Page 70 of Ryder

“So?”

So, I don’t want to feel rushed to get knocked up.Her expression morphed into anger, the reason for her sudden change in mood rather confusing.

“Jagger!” I turned my head to the side and saw Tripp enter the clubhouse. When he caught my eye, he said, “We’re startin’ in like fifteen.” He jerked his head toward Kena who was standing across from me in the hallway, a frown on his face as if to ask if everything was all right. I nodded.

Grabbing her hand, I pulled her toward a bedroom, kicking the door closed behind me. I knew if I didn’t get her out of her own head, whatever story she was concocting was gonna fester and turn a simple joking statement into something a lot more serious, and unnecessarily so. Advancing toward her left her no option but to back away from me, the backs of her thighs hitting a short dresser against the wall. Nothing except a few motorcycle magazines laid on top, so with a quick swipe of my hand I cleared the items, grabbed her waist and set her on top of it. Spreading her legs, her black and white striped dress riding up her thighs, I moved in between.

“Don’t do this. I don’t wanna fight with you, so stop overthinkin’ shit.” I rested my hand on the side of her neck, her pulse thrumming under my fingertips. She licked her lips, and I did something I probably shouldn’t have, considering where we were and that I had limited amount of time alone with my woman. Running my free hand up the inside of her leg, she fidgeted briefly before I pushed aside her white satin panties and teased her with my finger. Even annoyed with me, she was always wet and ready.

Kena attempted to stop me, her hand grabbing mine under her dress, but her efforts were feeble at best. When she knew I wasn’t gonna give up, she leaned back on the dresser, braced herself and spread her legs farther apart.

“Let’s get these off you,” I coaxed, helping her to rise off the dresser before drawing her panties down her legs and tossing them to the ground. “We only have a few minutes so we have to be quick, and we need to be quiet.” She looked at me and just shook her head before pointing to her throat. “Okay,” I corrected. “Ihave to be quiet.”

Fumbling with my belt, I unzipped my pants and pushed them down my legs, pulling her toward the edge of the dresser. The moment I thrust inside her was perfection, and seconds later her short pants of air told me she was already well on her way to exploding. Her fingers tangled in my hair as I tried to show her how much I loved her.

“I know you don’t want to talk about it, but I do want kids with you.” Not the sexiest of talk, but I needed her to hear me, and I knew that while Kena was in the throes of passion, she wouldn’t be locked up inside her head. Her body stilled as she stared at me, her pussy clenching down on me while I tried to keep some semblance of composure. “It’s gonna happen. Not today, not tomorrow. Maybe not even next year, but you will have my babies.” She opened her mouth, the action pointless since she couldn’t speak. When she realized what she’d done, she raised her hands in front of her, but before she could sign a single word, I grabbed them and held them to my chest. “I would never rush you,” I affirmed, needing her to know that while my mind was made up, she could take the time she needed to come around to the idea.

She struggled for me to release her hands, and when I did, she signed something I hadn’t expected.I’m scared.

“What are you scared of?”

That our child will have my ‘challenge’.She used air quotes on the last word.

“You know what happened to you isn’t hereditary, right?” She gave me a slow nod. “Then what’s really bothering you?”

She took a moment before raising her hands.

I want to be married before I have children, Jagger. And I know we’re nowhere ready for that step yet, so when you make comments about having kids, I think you just want to skip right over that part altogether.

Okay, I could honestly say I didn’t expect that either.

I was still buried inside her, although we’d stopped moving in order to have our little conversation. But after what she’d just said, I knew it was as good a time as any to let her in on what I’d been thinking about for the past month. Perfect timing and all.

Pulling her hips toward me, I surprised her with the sudden movement, her hands flying to my shoulders to steady herself.

“Marry me, then. Agree to be my wife.”

She looked shocked, and I couldn’t say I blamed her. I hadn’t planned on proposing so soon, but after what she’d said, I had no idea why I’d been waiting.

Are you asking only because of what I just told you?

“Of course not. I love you and don’t want to wait anymore to start the rest of our life together.”

I could tell she was thinking about my response, and for a moment I thought she was gonna turn me down. I wouldn’t lie; my heart fell into my stomach waiting for her answer. But when she cradled my face in her hands and brought my mouth to hers, kissing my lips in the most tender of moments, I knew her answer in an instant.

I pulled back so I could see her beautiful face. “Was that a yes?”

Her face lit up with the biggest smile I think I’d ever seen. She mouthed “yes” at the same time she signed her answer.

It was in that moment that I knew my life would never be the same again. Yes, I knew Kena was mine, that she was the woman I couldn’t live without, but her agreeing to be my wife shoved our love toward a whole other realm of happiness.

Kena

What just happened? Just moments ago, I’d been upset with Jagger’s jokes about having kids. While I knew I’d blown the situation all out of proportion, the thought of having children with him without being married was something that bothered me. I realized I seemed old-fashioned, knowing people didn’t worry about getting hitched these days in order to have kids, but it was something I wanted for me. To have babies with my husband, not my boyfriend.

I wasn’t sure why my feelings on the subject were so steadfast. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that if we were married, he couldn’t walk away as easily as if we weren’t.

Or maybe I was scared about the whole idea in general and I was making stuff up to justify my walking away from him in front of Tripp and Reece.

---