The Girl with The Pink Bat

"How did that happen?" Mrs. Clarke asked.

"You know Kara and I had a close relationship in high school," Ray started to explain.

His parents looked at each other and then his father said, "Go on."

"When I came back to Middletown, we reconnected, and since we were both singles we decided to rekindle our relationship," Ray explained.

He was stretching the truth to the breaking point. I realized he was doing it to make what had happened look better.

"What about the baby?" Ray's mother pushed.

Ray looked at me and gave me a small, almost imperceptible wink. "No birth control method is one-hundred percent safe," he said.

"Especially when you use none," I thought.

Mr. Clarke was the one who recovered fast. He gave Ray his best grin and said "Well, congratulations to both of you. Are you getting married?"

"We are not making wedding plans yet," Ray said curtly.

"That's wise," agreed Mr. Clarke

I didn't like Mr. Clarke's tone and what he implied with that remark, but kept my mouth shut.

"Don't you think it is a bit too soon to jump into a new relationship?" Ray's mother intervened eyeing me. "You just broke up with your fiancée."

"What happened between Amy and me it's a whole different story," Ray said. "There is some important information I kept to myself, but given the circumstances I might have tell you the real reason why we broke up when you're back," Ray said, raising his voice.

"You know you can tell us everything, Ray," his mother said. "Your father and I just want what's good for you."

"So what are you going to do?" Ray's father asked.

"Kara and I are evaluating our options. That said, I'm staying here in Middletown with Kara."

"Are you living together?" His father asked.

"Yes, we are. I know this is not what you wanted for me, but I'm not a child anymore. I can make my own decisions." I placed a hand on his arm. He started at my touch, and then visibility relaxed. "I'm doing what it's right." He looked at the screen defying his parents to say different. I could see his father pressing his lips together, but he said nothing.

"Your father and I just to what's better for you, Ray..." His mother's voice faded at the fierce look in her son's eyes.

"I'll call you soon," Ray said, recovering his cool.

"We will be expecting your call, Son," Mr. Clarke said, ending the call not giving Ray any chance to reply.

Ray turned off his laptop, and leaned back on his chair. He took a couple of deep breaths.

For a long, long moment, we sat in silence. I moved my chair closer and rested my head on his shoulder. Finally, and very quietly, I said, "Your parents must hate me right now."

"This is not about you. They are worried about me."

"Maybe so, but I'm also pretty sure they don't like me."

"It's the situation they don't like, not you. My parents probably think I'm making a mistake being here with you. But I'm not. We are in this together."

"Thank you for standing for me," I murmured.

"You're welcome. I didn't do it just for you. I did it for us."

Us. I loved the way it sounded.

CHAPTER 12

I should have known I was pregnant when everything began to stink. Not life, mind you, or the fact that I have gained five pounds overnight. But everything else stank, real bad. I kept asking, "What's that smell?" and Ray would look at me and say, "What smell?"

This describes my morning sickness, which didn't just happen in the morning. No, it happened to me all day, every day, and mostly when something had a strong odor to it. The smell of coffee was horrendous to me.

I was energetically stirring my herbal tea bag, getting the string tangled around the spoon when my phone started ringing. I looked at the screen and sighed. It was my sister.

"Hi, Sis," Jenny greeted me.

"Hi, Jenny."

"Mom called Liam and me a while ago, and told us the happy news... about the baby."

I sighed. "I can imagine what she said."

Jenny laughed on the other side of the line. "You would be right."

"Your sister is driving me crazy," I said, doing a perfect impersonation of my mother's voice. "She got pregnant and now she doesn't want to get married. She is going to give me a heart attack. How could she do this to me?"

We both laughed.

"You know Mom. She'll eventually come around," Jenny said.

"Or maybe that's just magical thinking," I sighed.

"You know you can count on me, right?"

"I know, Jen. Thank you."

"You're going to need a lot of help in the next few months to come."

"Help?" I asked blankly.

"Kara," Jenny said softly. "Do you have any idea what you're getting yourself into? You're going to have a baby. A little person that will depend on you for everything."

"Why do you have to go and remind me? I was doing a good job at avoiding that little detail," I said, half-jokingly.

She laughed, and asked, "How are you feeling?"

"How do you think I feel? I am tired of seeing my food twice."

"You know what I am asking you, Kara," Jenny said. "I know you better than anyone. You hide it well, but you're probably scared."

"I am," I admitted, feeling suddenly sick. "I really, really am."

"We'll figure it out together, Sis. You're not alone."

"I know. But I'm not alone. Ray is with me..." My eyes widened as soon as the words came out of my mouth.

I was truly counting on Ray. Wow!

I could imagine my sister's smile on the other side of the line.

"Ray is a great man, Kara."

"Yes, he is a great FRIEND," I emphasized on the last word.

Jenny just laughed, "Keep telling that to yourself that he's just a friend. He's the father of your baby, too."

"You too, Jen?"

"I'll say just one more thing, Sis. Did you consider that Ray must be wondering if the reason why you don't want to marry him is because you think he is not good enough for you?"

"Oh, shit!"

"I'll take that as a no," Jenny said.

"I have to talk with him and set things straight."

"Sounds like a good idea to me. Call me if you need to talk... or a bridesmaid," Jenny laughed, and ended the call.

I was not sure how to tell Ray pity had gone out the window the second my mouth had touched his that first night.

I went to the living room and stood in front of him, until he raised his head from the phone and looked at me.

"Listen to me carefully, Ray Clarke: I do not pity you!" I blurted out.

He looked at me, confused. "Okay?"

"Have you seen a mirror recently? You're not exactly hurting in the looks department."

I blatantly skimmed my eyes up his trim jeans and tucked-in shirt to his throat and striking face. Oh, yeah, he wasn't lacking at all.

"You smell good, too," I added, moving even closer until my nose was only inches from his neck, where I took a big whiff, almost groaning when I inhaled his male scent. "Your smell is one of the few that doesn't make want me to puke."

"Eh... thanks?"

The heat coming off his body was intoxicating.

I shivered in delight. "I don't mind the way your hands felt on me, either," I whispered into his ear.

I lifted my fingers to his hair and was about to tell him I liked the texture when he caught my wrist. I gasped in surprise and met his stare.

"I remember how you used to take in stray dogs and patch them up." His nostrils flared as he spoke, telling me my proximity affected him. "I'm not some lame bird with a broken wing, Kara."

"Thank God," I purred, rubbing against him. "Because right now, I want some hard, fast sex, no strings attached, no emotions involved... just body to body, mouth to mouth..." I murmured the last few words against his lips and didn't finish the sentiment before his tongue scraped over my teeth.

His hands skimmed my body once before he grasped the hem of my shirt and pulled it over my head. I stripped off his pants. More articles of clothing followed as we stumbled toward my room.

I was dazed by the explosion of need roaring through me and the desperation with which I wanted it. Ray pushed my room's door open with his foot and carried me all the way to the bed.

Sitting me on the mattress, he followed until we were facing each other. As I peeled off his shirt, he focused his attention on my breasts.

"Are they still tender?"

I could only nod. My boobs didn't grow overnight. They took their sweet time coming out. But once they did... Damn, they looked good. I was so proud of them. On the downside, was the pain that came with bigger boobs. My boobs felt so sensitive and tight, I could barely stand to put on a bra. They just ached.

Ray gently removed my bra. When I still winced, he whispered his regret and bent his head to spread a few apologetic kisses over the swollen flesh.

I forgave him immediately, especially when he sucked a throbbing bud into his mouth.

Warm, caressing fingers skimmed down my skin and hovered over my stomach a moment before pressing gently as if greeting the baby inside.

"Any nausea?" he asked, glancing up at me with concern.

"No, doctor," I said, with a wicked smile. "Do you want to take my temperature next?"

He grinned. "Only if you think you can handle my thermometer."

"Oh, my God! Did I hear wrong, or did the golden boy of Middletown just make a dirty, suggestive comment?"

"Golden boy?" he echoed in surprise. Shaking his head, bemused, he leaned over me, causing me to lie back on the bed. "Let me convince you just how wrong you are."

Giving me a hard, demanding kiss, he set his hands on my knees and pushed them apart.

I was ready. I wanted to feel his thick probing head at my wet entrance more than I wanted my next breath.

And when he did, I moaned a sigh of relief.

Finally, Ray pushed his way deeper into my pussy. But suddenly, he stopped and pulled out. I tightened my thighs around him in protest, but he merely shook his head. "Not yet," he told her. "I refuse to rush this."

"Rushing sounds fine to me," I panted.

But Ray had other ideas.

He kissed my throat and breasts, working his way across my stomach. I tensed, expecting and craving the feel of his tongue between my legs. But he didn't go any further than my belly button.

After sliding a finger inside my pussy to test my wetness, Ray straightened above me, bracing his arms on the mattress at either side of my head. He gazed into my eyes, going frustratingly slowly, as he started to enter me again as if purposely tormenting me.

Once he was seated fully, he stroked out once and pushed immediately back inside to the hilt. I cursed and dug my nails into his shoulders.

"You like?" he asked.

Biting my lip to swallow down a cry of desire, I rasped, "You know I do."

He pulled all the way out. "Then marry me," he whispered against my throat. "And you can have it whenever you want."

I jerked in surprise. I couldn't believe he could think of anything but getting back inside me. It was insulting to realize his mind was still working enough to think about his plans for marriage.

"No," I heard myself growl.

Rolling onto my stomach away from him, I crawled across the mattress and grabbed my bra. He came up behind me and caught my wrist, shaking it once until the piece of cloth dropped from my grasp.

Then, pinning my hand to the bed, he attempted to push his way inside me from behind.

"Marry me, Kara," he repeated.

"Damn it, Ray," I growled, and tried to crawl off the bed. "Don't do this right now. I said no strings."

"But what if I got depressed in the middle of the night," he asked, his voice light and teasing, though it carried a hard underlying edge. "I'd need your sympathetic touch."

"Will you shut up?" I snapped, trying to close my legs and buck him off. "I don't give pity fu—"

He cut my words off with his mouth on the back of my neck and his hand on my breast. I tried to pull away, but he caught me around the waist and entered me completely.

"Oh, yes," I moaned, and arched my back, forgetting everything but him —moving with him in sync with his rhythm and loving him with everything I had.

"Later, then," he growled, and grabbed my hips, pumping furiously.

I squirmed and pushed back against him, wanting it harder and faster.

Once the last shudder racked me, I collapsed on my stomach and rested my face on the pillow. Ray settled his weight on top of me, spooning me into the mattress. I loved the feel of his warm flesh matted to mine.

I whispered, "I can't believe you'd even suggest I'd ever sleep with you out of pity. I think I wanted to have sex with you since I saw you making out with Carlie Wilson at the Flower Festival."

"Really?"

"Yeah, really, silly."

Ray set his hand on my shoulder and kissed my hair. He didn't say anything else.

I sighed in contentment and snuggled closer to him. I closed my eyes enjoying the afterglow of sexual ecstasy.

I could get used to this.

CHAPTER 13

I woke in a river of sensuous pleasure. Smiling.

Already boneless from our previous encounter only hours before, I could only lay there as it wasn't morning yet, but still late in the night. He kissed my shoulder and slowly combed my hair with his fingers. His fingers glided gently down my stomach and across my hip.

Ray was the best lover I have ever had. Not that I had many, mind you. My body was still tingling.

One thought, only one thought, crawled through my mind: "I can't let him go."

Yawning, I turned my head and met a pair of vivid blue eyes watching me. Letting out a contented sigh, I arched my hips and felt my thighs spread to allow him more room to explore.

"Feel nice?" he asked, as he nipped my earlobe.

"Mm-hmm," I purred.

"Then just imagine it," he said, dotting kisses along my jaw and down my throat. All the while, his fingers played between my thighs. "If we were married, we could do this all the time... anytime."

"Don't start that again, Ray. Please. We're not going to..." I gasped before finishing the words because Ray pushed his index finger inside my pussy. Then he removed it and rubbed his slick finger across the nub just above my opening, and I moaned. My knuckles were white from grabbing the wadded sheet at my side.

Ray sat up suddenly so he could watch his own handiwork. When he finally looked up and met my gaze, I climaxed. After a few seconds, I realized I wasn't having just one orgasm, I was experiencing a chain reaction. It was as if tiny pleasure bombs were exploding within me.

"Wow! Just wow!" I breathed out, still catching my breath.

"Wow is just right," Ray panted.

"You make my body tingle like never before."

"The only good thing I probably got from my relationship with the slut was that I became really good in bed."

"Sorry, I didn't mean to bring sad memories."

"You know what? Amy is fading from my memory more and more since I'm with you."

"Despite all her experience in bed, sex was never as good as it is with you. Sex and love always go together for me and I just don't think I could have my needs met by someone I'm not in love with."

My heart was pounding in my chest. Had Ray inadvertently said he was in love with me?

I looked up at him.

"Kara?" Ray whispered.

"Yes?"

"Will you marry me?"

I looked down and saw the ring in his hand. It had a huge white diamond on it and was the prettiest thing I'd ever seen. I raised an eyebrow at him.

"I bought it yesterday. It's brand new," he informed me.

I found it suddenly hard to breathe. Ray was so cute and adorable. And a sex god in bed. I felt my resolution weakening. Forcing myself to toughen up, I said, "I hope you don't actually think I'll ever wear any kind of jewelry."

He merely smiled a lazy tilting of the lips. "But it's a wedding ring. Lots of men wear them, too. So, I don't consider it jewelry. Dad says once you get used to it, you kind of feel naked without it on. Think of it as underwear. It's just another part of getting dressed in the morning."

I sent him a dry look. "Ever heard of going commando?"

His eyes glittered with amusement. "Married people don't go commando."

I snorted. "Oh, really? And why's that?"

He shrugged. "There's always clean underwear around to wear when you're married."

I threw back my head and laughed.

Ray took my hand and started to try the ring on. Immediately, I grew alarmed and curled my fingers into a fist, preventing him from finishing his unwavering task.

I could give our baby security. The security of having a father around. A father who, I was certain, would love the baby as much as I did, who would be the kind of role model that any kid would give his or her eye teeth for.

Ray was not offering me rose-tinted dreams and an impossibly romantic future together, but surely his proposal was just practical and honest.

"What are you afraid will happen if you say yes?"

His probing gaze lifted to mine.

"I'm not afraid of anything," I said, admiring the ring. I sighed and looked back at him. "You don't want to do this, Ray," I whispered. "I'm warning you. It'll just turn into a disaster if we get married."

Keeping his eyes on mine and not saying a word, he slowly pried open my fingers. If his hand would've been forceful and confident, I probably would've fought him harder. But as it was, his touch trembled with an uncertainty that tugged at my heartstrings.

We silently stared at each other as he slid the ring into place. It fit a little snugly, making me panic and suck in a breath, thinking it would never come off again. Then I grew even more unnerved because I didn't want it off.

My heart fluttered and I struggled to get it under control. Ray always made me feel things I never felt for anyone else. I raised my hand and looked at the ring.

This was simply overwhelming.

"You're not going to give up on this, am I right?"

"You are."

"Fine." Let the stubborn fool have his way for a little while. "But you asked for this. We'll try the whole marriage thing until it falls through. And when it does —which it will— I'm going to be right there in your face, saying I told you so."

Ray nodded. "All right then," he told me. He was clearly relieved. "We'll get married next Friday if that's good for you."

"Next Friday?" I said dumbly. "So soon?"

"Why wait? We'll get married before you start to show. I'm assuming you don't want a huge elaborate ceremony that would take months to plan. But I'm flexible if you want something different."

It scared me how easy it was to love him.

I swallowed and immediately put on my cool face again, ignoring the leap of excitement in my belly.

"Next Friday is okay, Ray. Let's get married."

He looked at me, and smiled. A mile wide smile. "It's not a death sentence, Kara. It's marriage."

"Is there any difference?" I said, trying to sound as if I were joking.

"We'll go for the marriage license at Town Hall tomorrow," Ray went on ignoring me. "Ten AM is good for you?"

"Yes."

"Good talk, fiancée," he said, with a wink.

+++

Next day, Ray and I were standing in line at the Town Hall waiting for our marriage license.

I paced a bit while my mind ricocheted from one extreme to another as we waited our turn for a license.

"Just go with it. He'll make a great dad," the tiny angel on my shoulder said. "Marrying Ray would be good for your baby. He's a good man."

Then, the devil on the other extreme, said, "He doesn't love you. He is damaged goods. Don't marry him for the wrong reasons."

The angel was right; I wanted my kid to have a good life, a stable life.

The older woman in front of us left with her dog license and gave us a smile on her way out.

"Next," the town clerk, Kylie Phillips, called. She was another gossip girl.

Ray grabbed my hand and pulled me forward.

"We'd like a marriage license," Ray whispered, though we were the only people left in the office.

"Oh, my, my, my," Kylie said, placing a hand on her heart. "So the rumors around town are true. Are you pregnant, Kara? I've been praying for you."