Love Lessons

Chapter Twelve Grapefruit

Chapter Twelve Grapefruit

Valerie

At twenty-two weeks, something began to happen. Something Valerie had not expected, and something she’d done her best to avoid.

She’d started going for afternoon walks and doing yoga, but that hadn’t worked. She played Chopin while she cooked, which

always made her mind relax, and when that didn’t work, she switched to Mozart, and when that didn’t work, she went straight to Metallica. But nothing worked.

Now, a week later, it was becoming nearly impossible to think of anything else.

“Why are you looking at me like that?” Andrew asked while their students finished putting away their art supplies.

He’d catch her gawking at him, even though Valerie was trying to be discreet. But, damn, the man looked seriously hot.

Had he secretly been working out?

His arms in those sweaters looked as if they were going to pop out of the fabric. She hadn’t realized he had curly hair, but now that he’d let it grow out somewhat, it did a little curl around his neck. She wanted to run her fingers through it.

And his thighs... Holy mother of thighs! That was his best feature.

He had thick thighs and a great butt. Did he do squats every day? Was it from the manual labor at his mother’s house? She

wished she could remember how that ass and those legs looked naked, but the memory had faded.

“Like what?” She busied herself organizing the paper clips on her desk.

“Like”—he arched an eyebrow—“you know...”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she said, and then she turned to the class. “Are we ready for reading? Have a seat

and take out your books, please.”

She touched her cheeks, hoping that he couldn’t see what she felt—pink and flushed. Lately, her nipples seemed perpetually

hard, and she now wore sweaters all the time to cover the indecency that poked through every top she wore. Maybe his sweater

obsession was contagious.

Nevertheless, the past week had been a series of erotic dreams at night and periods of fantasizing during the day. She had

this one particular fantasy in which they’d be working late, and she’d look at him, he’d look at her, and know—just know—what

she needed. With one strong arm, he’d toss off all the stuff on her desk, lift her up, and then sit her on her desk. Their

eyes wouldn’t leave each other as he slid her panties down, and then he’d get on his knees and use his tongue to—

“Marquez!”

She jumped and looked around.

“What?” she yelped, irritated.

“You’re doing it again. You’re staring at me,” he said.

When had he gotten so close to her? He was right next to her, and he was whispering in her ear. His warm breath tickled her

neck. Jesus Christ... she was losing her mind.

She had read that pregnant women had increased libidos, but she’d never imagined she’d be the textbook definition of horny.

Have some self-control, Marquez.

“Forget reading,” she said to the class, and walked up to the students in the first row and shut their books. “Let’s have

a music day. It’s been a long time, hasn’t it? Everyone grab something and let’s go nuts.”

He groaned. “You’re already nuts,” he muttered.

“Shh,” she said to him. She was on a mission.

“We’re back to this?” he said.

“I want to hear them play.”

“No you don’t,” he whispered. Did he know?

She needed to get the tension out of her system. She grabbed a drum set and began to bang on it. “Come on, guys,” she hollered.

The class all started to play and dance, and for the first time ever, it wasn’t working. She wasn’t feeling any better. Not

at all. Maybe because Andrew had grabbed a recorder and was laughing with the kids as he blew out terrible notes . He wasn’t supposed to like it; he was supposed to be upset and ignore her for three days.

She tossed the drumsticks aside, stormed back to her desk, and sat there for the next thirty minutes watching the children and Andrew have fun. By the time the bell rang and the parents arrived, the kids were exhausted but happy.

Valerie, on the other hand, was visibly annoyed. Luckily, Andrew took over pick-up duty, and she was able to avoid everyone

and stew in private.

Andrew closed the door and locked it. She watched him stalk toward her. She felt a warmth low in her belly.

“In the past few months, I’ve gotten to know you,” he said slowly. He walked around the desk like a predator, and she was

stuck to her chair. All the nerve endings in her body were zinging. “You’re not mad at me.”

“I am,” she said breathlessly and without any conviction.

“You know what I think? I think that you want me, and you don’t know how to ask for it. So, in your warped mind, you tried

to be purposefully spiteful.”

She opened and closed her mouth.

He continued his stupid, nonsensical tirade. “Except it didn’t work. I’m not mad. I’m not falling for your little games, Valerie.

If you want me, all you have to do is say it.” He was right by her ear.

“I—” she began to protest, but he whispered, “Ask me to fuck you.”

She had to cross her legs. Oh my God, she was going to explode.

“Did you get it outta your system, Marquez?” he asked, spinning her chair around so he was in front of her. “All you have

to do is ask, Valerie. Ask me to fuck you.” He took her hands in his.

“Yes.” She looked at his hands holding hers. “No.” She tried to pull them away, and he held on tighter. “What? Let go,” she said, and he did, but he didn’t move away. He was staring at her with amusement in his eyes, which angered her more. Obviously, he knew why she was pissed off and he was enjoying himself, being all sexy and supportive and tall and strong and...

Oh, to hell with it!

She grabbed his neck, pulled him down, and kissed him. It was hard and rough. Their teeth knocked together. All the anger

she’d felt that day spilled out of her as she tugged on his hair and sucked on his tongue.

“Okay,” he said gruffly. “Say it,” he growled. “Say it or else I’m pulling away. I don’t want this to be a mistake or a regret.

I want you to want it.”

“I want it, Andrew. I want it so much. Eat me. Touch me. Fuck me.”

He stopped, clearly taken aback by the explicitness of her demands.

“Finally!” he said, and he lifted her up onto the desk. It was her fantasy.

After some hard-core making out, he stopped. “Wait. Wait. We can’t do this here.”

“I need to do this. I need to do this now.” She grabbed him again and kissed him harder. “It’s the hormones. Nothing more.

Don’t overthink this, Wexler.”

“I’m not overthinking it. I’m okay being used,” he said, and chuckled. “But not in our kindergarten classroom, Marquez.”

She pulled away. Frustrated. “Oh, crap. Yeah. Okay. You’re right. What was I thinking? I wasn’t. I wasn’t thinking. This’ll

pass,” she said, squeezing her legs together.

“No. No. I don’t want it to pass.” She took his extended hand, and he pulled her up, grabbed her purse and his gym bag in one hand, and dragged her out of the classroom with an urgency she’d never seen before. He took her out through the emergency door that led to the parking lot.

“What are you doing, Wexler?”

“Driving us home and finishing what you started.”

“I’m good. It was hormones. The moment’s passed.”

He looked over at her as she put on her seat belt. She made no attempt to get out of the truck; he could tell that she was

buzzing with excitement. He laughed and hauled ass home. Maybe “hauled ass” wasn’t the correct description. Drove them safely

home, within the legal speed limits, because it was Andrew, after all. But to his credit, he seemed as anxious to get there

as she was.

Andrew

The moment the truck was parked, he took off his seat belt, and attacked. He kissed her hard and passionately, and she kissed

him right back. He clicked her seat belt off, and she almost went over the center console and climbed on him. Having her want

him as much as he wanted her was heaven.

“Inside,” he said between kisses.

“Yeah. In a second,” she said, and continued kissing him.

One of them had to be the responsible one and stop to breathe and walk inside.

“I’m changing your name from Sergeant Wexler to Responsible Wexler,” she said as she slammed her door shut. He walked briskly around his truck, took her hand again, and pulled her into the house.

“Sweetheart, you’re pregnant with my baby. Do you really think we’re gonna fuck outside my house in my pickup truck?”

“I’m not seeing how this is a problem,” she whined. She was out of control. Lust was all over her face, her body, her smile—everything.

But he was right there with her. It might have been hormonal, but he knew, at her core, she wanted him . All those months earlier, she hadn’t been pregnant and she had kissed him first. Whether she wanted to admit it or not,

she liked him, and tonight he was going to show her all the reasons he liked her. And all the reasons they should try to be

together.

Andrew unlocked his front door, tossed his keys on the table, closed the door, and then pushed her against it. He started

to kiss her. She stretched her neck to give him access to that delectable area between her neck and shoulder, and she moaned.

Her hands were running through his hair almost painfully, but he welcomed it. He kissed across her collarbone before yanking

open her shirt, buttons flying all over the wood floor. Clearly she liked it, because she gasped and raked her fingers harder

through his hair. He licked and kissed his way down between her breasts while yanking down her bra. Last time, he had enjoyed

kissing her nipples, but this was something else. Her breasts were plump, and her nipples were pinker and harder than before.

He licked around an areola, but she stiffened and pulled his head back, hard.

“Ouch! No nipples. Too sensitive,” she said. He may have pouted but he obeyed.

“Okay. Okay. I need you to let go of my hair.”

“Sorry,” she said breathlessly, and let go. “Touch me, please. Andrew, please,” she pleaded, but he just continued driving her mad as he slowly moved lower and lower down her body. She was wearing one of her usual skirts; this one was emerald green with some sort of lime-green poof under it that showed beneath the hemline. He couldn’t be bothered to find a zipper, so when he got to the skirt, he just kept going down and put his head right inside her skirt, parting her legs with his hands. She lifted one of her legs to rest on his shoulder, and he pulled her panties to the side. He inhaled. He’d never done that. But he felt something feral. Possessive. A primal kind of intimacy that was inexplicable. He parted her lips with his thumb and forefinger and began to suck and lick her mercilessly.

Somewhere up above, he could hear her saying some sort of nonsense, but he couldn’t make it out between the two layers of

fabric and her thighs around his head. But he didn’t need to hear her to feel the rush of wetness and her thighs tightening

around his head as she climaxed against his tongue. When he felt that she was going to crumple to the floor, he gently put

her leg down, stood up, swooped her into his arms, and carried her into his bedroom.

She was like a limp noodle, having just climaxed, and for a split second he thought that she would be too tired for more. But the moment her body hit the bed, she sat up and crawled toward him and kissed him hard. He’d had a lot of sexual partners, but going down on a woman was not something he did often, and the woman kissing him after had never happened. He didn’t think his dick could get harder than it was at the moment. She unbuttoned his slacks and pushed them down. He could see where this was going, but he couldn’t wait another second to be inside her. And if her mouth touched his cock, it would be over.

“No no no no no. Need inside of you.” He gently pushed her down. She lifted her hips and reached underneath to find the zipper

of her skirt, and then she pulled it down her legs while he did the same with his slacks and boxer briefs. The woman was lying

completely naked on his bed again. “I have never seen anything more beautiful in my life.” She smiled sweetly. It was the

antithesis of the way she looked: she didn’t look sweet; she looked ravenous.

“Think it’s safe to say we don’t need a condom,” he said before guiding his cock to her entrance. She agreed and wrapped her

legs around his torso as he pushed inside her. He wanted this to last, but the way her pussy was squeezing his cock was making

it impossible. “Jesus...,” he groaned. She was so lost in ecstasy, and when she squeezed him hard and yelled out his name,

he lost total control and came harder than ever before.

Minutes passed without any words being spoken. They were both lying on his bed staring at his ceiling, catching their breath.

“That was exactly what I needed,” she said.

“Glad I could be of assistance.”

Valerie moved first. She went to his bathroom, presumably to clean up. He took the opportunity to use the other bathroom to

do the same. When he returned, she was sitting on the edge of his bed.

“Ugh... look at these ankles. I can’t tell where my calf ends and my ankles begin,” she said as she looked down to find her clothes.

“You’re beautiful,” he said, admiring her body. Her rounded belly protruded just faintly from her otherwise slender frame.

Her breasts were fuller, her cheeks red, and her hair mussed. He’d always thought her beautiful, but seeing her naked body

now, it was something else. She looked like a goddess, and he wanted to worship at her feet. Except, the truth was that her

feet were swollen. He was worried about her. How was she eating when he wasn’t around? How was her blood pressure?

“Uh... you’re nuts,” she said, standing up and looking down at her belly. “In a month, I won’t be able to see my feet.”

“Why don’t you just stay over? It’s late and you have to go up all those stairs.”

“It’s not that late, Wexler. It’s not even seven. Plus, I can’t go to work tomorrow in the same clothes. Shoot, you ripped

my blouse.”

“Fine. Fine. Let’s eat something first, then I’ll take you to your car.” He opened the top drawer and handed her one of his

T-shirts.

“Okay,” she said as she put the shirt on. It was way too big on her, but it would do. They walked out of his room to the kitchen.

He really wanted her to stay.

“Make yourself comfortable. Let me see what I have in my fridge.”

She didn’t make herself comfortable. She sat on the kitchen island, the same one they’d made out on all those months ago. That night had been hot. He’d touched her for the first time on this same island.

She was looking at him the way she’d been looking at him all week. She’d clearly remembered what had happened on the island,

and it was on her mind right now. Her face was that transparent. “Sweetheart, I need at least twenty minutes and some food

before I can go at it again.”

She shook her head as if that would make the erotic memories go away, which made him chuckle There was no undoing what had

been done and what he wanted to do over and over again.

“You and I are a terrible idea,” she said. “Sleeping together is just going to bring more trouble into this already complicated

relationship.”

“But it’s so good, Valerie,” he said, walking right between her legs, which wrapped around him. Her arms followed. Holding

her was sublime. Her body knew what it wanted even if she didn’t want to admit it. “You’re obviously horny as hell. And you’re

not going to sleep with someone else while you’re pregnant with my baby.”

“I can sleep with whomever I want, Wexler,” she said, but there was no force behind her words, especially since she was wrapped

around him like a little spider monkey.

He tipped her head up with his finger and kissed her. It wasn’t like the kiss they shared before. This one was slow and languid.

“I don’t want to sleep with just anyone,” she admitted. “I just want to sleep with you.”

It was the most honest she’d been with him and definitely the most vulnerable. For the first time since finding out she was pregnant, Andrew felt hope. Maybe they could make it work as a couple.

He kissed her softly, and then harder, until she was begging for him to touch her.

Turned out, Andrew didn’t actually need food or twenty more minutes.

Valerie

Your car was here when I got here and I saw you drive up with Andrew. Care to explain?” Monique asked.

Valerie had slept over at Andrew’s house. On a school night.

“Nope,” she said, avoiding Monique’s teasing eyes.

“You guys are cute together.”

“We’re not together,” she said. “And even if we were, you know we’re not cute together. We are the opposite of cute. We’re

oil and vinegar.”

“He’s so attentive.”

“He’s worried about his baby.”

“I don’t know, Val,” she said, giving her a knowing look. “I think he’s worried about you.”

If there was one thing Valerie had never done, it was rely on someone else for help. Especially not a man. But the past few weeks she’d relied on Andrew. Not so much for help, but for support. She’d relented and let him take care of her. It didn’t feel like she was giving up a piece of herself either. And having slept over at his house and had a real grown-up breakfast that consisted of egg whites with diced tomatoes and a protein shake, instead of a Pop-Tart or a granola bar, felt nice. It was something she could get used to, and that scared the shit out of her. Because she could not get used to Andrew Wexler. A kind, caring Andrew Wexler was a facade. He was only being this nice because she was carrying his child.

Valerie lay on the medical table with her belly exposed and her jogging pants rolled down, while the doctor squirted gel onto

her stomach. Valerie reached for Andrew and took his hand in hers. She was doing it so that he would feel included, or so

she told herself. The truth was, his support made her feel sane. All of this—having a baby, not being married, not even being

in a relationship—made her nervous as hell. Most days she felt out of control, but Andrew made her feel grounded.

“Oh, well, look what we have here. You said you wanted to know the sex, right?”

Andrew squeezed Valerie’s hand, waiting for her reply. They had discussed this earlier, and both had wanted to know the sex

of the baby.

“Yes,” she said. They both stared at the screen, and Valerie’s grip on Andrew tightened.

“Mom, your intuition was correct—you’re having a boy.”

“I knew it, Andrew. It’s a boy!” she said through tears.

He seemed to be finding it difficult to say any words as he stared at the screen, at his son, his eyes glassy.

The doctor wiped Valerie’s belly and helped her sit up. “I am still concerned about your blood pressure. Have you been monitoring

it?”

“Yes. And it’s never gone above one thirty-five over eighty-two.”

The doctor was looking at Valerie’s feet as she spoke. “You’re retaining fluid, but it’s still okay. I want you to call me

if you hit one forty over ninety. You need to watch what you’re eating.”

“Is this preeclampsia, Doctor?” Andrew asked, having read the baby books over and over.

“I don’t want to diagnose it just yet, because we’re not quite there. There’s no protein in her urine. But I do want to see

you in about a week and do a more in-depth test. There’s a lot you can do, and it’s mostly regarding your diet. But it could

get to the point that no matter what you eat your blood pressure will skyrocket, and that’s what I want to avoid. So, let’s

just keep an eye on things, okay? The baby looks great, though. The measurements are perfect, and there’s no reason to be

alarmed just yet. You have my cell phone. If there’s an emergency, please call.”

They walked back to the car in silence, and even though the news about the sex was exciting, the prospect of preeclampsia

was not.

“It’s all my fault. Why did I eat KFC? And those chips the other day. And, oh my God, all those saltines at the beginning

of the pregnancy. Andrew, what if I hurt the baby?”

“Relax, Valerie, this is not your fault. She’s just making sure you do all the right things to stay okay. You heard what she

said—there’s not even a diagnosis. Let’s just make sure we do everything we can to keep things as they are.”

“How are you so calm?”

“I’m not that calm. I’m secretly freaking out. But I don’t think two people freaked out is good for the baby, or for your blood pressure, or for my blood pressure.

“Why don’t we focus on the sex?” he continued. “Don’t you want to call your mom or my mom and tell them the news?”

“Not really,” she said.

He reached for her hand and wrapped it in his. “Listen, you’re not going to mope around worried for the next seventeen weeks.

You’re going to enjoy this pregnancy. It sucks, it’s scary, but we’re going to get through this. Me and you, together. We’re

going to get through this. Do you hear me? It’s going to be okay.”

Her chin quivered, and she wished it hadn’t, but she was losing control. This was the scariest thing she’d ever gone through.

“How can you be so sure?”

“Because there’s no way it’s going to be anything but okay.” He took her face in his hands and looked her square in the eyes

and said it with so much conviction that she believed him. He kissed her tenderly on the lips and wiped her tears away with

his thumbs.

“So, who do you want to call first? Afterward, let’s go straight to the baby store, I think. Constantine needs his first outfit.

What do you think?”

She laughed a watery laugh and sniffled. “His name will not be Constantine.”

He shrugged. “Bono?”

She laughed in earnest this time. She grabbed her phone and dialed a number and hit the speaker button. As soon as the woman

said hello, Andrew recognized his mom’s voice.

“Hi, Valerie, how are you doing?” his mother said.

“Hi, Peggy, it’s me and Andrew. You’re on speaker. We just came from the doctor and we know the sex of the baby.”

“Hey, Mom.”

“Oh, I can’t wait to hear. I bet it’s a girl. Is it a girl? The way you’re glowing, it has to be a girl. I looked terrible

while I was pregnant with Andrew—half my hair fell out and I broke out with terrible acne.”

Valerie giggled. “Well, Grandma, it’s not a girl. We’re having a boy!”

“Oh my goodness, a boy! It’s a boy! How exciting. I can’t wait to tell all the girls here at the Palace. I’m actually on my

way to salsa lessons. This will be the best news.”

“We’ll let you go, Mom,” Andrew said. “I’ll call you tomorrow. Love you.”

“Thank you for including me in this wonderful news, Valerie. I hope to see you both soon.” The call disconnected, and Valerie

dialed her mother.

“Hi, mi amor. How are you feeling?”

“I’m okay. Definitely eating more. No more morning sickness, so that’s good. They’re watching my blood pressure still, though.”

“Did they do a protein test on your urine?” Nurse Anabel was in full swing.

“Yes, Mom, and it came out fine. Apparently there’s no reason to be alarmed yet. We’re just monitoring it at this time. I

have an appointment next week, though. Anyway, you’re on speaker with Andrew.”

“Hello, Ana. How are you?” he said.

“Good. Waiting on you all to tell me you’re having a girl so that I can go shopping.”

“Well, I hate to disappoint, but it’s a boy!”

“That’s wonderful news, Val. Oh my goodness, a little boy!”

“I know. I knew it was a boy, I felt it from the first day.”

“You did, honey. I am very excited, but I’m worried. Are you taking care of yourself?” her mom asked sincerely.

“I am, Mom. I promise.”

“She is, Ana. She’s even doing some exercise,” he said, and winked her way. She shoved him playfully.

“Good. I’m glad to hear that. Te quiero,” Anabel said.

“Te quiero too, Mami,” Valerie said before hanging up.

Andrew

Andrew didn’t know how to handle crying women, and he also understood that she had reason to be upset. Hell, he was upset

himself. But it wasn’t about him. He needed to distract her and get her mind on something else. Other than watching what she

ate and exercising, there wasn’t much else she could do.

So, as superficial as it sounded, after they spoke to their mothers, he took her shopping.

Maybe getting some “boy things” would get her excited and take her mind off the worries. At least for a little while.

It took her all of five minutes to get into it.

As soon as they walked into the zero-to-three-months area and she saw a powder-blue three-piece suit—which no child would

ever actually need—her mood changed.

“This. Is. Everything!” she squealed in delight, and threw it into the cart. After that, she added a few whimsical onesies, and Andrew could not help but share her excitement. He was going to have a boy. A little boy.

“Andrew! Oh my God! Look!” She found a Miami Dolphins jersey-material onesie. Then she started to bawl.

“Are you okay?” he asked, holding her in his arms.

“This is the absolute cutest thing that I’ve ever seen. Have you ever seen anything cuter than this, Andrew?” she sobbed.

“Are these happy tears?” he asked slowly. The mood swings were full throttle.

“Yes!” she said, as if it was supposed to be obvious. She then grabbed the outfit in three different sizes. After about an

hour and a half and a full cart of clothes, Andrew paid, and they left. He had not paid for one single visit to the doctor,

and he felt the least he could do was buy his son some things that made his son’s mother happy.

“Do you still have food at home? Like the good kind we purchased together?” he asked her.

“Yes. Let me cook for you tonight,” she said.

“Do you know how to cook?” he asked warily.

“I may not be a gourmet chef, but I’ve fed myself for the past twenty-odd years. And I’m going to have to feed Junior at some

point, so I guess you’ll see for yourself if I can cook.”

Later, he discovered that the answer was no.

Maybe it was the fact that she couldn’t season the food correctly without salt, but he’d never seen anybody mess up an omelet quite the way Valerie had just done. She had decided on eggs because she didn’t have any meat thawed and she wasn’t in the mood for pasta. He ate the scrambled eggs that were supposed to be an omelet.

“Sweetheart, I think I’ll be handling the cooking from here on out.”

“It wasn’t that bad,” she said, rubbing her full belly. He didn’t have the heart to tell her that it was that bad.

“I need to talk to you about something,” he said seriously.

“Uh-oh... what is it?”

“Have you put any thought into this apartment when the baby gets here? You cannot possibly lug a stroller, a car seat, and

a baby up five flights of stairs.”

She sighed loudly. “I know. I’ve thought about it. But imagine with all the stress of this pregnancy having to start looking

for a new apartment and then moving. Maybe I’ll move back in with my mom.”

“Is that what you want?”

“No, but...”

“Hear me out, and don’t say no until you’ve listened and reflected on it.”

“What?”

“Move in with me.” He put a finger up to her mouth to quiet her protest. “You’ll have your own room. We’ll be like roommates.

At least for a few months, so you can get settled into motherhood, and then you can start looking for an apartment.”

“A roommate with a child,” she said sardonically.

“Who maybe has sex with me every once in a while.”

She smiled. “It’s a terrible, terrible idea. But I’ll think about it.”

“Really?” he said, feeling hopeful.

“Yeah, really,” she said.

He brought her in for a hug. “I’m going to take off. Do you need anything before I go?”

“No. But thank you for today. I don’t know what I would have done without you, honestly. I got lucky in the baby daddy department.”

She kissed him on the cheek before he left.

His heart expanded in his chest as he drove home.