Chapter Five
Lorna woke up the next morning feeling completely run down.
Today was not the day to feel like she was hit by a tractor-trailer and left for dead on the side of the highway.
Sawyer persuaded her to run in to see the doctor.
She tried to tell him that she was fine, but he wasn’t budging on the matter.
Her doctor’s office had limited hours, so she went in before lunch.
She needed to help get the meal together, and she also wanted to make sure that the house was ready.
Hosting their first holiday together was turning out to be a big deal.
After admitting that they were in love with each other, she and Sawyer spent the rest of the evening in bed.
They stayed up most of the night making love and talking about the future.
That was probably what led to her being dead on her feet, but she wasn’t about to tell Sawyer that.
Admitting that she wanted kids but was afraid to hope for them was emotionally draining.
If she were being completely honest with herself, she always wanted kids, but she just never found a person that she wanted to have them with.
Sawyer being in her life opened so many possibilities that she never let herself hope for.
She waited to see the doctor, and when he finally checked her over, he decided to take some blood to check for an infection.
He also wanted to run some tests just to be on the safe side.
By the time she left the doctor’s office, she felt ready for a nap.
She stopped at the local grocery store to pick up a few last-minute items that they forgot.
When she got home, Sawyer had the oven going with four pies, and he was working on the stuffing and glazed carrots.
“It smells so good in here. I wish today were Thanksgiving.” Lorna wrapped her arms around Sawyer from behind, kissing his jaw.
“Well, you will just have to wait until tomorrow.” He turned off the stove and faced her.
“How did it go at the doctor's?” It was cute the way he worried about her, but she didn’t want to let that get in the way of Thanksgiving.
Tomorrow was going to be a special day, no matter how bad she felt physically.
“It was fine. He’s not sure what the problem is, although he did tell me that I should not have to help cook Thanksgiving dinner.
I should prop up my feet and drink some wine—oh, and have lots of sex.
Yes, he definitely said to have tons of sex.
” Sawyer smiled at her, seeming to be on board with the whole sex as medicine thing she came up with.
“Anyway, I won’t know anything until after the holiday.
They took some blood, but he didn’t know if the lab would be open since tomorrow is a holiday.
He said he’ll call as soon as he knows something.
” Lorna kissed Sawyer’s cheek and snuck a pinch of stuffing, moaning as her taste buds danced a happy dance.
“You can really cook. That tastes so good.” Sawyer playfully swatted her ass as she made her way to the refrigerator.
“How about you shower and take a nap. You look tired, baby. I can handle things here.”
Lorna kissed him, “I owe you,” she mumbled.
“I’ll collect when you are better rested.
I have an idea of how you can repay me,” Sawyer said, bobbing his eyebrows at her.
Lorna laughed on her way up the stairs. She felt bad that she couldn’t help cook as they planned, but she was dead on her feet, and a shower and nap sounded heavenly.
Plus, she wanted to be ready for their big day tomorrow—their first family tradition together. She couldn’t wait.
Sawyer was worried about Lorna. She looked completely exhausted.
He needed to control himself around her and give her time to rest. The night before, he was a demanding ass, and they didn’t get much sleep.
Today, Lorna was paying the price, and he felt like shit about that.
He thought that finding out that Joe had made it back to New York a few weeks back would calm his nerves, but he was wrong.
He got a call from an old army buddy who ran a small security firm in the city, confirming that Joe was no longer in Colorado.
His credit cards were traced back to New York, where he lived.
At least that much of his story was true, although the rest of Joe’s motives for tracking down Piper were still a mystery.
If he traveled across the country just to check out Piper’s aunt and childhood home, then mission accomplished.
But it just didn’t add up. Was he out for revenge, or was it just a coincidence that he showed up in Piper’s ice-cream shop?
Sawyer knew better than to believe in fate or random coincidence.
Joe wanted something, and that had Sawyer on edge.
His friend offered to track Joe down and have a little chat with him, but they would have to find him first. He went to Joe’s home and even talked to his neighbors, but no one saw him for weeks.
Sawyer wasn’t going to let his guard down until his buddy had eyes on Joe in New York, far away from Piper and Lorna.
Until that happened, he wanted either Tag or himself with Piper always.
The problem with that plan was that Lorna was left unguarded.
Maybe it was time to call in some help. He knew some guys in the area who served with him.
They would jump in to lend a hand, no questions asked.
He needed to take more precautions with Lorna because the thought of Joe being in the same room with her again made him sick.
It was bad enough that he was able to get so close to Lorna in the first place.
Every time he thought of her being alone at the house with Joe, he wanted to punch a wall.
He would like five minutes alone with the guy.
He would have no problem finding out what the hell Joe wanted with Piper and Lorna; he would take pleasure in beating the truth out of the asshole.
The house phone rang, startling him. He knew that Lorna wouldn’t be able to answer it, so he let it go to voicemail.
He was stuffing the turkey and couldn’t clean his hands fast enough.
Besides, it was probably Piper or Sunny wondering what they could do to help with tomorrow’s dinner.
At the beep, he listened for someone to start talking, but no one did.
The person didn’t hang up, and he could hear a muffled conversation on the other end. Finally, a woman started talking.
“Hi, Lorna, this is Dr. March’s office. We were able to get your blood and urine to the lab before they closed for the day.
We marked them as urgent, and the results are back.
On your HIPAA form, you marked that it was all right to leave you messages on your voicemail.
So, well—okay, you’re pregnant. I know this must come as a shock, and I’m so sorry that I’m leaving the message like this.
We just wanted you to know so that you are cautious about taking medication and drinking over the holiday.
We will be in the office for a few more hours.
Feel free to call us back or come in, and we will go over everything with you.
Okay then—bye.” Sawyer couldn’t seem to get his brain to work.
It was like he was watching a movie or listening to a story about someone else’s life.
A part of him even felt bad for listening to Lorna’s message, but the nurse was talking about Lorna and a baby that he helped to create.
It had everything to do with him, and he wasn’t sure what to do next.
He needed to tell Lorna or at least get her to listen to the message.
Hell, he wasn’t sure that he could get the words out of his mouth to tell her himself.
How did this happen? They were always so careful, using condoms every time that they made love.
He washed his hands and stood in the middle of the kitchen, trying to figure out his next move.
He heard the shower turn on and decided to give Lorna a minute.
Honestly, he needed a minute to collect himself and figure out how he felt about a baby.
His and Lorna’s baby. He always thought that he wanted a family—a big one, since he didn’t have one growing up.
When he was little, he hoped that a family might adopt him, and he could have brothers and sisters, but that never happened.
When he met Lorna, he wasn’t sure if kids were even a possibility, but now—now it was a reality.
Sawyer found Lorna in the shower, shampooing her hair, and he decided to join her.
He stripped out of his clothes and opened the glass door, startling Lorna from her daydream.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to frighten you.” He stepped under the spray and took over-shampooing her hair, massaging her scalp. She moaned and leaned back into his body.
“You didn’t, I was thinking about last night.
You just surprised me.” Sawyer pulled her back into the spray of the warm water, rinsing her hair.
He grabbed her shower gel and poured it into the palm of his hand, rubbing it all over her sexy body.
When he got to her tummy, he froze. He needed to tell her, but the thought of Lorna carrying his baby did strange things to him.
He was consumed with a burning desire for her.
He wrapped his soapy hands around her middle and pulled her back into his erection.
She gasped when he ground his cock into her back, grabbing onto his thighs for balance.
“Is this okay, honey? If you aren’t up for what I’m asking, tell me now.” He knew that he was being a dick—she was already exhausted from the night before, but knowing that she was pregnant was both a relief and a turn on. He just hoped that she would feel the same way about the baby.