Miles for Love Series Box Set, page 52
“No, please.” I sniff. “Please, Aleks.” Another sniff as I wipe my tears and try to collect myself. “There’s something important I need to tell you.” My voice cracks.
His head tilts, and his eyes search mine. “What is it, malishka?” his voice is so comforting and soft, like with just his voice he can calm me.
“Aleks…I’m…I’m pregnant.” I say and then gasp, trying to hold back the tears.
His hand goes to his chest.
“I…I…I don’t even know what to say. This is such a mess.” I gasp again, nearly hyperventilating as I try not to cry.
He exhales audibly, a sound my dad makes when he is trying to comfort me, just before saying something sweet or meaningful to the situation. “Malloriya,”
I look at him, my eyes filling with tears.
“Malloriya,” he pats his chest, “You have made me so happy.” His voice cracks.
“Really?” my voice is wet.
He sniffs, and I see a tear fall down his cheek. He wipes it away and speaks with a cracking voice. “Yes, really. Malloriya, you do not know how long I have wanted to have a child.” Another sniff. “And the fact that this will be our child that we made together…makes it all that more special.”
“Really?” I sound like a broken record, and I’m weeping like a, well, an emotional pregnant person. Hey, I can use that now.
“Yes, baby. Yes.” He smiles. “I am so happy. Are you not?” he looks at me.
“Well, I…” I hesitate. “It’s just such a difficult situation.”
He sniffs. “It is not difficult, malishka. We love each other. Anything else is just details. We will figure it out.”
I love it that everything can be figured out when it comes to him. There is no such thing as drama with this man. “Does Henry know that he is going to have a brother or sister?”
“No. Only Larissa knows. And that was by sheer coincidence.”
“Malloriya,” he turns serious. “I do not want you to tell Brent. Not yet. Please promise me that you will not.”
“I promise.” I say quickly. Very little convincing needed there. “But he’s the least of my worries, Aleks.” I explain, sobering. “He’s going back to Afghanistan on Friday.”
Aleks looks up at the ceiling and breathes in and out deeply, holding his chest. “Thank God my prayers have been answered, malishka.”
“What do you mean?”
He smiles. “Baby, that is between me and God.”
I chuckle, shaking my head. “You are such an evil man sometimes.”
“Only for your own good, malishka.” He says, and then he changes the subject. “Do you know how far along you are, or is it too early to tell?”
“I’m about seven weeks. But they can’t tell properly until my ultrasound, and I’ll get that appointment probably tomorrow.”
“You make sure to call me and tell me everything.” He says excitedly, then he turns semi-serious. “Is Larissa going to jump on a plane and come to murder me?” he is only half-joking.
“She begged me to let her be here when I told you.”
He laughs out loud. “You want me to call her?”
I cut my hand in the air, laughing, shaking my head. “No.”
“You are no fun, malishka. I would love to see the look on her face.” He is smiling a hundred-watt smile.
“I bet you would, but still no.” his smiles are contagious as hell. I suppose having a baby with him will be okay.
His smile turns semi-serious again. “Malishka, do not worry about anything, okay? Promise me.”
“That’s a pretty tall order, Aleks.” I scoff. “We live in different countries, remember?”
“How about we take this one step at a time. One day at a time.” He says fairly. “My great babushka lived one-hundred and six years, and do you know what she said was her secret to living a long life?”
“Don’t get unexpectedly pregnant?” I venture.
He grins. “By taking life one step and one day at a time. And to not stress about anything.” He makes a kissing noise. “God is with us. If God did not want us to have a baby, he would not bring us one.”
I’m in awe of this man. Fool I am for worrying. “I love you so much.” I say, placing my hand on my chest.
“I love you too.” He is glowing. “I thought I could not love you more, but it is not true. In the last five minutes I have fallen in love with you all over again, malishka.”
A tear pools in my eye and a sob escapes. He doesn’t try to make me stop. “You better get used to this. Evidently this baby is making me a sobbing mess.”
“As long as you are not sad.” He says, touching the screen, as if to touch me.
“No. Not anymore. Not as long as you are here with me.” I say, touching the screen.
We stay on the line for another ten minutes, just staring at each other.
Chapter 31
Mallorie
Brent walks in the door, or charges in the door, is a better way to put it. It’s Monday evening, and I’m getting Henry ready for little league. We don’t have to leave for a while yet, but the kid gets so excited that it takes an hour to feed him alone. The fact that his father shows up so far before little league irritates me. Larissa isn’t even here yet. She’s been great at playing the fall guy, so Brent and I aren’t left alone. I paste a welcoming smile on my face at the sight of my ex.
“Hey, you’re early.” I try to say like it’s a good thing.
“Colonel Parker died last night.” Is all he says. Like that should be enough explanation. “Seems he wasn’t as honest about his health as the military thought he was being. I’m leaving tonight.”
“Okay.” I say, caught off guard. “Do you want us to skip little league?”
Henry overhears and immediately starts to whine.
“No, buddy, it’s okay. You can still go to little league.” Brent calls after him. “Why don’t you come and say your goodbyes now?”
Why do I feel a huge sense of relief?
He runs to Brent with open arms. “Bye, daddy! Bring me back something, okay?” he squeezes Brent hard and then releases him two seconds later.
“I’ll try, buddy.” Brent says. “You be good for mom, okay?”
Henry nods emphatically, and then runs back to the table to finish his dinner. He knows he can’t get ready until his plate is clean.
“Well, I guess we’ll keep in touch.” Brent says. “Make sure you let me know how Henry’s doing.”
“I will.” I nod, not knowing where to look. Brent still doesn’t know about my condition. And I’m not telling him now. It won’t make any bit of difference, and after all, it isn’t his, and we’re not together, so my decision is made. I’ll tell him when it’s time. “Take care.” I smile. “Don’t get shot again, this time, eh.” I punch him playfully on the shoulder.
He grins and leans forward, kissing my cheek. “Take care of him, Mal. And of yourself.” He adds, before waving to Henry. “See ya, buddy.” Henry smiles.
Ten minutes later, Larissa walks in the door. “Oh wow…he’s not here yet.”
“Smartass.” I smirk. “He’s gone. He left for Afghanistan.”
She lifts a brow, and sees that Henry is not within earshot. “And you’re not partying it up yet?”
“Hardy har.” I say. “I can hardly party it up when I have to be at little league in a half an hour.”
“That’s why Super Larissa is here!” she announces, puffing her chest.
“Funny. You go get Joe Carter upstairs in his uniform while I clean up the mess.”
Twenty minutes later, we’re at the baseball diamond. Larissa grabs a seat right up front, and I sit next to her. “So, have you spoken to Aleks since you told him?” she asks. When I told her that Aleks was happy about the baby, she winked and said, ‘I told you so’.
“I spoke to him briefly on the phone yesterday, but not today, which is odd.”
“Did he sound okay yesterday?”
“Yeah,”
“So don’t sweat it. The guy has a lot on his mind.”
I look at her. “Excuse me, but I wasn’t sweating it.”
She lifts a brow. “Whatever you say.”
“Really, I wasn’t.”
“You’re the worst liar in the world, Mal.” She lifts a finger. “But I don’t blame you. Brent started the same kind of shit when you told him you were pregnant with Henry. You’re gun shy.”
“You’re the expert.” I don’t hide my irritation. I hate it when she’s right. And when she’s right, she’s so right and rubs it in.
“We’re comparing apples to oranges, Lar.” I say, trying to save face.
“I know. But tell yourself that.”
“Shut up.”
“So, how is this going to work? Did you guys figure anything out?”
“No. But it’s only been a couple of days. We have eight months to figure it out.”
Larissa pales. “Oh my God.”
“What?”
“The wedding.”
“What about it?”
“Oh…God! You’re my Maid of Honor!” her hands go to her face.
“Yeah…so?”
“Well, you’re going to be either the size of a whale, or you’ll be delivering when I walk down the aisle!”
“Shit.” I totally forgot.
“What am I going to do?” she practically shouts. Larissa has not shown any signs of turning into Bridezilla…until now.
“I don’t know!” I shout back. “I have my own set of problems to deal with! At least yours are finished in a day! Mine are for the next eighteen years!”
The coach shushes us as the first kid is up to bat. Henry is sitting in the bleachers, waiting for his turn.
“Mallorie, this is my wedding day!” she shouts, ignoring the coach.
“Well, at least you get a wedding day! I’m going to be knee deep in diapers!”
“Ladies, please!” coach repeats.
Parents are looking at us, shushing us. My heart is pounding with anger, I’m seconds away from crying, when I see something off in the distance. A taxi pulls up, which is so unusual. All the kids and parents are here. I watch as the taxi stops.
“I can easily get someone else to be my Maid of Honor!” Larissa shouts, continuing her rampage.
“You do that!” I spit back, still half paying attention to the cab. The passenger side is opposite my line of sight. “I’ll just have this baby on my own! Without you and your ‘I’m too good for my pregnant best friend’ wedding!” I shout, knowing full well that I’m making no sense. But I don’t care, I’m so pissed off. Larissa’s face is red with anger, and when I look back at where the cab was, it’s gone. Left in its place is a man and a suitcase. Squinting, I see the man waving at me.
My heart stops. “Oh my God!” I start shaking like a leaf, covering my mouth with my hands.
“What?” Larissa says, following my gaze.
My hands are shaking, and I start sobbing as I tear out of the bleachers and start running. He sees me running towards him and he runs to me, leaving his luggage. Being a much faster runner, he reaches me with his arms open. I jump into him, wrapping my arms tightly around his neck. Feeling Aleks close to me again is like having oxygen after being starved of it. I’m sobbing into his neck, squeezing him so hard I’m afraid I’m choking him. He kisses my head, then my hair, and then he holds me tight against him again.
“Malishka, I could not stand another minute without you.” He gasps, hugging me.
“I’m so glad to see you.” I say, pulling back to look at him, even though I’m a sobbing mess. “How…when…how did you get here?”
“I flew here, of course.” He smiles. “I landed just an hour ago.”
“Why didn’t you tell me you were coming?”
He looks at me and kisses me. It feels better than a million dollars. “Because I wanted to surprise you, malishka.”
“Well, you accomplished that.” I kiss him.
We kiss a dozen times, and then. “Alright, you two, there are kids watching…and parents….and sea turtles.” Larissa says. “What in the name of the Lord are you doing here, Aleks?”
“I came to surprise Malloriya.” He says honestly, holding me tight to him.
“I can see that.”
Aleks looks at the game, which has been temporarily paused. “Oh, no, I have interrupted Henry’s little league game.”
“Why don’t you come and watch.” I say to him.
“Can I?”
“Definitely. Just…err…don’t leave your suitcase in the parking lot.” Larissa says.
Aleks releases my hand so he can go get his luggage. Seconds later, he is holding my hand again, as we walk to the bleachers together. His hand in mine feels like home. As we sit together, Aleks’s arm is around me. He kisses my lips again. Henry runs up to me. “Mommy, who is that?”
“I am Aleks.” He says, holding his hand out for Henry to shake. “Remember? We spoke on the video chat?”
“Oh yeah!” Henry recollects, nodding. He turns to me. “Mommy, do I get to open my present? I mean, he’s here now.” He doesn’t hide the sarcasm in his voice. We both laugh, Larissa, too. “Yes, I suppose now that Aleks is actually here, you can open it. But later,” I pat his rear end, “go play ball.”
Henry runs back to the bleachers. He is next up to bat. He hits the ball on the first try. “Wow, he is good.” Aleks comments. His arm is around me, and my hand is on his leg, as I lean into him a little. We watch the rest of the game. Aleks and I talk casually in between the action, and kiss a little, too. He looks so good I could eat him, but he hasn’t changed a bit.
When the game is over, Larissa glances at us. “You want me to take Henry home? So you guys can go out to dinner or something?”
I look at Aleks. He shrugs. “We can. It is whatever you want.”
I look back at Larissa. “You don’t mind?”
She waves. “Heck, no. I’ll even take your bag home with me, Aleks.”
“You are too kind.” Aleks says. “Thank you a thousand times.” He is so polite I want to eat him up.
Bending down to Henry’s height, I say. “Do you mind if mommy and Aleks go out for dinner?”
“I’ll take you to McDonald’s!” Larissa says, trying to help.
Henry’s face lights up. “Okay!”
I smile at Larissa. “Hey, sorry about our little tiff earlier.”
“I’m sorry, too. Sometimes I think we’re sisters from a different set of parents we fight so much.” She leans in to give me a hug. Henry hugs us from the middle and we giggle.
“Okay, little man.” Aleks says. “When we return from supper, you can open your present.”
“Cool!” Henry says, taking Larissa’s hand. Aleks puts his suitcase in the trunk for her.
“Where to?” Larissa asks, kindly suggesting a nice restaurant. We could go to McDonald’s ourselves and not care, as long as we’re together.
“That’s a good one, and we don’t have to be dressed up for that, either.” I say.
Larissa drops us off, and we tell her that we’ll take a cab home later, despite her insisting on picking us up. As we walk into the restaurant, Aleks takes me in his arms kissing me a little less chastely than before. The restaurant is quiet, but it isn’t the fancy type. His lips are so soft and warm, I feel myself dampening already. It’s been about six weeks since we made love. But my body is telling me that it feels more like it’s been six months.
As we arrive at our table, Aleks does not let go of my hand. I look at him expectantly, since I can’t sit down unless he releases me. “You do not think you are sitting over there, do you?” he says to me. “There is a spot right here for you.” He pulls his chair out and sits, and then he pulls my waist, so I sit in his lap. “There, that is better, no?”
I kiss his lips. “Much.”
He sighs, caressing my leg with his hand. “God, malishka. I have missed you so much.”
“I missed you, too. I can’t believe you’re here.” I kiss him again. I can’t stop kissing him. It’s like a sentence, then a kiss, then another sentence, you get the picture.
The waitress delivers our menus, but the food isn’t important, so we ask what she recommends, which is a multi-platter with bar-style fish sticks, coated boneless chicken wings, potato wedges, and veggie sticks. Nothing like Riga, but Aleks’s eyes light up when she describes the dish. “We will take that.”
When she leaves, I look at him, combing my fingers through his hair. God, I forgot how soft his hair is. He smells so good, too. Just his scent is enough to drive me crazy. “So, what made you decide to fly out here?” I ask between kisses.
“Malishka, I was already on the edge even before you told me about the baby. After that, I just could not take it anymore. I had to see you.”
I bite my lip, searching his eyes. “I’m so glad you’re here.” I whisper, kissing him.
He removes his hand from my leg, and slides it into his front pocket. “And there was one other little matter I wanted to come here for.” He says, pulling something out of his pocket. When I see it, my hand goes to my mouth, and I start shaking. “Marry me, Malloriya.” He says tenderly, holding a diamond ring in front of me. He’s searching my eyes with a look of such conviction that it makes the tears pour out of my eyes.
Nodding, I squeeze my lids shut, trying to siphon the tears off. Aleks slides the ring on my finger. It fits perfectly, and it is so beautiful I can’t believe it’s on my finger. He kisses me full on the mouth once, twice, a dozen times, and I wrap my arms around his neck, kissing him loudly, despite the mild clapping going on behind us, as those patrons who are catching on are providing a little congratulatory applause. I hold him tight, and he buries his head in my neck. “You have made me so happy, malishka.” He says, and then he breathes like he’s stifling a sob. And he is, because when I finally pull back and look at his face, the rims of his eyes are red, and his eyes look glassy.
Looking at the ring, I ask. “How did you know what size I am? The ring fits perfectly.”
“Larissa helped, and earlier on, your mom did, too. I bought it just last week.”
“My parents know?” my eyes are wide. My parents don’t even know that I’m pregnant yet.
