White Orchids (Watty Awards 2013)

Negotiation

Hey guys!! I decided I'm just going to warn y'all when there's gonna be any kind of explicit material in these chapters. This is one of those chapters. Enjoy! You're the best readers a girl could ask for ;)

P.S. the picture is the inspiration for Nicki's dress!

P.P.S. The lovely lady I dedicated this chapter to just posted her first story on Wattpad, check her out! Keep the support rolling :D <3

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“You know, I had this whole sentimental, explanatory speech planned out for you,” Nicki said, once Tyler finally let go of her.

“I’m sorry,” he said, rubbing the back of his neck. “I just…”

When he hesitated, she cut him off. “I liked what you said better.”

Nicki put a hand on the side of his face, guiding him to her. His cheeks were wet; she couldn’t tell if her tears had transferred onto his face or if he’d been crying himself. There was no reason to ask. She nudged her lips between his and felt him let out a long breath through his nose. It was a short kiss, but one full of promise.

As she pulled away from him, she decided it wouldn’t hurt to give him a summary of what she’d been about to say.

“I was going to tell you that while I’ve been here, I’ve been doing a lot of thinking. A ton of it, actually. Mostly about the wedding; Lisa has been up my ass about every last detail. But I’ve been trying to figure out what I want out of life. I know that I love interior design, and I know that I want to have my own business… but I just don’t think I’m ready for that. Not yet. And then I thought, if I don’t have that, what the hell am I going to do with my life? The only thing I could come up with was, well, to raise a family. I had no idea that you’d want to do it this soon. I was thinking more along the lines of a few years from now,” she admitted.

Tyler grabbed her hand between his. “I feel like a dick. I didn’t even bother to ask you what you wanted.”

“Tyler, I want the same thing you do. To be honest, I’m a little scared. But you being so sure… you make me feel like it’s going to be okay. Babe, the look on your face when you were holding Danny,” she said, shaking her head.

He smiled a little. “I know, it was unreal. That’s what I want. I want to lie on the couch with you, watching stupid little kid movies, with our baby. Can you even imagine?”

“No,” she said, laughing at the absurdity of it. “I really can’t. I have to say, Ty, I’m genuinely surprised that you’re so okay with this. I kind of figured I’d have to beg you when the time came.”

“I don’t know what happened. It was like one morning I woke up and I just knew that I wanted it.”

“So why did you wait to say something?”

“I guess I didn’t think the timing was right. It was a month ago, maybe longer. You were so tied up with school and the whole business thing and I was still on the road constantly. If things were going to be that way, there’d be no room for anything else. Never mind something like that.”

Nicki nodded. She understood why he wouldn’t say anything; it would have been preposterous to think they could have handled a child on top of everything else they were doing.

“You really want to do this?” she asked, still sensing the need for confirmation.

“I really do. But if you’re not ready, I can wait. I don’t want to force you to give up anything because of this. You’re still young, I don’t want you to miss out on something.”