“You two are what?!”

Brielle blinked at the explosion from her friend and shifted her eyes toward the phone. “Um…well, it’s not official yet. We just know that we want to get married.”

“Ho..wh…why…but…you…” Lily was at a loss for words.

Her friend chuckled low. “I know it’s surprising, but we’re going to be a family and we love each other and it just feels right.”

“That doesn’t mean you rush into a marriage.”

“Who says anything about rushing?”

Lily sighed. “You guys haven’t even known each other for more than four months; and a few of those you weren’t even talking. You’ve been out in Cali for almost a month and you already know you want to spend the rest of your life with this guy?”

The blonde frowned at her friend’s words. “Yes, I do. I may not have known him for long, but I know the kind of person he is and I know how we feel about each other. I know that with our situation and how we’ve come to be together, nothing is going to change that.” She glanced toward the phone then out at the view off the balcony of her room. “I would have thought you of all people would understand and be excited for me.”

“It’s just…it feels so fast. I don’t want you rushing into something and it turns out to be a mistake and then you and your baby end up hurt and worse off.”

“Wow, that’s such a negative way to look at things.” A frown creased her brow. “Or it might be the best thing to ever happen to me and I spend the rest of my life more happy than I can imagine. Sure, it might be a little fast, but neither of us is taking this lightly and just because we’re engaged doesn’t mean we’re gonna go off and get married next week. It’s not even official yet; he wants to do it right with a ring and down on one knee.”

Lily’s sigh drifted over the phone line. “I’m sorry, honey, I just want this to be right for you. I don’t want you to have to struggle anymore. I know Alex is a good man and I know he loves you. You guys have been dealing with so much though; his drinking and the whole debacle with Renee and sometimes people make rash decisions during moments like that. I don’t want him to come to you in a month and realize he’s not ready to make that step.”

“You don’t understand, Lily. You haven’t been out here and you don’t see the way things just fit with the two of us. I wish I could explain it in a way that made sense to you, but I can’t. All I can tell you is that we have a future together and we love each other and want to spend the rest of our lives together.”

“Okay, honey, if this is what you want and you’re sure on your feelings then I’ll support you.”

Brielle finally offered up a smile. “Thank you.”

“You do realize though, that the press is going to eat you up once they find this out.”

That made her hesitate. “Well, then we won’t tell them.”

“How do you not? They’re find it out and hound you and follow you. They’re already running stories about your pregnancy and this is just going to add more fuel to the fire.”

Brielle’s brows lifted. “They’re still running stories about the baby?”

“Oh yeah. They had pictures of the two of you outside where you work at that studio, I think. Rumor has it you two are an item and he’s either cheating with you and still with Renee or he’s finally dumped her ass and wised up.”

“Well, then they’d be right about one thing.”

“Well, just be careful. I don’t want you guys ending up in some high speed chase or something because those leeches have to get some secret moment between you two.”

“I will be. I’ll talk to Alex about it.”

Lily agreed then gave a short laugh. “I still can’t believe you beat Renee’s ass.”

The blonde giggled low. “I know right. But I couldn’t help it, the thing’s she was saying and what she did to Alex; I just got so pissed off. Gave her a bloody lip and everything.”

Lily chuckled. “Gosh, Brie, I’m sure it felt good, but you could have hurt yourself or your baby. If you weren’t pregnant I’d throw you a party, but please don’t get into any more fights.”

“I’m not gonna. Alex told me the same thing.”

“Speaking of Alex,” Lily drew the sentence out. “What are you two doing for his birthday?”

Brielle blinked, her eyes darting toward the black cell phone at her ear. “Say what?”

“His birthday. I saw it in some magazine; he’s gonna be 33, Brielle. You’re marrying an old man.”

The blonde was at a loss for words. She had no idea when his birthday was; they’d never talked about that sort of thing, which immediately made her feel horrible. “When…when is his birthday?”

Lily paused. “You don’t know? Oh no, Brielle!” She sounded alarmed. “It’s tomorrow. January 9th and he hasn’t even told you?”

“Tomorrow?” You felt worry rise into her throat. There was no way she could pass over his birthday, not after everything he’d done for her and all he had gone through. But tomorrow? What could she do last minute? “What…what am I gonna do? I don’t have any gifts for him, there’s nothing planned. He hasn’t even uttered one word.”

“I have an idea,” her friend sounded calm again. “You’ve been using that camera he and Denise got you, right?”

“Of course; the other day I got some great shots of him before he realized I was even there.”

“Do you have any of the both of you?”

The blonde tilted her head. “There’s a couple; his mom took some before she left.”

“Okay, perfect. All you gotta do is go buy some nice frame then put the best picture of the two of you in it. I’m sure he doesn’t have a single one and it’d be a great start to the relationship. Then you go buy some cake mix and make him a birthday cake.”

That didn’t sound like a bad idea whatsoever. “I can do that.” She grinned. “That actually sounds really great, thank you, Lily.”

Lily’s smile could be heard over the line. “You’re so welcome. And maybe you buy some of those party hats and noise makers and you make some fun out of is; cuz let’s face it, no one likes getting older. Which may be why he hasn’t told you, he doesn’t want to face it.”

“Geeze, the poor guy,” Brielle found herself pouting, “I hope I don’t upset him doing all this.”

“I don’t think you will. I think he’s actually going to really like it.”

“I hope so.” Then she giggled low. “And I think I know who I can call to take me to the store instead of having Alex do it. Then the gig would be up.”

“Oh good. I’m glad you’re able to expand your social circle so you have more than just Alex to lean on. That’s great and all, but you really need friends of your own.”

“Yeah, I’m working on that. There’s a couple girls from the office that I’ve had lunch with and we’re talking about going out one night. And then there’s Laurel. Remember Nick, the blonde guy from that horrible dinner party Renee tried to throw?” When Lily gave a sound she remembered, Brielle continued, “Well, she’s his girlfriend and we exchanged numbers a little while back and she came by the hotel room one night. I think she’d take me.”

“Oh, then definitely give her a call.”

“I will.” She smiled at the surprise for Alex and settled back more in the seat. “So, I signed the last of the papers I needed to for my grandfather’s money yesterday. The attorney’s going to call me on Monday and I’ll know then when I’ll be getting the inheritance.”

“That’s great, Brielle,” Lily spoke with a grin to her tone. “Gosh, what are you going to do with that money?”

“Save some of it for the baby and…” she trailed off. Before the events of that week, she would have replied with buying a house and getting her life ready for being a single mom with a baby. But now…now she had Alex and they had a future. “And I don’t know. Maybe put it aside for the wedding; you know how expensive they are.”

Lily chuckled. “Amen, I sure do. I think that’s a really great idea.” She paused. “You know what you could do with some of it?”

Brielle tilted her head. “What’s that?”

“Go to school; get a degree in photography. Then you could forget the work as a receptionist and open your own photography studio.”

The blonde paused and thought that over. “I should do that. I gave up a scholarship to go to New York and make it big, but no one liked my work.”

“Maybe you just need some schooling in it; learn the right techniques and things you need to do. You can still make it big, Brielle. You’re young and there’s plenty of time for that.”

“I know.” She rubbed the back of her neck. “I’ll think about it, okay?”

“Okay,” her friend agreed.

“Now,” she shifted in the seat until she was in a more comfortable position, “tell me all that you’ve figured out with your wedding, I don’t want any detail left out. It’s hard to be so far away and not in on all the action.”

Lily chuckled. “I’m doing my best to keep you updated.”

“I know you are.” She smiled at that. “Now start talking.”

~*~*~*~*~

Laurel had agreed to help Brielle with her idea for Alex’s birthday. She took the blonde to the store that Saturday evening and helped her new friend pick out a beautiful dark silver frame with tiny skulls carved throughout it. Then they’d headed to the grocery store and picked up what they would need for a vanilla cake with butter cream frosting and a couple candles. Afterward, Laurel had convinced Nick to take Alex out for lunch on Sunday so Brielle would have time to set everything up and prepare the cake.

And now Brielle was in the kitchen with an apron tied around her waist and flour smudged on her cheek. She had decided to forgo the noise makers and party hats; she didn’t want to upset him if he was already depressed about growing older. Glancin to the time, she frowned. Alex would be home any minute and the cake was still in the oven. Nothing had been working out like planned and the mess on the counters was proof of that.

The cake had been a lot harder than she had originally thought and was kicking herself for not going with a mix from a box. But she’d wanted to try something from scratch and now was halfway regretting it. Ingredients lay strewn over the counter and dirty pans littered the sink, but the sweet smell of the cake filled the room and if it turned out okay then she could deal with the mess.

The sound of the door slamming pulled her from her reverie and she quickly untied the apron, pulling it off and stashing it to the side. The cake needed to hurry up and finish baking; maybe she ought to turn the temperature up a little bit. Moving to the stove, she checked the dial on the oven and raised it from 375 degrees to 400 then she hurried from the room to intercept Alex before he got into the kitchen and her surprise was ruined.

“Hey.” She found him in the foyer, hanging his hat on the coat rack and slipping his shoes off.

“Hey, babe.” He flashed her a charming grin. “How are you?”

“I’m good.” She was racking her brain with ways to keep him from the kitchen. “How was lunch?”

Alex tucked his shoes to the side and out of the way. “It was good; I’m just sorry you didn’t feel well enough to come with. You feeling any better?”

She hadn’t wanted to lie to him, but there really was no other option and she’d needed to stay at the house so she could prepare. “I am, I think it was just some morning sickness or something.”

“You sure?” He moved closer to her then his brows drew together and he reached a finger to her cheek, brushing it over it and holding it so she could see the white powdery substance on it. “What’s this?”

“Oh,” Brielle’s eyes widened slightly, “um, nothing.” She brushed at her cheek then wiped it on her shirt. “So, how’s Nick?”

Alex eyed her carefully. “He’s good.”

“Good. Did you two have a nice lunch?”

“Yeah, it was pretty good.”

Brielle squirmed beneath the look he was sending her. “Good. So um,” she searched her brain for an excuse to get back to the kitchen without him following her, “the phone rang a couple times while you were out, but I didn’t answer. You might want to check your messages.”

“Oh, sure, of course.” He leaned in and brushed his lips against her cheek. “You smell like something sweet.”

She blinked then covered it with a laugh. “Stop trying to flirt with me, go check your messages.”

Alex looked slightly confused at that. “Um, okay.” Then he sent her a questioning look and headed down the hall toward his office.

Once he was out of view, Brielle turned and fled back to the kitchen. He probably thought she was losing her mind. Quickly, she swept the dirty dishes into the sink and grabbed a rag to wipe down the counter. The cake should have been done by now and she should have had everything set up. Nick had given her plenty of time, but for some reason it’d taken her longer to get it put together and now she was regretting that.

“So, from the caller ID log, no one called while I was out,” Alex announced as he strolled into the kitchen.

“No!” Brielle dropped the rag and quickly pushed him back out into the hall.

He blinked at that. “What…is going on?”

“You just…you can’t come in yet.”

His brow furrowed. “Why not?”

“Because um…” her pulse was racing on her neck, “because I tried to make myself something to eat earlier and I kinda made a mess. And I want to clean it up before you see it.”

He looked like he didn’t believe a single word. “What’s that smell?”

“It was cinnamon rolls, but the bottoms burned. Let me clean all this up before you come back in.”

Alex studied her a moment; something was going on here, but he wasn’t quite sure what. “Are you hiding something from me?”

Alarm passed through her eyes. “No, of course not!”

“Then what’s going on?”

“I just…you can’t…” now disappointment filled her baby blues and he felt a slice to his heart.

“Okay, alright,” he reached out and took hold of her shoulders, giving them a squeeze, “I won’t go into the kitchen.” He wasn’t sure what she was up to, but he didn’t want to ruin whatever it was and from her desperate attempts to keep him away, knew it had to be important to her.

She looked relieved. “Thank you.”

He opened his mouth to respond when suddenly the shrill beeping from the smoke alarm located above the stove began to fill the air around them. “What the hell.”

Brielle gasped and turned, flying back into the kitchen. “Oh no, no, no, no!”

Alex followed her and his eyes stretched at the smoke that billowed from the stove. “What the hell?”

The blonde was already at the stove, yanking the door open and gagging at the smoke that smacked her in the face. She stumbled back and covered her mouth and nose.

“Here, I got it.” He grabbed a dishrag from the counter then used it to fan some of the smoke away before carefully extracting what looked like it had once been a cake, but now was charred and crispy, from the oven. Kicking the oven door closed again, he set the cake pan on the stove then fanned the smoke from the alarm until it finally quit its incessant beeping.

“Oh, no,” Brielle cried out softly, slipping closer to the cake and surveying the burned damage on it. “How…how did that happen?”

Alex rubbed the back of his neck then crossed the room and opened the window above the sink to help get the smoke from the air. “Looks like it was left in for too long.”

“But I just checked on it and it wasn’t hardly finished baking yet!”

He frowned at the look of devastation on her face. “I’m sorry, baby. Sometimes things just happen.”

“Now it’s ruined,” tears began to fill her eyes as her voice dropped to one of sadness. “It’s ruined and you’re never gonna get to see it. I didn’t even get to put frosting on it.” And the waterworks came as she burst into tears.

“Hey now,” Alex pulled her into his arms and hugged her close, “it’s gonna be okay.” He wasn’t entirely sure what she had been trying to do, but he had a slight idea.

“No, no. it’s not,” she sobbed into his chest.

“Oh, sweetheart, it will be.” He smoothed a hand on her back and kissed the top of her head. “It’s just a cake.”

“Just a cake?” Brielle pulled from his arms and wiped at her cheeks. “It’s not…it’s not just a cake. I wanted to…I wanted to surprise you for your birthday. I…I made it from scratch…it was supposed to be vanilla and say ‘Happy Birthday, Alex’. And now it’s all burnt up!” Her tears caused her voice to hitch and she buried her face in her hands.

Alex wasn’t quite sure if he should go to her or stay in his spot. Obviously her pregnancy hormones were acting up and making the situation direr than it truly was. But that wasn’t something he wanted to voice for fear of upsetting her even more. “I don’t need a cake,” he finally spoke in a soft tone.

“Everybody needs a cake,” she managed between sobs, her hands still over her face.

Pressing his lips together, he glanced toward the burned cake. “Maybe it’s still salvageable.” It didn’t look it, but if it’d make her happy that they try to save it, then he’d do that. Anything to make her tears stop and her to smile again.

Brielle lifted her head. “You…you think so?”

“Well, we can sure try to save it.” He took some potholders and carefully lifted it from the stove then crossed to where the frosting was out waiting. “It can’t hurt to see what we can do.”

“Kay,” she spoke in a heartbreaking tone before joining him at the counter.

Ten minutes later, they had the cake frosted and Brielle had even written out the birthday wishes across the top. By looking at it, one wouldn’t even be able to tell that it had been burned.

“There, perfect.” Alex set the spatula to the side and wiped his hands on a napkin then looked it over. “It looks beautiful.”

“You think so?”

He glanced to Brielle and sent her a smile that reached his eyes. “Absolutely.”

Relief settled over her and she slipped to his side, wrapping her arms around his waist. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” He slipped an arm around her and kissed her cheek. “And thank you for the cake.”

“You’re welcome.” That smile he loved so much tugged at her lips. “I can’t believe you didn’t tell me today was your birthday.”

Alex smiled sheepishly. “How’d you find out?”

“Lily saw it in some magazine. Why didn’t you tell me?”

“I don’t know.” He shrugged some then slipped from her and began to gather the dirty dishes. “It snuck up on me and with all the shit going on I kind of forgot to mention it. It wasn’t like I was trying to hide it from you.”

“I’m just glad I found out. I’d hate to have missed your birthday.” She watched him for a moment. “I got you something.”

Alex paused in his task at hand and looked at her. “You did?”

“Mhm, you want to open it now?”

A grin spread over his face. “Yeah, of course.” He rinsed his hands then dried them with a dishtowel.

“Okay, wait right here.” Then she slipped from the room and hurried up the stairs.

Moments later, she reappeared in the kitchen with a dark silver gift bag, platinum colored tissue paper peeking out the top of the bag. “Okay, here.” She held it toward him, a tiny blush on her cheeks. “I hope you like it.”

“I’m sure I will.” He smiled then accepted the bag. Setting it on the counter, he carefully parted the paper and pulled out the gift. It was a beautifully crafted picture frame with tiny skulls etched along the border. “Oh, Brie, this is great.”

She giggled softly. “Yeah?”

He studied the skulls then his eyes drifted to the picture and his breath caught in his throat. It was one his mother had taken of the two back on Christmas; before all the drama with Renee really went down. They were both seated on the floor, Alex behind Brielle with his legs on either side of her and her back to his chest. Around them wrapping paper and gifts were scattered and they both had bows atop their heads, silly grins on their faces and his hands were on her belly. They looked like a real couple and they both looked happy and so at ease with each other; like they belonged together. Which they truly did.

“I love it.” He brought his eyes to hers then glanced to the picture and smoothed his thumb over the glass that protected the photograph.

“I hoped you would.” She joined him and peered to the picture herself. “I think that’s a really good one of us and I thought you might like to have some photos of the two of us around.”

He smiled at that then set the picture frame on the counter correctly, so it stood up on its end. “I like that idea. We’ll have to go through and change all the pictures up.” He turned and smoothed an arm around her waist, drawing her against his body. “Thank you for this.”

Brielle felt her heart flutter. “You’re welcome.” She reached up and brushed her fingers through his hair. “Thank you for everything you’ve done.”

“I’d do anything for you, baby.”

“I know.” She sighed softly as he rested his forehead against hers. “I feel the same way.”

“I know you do.” Then he kissed her softly, hesitantly at first until she began to respond before intensifying the kiss and both of them finding themselves lost in the other.

The air around the two grew warmer and Alex pulled her as close as he could get her, his hands smoothing down her back to her rear and holding her against his body. She intoxicated him and his head began to swim as she flooded his senses and overtook his mind.

Soon hands were roaming and clothes were being removed, Alex chasing a line of kisses along her neck toward her naked chest. He backed her to the breakfast table off to the side then undid the button of her jeans and slid them down her hips. Brielle stepped out of them and he peeled her underwear down and off as well. She kicked them to the side and he lifted her to the table, stepping back long enough to shed his own pants and boxers.

They came together again, arms intertwining around the other and bodies moving so close heat radiated between the two. Their kisses were fueled by their desire for the other and Alex didn’t want to rush anything, but her sounds and the sight of her flushed and enticing skin nearly drove him crazy and soon he was entering her, their bodies flush against each other and his heart pounding hard in his chest.

He’d never felt this way with a woman before; the heat in his veins, the thundering of his heart, the dryness in his throat, how everything he was experiencing was tenfold than what’d he’d ever experienced before. And he knew it was right. He knew this was the woman he wanted to be making love to for the rest of his life. And as her legs wrapped around his hips and she tried to draw him even closer than he could possibly get, he knew she felt the same way.

And she did. Brielle never wanted the feeling of euphoria to go away. The way his touch made shocks move through her, how it felt to be surrounded by him, the way their bodies felt like they were made for each other. It was perfect, better than even the last time and she never wanted it to end.

“I love you,” Alex managed between panted breaths and his mouth crashed against hers, their climaxes rising up, pushing through their bodies and drawing them closer to that sweet release.

Brielle kissed him with everything she had in her. Her hands smoothed through his hair then to his back and she gripped him tight, feeling her heart slamming against her chest and her toes beginning to curl. She loved him, she really truly did and as they both finally flew off the edge and into that heavenly frenzy of their orgasms, she knew she was never going to let him go.

~*~*~*~*~

“Okay, you ready to try this?” Brielle questioned as she set two pieces of cake down on the counter, where Alex was perched. He wore only his boxers and jeans that hang low on his hips and showed off the toned muscles of his stomach. She herself wore his tee that hung down to her thighs and her panties, the rest of her clothes were somewhere under the kitchen table.

After they’d made love on that very table, the two had moved to the floor before finally lying there trying to gather their breaths and senses. Finally, they’d managed to get halfway dressed and now were going to try the cake Brielle had made.

“Sure am,” Alex picked up his fork and surveyed the piece before him, “it looks good from here.”

“Let’s hope it is.” She took her seat on the stool next to his and spread a napkin on her lap.

“I’m sure it will be; we managed to scrape most of the burn off it.”

“Right, okay,” she watched him with a cute grin on her face, “you get first bite.”

Alex chuckled low. “Alright.” Then he leaned forward and used his fork to cut into the cake. It was a little hard, but not too terribly so, so that was a good sign. Glancing her way once more, he took the bite and nearly choked. The taste of salt filled his mouth and he had to do his best to force himself to eat and choke it down, plastering a grin on his face despite his eyes wanting to water. What had she put in this thing?

Brielle watched him with a hopeful expression. “How is it?”

He didn’t have the heart to tell her it wasn’t good. “Um, it’s not so bad,” he managed after he’d swallowed the bite and cleared his throat. “A little hard, but that’s to be expected with it being burnt.”

“Really?” She carefully eyed her piece of cake.

“Mhm, but you know what?” He couldn’t let her take a bite. Reaching over, he lifted her piece up. “Why don’t we save these for later? I was thinking we could go get dressed and I can take you out somewhere.”

“Oh, you don’t want to finish your piece? Is there really something wrong with it?” She looked confused.

Alex shook his head and set her piece out of her reach. “No, of course not. I can finish it. See.” Then he took up his fork again and began shoveling bites into his mouth. “Mm, it’s good,” he choked out, trying to force each and every piece down his throat.

Brielle watched him then finally gave a relieved smile and relaxed on the stool. “Oh good, I was so worried you’d hate it. I haven’t made anything in a long, long time.”

“Mm, not at all.” He shoveled more bites in until it was nearly gone. “Gosh, that was good.” Leaning into the back of the stool he patted his belly.

“Good. I’m so glad you liked it.” She giggled low then slipped from the stool and kissed his cheek. “Let me get you some milk.”

Yes, milk would be great; the salt in that cake had made him extremely thirsty. “Thank you, baby.”

“You’re welcome.” She poured him a tall glass of the milk then slipped it across the counter to him. “There you go.”

Alex accepted it and gulped it down like he was dying for it.

Brielle giggled low then took a fork from the silverware drawer and dug it into the cake. “I just want to try it.”

Alex choked on his milk and reached toward the fork, but it was too late. She’d already taken the bite and slipped it into her mouth. With halted breath he watched her, wincing inside at the reaction she was sure to have.

The minute the cake was in her mouth, Brielle gagged and shuddered. With an ‘ugh’ sound in her throat, she turned and spit the piece into the sink. Then she grabbed a glass, filled it with water and took a long drink. Finally setting it back on the counter, she looked to Alex. “That was the most disgusting thing I’ve ever tasted!”

He tried to hold in his chuckle. “It um…was a little salty.”

“How…you…how the heck did you manage to eat it?”

This time he did laugh. “I….don’t know, but I didn’t want to upset you. You were already so devastated with the burned cake; I didn’t want to make it any worse.”

“So you ate the whole thing? For me?”

He wordlessly nodded and she moved around the counter, slipping her arms around his neck. “I can’t believe you did that for me.”

“I hate when you’re upset.” He slipped his arm around her and kissed her cheek. “I’d do anything for you.”

“I believe that.” She smiled and kissed his lips lightly. “What I can’t believe is that I’m not upset about the cake. Though I have no idea how I put that much salt into it.”

Alex chuckled. “I’m sure it was an accident; you probably just over measured.” He smoothed some hair from her face and smiled optimistically at her. “But you’ll have plenty more chances to perfect your baking if you want.”

“I do.” She kissed him again then giggled. “I can’t believe you ate an entire piece of burned up, too much salted cake for me. You truly are amazing.”

“You better believe it.” He brushed his lips over hers. “Now what do you say to going out and getting a birthday cake that doesn’t make us gag?”

“I’d say you’re on.” She kissed him again and then again. “Or,” slowly pulling back she moved backward toward the entryway of the kitchen, “we could go upstairs. I’m sure the cake can wait.”

Alex smirked. “Now you’re talking.” And he was off the stool and chasing her down the hall toward the stairs.