50 Shades of Drake 5 and 6

Chapter Ninety

    "You guys know that I rarely throw you all together on a conference call."

    "Especially lately, with your M.I.A. ass," Jasmine muttered.

    "Beg your pardon?"

    "Sh - sorry, Mrs. Richards. I forgot you were on the line."

    "That's no way for a young lady to speak, regardless of whether or not elders are present." That was Destiny's father, his deep voice as gravelly as ever.

    "I've heard worse things come out of Destiny's mouth, and I'm not even going to touch what goes in it."

    "What was that?" Mr. Richards demanded.

    "Carlos, if you don't get it together-" Destiny started, flushing and trying to ignore Aubrey, who sat on the edge of the bed hiding chuckles behind his hand.

    "Oh nothing, Mr. Richards," Carlos said. "B-T-W, seen any cats lately?"

    Aubrey snatched up a pillow from the bed and covered his face with it, falling backwards in a fit of laughter.

    "Is that the cute man who beats up kitties?" Sadie's voice carried over on the phone line, but sounded faint. She must not have been close to the phone, suggesting that Destiny's parents had Speakerphone enabled.

    "No, honey, this is someone else," Mr. Richards said. "Someone in need of some major discipline."

    "Discipline?" Carlos queried, his voice dripping with mock-innocence.

    Destiny's eyes widened and she jumped up from the bed. "None of you are letting me get to why you're all on this call in the first place." The last thing she needed was Carlos informing her parents that she was the expert on giving and getting disciplined. They weren't five minutes into the call, and he'd already met his inappropriate comment quota for the conversation.

    "Yes, thank you," her friend Candace said appreciatively. "Some of us have to get back to work and can't chill on the phone all day. Nothing against any of you and you know I love you, Des, but my co-workers are starting to give me the side eye. What's going on? Is this a bridesmaid call? Do you know what color the dresses are going to be?"

    "Make sure our dresses aren't fugly," Jasmine threw in. "I'm not trying to walk down the aisle looking like a huge, teal garbage bag. Some brides do their bridesmaids bogus."

    Aubrey, having regained his composure, slowly sat up and set the pillow down beside him. He ran a hand over his head, then lifted his eyes up to Destiny.

    She met his gaze.

    His lips curled upward, and he placed his hands on her hips, pulling her close so he could rest the side of his face against her stomach.

    Palming the back of his head in her hand, Destiny said into the phone. "In a way, this call is related to the wedding."

    "'In a way'?" Candace repeated.

    "I have everyone on this phone call because I have something important to tell you," she said, rubbing the back of Audrey's head.

    Aubrey turned his head, kissed her bare stomach, then rested the side of his face against it again. After a moment, he started humming a lilting tune.

    "Aubrey and I..."

    "Oh my God!" Carlos shrieked into his phone. "I know what this is! I know what this is and I know what you're going to say."

    "Carlos, will you calm down let me talk?"

    "Calm down? How the hell can I calm down?"

    "The language," Mr. Richards grumbled.

    "I just wanted to let you know that..."

    "Hoe, don't do it." Carlos again.

    "Aubrey and I are expecting."

    "Oh God," Carlos breathed out.

    Destiny grinned, relieved to have gotten the words out.

    Everyone started talking over each other immediately.

    "Are you serious?"

    "Are you for real?"

    "You're preggers?"

    "Bitch better name it Carlos Jr."

    "When are you due? How far along are you?"

    "I can already picture the baby shower."

    "I was kind enough to move out of that sex shack you and Aubrey are consummating and re-consummating in, so all I know is that baby better pop out wearing a damned 'My name is Carlos Jr.' shirt."

    "Settle down, guys."

    "How can we settle down?!" Jasmine asked. "My girl is about to have a minime."

    "There is a lot going on right now, so things are a bit crazy," Destiny explained. "My entertainment news site goes live next month. Aubrey is working on his music again. Noah...I mean, 40 is coming down to work with him. And with the pregnancy, we've decided to move up the wedding."

    "Move up the wedding?" Mrs. Richards questioned, sounding concerned. "We were already running short on time."

    "When the baby comes, I want to be Mrs. Graham," Destiny stated firmly. "I loved the idea of getting married on Audrey's birthday, but I guess I'll have to think of another gift that I can give him."

    "That's my cocky bitch," Carlos declared.

    Destiny laughed, but she could imagine her parents cringing at Carlos's term of endearment. "With the wedding getting moved up, I've decided to bring on a wedding planner to help us plan and get things together. This isn't going to be some big, star-studded extravaganza or anything...we are just inviting the people closest to us. A small, intimate wedding. I'm not going to turn into bridezilla and I'm not going to stress out over the little details. I do want this day to be about both of us, Aubrey and me, and ultimately I want us to agree on certain elements of the wedding so that it represents us properly, but at the end of the day...as long as I'm marrying him, it will be the best day of my life - no matter what goes wrong."

    Aubrey kissed her stomach again and tightened his arms around her. "Likewise, baby."
"That's beautiful, but do you know exact dates?" Candace asked. "I have to put in a request for time off of work."

    "We're going to try to work around your schedules," Destiny assured her. "But I'll get the date to you by next week. There are a few locations we're scouting to see which dates they're available."

    "I'm assuming you're going for a summer wedding," her mother said. "Don't be surprised if you have trouble finding availability this close to your wedding date."

    "I'm counting on it, which is why we are checking for places that aren't traditional."

    "You're looking for a place to get married when your future husband lives in a frigging castle?" Jasmine asked. "Just dress up the backyard."

    "It's an idea we're tossing around," Aubrey chimed in, "but Destiny still wants to look around."
Her hand lowered from the back of his head to the back of his neck, which she squeezed in just the slightest way. "And as it happens, right now, Destiny is calling the shots," she said into the phone with a smile.

    "She sure is," Aubrey agreed with lust flickering in his chocolate brown eyes.