Dr. Levy stood from the stool. “You can submit any questions you might have via message in the patient portal. Those go directly to me, and if I’m not in the middle of a delivery, I check those every hour or so.”
“Great. Thank you.” John crossed the room to shake the man’s hand once more.
“My pleasure. Take care, Ro, and I’ll see you in four weeks,” Dr. Levy said on his way out of the room.
When the door latched softly, I let out the breath that had been caught in my throat during the entire exam. John was staring at the strip of pictures in his hands, but when he lifted his head, the most breathtaking smile stretched across his face.
Placing the pictures on the counter, he moved toward me to cup my cheeks. “Do you have any idea how happy you’ve made me?” With his forehead pressed to mine, he breathed, “All my dreams are coming true.”
The pure joy lighting him up from within eased some of the nerves swirling around in my belly, but still, I confessed, “I’m scared.”
John pulled back, his thumbs stroking soothingly over my skin. “It’s okay to be a little scared when staring down the unknown, but we’re going to face it together. It’s you and me, Ro.” One of his hands dropped to my still-flat stomach. “We’re a family now.”
I had mixed emotions regarding the families I’d been a part of in the past.
To O’Malleys, I was a bartering chip, a means to broker an alliance with another powerful mafia family.
To the Bellinis, I was a vessel to carry the heir that would lead the next generation of their crime syndicate.
But with John and our baby, maybe I would finally get to experience a loving home.
That spark of hope was enough to chase away the darkness surrounding my past, and for the first time since seeing those two pink lines, I allowed the tiniest bit of excitement to creep in.
I was going to be a mom.
Chapter 6
Rory
“Alldone.”Johnusedhis forearm to wipe the sweat away from his forehead as he walked out of the bathroom.
“Uh . . .” With my brain short-circuiting, I was at a loss for words.
The man was beyond attractive, but with his dark hair pulled into a bun at the crown of his head, he was irresistibly sexy. My mouth filled with saliva, and all I could think about was jumping his bones.
I could have probably blamed the pregnancy hormones for my persistent horniness, but the truth was, pregnant or not, I always wanted John. There was a pull between us I couldn’t quite explain. All I knew was that when he was inside me, that was the only time I was able to quiet my mind, to block out my past and the fears surrounding whether it would come back to haunt my future, and I craved that peace. Plus, the mind-blowing orgasms sure didn’t hurt either.
Cosmo let out a sharp bark, jolting me back to reality.
“What’s done?”
John crossed the room, kneeling to scratch our dog behind his ears. “Installation of the temporary shower handle and non-slip strips on the bottom of the tub.”
“Don’t you think that’s a tad excessive?” I’d just reached the start of the second trimester; it would be a while before my center of gravity was impacted by a giant baby belly.
He shook his head. “I’m not taking any chances when it comes to you and our baby.” His hand found my stomach, a smile tipping up on his lips as he spread his fingers wide over the barely-there bump. “Our baby, Ro. I still can’t believe it.”
The moment was so tender that my heart felt like it might burst, and before I knew what I was doing, I blurted, “I love you.”
Wide green eyes lifted. “You do?”
Nodding shyly, I rushed out, “I don’t expect you to say it back. I know it hasn’t been very lo—”
He cut me off with a kiss, murmuring against my lips, “I love you too.”
I was on him in a flash, knocking him to his back on the floor.
“Whoa. Careful, babe.” John steadied me with his hands on my hips as I straddled him.
