This was one of the first stories I ever wrote and posted anywhere back in 1998. It was originally archived here under the pen name OldHistory. It was lost when one of my floppy discs ate everything and I had to retrieve it from a fanfic list archive. I've fixed the formatting, so hopefully there are no weird characters or line breaks. There's some sex, but nothing explicit. Melusine
000
Susan Ivanova pulled on her uniform jacket, zipped it up, and tugged it into place. There was no mirror to check the results, but she'd been in Earthforce, and been an officer, long enough to tell almost by instinct whether her appearance passed muster or not. With two quick swipes of her hands, she smoothed her hair back into place and left the exam room in search of Dr. Franklin.
He looked up and smiled at her as she sat down across from him at his desk. "The results are positive. You're pregnant."
Susan studied him, her gaze sharp. "Are you sure? It's just that we've been trying . . ." She blushed slightly as Stephen's grin broadened.
"It's one-hundred percent positive," the doctor told her. "But I can run it again if you want."
"No, no, that's all right."
Pregnant. She was really pregnant. She almost couldn't believe it. But now that she thought about it, she should have known from her symptoms. She had just never connected them all together to come to the logical conclusion. When she'd missed her period, she blamed it on stress. Being station commander was a trying job, to say the least. She was tired, but she blamed that on lack of sleep. She never slept well when Marcus was away, and he had been gone for two weeks. Then she'd gotten sick. She dismissed it as something he'd eaten. The second, third, and fourth time, she thought she might have the flu. Now she wondered how she could have been so stupid.
She couldn't wait to tell Marcus. He'd be as happy as she was. They both wanted children, even though she found the idea a little scary. Before marrying Marcus, she never considered having a child. Of course, before Marcus, there had never been anyone she wanted to have a child with, never anyone she'd wanted in her life for very long.
"Susan? Are you all right?"
She smiled. "Yes. Yes, I am, Stephen." She stood up to leave, but Stephen indicated that she should sit down. "What?"
"Well, you're a first time mother. There are some things you should know."
He went over nutrition, exercise, what medications she could take, how to combat morning sickness, and on and on until her head was swimming.
"Is that all?"
"For now," Stephen answered. "I want to see you in a month, okay?"
"I'll see you then," she replied.
As soon as she left her office, she headed straight for the quarters and Marcus shared. Barely able to keep her eyes open, she slipped out of her jacket and toed off her shoes. She studied her reflection in the mirror, turning to the side and ran a hand down her still-flat abdomen. She didn't look pregnant, and if Stephen hadn't given her the diagnosis she wouldn't believe she was.
Drawing her shirt from her trousers and holding it out as far the material would go, she tried to imagine how she'd look as the months passed and her abdomen grew rounder. She grimaced in distaste as she pictured wearing those awful Earthforce maternity uniforms. And then she smiled softly as she thought of holding Marcus' child in her arms. Would it be a girl with soft green eyes and thick, dark hair? A boy with her own features? She didn't care either way, and she knew Marcus wouldn't either.
Unable to hold her eyes open any longer, she crawled into bed. She wished Marcus was with her, but he was on a mission, and wouldn't return for another day, maybe two. She sighed and rolled over. She needed his strong arms holding her and his warm breath brushing against her neck to be able to sleep well. It was going to be a long two days.
000
Marcus walked into a quiet apartment. At first he wondered where Susan was. He'd gone by her office only to find it empty. She hadn't been in C&C either. She had to be here. Holding the roses he'd traded a few favors for, he strolled into the bedroom to find his wife curled up in the middle of their bed. Her face was soft with sleep, and a light smile touched her lips. He bent to kiss her cheek, and she stirred, her eyes opening.
"Marcus." She sat up abruptly, throwing her arms around him. "I. . ."
She tore out of his embrace and ran for the bathroom, reaching the toilet just as her stomach spasmed again and expelled the remnants of her lunch. Hands caught her hair and lifted it back from her face as her stomach heaved again and again, disgorging bile now. Susan closed her eyes in misery, willing her nausea to settle.
"Are you all right, sweetheart?" Marcus asked in concern as he pressed a damp cloth to her forehead. "Are you sick?"
"Nothing that a few more months won't cure," she said shakily after she'd rinsed her mouth and drank a glass of water. She met his worried gaze in the mirror and waited for comprehension to dawn.
At first he couldn't imagine what she meant, then his whole face split into a grin as he understood exactly what she was saying. His eyes glowed with tenderness as he placed a soft kiss on the side of her neck. "A baby?"
"Yes."
"When?"
She leaned back into him, feeling his warmth and his strength. "Stephen says I'm a month and a half along, and that I'm due in June."
"You'll be a beautiful mother," he murmured against her skin.
Beautiful? Susan grimaced. Right now her face was puffy from her body's exertion, and it looked as if she had burst a few capillaries in the process. Little red dots decorated her face around her eyes and even on the lids. She could just imagine how she'd look later on, her belly round with child, her ankles swollen, her breasts dripping milk. Oh yes, she'd be a beautiful sight. Still, their baby would be worth every bit of discomfort she would endure. A part of them both, a new little person for them to love. "A gift," as Rabbi Koslov used to say.
"Come on," Marcus urged softly, interrupting her thoughts. "I'll make you a snack. Then, if you feel up to it, we can go out to celebrate."
000
Susan entered the bedroom later that night and stopped short. Rose petals were scattered everywhere, along the floor, over the bed. Scented candles were lit, emitting a tranquil glow and a subtle hint of vanilla. It never ceased to amaze her, the things Marcus could obtain, even if most of the time she didn't want to know how. Now she smiled, feeling a rush of anticipation; he obviously had something special planned. She settled on the bed, and it wasn't long before Marcus entered the room, wearing only a pair of loose pajama bottoms, his hands behind his back. After setting two bowls down on the night stand, he joined her where she sat and urged her to relax against him, between his spread legs. He nuzzled her neck, his beard and mustache sending shivers coursing through her body.
"I've missed you," she sighed.
"I've missed you too." He buried his face in her long dark hair and breathed in deeply. His half hard cock twitched again at her clean scent and the feel of her soft skin where her body pressed close to his.
Susan turned her head up toward his for a kiss and caught sight of the bowls where Marcus had left them. "What's that?"
Marcus' smile turned rakish. "I thought you might like strawberries and whipped cream."
"You shouldn't spoil me so much." She accepted a strawberry, licking the cream off his fingers as she did so.
"It's my pleasure, sweetheart."
He continued to feed her strawberries, the gentle suction of her mouth as she licked his fingers clean driving him crazy, just like she knew it would. But two could play that game. He moved from behind her, dipped a finger into the cream, and raked it over her chin. Susan blinked at him in surprise as he licked her chin clean. The next dollop landed just above the very low-cut neckline of her gown.
"Marcus, what are you . . ." Her voice trailed off as he bent his head to lick at it, sliding the negligee aside as far as he could without tearing it. He cupped one firm breast, gently stroking the nipple to attention. "Marcus."
"Yes, love?"
"Get this damn gown off me."
He chuckled softly at her impatience. "There's no hurry, love. We have all night."
"Oh yeah?" She slid her hand down to caress the bulge in his trousers.
Marcus gasped aloud. She always knew how to get her way. Without another word, he dragged Susan's nightgown up over her head, tossed it aside, dipped a hand again into the whipped cream, and then smeared it onto her breasts. "Now for my dessert."
He gently held one firm mound and began to lick the cream off in long, slow laps. With his tongue he moved over every inch of her breast before closing his mouth over and tenderly sucking the nipple. He savored the feel of the hard flesh in his mouth, firm and round against his tongue. He felt her shudder beneath him and her hands clench in his hair. "Mmm. Now for this one," he breathed as he turned his attention to the other breast and repeated the same torturously languid treatment.
Susan closed her eyes and breathed in sharply with each movement of his tongue. The cream had been cold on her breasts, making them tighten and her nipples pearl to hardness. Now Marcus was making them even more so. She caught her hands in his thick hair and moaned, parting her thighs wantonly. Her voice was ragged with need as she whispered his name, begging.
Marcus raised his head, moved over her and covered her lips with his. She tasted of strawberries and cream: slightly tart and divinely sweet. He groaned at the taste, and her tongue darted inside his mouth to make love to his own. He slid his hands down her body, stroking every inch of skin he could reach. Susan did the same, moving her hands from his hair to caress the taut muscles of his back. He eased her back on the bed so that she was lying amidst the rose petals, placing feather-soft kisses on her forehead, nose, cheeks, ears, neck, and finally her lips again. He gazed at her for a long moment, and with a devilish gleam in his eyes, trailed a path of whipped cream from the valley between her breasts to just above her panties.
He began at the top of the trail, using his tongue to make tiny circles and zigzags. Inch by inch, he lapped up the cream with excruciating slowness, easing his mouth to the left and right to nip lightly at her skin before returning to the sweet path he'd laid out. Susan writhed on the bed and arched toward him again, quivering with pleasure and anticipation as his lips moved inevitably lower. She nearly came off the bed as he closed his mouth over her through the silky, damp material of her panties. He smiled at her reaction, loving her uninhibited response to his attentions.
She kissed him long and deep, her tongue thrusting hungrily into his mouth. When they drew apart from the kiss, his eyes locked with hers as if he couldn't bear to look away. He traced her face lovingly with a callused fingertip. "You are my life."
Then he lowered his hands to her thighs, opening her further, took himself in hand, and guided his cock to her entrance. He eased inside her, savoring the warmth and the wetness of her walls as she clasped him in welcome. After the first ecstatic shock, he leaned forward, supporting his body above hers with hands on either side of her head. And he began to move.
She reached up to caress his shoulders and traced down his lean sides as he moved with infinite tenderness within her. He worshipped her slowly and gently, but it was not at all what she wanted. She loved his tender side, but right now she wanted the wild man she'd come to know, the one who lifted her up on tabletops in the heat of passion, the man who would lock her office door and fuck her over her desk. She arched her hips up to meet him, but he stilled her with another shake of his head as he continued to move in smooth, even, achingly slow strokes.
She knew that he knew what he was doing to her. And what he was doing was driving her crazy. She wanted to scream at him that she wasn't going to break, but she didn't. She wrapped her legs tightly about his waist, lifting her body to meet his, to seek everything he had to give. And then, just when she thought he was going to go like this all night, he thrust harder and more rapidly, until her entire body tensed in anticipation. Little tremors began in her core, spread to every digit, to her scalp.
They came together in a blinding rush of heat that left them shuddering and exhausted, sweat-drenched skin sliding together as Marcus rolled to his side and drew her with him. They held each other close, whispering endearments as their heartbeats calmed and their breath evened out.
And as they lay locked in each other's arms, it seemed that nothing in the universe could tear them apart.