“You ordered two beers?” I ask him, laughing.
He puts his hands up. “I have two hands, and after the day I’ve had, I should have doubled that order.”
Crystal picks up a menu and mumbles, “Maybe if you weren’t such an a-hole, people wouldn’t slice your tires.” Gabe doesn’t say anything; he just glares at her. I look at them and then turn my head to listen to Blake and Mila’s conversation. She’s asking him about fifty different questions about being a firefighter.
“Do you run into the fire and save people?” she asks, wide-eyed.
“Yup. Sometimes we have no choice,” he tells her. “Once I had to climb a tree to save a kitten.”
Mila gasps. “Did you find the mommy?”
Blake nods. “Yup and his brothers and sisters.”
“I want a brother,” Mila says. I look over at Hailey to see how she is doing and find her eyes already looking at me. I smile at her and nod my head to the side.
“I’m going to the bathroom,” I say, pushing my chair back.
“I need to go also,” Hailey says, getting up.
“Well, isn’t that convenient,” Gabe says as he downs one beer.
I shove at his shoulder as I walk to the back where the bathrooms are. I look behind us and in front of us, then grab her hand and sneak us into the maintenance closet next to the bathroom. Her giggles fill the room while she squeezes into me.
“Hello.” I pull her to me, kissing her lips. Her body molds to me.
“Hello.” She kisses me lightly, then snakes her hands around me to pull me closer to her, my mouth taking hers.
“It kills me to walk into a room and not be able to kiss you hello,” I tell her, kissing her cheek and then trailing kisses down her neck as she laughs at me.
“We’d better get back out there,” she whispers.
“Are you okay?” I ask her, looking into her eyes for the answer.
“I’m good.” She smiles, and I see that she actually is fine. I grab her hand, then open the door, looking out to make sure no one is there when we walk out.
“Oh, good,” Gabe says as we both sit down. “We ordered for you guys since you were in the ‘bathroom’.” He makes air quotes with his fingers, causing Blake to laugh. I smile at him and nod my head.
“Did you see the house that just went on the market?” Gabe looks at me. My head nods, remembering the For Sale sign on Norma’s lawn. “Guess she got the point, right?”
The meal runs smoothly till the bill comes and everyone fights for it, well, everyone but Gabe. He sits there glaring at Crystal, who returns the glare with a big smile.
“Too late,” Gabe says. “I already paid the bill.” He gets up, looking at Crystal. “Let’s go.”
This doesn’t bode well for her as she folds her hands over her chest. “I’m not driving you home.”
Gabe shakes his head. “Let’s go.” Then he hisses out, “Please.”
“Fine.” She throws her napkin on the table. “This is the last time.” She grabs her purse, saying bye to us as they walk out.
“This was fun,” Blake says as his phone rings. When he looks down and sees the number, he excuses himself. “Hello.” We hear him answer and then he walks out.
“Let’s go, Mila,” I tell her while she puts her crayons away, then jumps off her chair, coming over to my side to hold my hand.
We walk out looking around for Blake who raises his hand still talking on the phone. “Do you want me to wait with you?” I ask her. She shakes her head, seeing Mila yawn.
“No, go ahead,” she tells me. I lean in and kiss her cheek, waving goodbye to Blake as I pick Mila up and walk to my truck.
Bedtime is fast since Mila is so tired. I’m in my room pulling my shirt off when I hear a faint knock on the back door. Walking to the door, I see it’s Hailey. “Hey there.” She comes in.
“Hi, yourself.” I close the door, turning to look at her. “You snuck out?”
She eyes me up and down. I’m not one to boast, but I work hard to make sure the dad bod is never a reality. She has never seen me without my shirt. “Blake crashed as soon as we walked in.” She walks closer to me, putting her hands on my stomach, making my body tremble from her cold hands. “I forgot to get a kiss good night,” she whispers, the heat in her eyes. I lick my lips as her face inches closer to me. “Kiss me,” she asks or maybe she demands—I don’t know because my hands fly to her hair. I grab it in my fist and tilt her head back, claiming her mouth with mine. As we groan into each other’s mouth, standing at the back door, I know that sooner rather than later I’m going to take her to bed.
When the alarm sounds softly, I groan and reach out for it. But my hand is pressed into my bed. I roll over, taking Hailey with me, her groan of frustration filling the room. My chest tickles from her hair. After attacking each other at the door, she refused to let me put on a shirt, so we made out on my bed most of the night. Until we fell asleep. “It’s five thirty,” I tell her, kissing her neck, and she mumbles something. It takes me ten more minutes to get her up, and when I kiss her goodbye, the sun is up, and it hurts to watch her walk away.
I pick up my phone, texting my mother.
Can you watch Mila this weekend?
I put my phone down and pour a cup of coffee. My phone rings. I grab it when I realize it’s my mother.
“Hello, Mother,” I say. Looking at the time, I see it’s almost six. “You’re up early.”
“I could say the same to you. Busy day ahead?” she asks.
“Yeah, somewhat. I have a couple of jobs to check out. Nothing more than usual.” I take a gulp of coffee.
“So how about I take Mila on Friday and bring her back Monday? It would give you a good break. You could grab the boys and go fishing.”
Except the boys are the furthest thing from my mind. The only thing I’ll be doing is learning every single part of Hailey. “Sounds great,” I tell her, and we make plans for her to pick Mila up tomorrow. I make Mila breakfast as soon as she wakes, and my day goes by at a snail’s pace. I get a text that night from Hailey asking about my day as soon as I put Mila down.
I don’t bother texting her. “My day was long as fuck. How was yours?” I say when she answers.
“It was good, long also. I’m just climbing into bed. I have a killer headache.”
“Do you, why?” I ask, going to my own room.
“No clue, maybe the computer.” I hear rustling, knowing she is getting under the covers.
“So do you have plans for dinner tomorrow?” I ask her as I hear her laugh.
“Crystal and I are bringing Blake to check out the local band at the pub.”
“Oh, you’ll like that,” I tell her.
“Do you want to meet me there?” she asks.
I smile. “I would love to meet you there.”
We talk for about an hour. I hear her voice getting lower and lower and then ever so soft, so I tell her sweet dreams. She whispers them back to me, and I stay on the line after she hangs up. She is on my mind the whole night, and I dream of her and her laugh. The next day, I rush through what has to get done. I’m just getting home when she texts me to meet her at seven.
I shower and change the sheets, hoping she’ll come home with me tonight. I pull out my black jeans and brown long-sleeve shirt. Pulling the sleeves up, I grab my watch and run my fingers through my hair. I pull up to the pub five minutes after seven.
I walk in, not sure where she will be sitting, but my eyes don’t move far because she is standing near the bar. My heart stops in my chest as she looks over her shoulder. “Holy fuck,” I say to myself as I take her in. She is wearing the tightest pair of blue jeans ever invented. Her white shirt hangs off both shoulders, and her sleeves go all the way to her wrists. Her hair is in curls and pulled over one bare shoulder. I look down to see she is wearing tan strappy fucking heels. When she smiles at me, I see a gold choker on her thin neck. My cock spring into action as my jeans tighten so hard I thank god the lights are dim and hopef
ully no one can see me saluting.
As I make my way to her, she turns to talk to the bartender, ordering something. “Hey,” I say, my hand coming out to hold her hip, and she leans over to kiss my cheek.
“I’m all by myself,” she tells me. “Blake left early, something about having a situation that required his help.” The bartender returns with a glass of wine for her and a bottle of beer. “I ordered you a beer.”
“You look beautiful,” I tell her, my tongue dry from looking at her. She looks down, tucking a piece of hair behind her ear.
“Thank you,” she whispers in my ear, leaning over to make sure I hear. “You look hot yourself.” She smiles, taking a sip of wine. I look into her eyes and see a twinkle, and I’m wondering if she’s thinking the same thing I’m thinking.
“Hey, you two,” Crystal says, breaking our trance. I take a pull of my drink, turning to look at her cousin, and I almost spit out my beer. Holy fuck, Gabe is going to lose his shit. She’s standing in front me wearing tight black jeans, and I mean tight,
but that’s not the problem. It’s the sheer black halter she’s wearing without a bra. She throws her blond hair over her shoulder, putting her hand out to catch the bartender’s eyes, and does she ever. “We need three shots of tequila,” she says as she smiles at Pat, grabbing her credit card.
“That’s okay. Pat, put everything on my tab,” I say from beside her, and she smiles at me.
“Aren’t you the sweetest.” She looks at Hailey. “That shirt is the bomb.” They trade stories of the day, my hand never leaving Hailey’s hip. I look at the door, seeing Brody and Darla come in.
Darla spots us, waving her hand. “Holy fuck,” she spits out when she gets closer and takes in Hailey and then Crystal. “Oh my god, I’m so happy I came tonight.” She looks at Crystal. “That outfit is to die for. I need to borrow that top.”
“Over my dead body,” Brody says from beside her. “Not even just for me. Besides, I don’t think it’ll last the night,” he says, looking away as two beers appear on the counter with the shots of tequila.
“Shots,” Darla yells out, throwing her hand up, while Brody and I both throw our heads back and groan. The girls toss back the shots and order another round.
“One more and that’s it,” Hailey says from beside me.
“What?” Crystal and Darla both look at her, but Darla speaks. “You are no fun.” As they take another shot of tequila. “Country Girl” begins to play, causing Darla to yell, “We need to dance.”
Hailey finishes off her wine, then leans in and kisses me on the lips in front of everyone. “Be back.”
I lean on the bar as I watch the three of them in the middle of the pub. Every man watches and some women join them while others just glare at them. “How much are we betting that Gabe is going to lose his shit,” Brody says, grabbing his beer and draining it.
“I’m almost afraid to be here if he shows up.” I groan when “Save a Horse” comes on.
“Oh, she’s here.” Brody points at Crystal. “So he’s going to show up. Plus, I may have texted him and told him we are here.” He laughs as Darla yells she’s riding a cowboy tonight.
They stay on the dance floor till they are out of breath, then come back to the bar to order more shots. “Okay, fine,” Hailey says. “One more.” She then looks at me and winks.
“You having fun?” I ask her when she leans into me.
“I am.” She smiles, picking up her shot, and eyes me while she licks her hand and puts salt on it. My cock springs to action, my eyes watching her every single move. She licks the salt, downs the shot, winces, and sucks on the lime. “That is gross.”
I look at Darla and Crystal, who take another shot and chase it with a glass of water. The band takes the stage, causing the music to get louder. Hailey picks up the glass of white wine I ordered for her while she danced.
I’m about to lean in and say something to her when I hear, “What the fuck are you wearing?” hissed next to me, and Brody just laughs. Crystal turns around, putting a hand on her hip.
“An outfit.” She glares at him.
“Is that right?” He puts his hands in his back pockets, his dress shirt buttons almost snapping off.
“I think I need another shot,” she says when she takes in his look.
Darla sees the look Gabe is giving and claps her hands. “I’m so happy I didn’t miss tonight,” she says as they take another shot.
“I’m going to go to the bathroom,” Hailey says, grabbing Crystal, and Darla follows them. Brody pushes a bottle of beer in Gabe’s hand while his eyes never leave Crystal’s back.
I’m about to take a sip of my beer when I see Kimberley. “Incoming,” Brody says, when she spots me and raises her hand.
“Hey,” she says breathlessly. “I didn’t know I would see you here tonight.” Coming to my side, she leans against the bar. “You look good.”
“Um.” I look at my hand and then back up, seeing her smile as she tucks her hair behind her ear.
“Is someone sitting here?” She points at the bar stool no one is actually sitting on.
“Actually, there is.” I nod at her, but don’t say anything else because Hailey’s walking back from the bathroom. She stands next to me, my hand going out and automatically gripping her.
“Oh,” Kimberley says, her eyes blinking a million times. “I didn’t know you two …”
“Hi.” Hailey smiles at her. “We met, right?” She tilts her head, and I know my girl is not playing right now.
“Yeah, when you moved into town. I work for Walker,” Kimberley tells her.
“That’s right. You work for Jensen and Brody.” She grabs her glass of wine.
“I see some friends,” Kimberley says, walking away. Darla snickers. The band tells us they’re going to slow things down and the guitar riff starts.
“Come on, cowboy,” Darla says, “you owe me a dance.” He follows her to the crowded dance floor.
“You want to dance?” I ask Hailey. She grabs my hand and pulls me to the dance floor. I take her in my arms, and even with her heels on, I’m still just a bit taller. Her hand goes around my neck, and one of my hands wrapping around her waist. I look over at Gabe, who is following Crystal outside. He makes sure I see him, waving at us.
“There goes my ride.” Hailey smiles at me.
“Come home with me.” Four words. Four words that hang in the air. Four words that mean so much while she looks down and then up.
“Okay.” She leans in and whispers in my ear, “Only if I get to sleep over.”
Chapter Twenty-Two
Hailey
We say goodbye to Darla and Brody, walking out. Lost in our own thoughts, we remain quiet on the way to his house. Butterflies fill my stomach, my heart feels like it’s going to explode in my chest, my body aware of every time his hand touches me as he drives. From the way his thumb moves on my thigh to the way he picks up my hand and brings it to his lips.
Parking the car, he looks over at me, and I smile. My hand reaches for the handle to open the door, and I step out of the truck. Jensen walks around the back of the truck to my side. I turn to look at him, but he backs me up against the truck. The cool metal on my back causes me to arch into him a bit. His hands bury in my hair, and he pulls my face to his, his lips on mine, his tongue dancing with mine. The kiss leaves me wanting so much more, aching for him, aching for his touch. We walk with his arm around my neck and my arms wrapped around his waist, and when we reach the front door, he reaches into his pocket to get the keys out. Opening the door, only a dim light glows as we walk across his house to his bedroom. A bedroom I’ve been in about a hundred times now, but knowing what is to come makes my palms start to sweat.
He stops us when we get to the doorway of his room and turns me toward him. He leans in and kisses my bare shoulder, the prickle of his beard making me shiver. “There is no pressure; there is no rush,” he tells me, trailing kisses from my shoulder to my neck. “It’s just me and you.” He k
isses up my neck. My palms lie flat against his chest, and I feel his heart beating almost as fast as mine. “I want you,” he whispers as his tongue trails up and down my neck, “but at any time.” He sucks a bit, and I arch my back into his touch. He stops kissing me and looks at me, his thumb tracing my bottom lip. “We go at your pace,” he says, looking into my eyes. “I don—” My hand stops him from talking.
“Nothing in this world can stop this from happening. There is nothing in this world I want more than to be with you”—I inhale—“completely with you.” I move closer to him, our chests connected, the heat from both of us seeping into each other. I wrap my hands around his neck, giving myself a little bit more courage, our hearts beat against each other, his hands on my hips. “So are you going to kiss me or not?” I smile as the words come out, but then his lips crash into mine. His hands grab my ass, pulling me to him. Turning me, he backs me into his room until the back of my legs hit the bed, our mouths never leaving each other. My hands roam down the front of his chest to the hem of his shirt. I pull his shirt up, my fingertips working their way up his six-pack. He trails kisses from my face to my neck, then back up to my ear. The sting from his beard makes one of my shoulders rise up, my hands now pushing his shirt up, but he pulls away from me. Reaching his hand back, he rips his shirt over his head and stands in front of me. I reach for the hem of my shirt, but he pushes my hands away.
“I’ve waited for this for a long time.” His voice deep. “So many times, I wondered what you were wearing and wanted to reach under your shirt.” His hands caress my smooth stomach. Looking down, I see his hands under my shirt, feel his hands move up to my breasts, my chest going up and down as I wait for the moment his hands cup me. His palms finally cover my breast, and I feel his heat through the lace bra I’m wearing. My nipples peak as my hips move forward to feel his hardness. “Fuck,” he hisses when his hand goes to my back and he feels the lace. I cross my arms in front of me, pulling the shirt over my head. I stand there in front of him in my lace bra. Both his hands now go to my breasts, and I look down, seeing his tanned hands on my white skin. “Fits perfectly,” he says as he leans down to take a pebbled nipple into his mouth, lace and all. My hand goes to his head while I throw my head back, my senses gone now. He repeats the same thing with the other one. My nipples get harder with the wetness and the cool air. “I have to see you,” he hisses and looks like he is going to rip the bra off. I turn around, showing him the back. He groans when he sees the satin crisscross down the middle of my back with a bow tied at the end. He gently pulls the string, undoing the bow, his fingers pulling the satin away till the bra falls to the floor. Turning, I stand in front of him. I look down at myself, my full b cup size, my nipples a dark pink as they pebble. I watch him looking down at me, his hands coming up to cup them in his hands. His eyes never waver from his hands while he rolls each nipple between his thumb and forefinger. The sensation shoots straight to my core, my stomach pulling as it gets tight. My breathing comes in pants as my body wakes for him. “I’m going to fuck these by the time you leave my bed,” he says as he pushes them together, and my eyes close, picturing him straddling me as he tit fucks me, my tongue coming out to lick his cock with each forward thrust.
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