( BOOK COMPLETED )
Two years on, Maya St. Thomas and Ebén Cástro were living the love of their loves. Their wedding fast approaching and a bundle of baby joy on the way.
But, Reuben Smalls has come to foil this happy occasion. He's come for someth...
SINCE SHE WAS A child, Maya hated not being able to fend for herself. Her independence was of major importance to her; but now the expectant mother was under instruction to not move a finger.
No stress.
The faces of the budding parents-to-be glanced up at Dr. Nowak, unsure, somehow expecting to be planted with more seeds of her wisdom.
"No stress?" Ebén found that his lips had repeated her rule — but he couldn't veil the pressing thought that there had to be more than that to parenthood.
Dr. Nowak's assured nod was evidence that the two hadn't misquoted her. If that was her golden rule, they were bound to be fine.
No stress, he continued to silently repeat.
"Sounds easy, right?" Dr. Nowak gleaned from Ebén's lack of questions and the entrance of his wry smile.
"It almost sounds... too simple — "
She stared back into his eyes, interrupting his one night only act of overconfidence.
"Maybe because it is."
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A JARRING DRAWL sounding like God himself boomed out of the sound panels of the rented-black Panasonic; secured by worn-down brackets.
Thank you for havin' me on, said the man who seemed to talk with a dry smile; but the cameras were stubborn, not introducing his face yet.
Corey Mack's fingers started to swirl his tumbler glass of bourbon; slowly circling the glass rim in an attempt to feign the fact that he was... thinking. Maya silently called his bullshit — he didn't think, he just did. He tipped his invisible hat of arrogance at her like he could sense she was watching.
Pleasure, returned Mack who leant over the empty glass that he had just downed in a single draught.
She was watching but not because she decided to seek the programme out herself. She had a more refined taste. She only stumbled on the show after her senses immediately perked up at the sound of a familiar baritone.
She snapped her head and sat up — trying to coach herself how to breathe after realising that she had gone minutes without any sort of rhythm.
I know that abrasive baritone, she mused to herself whilst Ebén's hands continued to snake the small curve of her bump. Baby talk had Ebén pressed firmly to her bump, calling out a series of girl names to try and muster a response or a little kick.
Maya felt her heart swell despite Reuben's attempts to terrorise; Ebén had quickly stepped into the role of a proud daddy-to-be without her having to nudge him and tell him to act straight.
If she was the type to point-score; Ebén would have comfortably been in the lead.
"Catalína?" His tongue rolled in his mouth but frowned as it was obvious that he wasn't completely sold on the name, "Sierra? Hm — no. Reyna? No. Alba? Joder."
"Do you know somethin' I don't, Eb?"
I came to take what belongs to me, the man remarked again who seemed to have been possessed by the uncanny sprit of territoriality.
Maya couldn't mistake the coarse voice of her ex; that used to goad her core and her lips against tables and counters whispering the state he was going to leave her body in — and how that same voice had lied and used those lips to kiss and fuck someone else.
She started to chew the inside of her mouth darkly; wanting to scream but realising the strict mandate that she had been put under by Dr. Nowak.
No stress, she tried to sermonise to herself; feeling her lips unbuckle into an irate half grin. She squeezed at her temples, and prayed hard that Reuben wasn't about to stoke a bonfire.
She found herself in a maze of her own thoughts — closure had been a thing she wanted but was burdened with what he had come to declare.
Was it not him who cheated and left me... or did that not even fucking happen? Maya continued to ponder.
The cameras finally panned and landed on the man whose lips had made the big declaration.
"Reuben?" The slow and dramatic turn of the cameras forced Maya's eyes to reintroduce herself to the assured, green orbs of her ex — and she half suspected that this had to be a joke.
A very bad one at that.
But nobody laughed to suggest that it was. Instead, they gave the fire starter an audience.
He left me?, Maya painfully recollected at the gory sight of her blood that made red pools on her sheets and stained her clothes whilst she miscarried but still begged him with everything to stay.
She couldn't help but cringe that she had knelt before a man and pleaded for him not to leave her.
State your case then. The floors is all yours, Mack coaxed the obstinate man — and sat as moderator, pitting both Maya's past and her future against each other for the valiant battle of her heart.
Out of Reuben's usually lying lips, his tv address sounded like he was overflowing with sincerity. Maya found it hard to juxtapose it with the man who had cock blocked her wedding hours before.
His green orbs glumly admitted, "Pooh, you're mine. And will always be. I meant what I said, I want you back," There was an emphasis on the mine; body and soul determined to rid Maya of choosing her own way.
Ebén had initially been too embroiled in baby talk to notice who was on the screen. Only now noticing her quiet, Ebén shut out the damn thing off but Reuben had already planted seeds of doubt.
"Baby?" Ebén's own husk called out and seemed like it was inflicted with doubt too. Maya, though, was way too determined to let that doubt creep in. It was what Reuben would have wanted and she was set on not letting that bastard win.
Dr. Nowak did say no stress.
And she knew just the trick to relieve that stress that she didn't have, and needed an excuse to have Ebén cream her core with the second favourite thing she loved most about him.
She threw Ebén her very own wicked grin, stealing pointers from the fire starter that left him feeling like he missed a trick.
"What?" He started to shift, feeling the shades of her hazel green orbs go dark with god knows what.
She said chillingly against his wettable lips, "I'm horny."
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Thank you so much for six hundred or so reads on this ting. Super proud of the numbers that my tiny book is doing. Super duper grateful.
P/S I know I said there would be smut at the end of this chapter... I lied again lol, but it's comin'
