When Gary Moore’s “Still Got the Blues” took over, the mood on the dance floor changed and I wondered if Honey would walk away. But she didn’t. Instead, she smiled and let me pull her closer so I could wrap my arms around her waist and hold her against the body that was aching for her touch. For her closeness. For her. It had been weeks since our last encounter, and my body was screaming for her to touch me.
A sheen of sweat shone on her beautiful face as she smiled up at me. The song was intimate. Full of emotion. A song about longing. And longing was something I knew something about. She looked up at me, and for a moment I was lost in the vibrant blue of her lovely eyes. Emotion shimmered across her face and she licked her lips as she leaned into me and laid her cheek against my chest. My heart beat wildly. This was torture. Absolute torture. Being this close to her, holding her close and feeling the gentle swell of her belly pressing into my stomach.
Across the room, Cade danced with his wife on the dance floor. She was heavily pregnant and he did nothing but dote on her. Now he held her close, his hands cupping her face as he kissed her gently. Together they swayed to the music, their love vibrant, their future certain. I felt Honey shift her head and knew she was looking at them, too.
Suddenly she straightened, a big smile spreading across her face. She grabbed both my hands and placed them on her curved belly.
“Did you feel that?” she asked, her face open, her eyes shining.
And then it happened. Right there on the dance floor, I felt my baby move in Honey’s belly. The world around us fell away as our baby moved about, awake and active, shifting in her. We both looked at each other and laughed.
“Holy hell,” I said, sliding my hands over the curve of her stomach.
Something in me shifted. Feeling my baby. He never seemed more real to me.
Oh yeah. We were having a boy. I just knew it.
I looked up from her belly to her beautiful face. I wanted to kiss her. I wanted to pull her to me and slam my mouth to hers. I wanted to take her home and peel those clothes off her, piece by piece, and make love to her right through the night until dawn. Hell, I wanted to scream to the heavens about how much I wanted this.
Instead, the moment was broken by my mom’s surprised and very loud voice.
“You’re pregnant?” she exclaimed.
Both Honey and I turned our heads to look at her. Standing only a few feet away and holding a glass of champagne in each hand, my mom stared at us in disbelief.
“Oh, crap,” Honey whispered.
“Guess the cat’s out of the bag now,” I replied out of the corner of my mouth.
“What do you mean?”
“In about sixty seconds this entire wedding reception is going to know about this.”
Honey jerked her head to look at me, her eyes wide with concern. “What do we tell them? How do we explain us to them?”
“We don’t have to explain anything to them.” We both looked down at my hands on her stomach and then back at my mom. “We were kind of hoping to keep it to ourselves for a bit.”
But Mom didn’t hear anything other than my confirmation that yes, Honey was pregnant.
“A baby!” She looked at me. “Is it yours?”
“Jesus, Mom. Yes, it’s my baby.”
Her smile started in her eyes and finally broke on her lips. She handed the champagne glasses to a passing waitress and walked over to us.
“A baby, well, color me surprised.” She pulled me into a hug, squeezing tight. When she released me, she did the same to Honey.
“You’re okay with it?” I asked.
“Another grandbaby, of course I’m okay with it.” She smiled, but it was dubious. “But you better tell your grandmother and pray no one gets to her first.”
HONEY
It was a crazy night from that point on.
Our secret was out and what followed was a lot of congratulations and a lot of questions.
Overall, people seemed really excited and enthusiastic, especially some of the old ladies who crowded around me and started with the questions about names, due dates, OB-GYNs, and was I getting the right prenatal care. They circled me like a wolf pack, protecting one of their own.
Others didn’t seem too interested, namely the older club members who simply patted Caleb on the back and moved on.
Indy, who looked like she was about to pop, was excited about a cousin for her baby. Ronnie was thrilled with the idea of another grandbaby. Although, beneath the façade of joy I could see a simmering doubt in those sapphire blue eyes of hers. She didn’t know me and I didn’t know her. And if I was honest, she kind of intimidated me. She was a tough biker queen. The widow of the murdered President, sister to the current President, and mother to three Kings of Mayhem club members. Going by some of the conversations I’d heard, she was the one the other old ladies either feared or looked up to. I glanced over at her. She was having a quiet one-on-one with Caleb. Probably asking him what the hell he was up to and making sure he hadn’t lost his mind.