

“I love the way your fingers feel, Aiden.” They’re thick and strong. The ministrations skillful and sure.

His knee cocks beside me, and I lose his fingers as he shifts my leg over his, spreading me and holding me open. His chin rests on my shoulder as his gaze pins on the place his fingers disappear again between my thighs. “Like this?” he growls in my ear. The guttural sound sends a tremor racing through my limbs. He drives two fingers deep, curling to touch the spot that makes me pant, and his thumb swipes my clit.

“Yes, there,” I croon, clenching the pillow beneath my head.

“Do you want my cock?

My hips jerk, lifting, pressing back against his lap.

“Say it, Isla,” he orders. The soft cotton of his sleep pants rubs against my bare ass cheek as he drags them down his thighs. “Tell me you want my cock, baby,” he nearly begs, his voice that needy desperation that only turns me on more. He wants the pleasure only I’ve ever given him.

“Be a good boy, Aiden, and give me your cock.”

“ Fuck! ” he swears harshly, yanking my underwear to the side, baring me to him. “You don’t know what you fucking to do me. You make me crazy, baby.”

I whimper at the loss of his fingers. He smears the wetness on my thigh as he wraps his arm around my leg. Yanking me higher, closer, tighter against him, his tip bobs against my pussy.

“Put me in you, woman.”

Curling my fingers around his shaft, he pulses against my palm. I run his thick tip through my wetness. He growls and gasps as I use him to circle my clit. “Isla,” he grunts.

My eyes fall shut as I repeat the process, dipping him in half an inch before teasing my clit again.

“ Isla , fucking hell. Stop teasing me, baby. I’m going to blow in your hand.” His desperation makes me throb. His hips flex against my ass as he thrusts in my hand, reminding me I’m the one with all the control.

He kisses up my leg, begging me between each one. “Please.” Kiss. “I need you.” Kiss.

I take mercy and notch him at my opening.

“Thank you,” he grunts, and in one slow thrust, he sinks home.

We groan together at the intrusion, the steady stretch and glide of his cock against my walls. He pauses once I’m full.

“So perfect. Like you were made for me.”

He steals my breath as he starts to move, the steady rhythm picking up speed. His gaze is fixated on the place we’re joined together as he still holds the gusset of my underwear out of the way.

I lie on my side, one palm planted in the bed for balance, the other clenching into the sheets as pleasure races through my system. Aiden feels so good, so big, the delicious stretch sending a jolt through me with each deep thrust. Twisting my torso so my back lies flat, I reach up and cup his neck. His heated gaze is intense as he finds my eyes.

“Fuck me, Aiden.”

His hips snap in response, and he tucks my leg behind his waist. “Like this?”

“Faster, honey.” My eyes slip closed as his thumb finds my swollen clit.

Aiden growls, leaning over to take my lips. His tongue invades my mouth, and I swallow his groan of satisfaction.

When I lose his lips, he also pulls out.

“Where do you think you’re going?” I sass.

He stacks his pillows in the middle of the bed and slaps them. “Need that ass.” His hands grip my waist and turn me onto my hands and knees, cushioning my belly with the stack. “Want to try something else.”

A thrill shoots through me as he curls his fingers into the elastic of my cheeky panties and drags the satin down my thighs. They wind up on the floor before he’s back, his mouth exploring the newly bared skin.

“You have a fantastic ass, starshine.”

“You’ve seen it before.” I think back to the number of dance outfits he’s seen me in, stubbornly denying how this could be such a novelty.

“Not like this,” he growls, sinking his teeth into the supple cheek. He shifts behind me, and then he’s spreading me. “God, you’re gorgeous.”

His warm breath fans over my dripping pussy followed a second later by his tongue. He licks a sturdy strip from my clit straight through the crease of my ass.

“Aiden!” I squeak, shocked at the zing of pleasure reverberating in my clit from the unexpected move. I rock forward against the pillows.

“Hold still, baby. I’m having breakfast.”

I groan loudly as he repeats the motion, swirling his tongue around the unexplored area. My fingers grip wildly at the sheets as he eats and eats and eats. The wet sound of his tongue fills the room.

“Oh my god.” I bury my face in the pillows as a red flush races up my neck.

“You gonna come?”

“Yes.” I whimper and rock back into his face. The earlier shyness vanished, only to be replaced by unhindered pleasure. My muscles shake with the tension gripping them as he hurtles me toward an earthshattering orgasm. “Don’t stop. Just like that. Keep going. I’m—I’m coming.”

He sinks two fingers inside of me just as I splinter apart. A spasm grips my core, squeezing him in pulsing shocks, and I scream his name into the pillow.

With a final kiss on my ass cheek, Aiden slips his fingers free and replaces them with his cock.

“You’re still twitching, baby.”

“I think I’m coming again,” I mumble deliriously into the pillow. I’m wrung out, my limbs limp from the pleasure.

“You feel good from this angle too.”

“You’re really deep.”

A cell phone rings from somewhere in the room, the sound unnatural to our sex-filled bubble.

“That me or you?” Aiden grinds out.

“Think that’s you, lover.”

Aiden’s fingertips dig into my plush hips, gripping me tight as he plows into me from behind. “They’ll call back.”

One of his hands skates along my spine to the nape of my neck. His fingers dance there, kneading into the overworked muscles before tracing back down the path they came.

When the phone starts ringing again, Aiden swears. “Dammit.” He slaps his cell from the nightstand without missing a beat.

“Hello?”

“Aiden!” I squeak as his dick slides deep. He swivels his hips against my ass, brushing against a spot inside that makes my muscles quiver.

“Really? Right now?” he grunts, resuming a leisurely glide. Shoving my hand between my body and the pillows, I strum the pad of my middle finger over my clit.

Aiden hides his grunt with a cough as I tighten around him. “Yeah. An hour? That sounds good.”

I rock back against him, chasing another orgasm. He shudders behind me, and his voice is unnaturally tight as he says, “Everyone’s okay though?”

The question stalls my movement.

Before I receive any verbal confirmation, Aiden chucks the phone onto the bed. Snaking his arm beneath mine, he gently grips my throat and yanks me upright onto my knees. His mouth hits my ear, low and urgent. “Bounce on my cock, baby. Help me finish.”

“Everything okay?”

His other hand dips between my legs and rubs my clit.

“Whitney’s having her baby. Jack says we’ve got an hour or so, and we’ve got to take care of Remy. But before we do that, I need to come, and I need you to come again.”

“I might not have another one in me.” The moan he rips from my throat belies the statement.

“I’m going to have a hell of a lot of fun trying.”

My thighs burn in the new position, spread wide with my calves outside of his. I play with my nipples as he surges into me, using the motion I showed him I liked on my clit. In two minutes flat, he proves me to be a liar as he rips another orgasm from me.

“That’s it, Isla, squeeze me. Fuck , you’re incredible.”

“Fill me, Aiden, please.” I tip my chin and kiss the stubble on the underside of his jaw. My hand curls around and cups his other cheek before sliding into his hair. “Come in my pussy.”

My words set him off and he comes with a guttural groan. The feeling of him throbbing sends mini shockwaves through my system.

“This feels like it should be illegal,” he pants, twisting my chin to kiss me sweetly. The contrast to the dirty things we just did is comical.

“Not behind closed doors, it isn’t. Now if you take me out in the street, we might get arrested.”

Aiden flips us, taking me carefully to my back in the bed. “We are never, ever testing that theory.”

My smile wavers. I hide it by kissing him.

He thinks we won’t test it because he’s possessive.

But I wonder if we’ll be together long enough for it to even matter.

An hour later, we’re walking hand in hand into the Fairview Valley Hospital maternity ward. It strikes me as I step foot off the elevator that in a few short months, I’ll be in this same exact place delivering my baby. There won’t be a waiting room full of eager family members and friends waiting patiently to meet the new little one.

More than likely, I’ll be totally alone.

That’s not right. I’ll have Juniper. My eyes meet hers across the room where she sits with Lee on one side and her brother Lincoln on the other. And maybe she’ll bring along one of the other girls. Surely, Whitney will be too busy with her kids, and so will Bree. Frankie might not want to support me after she learns that this entire relationship with Aiden was a ruse. Those two seem to have a special bond. Same with Cortney, being that she’s Aiden’s actual sister. I can count Nancy out. The reminder of the mess we made when Aiden claimed my baby as his hits hard. This family that has been nothing but kind to me over the last couple months is going to feel so blindsided and betrayed by the truth.

Aiden tugs my hand, my faltered steps holding back his advance. The fake smile I plaster on feels brittle. “Sorry, I got lost daydreaming.”

He scans my face, and I clock the moment he notices my mouth. He lingers there for a beat before returning to my eyes. “You good?”

“All good here, lover.” I bump my elbow against his. We appear to be the last to arrive, and our little private discussion is creating a spectacle.

Reaching the group sends a swirl of nausea in my gut. One of the first times this entire pregnancy.

“You guys made it,” Lee says, rising from his chair to give Aiden a brief clap on the back.

“Any news?” Aiden asks.

“Jack popped out about fifteen minutes ago to tell us she was starting to push,” Nancy replies, also moving in to give Aiden a hug. He doesn’t let go of my hand as he wraps his free arm around his mom.

“I don’t know what that means.” Aiden laughs as he pulls back. The smile is bright and genuine.

“Could be anywhere from now until a couple of hours,” Bree pipes in from where she’s snuggled into Corjan’s side. She waves a Kindle in the air. “I brought entertainment just in case it’s the latter.”

“Me too.” Juniper grins and waves her own Kindle. “We’re buddy reading.”

“What’s that?” I ask, allowing myself to get pulled into the conversation. I unlink my fingers from Aiden’s and move a step away.

“It means we’re reading the same book at the same time so that we can stop and discuss all the juicy parts,” Juniper replies.

“Cortney’s supposed to be reading with us, but she isn’t here yet. We have an unofficial book club.” Bree adds.

“That sounds like fun. I want to join this book club.” The ache between my thighs from this morning makes itself known as I sit in the hard chair beside Bree. I rub my hand over my bump. “I’m sure I’ll have plenty of time to read in the coming months.”

Juniper shifts in her chair. “It’s called Headed for Home, by Harloe Rae. He’s an ex-baseball pro who now owns a bar in an adorable small town and one day bumps into the woman he hasn’t been able to stop thinking about since they kissed in middle school and now he’s determined to make her fall in love with him. And she raises horses!”

“It’s so hot.” Bree fans herself with her Kindle while rolling her eyes.

“Like super spicy.” A blush lights up Juniper’s cheeks.

“Ugh, gross.” Lincoln moves across the room away from the romance talk.

“Teenagers.” Juniper rolls her eyes. “It’s really good. We’re only a few chapters in but I just swoon every time Drake opens his mouth.”

“Okay, I’m sold. I’m going to download it now.”

Bree whips out her phone. “Then we can add you to our book club group chat. Be aware, you’re going to get bombed with inappropriate excerpts and R-rated GIFs.”

I pat my stomach. “I’m not exactly a virgin.”

Aiden snorts behind me, prompting me to cough in my shoulder to hide a smirk.

Juniper screws up her face. “I don’t think we missed that one, babe.”

“How are you feeling?” Bree asks after she adds me to the group chat and tucks her phone back into her purse at her hip.

“Things have been progressing really well, actually. I was spared in the first trimester, and I’ve been enjoying the return of my energy these last few weeks.”

Bree brushes her hair chin-length hair behind her ear. “You’re totally glowing.”

“Do you know what you’re having?” Frankie joins the conversation, having been listening from where she’s perched on Jude’s lap on the other side of Corjan.

“Oh, um. I don’t think I should say. This is Jack and Whitney’s day.” Nerves flare to life. “I don’t want to steal their thunder.”

“Oh, please.” Juniper rolls her eyes. “We don’t subscribe to that bullshit around here. There’s enough sky for the entire damn storm.”

A hand on my shoulder startles me until Aiden’s spicy, citrusy scent hits my nose. He squeezes reassuringly. “She just had her scan yesterday.”

“Isla!” Juniper leans forward and gives me an accusatory glare. “You promised no more secrets.”

“I was just trying to find a cute way to tell you! I didn’t get a chance before we got the call this morning.”

Juniper purses her lips and leans back against Lee’s shoulder. “Okay, that’s acceptable, but now you have to spill. Do I get another niece or nephew?”

Suddenly the center of attention, my heart skips a beat. I wet my lips. Aiden drops into the chair beside me and takes my hand. “Tell them what we’re having, starshine,” he murmurs in my ear.

I search his gaze, but all I find is a strong contentment urging me to do as he asked.

“We’re having a boy.” The words are loud enough to be heard around the room, but I can’t take my eyes off of Aiden. For the first time since this silly arrangement began, I admit to myself that I wish the words were true. I wish Aiden was this baby’s dad.

How pathetic does that make me? Falling for this man while I’m pregnant with someone else’s baby? He can’t know. He’ll think I’m trying to trap him, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. The truth is I’m falling hard, and I don’t know how to stop the freefall.

A desperation surges in me so strongly that I wrap my palm around his neck and tug him to my lips. I kiss him with an urgency like the sand timer’s been flipped, and one by one, I’m watching the tiny grains counting down.

“Sorry,” I mutter, pulling away.

Aiden thumbs away a smudge in my strawberry lip gloss, eyes soft. “Never say sorry for kissing me.”

“All right, move over, Aiden. I need to hug my best friend.” Juniper bounces on the balls of her feet. Aiden kisses my cheek once more before releasing me with his palms held outward.

“I can’t help it if she finds me irresistible.” He smirks. Nobody laughs. The silence in the room is so profound I could hear a pin drop.

Quietly, from the corner, Jude says quietly, “There he is. Happy for you, Aiden.”

“Thank you.” Aiden’s voice is gruff. I want to see his face, but before I can get a good read on how Jude’s words affected him, Juniper yanks me up from my chair.

“I’m so excited for you!” she squeals in my ear. My arms tighten, gripping her like a sudden lifeline I didn’t know I needed until right this second.

“Thank you.”

“Is the baby here?”

We break apart at the newcomer. Cortney stands at the edge of our little group, her face serious as she studies her family members.

“Not yet.” Aiden engulfs her in a hug, spinning her once.

Her face breaks out into a brief smile before she smacks his shoulders. “Put me down!”

Aiden lowers her back to her feet but keeps his arm tight around her upper back. “Isla just announced that she’s having a boy.” His eyes meet mine, but I find them unreadable.

“Oh my god, congratulations!” I’m swept up into another tight hug. “I can’t believe I’m going to get two new babies to love on.”

My heart clenches so hard I nearly grab my chest. I find Aiden over her shoulder, his attention on the two of us.

Tell them, I mouth.

He tucks his hands into his front pockets and shakes his head no.

I open my mouth, my mind working on the right words to put the truth out in the open, when the door to the maternity ward opens.

“We have a baby!” Jack announces, his face split in a radiant smile.

Everyone stands and shuffles closer to the beaming Powell brother. Jude reaches him first, clapping his twin’s shoulder in anticipation of the news.

“Whitney is doing great. She’s getting cleaned up and having a rest before she tries nursing. Once she’s ready, we’d love for you all to meet our little boy, Soren Jude Powell.”

“Fucking hell, man,” Jude croaks and yanks his brother into a crushing hug.

“Damn,” Aiden says quietly at my side, his hand finding mine. His voice is thick when he says, “That’s nice.”

“That’s such a sweet gesture.” I squeeze his hand.

“You don’t know the half of it. They had a rough childhood, and the way Jack tells it, he wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for Jude protecting him. Hell of a way to honor his brother.”

I rest my head on Aiden’s shoulder, blinking back the sting of tears. Once the twins pull apart, everyone takes turns congratulating the new father. I even get swept into yet another unexpected hug.

Everyone resumes their seats, chatting excitedly until an hour later when Whitney’s ready for company. By the time Aiden and I get our turn in the small room, I’m about falling asleep on my feet.

“We’ll be quick,” Aiden announces as he leads me into the small room. Whitney is glowing where she sits in the hospital bed with a tiny bundle of blankets in her arms. Her cheeks are slightly pink, and her hair is a cute mess of waves.

“Congratulations!” I lean over the bedrail and squeeze her shoulder affectionately. “How are you feeling?”

“I’m good. Third time and all.” She waves her hand. “A breeze.”

“She’s a pro.” Jack kisses her on the forehead, his eyes radiating so much love I feel like I should look away.

“I might have to call you for some pointers.” I’m only half joking. Even though Aiden and I have been reading the baby book together, I feel like it’s only giving me half-truths. There’s no way the book is accurate in spelling out exactly how much birthing a baby is going to hurt.

Jack scoops up his son from Whitney and carefully hands him off to Aiden. “And I’ll be calling you,” Aiden jokes at Jack.

“My phone is always on, you know that.”

I peer over Aiden’s arm at the little baby. A blue hat covers Soren’s forehead, but his little brown eyebrows are visible beneath the band. His lashes are a mixture of blond and brown. His little pink lips are pursed in a puckered frown.

“He’s so beautiful, you guys.” My voice is filled with awe. I’ve never been around a newborn baby before, and I’m struck by how tiny he is. How fragile.

As if sensing the direction of my thoughts, Aiden holds him out. “Want to hold him?”

I slip my purse strap off my shoulder, letting it fall to the floor. Aiden places the baby in the crook of my arm. “Oh my god, he’s so light.”

“He won’t stay that way by long. When you need to bounce him around all hours the of the night trying to get him to fall asleep, he’ll start to feel like he’s fifty pounds.”

“Which one?” Aiden asks, referring to her two older kids.

“Bennett.” Jack smirks, and I sense an underlying story there.

Soren stirs in my arms, prompting me to hand him back to his mom. We exchange a round of goodbyes, and leave them to finish with their visitors and get some much-needed rest.