13: Chapter 13

RYAN

On the Fourth of July, Ryan and Marco headed out for yet another celebration at Roberto and Connie’s lake house. Ryan didn’t mind; she enjoyed spending time with Marco’s family. It was almost like having a family of her own again.

Marco sat with his hands on her stomach as they watched everyone enjoying themselves. “Want to go for a swim, kitten?”

“You go ahead,” she said. Her belly had gotten bigger, and she wasn’t sure how she felt about everybody seeing her in just a swimsuit. “Maybe I’ll join you later.”

Once he was gone, Maria sat next to her, eyeing her T-shirt and shorts. “Seeing you in your bikini isn’t going to bother us; we’re all parents.”

“I just don’t feel like swimming right now,” Ryan said, not wanting to talk about this.

Maria nodded knowingly. “When I was pregnant with Louis, I swam in one of Luca’s shirts.”

Ryan didn’t reply, and Maria seemed content to let the subject drop.

MARCO

The next morning, Marco awoke and heard Ryan brushing her teeth in the bathroom. He walked in to find her in just an oversized T-shirt, leaning against the sink as she peered at herself in the mirror.

He gave her a kiss on the cheek. “You’re so beautiful.”

She rolled her eyes.

“I mean it, kitten, I’d bend you over this sink right now,” he insisted, rubbing his hands up her legs.

She spit out the toothpaste and pushed him away. “Your family is down the hall.”

He let out a hum when he realized she wasn’t wearing any panties. “It’s early; everyone is still asleep.” He pushed his boxers down and nestled his dick between her legs. “I want you, kitten.”

He could tell Ryan was about to give in when they both heard Connie scolding the kids for being too loud in the hallway. “Seems not everyone is still asleep,” she commented.

Marco laid his head on her shoulder and kissed the skin of her upper back. “You’re right.”

She turned around, gave him a kiss, grabbed his dick, and started smearing the bead of precum around.

“Now who’s being the tease?” he complained.

Smirking, she gripped his shaft and gave it a gentle tug. “Isn’t this helping?”

He let out a groan, loving how good her soft hands felt on him. “It’s not what I was hoping for.”

“I can stop if you’d like,” she offered, even as she started stroking him even faster.

He groaned as he felt his balls tighten and his eyes rolled back in his head. She picked up her pace.

“Aww fuck,” he said, sinking against her body as he reached his high. He watched as she licked his cum from her fingers. “Now, that’s not helping me.”

She laughed. “Get a shower; we’ve got a busy day today.”

After lunch they went into town for the festival and fireworks. Marco did this with his family every year, but it felt new with Ryan beside him.

As she took in the scene, it felt like he was experiencing it all for the first time himself: the colorful floats, the kids running around trying to win goldfish and oversized stuffed animals, the smell of popcorn filling the air.

“This reminds me of the fairs and carnivals back home,” said Ryan, turning to him with a smile.

“Really?”

Ryan nodded. “In Stroudsburg the fire department does something like this, but smaller, as a way to raise money. My family used to go every year.”

He smiled at her and held her hand as they walked around with the family, watching the kids ride rides and play games.

After a while Ryan excused herself to use the port-a-potty. Marco let his mind drift, imagining what it might be like to take their little one to an event like this for the first time. But he glanced up sharply when he heard Ryan let out a yelp of surprise.

It looked like she’d walked out of the port-a-potty and straight into two drunk idiots fighting. Marco let out a low growl as he saw his pregnant girlfriend get knocked to the ground by a stray fist.

He rushed forward, grabbing the man who’d hit Ryan and wrestling him backward. “Walk away,” he snarled, low and dangerous.

“Hey, man,” slurred the stranger, “I didn’t mean to—”

“That’s the only reason you’re still breathing,” snapped Marco. “But you’re way too drunk. It’s the middle of the day. There are kids here. There are pregnant women here.”

“S’ry,” said the stranger, shaking his head.

Marco gave him a shove toward the nearest exit. “Go, sleep it off. Don’t come back.” Once he was sure the guy was following this command, he turned back toward Ryan. Luca was at her side, rubbing her back.

“Are you all right?” Marco asked, taking Luca’s place.

“I’m fine,” Ryan said, voice light. “He barely touched me. My balance is just weird these days.”

Marco laid his hand on her stomach. “Are you sure?”

“I landed on my ass, not my stomach, Marco.”

“You could’ve gotten hurt,” he insisted.

Ryan’s voice took on an edge of exasperation. “I didn’t know there was a fight, Marco. This isn’t my fault.”

“I’m sorry, kitten,” he said, gentler, kissing her forehead. “It just scared me, is all.” Nobody was ever going to hurt Ryan or the baby. Not if he had anything to say about it.

RYAN

Marco hovered over Ryan for hours after that. It took a while to convince him that she was really fine and didn’t need to go home and rest.

She mostly liked how protective he was. She felt safe around him. But it did get a little annoying sometimes.

Eventually, the sun started going down, and the family headed to a grassy area to watch the fireworks over the lake.

There were a lot more than Ryan remembered from her hometown Fourth of July celebrations, the sky lighting up green, blue, red, green again for at least half an hour.

Fiona fell asleep halfway through, her head on Maria’s lap and her feet on Ryan’s. Ryan didn’t mind; she was fond of the little girl, and happy that Fiona was so comfortable around her. But she could tell that it made Marco nervous.

At one point he laid his hand on her stomach as a blocker in case Fiona decided to kick.

Luca laughed.

“What?” Marco questioned him.

“I’m sure that your ~activities~ are a whole lot worse than anything Fiona could do,” Luca smiled. “You forget that we’ve had two. I’m fully aware of what pregnancy hormones can do.”

Marco spluttered a little, but he didn’t find a response to that.

Luca turned to Ryan as they gathered up their blanket for the short walk back. “Besides being knocked on your ass, did you have fun?”

Ryan nodded. “I did; it’s been years since I’ve been to a Fourth of July celebration.”

“Ever miss home?” Maria asked.

“Some,” she nodded. “I miss how the leaves turn in fall, and sometimes I even miss snow. Not driving in it, though.”

She smiled as she remembered playing in the snow with her sister. “I’ve gotten used to the weather here, though, and I would probably freeze to death if we ever got any snow.”

When they reached the house, Marco helped Luca carry the kids upstairs. Ryan said goodnight to Maria, Connie, and Roberto and headed up to her and Marco’s room, where she jumped in the shower and let the hot water run over her body.

She missed home a lot, but she had no one there—at least no one that cared. Anna was out here, and Zac was in the military. She had extended family in Vermont, but she had never spent any time with them until the funeral, and she hadn’t kept in touch since then.

Marco slipped into the bathroom while she was still deep in thought. “Everything all right, kitten?” he asked.

“Yeah,” she said, jolting back to reality, “just enjoying the hot water.”

He began removing his clothes. “Save some for me,” he said, stepping into the shower as she got ready to step out. “You’re not hurting anywhere, are you?”

“I’m fine, just tired.”

He nodded and kissed her forehead as she stepped out of the shower.

She paused in the doorway, looking back at Marco through the glass shower door. “Thanks for sharing your family with me,” she said, pouring all her sincerity into her voice.

“Of course, kitten,” said Marco, looking like he understood what she was trying to say. “But you know…they’re not just my family. They’re yours now, too.”