Ryan

Dani awakened to a churning stomach. She jumped out of bed and ran to bathroom where, unable to make it to the toilet, she released the contents of her stomach into the vanity bowl. For the first time her child was making his presence known.

She remained in a bent position until the nausea eased a bit. After taking a couple of deep breaths she quickly brushed her teeth before her gag reflex could engage. Apparently the baby didn't like her usual minty toothpaste, but fortunately, she didn't heave again. After she finished, she headed to the kitchen in search of some crackers.

Dani heard from her mother that the dry Saltine crackers would set her stomach right. She'd thought there might be some left over from the chili Ryan made a couple of days after Christmas. These particular Saltines didn't have any salt on top, which were much more to her liking. The last thing she needed was sodium induced high blood pressure, especially while she was pregnant.

As she approached the kitchen she briefly wondered where Ryan was, but settling her stomach was the more pressing matter. The crackers were located in a slide out drawer next to the oatmeal. There was one section that hadn't been opened yet. She took a few crackers out and resealed the package with the twist tie. Taking a bite, she was pleased to hear the familiar crunch of freshness as she went back to the bathroom to take a shower. Then she thought she'd go in search of her man.

*

Ryan was sitting on the sofa engrossed in a phone call when Dani entered the living room. He was bare foot and wearing a pair of old faded Jeans which were unbuttoned. Sitting down next to him, she leaned against his warm body taking comfort in his strength.

He placed a hand on her thigh as he continued his conversation. Dani soon realized that he was talking to Zane.

"I'm happy about that too," Ryan said in response to something Zane said.

"Well, I thought that would be the best news you could hear out of this mess," Zane offered.

"He'll have his sentencing before the judge and that will be it. His court appointed attorney wanted to put in a temporary insanity plea, but Hall refused. Of course they'd done the psyche exams which made it evident that he was entirely competent to make that decision."

"I guess he is taking responsibility for what he did," Ryan said, "but won't the courts consider his mental state at the time of the attack?"

"I don't think that will affect the amount of time he gets," Zane said. "He does have some serious issues and not only with his mother abandoning him. He also has anger issues directly related to his father."

"Why was that?" Ryan asked, confused. "I thought he had a good relationship with his father."

"Not exactly, although that's the impression he gave people," Zane said.

"His father was only a kid himself when he got Hall's mother pregnant. He spent most of his time running the streets and that didn't stop after Hall's birth. As a matter of fact, it got worse, according to Hall's grandmother. Hall loved her, but she wasn't a parent and he became more aware of the implication of that as he got older. Over the years the anger at the lack of attention from his father grew. That, along with the abandonment of his mother, manifested itself in acts of violence and illegal activities."

Zane paused to take a deep breath before continuing.

"When his reunion with his mother didn't work as planned he got fixated on Dani, but didn't know how to handle it. As you know, his possessiveness drove her away. But the relationship was doomed anyway you look at it because Dani didn't return his feelings."

After considering Ryan's initial question, Zane said, "Instead of getting a reduction in time, he's more likely to get court appointed psychiatric sessions in the join."

"Damn," Ryan said, "you never know how people are going to deal with things. Someone else with the same upbringing might have been able to cope. In any event, as long as he stays away from Dani, I'll be happy and he'll stay alive."

"I hear you," Zane said understanding Ryan's feelings completely.

"That's all I know for now. I'll call you if anything else comes up, but right now I gotta get ready for a... uh, date."

"A date? That sounds interesting," Ryan stated with humor.

"Wanna tell me about her?"

"Uh, that would be no. I'm not sure about her myself, but she is something," Zane offered feeling like the room was getting hot just thinking about Alex. Alexandra.

"Ok, I won't press. Hope it works out man," Ryan said.

"Thanks," Zane said anxious to get off the phone now.

"later."

Then he was gone.

Looking at Dani, Ryan said, "Sounds like some woman might have Zane twisted in a knot."

"It's about time," she said with a chuckle.

* Valentine's Day was coming up soon. Dani knew that a lot of people thought it was romantic to have a wedding on that day, but she wanted her wedding to have its own special day. All things considered, she decided on February the twenty fifth which was on a Saturday.

Haley and Helen were spearheading the whirlwind of wedding activities with the help of Crystal, Charlotte and Jessica. Monica wanted to help, but was at a crucial point with the renovating of her home, which had gone on longer than she and Grant had hoped.

With the date firmly set, they got to the business of arranging the wedding ceremony and reception. Each of them, except for Crystal, had been through the preparations before and pretty much knew the drill. In very short order the decisions were made and the vendors were contacted.

Dani and Ryan applied for and received their marriage license. It was all coming together with only a few details remaining.

The invitations were printed up and sent out right away to give everyone a few weeks notice.

Dani decided to do without a bachelorette party. To her way of thinking there was enough to do without having the extra stress of arranging and attending that event. Although Charlotte and Crystal were willing to arrange it, they understood.

Ryan didn't want a bachelor party either. He told her he already felt married and didn't need to say goodbye to his bachelorhood with of night of drink and debauchery. The last was said with a leer and a grin.

They already had the rehearsal scheduled and there would be a casual luncheon afterward for the wedding party. Haley gently insisted that Dani let her make the arrangements and take care of the expense of the event as a wedding gift. Dani graciously accepted.

The floral arrangements for the wedding would be comprised of various shades of blue, mauve and white flowers. The bridal bouquet was the traditional white roses. Dani chose a lightly scented variety, particularly since she had become sensitive to certain cloying sweet smells as a result of the pregnancy.

The guest list burgeoned from a few friends and family to a hundred and fifty people. In the end it just became impossible to leave some people off of the list. As Ryan predicted their parents had friends they wanted to invite.

For the music, she and Ryan chose a local band, Roxxslide, who primarily played 70's and 80's music, but were also known for their own original songs. She and Ryan enjoyed their music on several occasions at the Phoenix Club where they played three nights a week.

With everything else in place, there was only one thing remaining; the wedding dress.

*

A couple of days after the invitations were sent out, Crystal and Haley met with Dani to solidify the final plans. The bride maids' dresses had been chosen and they were good to go. She'd shipped Trina's dress to her and luckily it only needed minor alterations. Now she turned her attention to her own gown.

"If you want to shop locally," Haley said, "there's a vintage shop on seventh avenue, a really good dressmaker off Westshore Boulevard and a bridal shop at the mall that carries designer dresses. We could even go to London or Paris and find something pretty easily, if you prefer."

"What?!" Dani said with a gasp.

"Yeah, that's an option," she grinned.

"Ryan did say you could get whatever you wanted."

"Well, I think I can find something I'd love right here. We might as well check out all of the stores you mentioned. I'm hoping to get this done in one day," Dani said.

"Do you have any idea of the style you would like?" Crystal asked.

"I think something simple with some beading on it. I prefer white, not beige or ecru or cream. I look good in white," she said with a cheeky grin.

Then turning her head to the side she said,

"I would really love to wear red, but it would be breaking with tradition."

"Red!" Both Crystal and Haley squeaked.

The look on their faces was priceless and made Dani roar with laughter. Wiping the tears from her eyes she said,

"Ok. I'm only teasing. Man, if you could have seen the looks on your faces."

"You're gotten sassy since you've been pregnant," Crystal declared with a smile.

"You gave me a great idea, Crystal."

Seeing her sister's puzzled look, she explained,

"I'm going to blame everything I do on the baby. Ryan is sure to let me have my way," she teased.

Snorting, in an unladylike like fashion, Haley retorted,

"Who are you kidding? You don't need the baby for that, Ryan thinks the sun rises and sets with you. He'll let you do anything you want anyway."

"Well, that's true to a certain extent," Dani agreed, "but your brother can be stubborn, especially if he thinks what he's doing is in my best interest. I love him for that, though. He takes very good care of me."

"That's how it should be," Haley said.

With that they headed out to get an early start.

*

By the end of the day Dani had her dress. She decided on a white satin sleeveless a-line princess style dress with a scalloped edge v-neck and a beaded empire waist. The back of the dress had a lovely peephole. It was simple yet sophisticated dress that showed off Dani's figure to perfection.

Instead of wearing a veil, she decided to have her hair styled in an upward swept adorned with tiny white flowers in the back. With everything now completed she had time to exhale before the big day.

*

The wedding plans might have been finalized, but Ryan was making plans of his own. He met with his lawyer to make sure he had enough insurance and to update his will including beneficiary designation and estate planning.

Ryan wanted to have a very long life with Dani, but knew that unforeseen circumstances occurred. He wasn't wasting time getting all the paperwork signed. In the event of his death, Dani and their children would be financially secure for the rest of their lives.

After taking care of that business, his mind turned to plans for Valentine's Day. Dani hadn't mentioned anything about celebrating it, but he didn't know if that was because she didn't expect anything or because she'd just been too busy with planning the wedding. Since this was their first Valentine's Day together he wanted to make it extra special.

His mother and sister were big on Valentine's Day. He doubted either of them would have missed the opportunity to at least mention it to Dani. He knew she wouldn't ask for anything, but hoped that would change once they were married. He wanted her to know that everything that he had was hers.

There were a myriad of choices for a romantic day, but Ryan decided to do something a little different. Instead of just one day, he would make it a week of surprises for Dani. He wasn't going to arrange anything elaborate, but he would make sure that both of them would enjoy the outcome of his planning.

*

Dani was coming out of a deep sleep. Usually the closer she came to consciousness, the more she become aware of the presence of Ryan's warm hard body. But as she surfaced it was apparent that he wasn't lying beside her.

She slowly opened her eyes, but didn't immediately make anything of his absence. Since she became pregnant, she was sleeping later than usual and although occasionally he remained in bed with her, most often he'd be up making breakfast or attending to business.

As she looked around, her eyes lit upon an envelope on his pillow. Sitting up, she stifled a yawn and settled back to open it. Inside was a beautiful Valentine Day card. Under the card's sentiments was Ryan's handwritten message.

You are the love of my life. Words cannot adequately express the joy and light you bring to world. Follow the trail of rose petals and come be mine. Looking down at the floor, Dani gasped. There was a trail of deep yellow rose petals leading to the en suite bathroom. She got out of bed and followed their path. Not surprisingly it reminded her of the yellow brick road from the Wizard of Oz. It was more than fitting since her man was a wizard of sorts making all of her dreams come true. Her eyes widen as she entered the bathroom and saw that the large tub was filled with a topping of bubbles and more rose petals.

On the vanity was a small boom box with a note: Play me.

Dani smiled and turned it on. Immediately her heart fluttered when she heard the words to one of her favorite songs, When a Man Loves a Woman by Percy Sledge. She felt the sting of tears and thought, "God, I love him so much." After she wiped away the tears she noticed something else.

On the other side of the long vanity was a box of heart shaped truffles already opened to display the creamy goodness inside. Candles were lit, the mildly sweet scent of magnolia blending with that of the roses to create a deliciously sensual fragrance.

"Where is Ryan?" she wondered briefly, but the open box of candy was too much of a temptation.

Dani took a truffle out of the box and plopped it into her mouth. She felt the warmth of her mouth melt the silky smooth confection in a gush of oral ecstasy. Truffles were one of her few chocolate indulgences. Ryan knew her weakness.

After washing her face, she brushed her teeth then savored another rich creamy treat. The flavor of that one was tainted by the toothpaste, so she convinced herself that she just had to have one more to get rid of the odd taste; then another and another.

While brushing her hair, she felt a little flutter and wonder if it was the baby, but it was gone so quickly she could almost believe that she imagined it. Rubbing her belly, she told the baby that she loved him, had loved him from the moment she knew he existed.

"This baby is definitely going to be spoiled," she thought, but she also knew that they would teach him about the important things in life. Things like family, loyalty and social responsibility.

After she finished brushing her hair she headed over to the tub. It was then that she saw the small bell on the tub deck with a note attached: Ring Me!

Dani rang the bell and waited. Within moments, Ryan appeared, completely naked with a yellow ribbon bow wrapped around his penis. As he smiled at her, she whispered, "Oh, my."

Bowing with a flourish Ryan said," You rang, Milady?"

Dani giggled as he crossed the room and took her into his arms. Looking down at her beautiful glowing face he said, "Happy Valentine Day, sweetheart."

Caressing his chest, she reminded him, "That's not for another week."

"I'm practicing for the big day."

"In that case," she said, "Happy Valentine Day, sweetheart," and removed the ribbon from around her now erect present.

Ryan held Dani by her hips while he kissed her deeply. For a long while he feasted on the interior of her mouth before breaking contact, eliciting a drawn out groan from her. He gave her a quick peck on the lips and stroked her firm buttocks before he walked over to the bath tub to test the water temperature.

It was perfect.

Dani watched him expectantly as he slowly walked back to where she stood, her body already preparing for him. He undressed her quickly and helped her into the tub before getting in and sitting behind her.

Dani lay back against Ryan's broad chest enjoying the feel of his muscled frame and the warm water surrounding her. For a few moments he kissed her shoulders and ran his hands over her full breasts. He gently stroked her satin thighs and her belly, saying hello to his child.

Ryan lathered up a thick white cloth and started to bathe her using lightly scented bath soap. Dani luxuriated in the feel of the cloth and his hands over her body noticing that her breasts were more sensitive with her pregnancy.

Afterward, she bathed Ryan making sure that she was thorough in her ministrations. The tub was huge, large enough for both of them to move about in comfort. It was also able to keep the water warm for a long time, which Dani greatly appreciated since she was in no hurry to leave its confines or Ryan's arms.

Some time later, they got out and Ryan led her over to the walk in shower where they rinsed the residue of soap away and enjoyed the massaging jets. When they were finished, they dried each other with large fluffy white towels warmed on the heating rack. Ryan kissed Dani softly on her moist lips assuring her that the pampering was far from over.

He wrapped her in a soft white robe and carried her to the Gym. Even though Dani had practically moved in months ago, the gym had remained Ryan's domain. She knew the benefits of regular exercise, but wasn't disciplined enough to actually set aside time to do it. Fortunately, she had a robust metabolism and didn't have trouble maintaining her weight and a toned body through regular activities.

The gym wasn't just an exercise room though, it had state of the art exercise equipment, weights, a commercial treadmill, a beverage refrigerator, a wall mounted television and a separate massage area.

Ryan had a professional masseur come in once a week at one time, but right now he wasn't interest in a massage of the usual variety. He'd used massage before as a creative way to enhance sexual pleasure with a partner, but not in this gym.

Now that he had Dani, he was seriously thinking about using this space for sexual play on a regular basis. As taxing as exercise was, he knew that exercising together could be a real turn on for both of them. He might even be able to entice her into exercising naked. Just the thought of that was making his penis throb as he carried her over to the massage set up.

He placed Dani gently on the table on her back and started the massage at her feet adding sweet scented oils to facilitate the effortless glide of his hands. Dani's entire body was overly sensitive because of her pregnancy and it didn't take long for her to reach a fever pitch, but Ryan was intent on finding out just how long he could make it last.

He took her feet, one at a time, into his hands and massaged them slicking the oils between her toes as he went along. He slid along the bottom kneading as she watched him intently.

Then he traveled up her legs, first one then the other, around her calves pursuing a path up her inner thighs. Ryan spent long minutes on her thighs adding more oil, enjoying the slight tremor he felt there as he firmly massaged her warm flesh.

"Close your eyes, baby," he urged.

Dani sighed and closed her eyes which enhanced all of her other senses, making his slow seduction more intense.

When he reached her mons, Ryan caressed her lightly and felt her shudder. He was proud of his handy work and knew she was remembering how he'd shaved and neatly trimmed her last night while she sat with her heels on the vanity, her thighs splayed. By the time he finished the juices were flowing from her pussy and he was nearly drunk with desire. She'd squealed in delight and held his head as he devoured her taking his fill of her sweet essence.

Dani squirmed on the table and opened her thighs to him. Ryan was drawn to the nub at the top of her sex and the heady scent of her arousal. He continued to stroke her thighs as he lowered his head and nibbled at her clitoris causing a firestorm in Dani's core. She stifled a moan as he moved lower and sucked her labia, his tongue caressing and licking between the slippery folds.