Beauty from Love (Beauty 3)

I forgo the comfies and put on yoga pants and a T-shirt. It seemed much more fitting for company, although I have no doubt Addison spent her fair share of days in pajamas.

She comes into the living room and looks so adorable in her fitted white top and faded jeans with her belly bump. “Oh, Addie. Look at you.” I get up from the couch to hug her and put my hands on her stomach. “He’s grown so much since I saw you last. I can’t believe it.”

“I know. This is happening crazy fast.” She puts her hands on her stomach and caresses it. He’ll be here in my arms in ten weeks. Can you believe that? I’m going to be a mom and then you will be too a couple of months after me.” She reaches out and touches my small bulge. “You’ll be this big before you know it and you’ll wonder where all the time went.”

“Are you and Zac any closer to choosing a name?”

“I want him to be named Donavon but Zac says everyone will call him Donnie and he hates that name.”

“So what are his choices?”

She rolls her eyes and huffs. “Gareth. Tell me—if you had to guess—what do you think people would call my son when they shorten his name?”

Ugh! “Gary.”

“Exactly.” She puts her hands out. “So, how is Gary better than Donnie?”

Poor Addison. “They’re both pretty … not great for a little newborn baby.”

“Yeah, I agree with you there but Donavon is my maiden name, or it will be after we’re married, and I want to use it. It has meaning behind it. Nothing about Gareth is special.” I like Gareth, although I tend to agree with Addie on this one.

“But do you like the name?”

She shrugs. “Eh … it’s okay.”

“Then what about Donavon Gareth or Gareth Donavon?” It’s a compromise and they both get to use the name they want.

“I want Donavon Zachary.” That also seems fair since each of them will have one of their names used.

“What does Zac think about you wanting to use Zachary after him?”

“Oh, he’s fine with using his own name, just not mine. This baby is going to have Kingston as his last name so he gets his way on two of the three names by default. Shouldn’t I get to choose the other? I’m the one who’s been lying in bed miserable for over three months. Look at my ass. I’ve already gained fifteen pounds because I couldn’t do anything but eat.”

Thank God I only have another week to go with the bed rest.

It only seems fair to let her choose at least one of the names. “Have you told him how you feel?”

She looks at me quizzically, or maybe like I’m stupid. I can’t be sure which because both look about the same coming from Addie. “Are you kidding me?” I’m assuming that’s a yes.

I was once given some marital advice by a very wise woman, and although Addie and Zac aren’t married yet, I think Addie could benefit from it. “Margaret shared some secrets with me about getting what you want. I haven’t put it to the test yet but she says we, as women, hold the power of the nookie and can use it to our advantage.”

“How does that work?”

She isn’t going to like this part. “Withhold sex.”

She immediately shakes her head. “Nope. I don’t want to withhold sex. I just started having it again and frankly, I missed the fuck out of it.”

“Zac doesn’t have to know that.”

“He can kind of tell how much I missed it. I’ve been making up for lost time.” For some reason, I don’t doubt that for a moment.

“Do you want to embroider your son’s clothes with the name Donavon or Gareth? Your decision.”

“I highly doubt Zac will let me embroider any of his clothes.”

Talk of withholding sex reminds me … I’m not withholding but I won’t be getting any, either. “I’ve got a question. How did you survive not having sex for three months?” I’m looking at five whole months and then a six-week recovery period. Six and a half months total. That’s brutal.

“We had plenty of sex—just not the penetrating kind. Nothing in the vagina—that’s what my obstetrician told me—so Zac got plenty of blow jobs and I got lots of oral. And magical fingers. Zac can stroke me off like nobody’s business.” She shrugs. “I don’t have to tell you that the baby’s safety always came first, so we did what we had to do to get by.” I knew I could depend on her to give me an honest answer.

I’ve spent very little time considering the alternatives because I’ve been so scared about everything. But we have other options. And they’re good ones so we can still give and receive pleasure. We’ll just need to go into it disciplined, knowing Jack Henry can’t get inside me.

“I gotta know. What is Ben saying about all of this?”

“He was so pissed off when I told him. He didn’t want to accept that his best friend was fucking his baby sister. I think he was pretending Zac was sleeping on the couch all those nights I stayed over at his apartment.”

I think my caveman would like to think there isn’t anything like that going on between his sister and Ben, but I know differently. “Jack Henry isn’t taking it too well about Ben and Chloe, but he’ll come around.”

“I don’t think he has much of a choice. Ben seems to have fallen hard for Miss Chloe.” I’m really happy to hear that since she has it pretty bad for him.

“She told me she thought Ben was the one.”

Addie puts her hands together and cups them over her mouth. “Oh … that’s so sweet.”

“And she said he was supremely fucklicious.”

“Ugh!” She points her finger at me and laughs. “You are so wrong for telling me that. No one ever needs to hear that her brother is … those words you said.” She grimaces and feigns gagging.

I hold up my hands in surrender. “Okay. Moving on, then …”

“What about the case with Blake? Heard anything else about that?”

“Not in a while but it should be coming up soon. I should probably call the prosecuting attorney and let him know about my … condition. I hope they can postpone everything until after the baby is born because I have to testify. I want to.”

“As you should. It’s your right to stand up and tell people what he did to you. No way he’ll walk away from this and when he’s found guilty, I hope he gets a horny cellmate with a huge dick.” Eww. Leave it to Addison to come up with something like that.