Page 79 of Burden to Bear

I picked up my pace, driving my hips forward, and kept my eyes on her gorgeous face. Mia’s lips parted, and a moment later, it happened.

Her back arched, and she cried out as her orgasm tore through her. I tried to hold myself back, to wait until she’d made it to the other side, but I couldn’t. Somewhere in the middle of it, I buried myself deep inside her and found my own release.

My body stilled, my hands resting at the juncture of her hips and thighs, and I gave her a squeeze. Through our labored breathing, I asked, “Are you okay? I didn’t hurt you, did I?”

Mia’s head moved from one side to the other along the pillow as a lazy smile spread across her face. “I’m perfect. You didn’t hurt me at all. It was wonderful.”

“I love you, Mia.”

She closed her eyes, her smile growing, and a deep sigh of relief escaped. When she opened her eyes again, she rasped, “I love you, Brock.”

Touching my mouth to hers, I gave her a kiss. It wasn’t a simple peck, but it wasn’t one that I allowed to get too heated, either. My lips lingered against her for just a few seconds before I pulled back and said, “Let me grab something to get ourselves cleaned up.”

Mia smiled. “Okay.”

Though it pained me to have to lose the connection to her, I pulled out of her, exited the bed, and moved toward the bathroom. Somehow, I could feel Mia’s eyes on me the whole way there.

TWENTY-TWO

Mia

“Are you okay?”

That was the second time Brock had asked me that question in such a short time. I’d already told him I was fine, but it was clear he still had some lingering concerns. I couldn’t be mad about it. I loved knowing that he cared not only about my physical well-being but that of the baby as well. The care and tenderness he showed was just another testament to the kind of guy he was.

I felt extraordinarily lucky.

We were in my bed on our sides, facing one another, and I wasn’t quite sure I’d come to grips with being here. Wanting to offer all the reassurances I could, I placed my palm gently over his pec. “Yes, I’m okay. I already told you that everything was wonderful. You didn’t hurt me. In fact, it was quite the opposite. I promise I’m good.”

Brock covered my hand with his. “You misunderstood me. Obviously, I care to know that you feel okay physically, which is why I asked that question a few minutes ago. But I wasn’t referring to that same thing this time. I wanted to be sure you were okay after everything that happened downstairs just before I arrived and immediately afterward.

Right.

That made sense.

He was worried about everything that had gone down with Todd. After what we’d just shared in this room, in this bed, the incident with my ex felt like a lifetime ago.

I swallowed hard. “Yeah, we probably should discuss that, but I hate to think what we just had is going to be tarnished by a discussion about all of that.”

Brock lifted my hand from his chest and brought it to his mouth, where he pressed several soft kisses to my fingertips. When he eased my hand away from his lips and back to his chest, he promised, “Nothing we discuss, whether now or in the future, will ruin what we just had, Mia. Nothing at all is going to take away what that experience meant to me, and what I hope it meant to you.”

Relief swept through me.

I’d had so many thoughts and daydreams about us eventually coming to a place where we’d wind up sharing our feelings for one another. I’d envisioned so many possibilities for how it would all go down, and not one of those instances looked anything like the reality. They certainly never included the presence of Todd. I wouldn’t have thought it would be possible to have something even remotely close to what I just had with Brock if Todd had been involved.

And while he hadn’t been in this room with us—I didn’t think about him once from the moment he walked out my front door—I couldn’t deny that a lot had been shared as a result of his unexpected visit to my house tonight.

Of course, Brock had indicated he intended to talk to me about his feelings tonight, but I wondered if we would have gone this far if it all happened the way he’d originally anticipated.

“I don’t know what part of the situation with my ex you’re most concerned about,” I finally replied.

“All of it. Anything that bothers you, upsets you, or is something you just want to discuss,” Brock returned. “What happened wasn’t some small encounter. I walked in and saw him place that ring box in the palm of your hand. I have to believe you’ve got some thoughts about it.”

A rush of air left my lungs, my eyes closing briefly. “Yeah, I guess I do. But I will say that I don’t want you to think I thought about him at all after he left. Until you just brought him up, I’ve only been thinking about us, about how unbelievably happy I feel with you right now.”

Brock’s hand squeezed mine, a small smile forming on his face. “I’m just as happy about it, too. And I think we should probably discuss all of this as well. I figured it would be better to get the other situation out of the way first.”

I offered a nod of agreement and confessed, “I have mixed feelings about what Todd did tonight. On the one hand, I’m horrified at the thought he could believe I’d accept a proposal after the way he spoke to me the last two times we were in each other’s presence. To top it off, he hasn’t once reached out to me since January for any reason. Not to apologize, not to check on me. He hasn’t even asked about the baby. I wasn’t necessarily expecting him to, but what happened tonight doesn’t jive with what he’s shown me for months.”

---