Love is Precious

It took another couple of weeks for Andy to even remotely start healing and get back to normal. Between his labored breathing from his broken ribs and the massive, skull-splitting headache he had from hitting his head, he was generally in too much pain to do much more than sleep. Amy said that sleeping was a good thing because that’s when the body did its repair work, and the more he slept, the quicker he’d heal.

True to his stubborn form, though, within a couple weeks, he was insistent upon getting up and at least seeing to everyday operations in the stables. Even if he couldn’t help out physically, he could at least make sure James and a couple other stable hands got everything done rather than slacking off.

Ash was just glad to see his husband doing better than he had for that week and a-half that he was unconscious, and the following couple weeks that he spent the majority of his time sleeping. Even the boys were glad to see their father up and about again, even if he didn’t do much. Kelly was especially happy because, although he was more of a Mama’s boy than his brothers, he still loved Andy dearly and, out of all their children, had been the most terrified that he would never wake up.

“Mmm. Good morning, my love,” the young man in question murmured.

“Good morning,” Ash answered, rolling over to face him. That was a chore in and of itself, considering that he was nearly six months pregnant again.

“I trust your sleep was restful?” his husband asked, turning his head to yawn.

“It was. One of my most restful nights since your accident,” he answered, gently kissing his cheek.

“I am glad to hear it,” he told him. “I love you more than I can ever scream, Ashes.”

“I love you just as much, Andy,” the younger man answered. “Forever and always.”

“Always and forever, my love,” Andy said, gently capturing his lips with his own.

That move was a bit of a mistake on his husband’s part because, between having no intimacy the past few weeks and being pregnant, it caused his morning arousal to surge. Ash moaned into his mouth, parting his lips and gently running his tongue across his lower lip in a silent plea for entry.

Despite the lingering pain from his broken bones, Andy wasn’t about to deny his young bride something he’d already been denied for far too long. Besides, he’d been denied himself in the past few weeks, and he wanted this as much as the younger man did. He allowed him to taste him for a moment, then began to fight him for dominance and won, just as he always did. After a few moments, he had him roll onto his side again so he could breathe, knowing the weight of their child pressing down on his organs wasn’t good.

Before long, though, he had his young bride on his hands and knees, using his oil-coated fingers to gently stretch him again. Ash moaned wantonly as he stretched him, allowing his back to arch just a bit more than normal for this stage of pregnancy as he pushed his hips back against his fingers. Only when he thought he was ready for his pleasurable intrusion did Andy move so that they could be joined.

“You are sure you want this?” he asked, teasing him slightly.

“Yeessss! Pleeeease, Andy! Do not tease me so!” his young bride groaned, trying to force himself back against him.

“As you wish, my love,” the slightly older man murmured, gently thrusting his hips forward.

“Ooohhhhhh,” Ash groaned, still pushing his hips backward to meet him. Between his husband filling him up so intimately, and being so far into his pregnancy, he felt fuller than he’d ever felt before.

“I am not hurting you, am I, Ashes?” Andy asked, his words sounding hoarse.

“N-no,” the younger man stuttered, shaking his head. “I-It feels s-so g-gooood!”

“I love you more than I can ever scream,” he whispered in his ear, gently pulling himself back out.

The only response to meet his ears was a long, loud moan of pleasure.

He managed to wrap his good arm around his young bride’s expanding waistline and pull him up so that his back pressed against his chest. Ash moaned even louder with this change in position, which put them into one they’d never used before. In fact, he actually screamed his pleasure quicker this way, considering that his husband rammed right into whatever spot it was that brought him such pleasure sooner.

Soon enough, the pregnant young man’s cries became silent, the pleasure almost too much for him to handle. He reached down below his cumbersome belly, gently taking himself in hand since he knew his husband wouldn’t be able to. Andy would normally reach down and stroke him in time with his thrusts, but because he had a broken arm, he couldn’t do that if he wished to keep him upright so he wouldn’t fall on his belly. It wasn’t easy for him to reach around the dome that housed their fourth child, but he managed well enough so that his pleasure finally reached its peak.

Ash cried out with wild abandon, startling the child within him, as he tumbled over the edge of the precipice, his muscles clenching tightly as he throbbed in his own hand. His husband reached his peak, as well, the clenching of his muscles drawing his seed from him as it did every time. He thrust in deep one last time and held himself there, barely moving as he rode out his pleasure. He somehow managed to keep them both upright as they howled at the moon like a pair of wild animals.

Once they began to float back down to Earth from where they flew among the clouds, he managed to maneuver them so that Ash lay on his side. How he did that when he had a broken arm and could barely think straight was beyond the younger man. He still gave Andy a sweet, pleasantly exhausted smile as he laid down beside him.

“Did you…enjoy…yourself…my love?” he asked, panting as he came down from his high.

“Mmm…hmm,” his young bride hummed, barely able to nod his head.

KNOCK KNOCK!

“Oh!” they both gasped in unison, their eyes widening.

“Are you two all right in there?” Amy asked, sounding concerned.

“We are fine, Mother!” Andy answered after clearing his throat.

“You two need to start getting ready. Shelby is here for her piano lesson,” she called through the door.

“Come on in,” the slightly older man told her, making sure they were both covered.

The older woman opened the door to their bedchamber and stepped in. She took one look at them and a knowing smile appeared on her face. “Ah, I see. So that is the way of things,” she chuckled.

Ash blushed furiously while his husband joined her with a chuckle of his own.

“Yes, that is the way of things, Mother,” he said. “Kindly keep this to yourself.”

“I was planning on it,” Amy assured them. “Now, let us get you in your under drawers, son.”

Andy complied and swung his legs over the edge of the bed, uncaring of the fact that he was facing his mother stark naked. Once she had them tugged up his hips and tied, she sent him off to the water closet to wash up as best he could and relieve himself. There was no doubt in her mind that he had to go, and probably pretty badly.

With his husband out of the room, the younger man allowed his mother-in-law to help him sit up so he could swing his own legs over the edge of the bed. He blushed furiously as he felt his husband’s seed leaking out of him slightly, but said not a word. It didn’t really matter since the bedding could be laundered later and besides, other than what she’d overheard when she came to knock on their door, their intimate lives were none of Amy’s business. She didn’t need or want to know the details of such goings-on between the two of them.

By the time she’d gotten Ash dressed in what he selected for the day, his husband was coming back in to be assisted in dressing. While his mother grabbed the garments he requested, he used his good hand to brush his young bride’s messy hair. He reveled in the sweet way he spoiled him, although he knew it would be up to his mother-in-law or mother to pin his hair back properly.

“I will go down and get Shelby started as best I can while Mother finishes with your hair, my love,” Andy said, gently kissing his temple.

“We shall be down shortly,” he assured him, leaning into his touch.

“Take your time. I may have only one good arm, but I can manage just fine,” the slightly older man chuckled. “You do not need to be rushed while in your delicate condition, especially not after all the stress you have been under recently.”

“I will see to it that he does not rush over much,” Amy assured him.

“Thank you, Mother,” he answered, then left the room.

“He spoils me so much,” Ash said, purring softly as she began to finish brushing and pinning his hair.

“Better than what you grew up with, although we now know why Daisy did that, is it not?” his mother-in-law chuckled.

“True enough, I suppose,” the young man conceded. He gently cupped his belly, enjoying feeling his child kick and squirm once again.

It took only a few minutes for his mother-in-law to have his hair pinned back in an elegant, yet not too fancy manner. His long, raven locks weren’t overly coiffed, as if he were heading to a party, but pinned back enough to look presentable and match his higher status in life. Simple buns pinned at his nape, if his hair was even pinned back at all, wouldn’t befit a young woman of his wealth and stature like they would a farmer’s daughter.

With a soft sigh, Ash allowed her to help him rise from the stool before his vanity, taking a moment to find his center of balance once he was on his feet. The older woman stood there quietly, a hand on his back, as she made sure he wouldn’t fall and hurt himself or the babe. Once he nodded at her, Amy began helping him out of the suite he and Andy shared, keeping her hand on his back for support while he held his belly. His child was so big, and apparently laying so low, that it often felt like the growing orb would detach and fall to the floor at his feet if he didn’t hold it up.

Upon reaching the smaller South parlor, they heard a beautiful strain followed by a few wrong notes. There was a soft voice speaking that followed, and judging by the chuckle they heard from Andy, he suspected that Shelby’d released a most unladylike curse upon her mistake. Amy shook her head as she helped him into the room, his husband rising so he could take his place behind the piano. Like he did at the dining table, he turned sideways and twisted his torso so he could reach the keys.

Shelby was amazed at how well he was able to twist his upper torso around to manage such a feat, and he merely smiled. Ash told her that he’d had lots of practice during his previous pregnancies while at the dining table, as well as during his own lessons. He wasn’t as skilled as his husband, by far, but he’d learned quite a bit.

“Time for a break,” he announced a couple hours later, clenching and unclenching his fists.

“I agree,” Shelby said, mimicking his motions.

“My hands are sore, and I am in need of a trip to the water closet,” the young man admitted, blushing. He grimaced as his babe attacked his bladder once again.

“Are you in need of assistance rising?” she asked.

“Thank you, dear,” Ash answered, nodding. “I find my belly is cumbersome, and it is hard to move.”

“You are welcome, Ashley,” she answered, taking his hands. “One, two, three!”

Shelby gave a sharp tug on his hands after she ended her three-count, immediately moving to put a hand on his back once he was on his feet. He was grateful for her assistance, both in rising and finding his center of balance, and told her as much. His words brought a bashful blush to her cheeks, and she ducked her head.

Chuckling softly, Ash cupped the underside of his belly and began waddling to the water closet, his pupil right behind him. She was just making sure he didn’t fall and get hurt, and since Amy, Daisy, and Andy were all busy, he was grateful for her hovering mother-hen behavior. The only thing she didn’t try to do was follow him into the water closet, for which he was truly thankful. He didn’t need her realizing that he was, in fact, a male because she caught sight of his crotch while trying to help him.

Granted, he didn’t really need her help getting his skirts up enough to relieve himself. It was an art he’d mastered ages ago, especially within the last few weeks since Andy was bedridden and unable to help him. Still, the relief of emptying his bladder, which was once again being kicked into mush, drew a sigh from him. His hand found its way to his belly, gently caressing it as he willed the child within to settle down for a bit.

“Feeling better now?” Shelby asked as he exited the water closet a few short minutes later.

“Much,” he answered, nodding. “Let us go sun ourselves on the back deck for a short time.”

“Sounds good. My hands still ache,” the young girl chuckled.

“So do mine,” Ash agreed. “Playing piano will do that, though.”

“How long have you been playing?” she asked curiously.

“Since the day after Andy and I were wed almost three and a-half years ago,” he answered. “My parents never had the money for things like piano lessons when I was young. It was all they could do to keep clothes on my back and food on the table.” He never said a word about how his childhood really was.

“I am sorry to hear that,” she told him. “Papa was a banker in town, so we have not been wealthy, per se, but definitely not poor, either.”

“Sounds like you live far more comfortably than I did at your age. Well, until I married Andy, that is,” the young man said.

“Very much so. I cannot afford silk dresses like you, but at least they are not burlap sacks.”

“That is all I ever wore growing up. Mama did not have the means with which to buy even cotton from the general store.” Ash grimaced at the memory. “I was itching constantly, no matter how many times the burlap was washed before being used to construct a dress. I can only be thankful that she did not make me wear burlap under drawers, as well.”

His young pupil grimaced at the thought, not even wanting to imagine how it would feel to wear burlap under drawers.

“However, Mama did the best she could under the circumstances,” he continued. “I can only thank her for doing as best she could with what she had available.”

“Hearing those words never gets old, Ashley.”

Looking up, the pair saw that Daisy had joined them with all three of the boys.

“Ma-ma!” Thorne cried, running over to him on wobbly legs.

“Good afternoon, Thorne,” the young man said, lifting him onto his lap. “Good afternoon to you, too, boys.”

Shelby sat in silence until he got his youngest adjusted comfortably on his lap.

“Shelby, these are my sons. The one in my lap is Thorne, the others are his older twin brothers, Kegan and Kelly,” he told her.

“Which twin is which?” she asked, confused as she tried to tell them apart.

“The one on Mama’s right is Kegan. He is the louder, more outgoing twin,” the young man answered. “The one on her left that is trying to shy behind her is Kelly. He is quieter and shy around new people.”

“Ah, I see. So it is usually easy to tell them apart just because of how they act?” the young girl asked.

“Precisely. And this is my mother, Daisy,” Ash continued.

“Pleased to properly meet you, young miss,” Daisy said, giving her a warm, gentle smile.

“Her name is Shelby, Mama,” he told her.

Once his mother took a seat with them after closing the gate that his husband had built, the three of them sat there enjoying the sun’s rays and conversing. The older woman asked about Shelby’s piano lessons and how well she was doing, smiling when her son reported nothing but good news. He told her that his young pupil was quite astute and a fast learner, just like he was.

It wasn’t long before Amy decided to join them, and that was a relief since Kegan was starting to get a bit rowdy. Kelly was trying to shy away from him since he didn’t like to rough-house as his twin did, but the older twin wasn’t having it. The decision to put him in a time-out was made just as Andy came up the stairs.

A short two hours later, Chef had supper finished and they invited the Shepards to dine with them that evening. It was already so late that by the time they got home, it wouldn’t be worth cooking a full meal, and besides, Marissa was tired after a long day of dealing with her late husband’s employees. The meal was lively with chatter of all kinds, unlike when they would simply talk about what’d happened to all of them that day. Having Marissa and Shelby around definitely livened things up, what with all the different stories the banker’s widow told them about what happened in town.

After letting their food settle for a bit, Amy saw their guests safely out to their carriage while Andy picked his young bride up and carried him to their suite. Daisy made sure the children were in the nursery for the night, knowing Thorne wanted to be with their parents. It wasn’t long after retiring that Ash fell peacefully asleep in his husband’s arms, despite their unborn child kicking within him. The young man kissed his temple one last time before knocking out after a long day of his own.

Notes