Chapter 17
Nalani stirred in bed the next morning, the warmth surrounding her very comforting. She didn't want to get up, knowing the twins would be awake soon wanting breakfast. Sighing resignedly, Nalani's eyes slowly fluttered open to blink blurrily at her clock, seeing it was just a little after six in the morning.
She shifted a little and felt her eyes fly open when she felt something hard pressing against her rear. Slowly looking down, Nalani's jaw dropped at the long tattooed sleeved arm wrapped around her and felt the hot breath on her neck. Her chest rose and fell rapidly, chancing a glance up at whoever was in her bed, and felt the tears instantly burn her eyes at the sight of Mark.
Mark was here?
It wasn't a dream?
Not able to help herself, Nalani let out an ear piercing scream that jolted him fully awake, his arm releasing her as she immediately scrambled out of bed. Mark groaned, his head pounding already and growled, causing Nalani's heart to leap into her throat. What the HELL was he doing in her bed?! Nalani had no idea what was going on, thinking the previous night had all been a dream, too good to be true, and now she was absolutely terrified that it hadn't been.
"GET OUT!" She shouted, ignoring the pain in her toes because they weren't fully healed yet. "What the HELL are you doing in my bed?!"
"Sleepin' until yer loud mouth woke me up." Mark gruffly retorted, running a hand through his loose black hair, which pooled over his shoulders and down his back in tangled waves.
"MOMMY!" Both Megan and Matthew bolted inside the room, their big blue eyes wide in horror at the man sleeping in their mother's bed.
"Shit…" Nalani had completely forgotten about the twins when she screamed and rushed over to them, wrapping one arm around each, trying to calm them down. "Mommy's alright, mommy's fine angels, see?"
Matthew looked at his mother skeptically and eyeballed the large man in his mother's bed, who slowly rose to his feet, his eyes widening. Nalani tried calming him down, running her fingers through his honey blonde hair along with Megan's auburn curls, knowing they were scared from her screaming. The little boy began trembling and Nalani knew Mark was scaring them with his size, Megan screaming out when he came closer to them.
"Stay away!" Megan cried, burying her face in her mother's shoulder and began crying, Matthew doing the same thing.
Mark frowned and let out a heaving sigh, knowing the twins weren't used to seeing such a big person before them. "Darlin, I need to p-use the bathroom." He caught himself, knowing cussing in front of little ones wasn't smart, and watched as Nalani shakily pointed behind her toward her private bathroom. "Thanks."
"Mommy, I scared…" Megan whimpered as soon as the bathroom door closed, feeling her being lifted up along with her brother.
"He's not going to hurt us, you guys." Nalani soothed, feeling their little hearts beating faster than jack rabbits, frowning. "Calm down, mommy just got scared, but I'm fine. I didn't mean to scare you."
"Mommy hurt?" Matthew immediately asked as soon as he was set down at the kitchen table in his booster seat, Megan sitting beside him.
Nalani smiled at her protective son, running her thumb across his scrunched forehead lovingly. "No buddy, mommy's fine, see?" She twirled around once and showed them her arms, wanting them to believe that she was perfectly fine.
Even though on the inside, Nalani was slowly breaking down.
"What do you want for breakfast?" She asked the twins, busy pulling pans out, knowing Mark was probably starving.
"Pancakes!" The twins simultaneously shouted, causing her to chuckle, and nodded.
"Blueberry or chocolate chip?"
"Booberry!" Megan said, grinning from ear to ear.
"Nuh-uh, cwoclate cwip!" Matthew argued, folding his arms in front of his chest, looking stubborn.
Nalani sighed, used to them having different tastes by now. "I'll make Megan blueberry and you chocolate chip, okay guys?" When they nodded excitedly, Nalani got to work on breakfast.
Mark couldn't believe how well the twins spoke, having watched Nalani have a conversation with them, a soft smile on his face. She hadn't exactly kicked him out of her house, just her bed, and smirked at the thought of joining her there again. He watched as Nalani busied herself cooking in the kitchen and decided to make is presence known, clearing his throat as all three pairs of blue eyes locked on him.
"Mornin'." He greeted in a soft rumble, watching Nalani nod back at him once before turning to continue cooking. Walking over, he stood right behind her and watched as she cracked a couple of eggs, putting them in a stirring bowl. "Darlin'…"
"What do you want for breakfast?"She softly asked, not turning to stare at him, his scent wavering in the air mixing with the breakfast she was making.
Closing his eyes, Mark wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her back to press against his chest, his nose burying in her hair. "You." She could barely hear him when he said that and smirked, feeling her do a full body shiver, chuckling huskily. "Whatever you make, I'll eat."
Nalani nodded, knowing Mark wouldn't mind eating pancakes with scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage patties and hash browns. She figured that would be a good enough breakfast and cracked a few extra eggs, knowing Mark ate a lot. This brought back fonder memories of her and Mark's time together in Houston, she'd always cook for him on his days off, letting him sleep in.
The smell of her cooking would wake him up and Mark would float to the kitchen, his nose leading, only to find a delectable creature in his midst. Needless to say, Mark stopped the breakfast several times, simply wanting Nalani for his breakfast. Nalani blushed as she thought about the last time she'd tried making Mark breakfast; how he'd guided her away from the stove and shoved everything off of the kitchen table, proceeding to bend her over the kitchen table to have his way with her.
Mark was thinking the same thing, knowing that couldn't happen with two little ones here, but he wasn't leaving. He was surprised she hadn't demanded him to leave after waking to find him holding her in her bed. Relishing in her soft body against his, Mark hadn't wanted to get up, but her screaming made it impossible to stay put. He simply stared at her while she cooked, her body looking better than ever; though, he then pictured her with a pregnant stomach, looking blown up like a balloon doing the same thing, and suddenly felt the sadness take over him.
He'd missed out on three years of his children's lives.
Nalani turned around and set the food on the table, serving her twins first as she cut their food up so they wouldn't choke on it. Matthew licked his lips hungrily while Megan stared back at the large man distrustfully and it wasn't missed by her mother. Kissing Megan's cheek, Nalani set the blueberry pancakes in front of her daughter and grinned, watching as she began devouring the plate whole.
They definitely had strong appetites.
"When you're finished eating, you need to leave." Nalani demanded quietly, not wanting the twins to overhear as she set a plate of food in front of Mark.
"Not until you agree to prove it to me." He shot back just as quietly, watching her cheeks flush angrily, and started eating his food with pure seriousness shining in his green eyes. "I've missed out on too much time with them already, Nalani…with you."
"But they're not yours!" She growled inaudibly, stabbing at her pancakes because of how much anger consumed her at his stubbornness. "I'm not putting them through that process and I don't want to be with you."
"Then I'm not leavin' and you can quit lyin'. I overheard what you said last night." His mouth was right by her ear having leaned over, his hand reaching beneath the table to rub her upper thigh.
Nalani gasped softly, glaring furiously at him and was tempted to throw her food in his face, but refrained. "What exactly did I say?" She asked through gritted teeth, almost afraid to hear the answer and pushed his hand away from her thigh. "And keep your hands to yourself."
"I love you, Mark, please forgive me." He reiterated her words from last night while she slept in his arms, Nalani's eyes shooting open. "You love me; you're not gettin' rid of me."
Her mind raced along with her heart, but Nalani had to remain calm around her children, not wanting to scare them again. "I don't remember saying anything like that; you're probably making it up." She managed to retort faintly, knowing Mark didn't believe her for a second. Nalani cursed herself because she was never a very good liar and never would be, no matter how hard she tried.
"Sure, whatever you say." Mark snorted and stabbed at his own food, refusing to let her ruin his appetite. "You want to know just as much as I do if I'm the father or not, which I already know I am."
"No you're not."
"Yes I am."
Nalani dropped her fork in her place, burying her hands in her hair, the frustration seeping through. "What makes you so goddamn sure you are?" She demanded crossly, wondering why it was so hard for him to believe that she'd screwed around on him.
It wasn't true and Mark could read her too well.
"Look in my eyes and tell me I'm not the father." Mark challenged, suddenly sounding heated himself, though he kept his voice low while the twins obliviously ate their meal. "You can't do it, so stop lyin' to me, Nalani."
"You're not the father." She stated, staring into his eyes, though the feeling and believability was out of her voice.
Mark smirked and actually chuckled, taking a long swig of his orange juice. "Nice try, but ya gotta look in both eyes, darlin'." He simply stated, enjoying the way Nalani tormented herself trying to lie to him. It was rather amusing.
"Fuck you." Nalani finally spat, loud enough only for him to hear, and stood up abruptly from the table.
"Later." Mark promised, his voice dropping an octave before turning back to his meal, groaning at the taste. "Simply delicious."
Gritting her teeth, Nalani threw her food away and tossed the plate in the sink, thankful it was already filled with dishwater from the previous night. Mark had to be the most arrogant, cocky, hard-headed, stubborn man she'd ever met in her life! He wasn't taking no for an answer and Nalani had a sinking feeling the only way to possibly shove him away for good was to do this paternity test.
'Damn it, what if he is the father? Scott will find out and come back…' Nalani thought, suddenly trembling from head to toe, and excused herself.
Mark watched her quickly vacate the kitchen and stood up, wiping his mouth off with a napkin, having devoured his plate. "You two done?" He rumbled softly, watching both of their eyes instantly stare up at him suspiciously, a sigh escaping him. "I'm not gonna hurt ya little critters, I'm simply helpin' your momma."
Matthew glanced over at his sister, watching the big man lower himself to be eye level with her, scowling. Megan on the other hand stared in the big man's eyes, her big blue ones wide with wonder and a hint of fear, chewing her bottom lip. Mark chuckled and gently reached up to brush an auburn curl from her forehead, not believing how beautiful this little girl was. If these twins were his, Mark was going to do everything in his power to be in their lives, knowing he would have to bodily force Nalani back to Houston because he wasn't letting her go.
If the kids weren't his…Mark would cross that bridge when he came to it.
"Do you trust me, little darlin'?" He asked softly, extending his arms, letting Megan make up her own mind as she put her finger in her mouth. His heart melted instantly and nearly exploded when the little girl reached her little arms up, Mark lifting her out of the booster seat with ease.
"Meggie…" Matthew groaned, not believing what his sister just did, and pouted. "Up." He commanded to the big man, holding his arms out expectantly.
"Do you trust me, little man?" Mark asked, the little boy nodding and lifted him up from his booster seat, both twins relaxing instantly against him. 'My kids…' He thought, feeling the insurmountable feeling start at the top of his head and fly all the way down to his toes. They were his, Mark wouldn't feel this way if they weren't and carried them into the living room so they could watch cartoons. "I'll be right back." He said, once he knew they'd be safe, and headed into the bedroom, frowning at the sight of Nalani crying on her bed. "Nalani…"
"Go away!" She cried, her hands muffling most of it, though Mark clearly heard what she said. "God please go away! You can't be here! You have no idea what you're doing!"
Mark sighed and closed the distance between them, lifting Nalani in his arms, planting her struggling form on his lap. "Stop fightin' me!" He ordered gruffly, locking her arms at her sides when she began hitting on him, and knew what he had to do. "Nalani…" He tried again, not wanting to force himself on her, but he would if that's what it took to calm her little ass down.
"NO!" She shouted, hearing the television going in the living room because she watched heartbrokenly as Mark interacted with the twins. "YOU-"
She didn't have a chance to shout anymore at him because Mark's lips descended on hers, knowing that was the only way to shut her up. He slid his hand up her back to cup her neck, burying his hand in her soft silky honey locks, his lips devouring hers with his own. Nalani struggling against him, trying to push him away as the tears kept pouring from her eyes, but soon it was no use. She loved and missed this man more than anything, knowing she was fighting a losing battle.
Only when she stopped struggling did Mark's hold on her loosen, groaning when she moved to straddle his lap, his thumbs massaging her sides in soothing circles. Nalani moaned softly when she felt his tongue swipe against her lips, instantly opening them and allowed Mark to taste her again for the first time in three years, her entire body breaking out in goose bumps. Her hands delved in his beautiful black tresses, her chest pressing against his as she kissed him with as much feeling and fire as she could muster up. Their tongues entwined together in a dance of seduction that Nalani knew she would ultimately lose, but didn't care at the moment.
Just feeling Mark's lips on hers was enough to make her head spin, her heart thunder and her pulse race rapidly, not to mention light her entire body in a blazing inferno.
Mark slowly pulled back only when they both needed air to breathe, his chest rising and falling rapidly, those emerald green eyes of his darkened to a deep forest green clouded over with desire. He ran the pad of his thumb across her swollen lips, a soft smile spreading on his lips, and blinked when a loud smack echoed throughout the room. Mark felt Nalani slide off of his lap and held his cheek, not believing she just smacked him, and felt a sick smirk cross his face as he sat there, his burning cheek only fueling the fire that kiss created.
"Fine you win; we'll have the fucking test." She spat almost hatefully, shaking her blazing hand, and stalked out to check on the twins.
Chuckling wickedly, Mark rubbed his cheek and stood up to follow her out the door, hoping Nalani realized a simple slap to the face wasn't going to stop him from claiming her completely again.