“In school, art class was the only thing that kept my attention. In my senior year, Mick, the former owner of the Phoenix, was a guest speaker in my art class. It was from his story and presentation of his work that I wanted to pursue tattooing. To be able to share my talent permanently on someone’s skin is an honor. When someone comes to me with their pain or joy and asks me to express it on their body, it’s a feeling that I have yet to find the right words to describe.”
“That’s beautiful, Gavin. I’m sure your family is proud of your accomplishments.”
I almost let out a bitter laugh. My parents are far from proud of anything that has to do with me. But I’m not about to get into that just yet. I don’t want to ruin this progress we’ve made today talking about my parents’ bullshit, well, more my father’s bullshit.
“What about you? What brought you to Watermount Falls?” If she weren’t snuggled up next to me, I would have never known she tensed up just from that simple question. I don’t know if I should backtrack. I figured this was safe ground, but from her reaction, maybe it isn’t. I don’t move, nor do I push the issue any further. After what seems like an eternity, she finally speaks.
“My mom passed away a little over a year ago in a car accident. We didn’t have any extended family, as both my parents were only children. My father… he left after. I never got to meet any of my grandparents, and staying in that town just wasn’t the same after Mom was gone.”
I can barely make out her words. They are just above a whisper. I know this is causing her pain and I want to put a stop to it, but she surprises me when she continues.
“There was no reason for us to stay, so I packed up our stuff and drove—no destination in mind, just the open road. Once we got to Watermount Falls, we stopped and decided to spend a few nights to rest before getting back on the road again. The first time we walked into Momma B’s, she just kind of pulled us in.” She lets out a soft chuckle, and I lean down to press a kiss on her forehead. I just can’t seem to stop touching her, in some way or another.
“She chatted us up, and the next thing I knew, she was offering me a job, helping me find a place to settle into, and accommodating my work schedule to fit around Logan’s school time. Even if I wanted to say no and keep moving, I couldn’t. So here we are, almost two months later. Logan is loving his new school and friends and can’t seem to wait until the weekends when he can sit in the diner and chat up old Mr. Henderson.”
At that, I laugh alongside her. Only Logan could put Mr. Henderson in a good mood and not even flinch while doing it.
“Mr. Henderson loves you both. I’ve never seen him interact with anyone except Momma B, and I think he’s polite to her and entertains her conversations because he’s scared of her.” Bailey lets out a fit of giggles quickly covering her mouth to quiet the sound.
“Momma B is pretty scary, but she means well, and she wouldn’t hurt anybody,” she says after she’s calmed down from her laughing fit.
“Don’t let her sweetness toward you fool you, beautiful. Momma B is something fierce when it comes to protecting her own.” I wink at her. Her response is that damn shy smile of hers.
“And what about you? How do you like it here?” I push a few of her curls behind her ear and watch her think for a moment.
“Everyone in this town seems to go above and beyond to make it a home for all newcomers. I feel comfortable here, like I fit in. Everyone has been extremely welcoming, and I’ve made some amazing friends like Ash, Momma B, and even Mr. Henderson.”
“What about me? I’m not on that welcome party list?” I tease her and even manage to tickle her a bit before she begs for mercy. I pull her closer to me once again, but now we are facing each other and I can study her while she answers. I see the soft pink make its appearance on her smooth cheeks and do my best to refrain from kissing them.
“You are on a list all on your own, Gavin.” She takes in a few deep breaths before locking her green eyes with mine.
“It kind of scares me, but not in a bad way,” she whispers those words, as if they’re meant to be a secret.
I move my hands around her neck and bring her lips closer to mine. Nipping at her bottom lip, I cause her to let out a soft moan and open up to me. I take full advantage and slip my tongue into her mouth, massaging her tongue with mine. She wastes no time in sliding her fingers through my hair and gripping the ends as she kisses me back, as fierce and intensely as I kiss her. I stop thinking about going slow and glide my hands slowly down her back, gripping her waist to move her to straddle me. I don’t know what I’m thinking; clearly, it’s my dick that is doing all thinking. The moment I have her heat against my dick, both of us let out a moan. I grip her neck and push our chests flush against one another and claim her mouth again. She’s so lost in the moment that she lets go and begins to grind against my very hard cock. Fuck! She’s going to make me come like a damn teenage boy. We’re all lips, teeth, hands, and moans, so neither one of us hears Logan until Zeus lets out a bark. Bailey jumps off my lap and moves toward Logan who is standing by his bedroom door rubbing the sleep from his eyes. I, on the other hand, stay seated and try to calm my raging hard-on.
“Hey, Bubba, are you all right?” Bailey somehow manages to control her breathing while she’s speaking with him.
“I’m thirsty and didn’t have any water on my nightstand.”
“Sorry, Bub, I must have forgotten. I’ll grab you a bottle of water.” She leans down to kiss his forehead before heading into the kitchen to get him some water.
“Gavin, are you sleeping over?” Logan asks, seeming a little more awake.
“Nah, buddy. I was just about to head out,” I say to him from the couch.
“We should do a sleepover one night, and Zeus, too.” His little chubby cheeks brighten up with his smile.
“I’ll work something out with your mom.”
“Cool. Good night.” He slips back into his room as if his mom and I weren’t just humping each other like two teenagers.
I finally get myself under control and head over to the front door to wait for Bailey. Zeus sits next to me and just stares.
“What? Like you don’t know how sexy she is.” He barks back at me and looks toward Logan’s room. My damn dog even knows I don’t stand a chance at taking it slow when it comes to Bailey.
She emerges from Logan’s room and makes her way to me. I’m anticipating her putting space between us so am caught off guard when she reaches me and places her arms around my waist.
“I had a great time tonight.” She gives me a shy smile then gets on her tiptoes and presses a kiss to the corner of my mouth—too fucking cute, this woman.
“I had a great time, beautiful. I’ll see you tomorrow,” I whisper against her lips and make my way out with Zeus, back to my place across the hall.
Tonight went better than expected. I learned that Bailey’s past is tragic, similar to my own. I will need to tread carefully when touching on that subject with her in the future. She opened up some, and definitely took what she wanted when we kissed. Now I need to figure out how I can take her out, just the two of us, and have her spend the night.
Chapter Twelve
Bailey
Three weeks later
For the last three weeks, things have been like something out of a movie. Ever since I invited Gavin over for dinner, he has made it a point to spend every evening with us. He still comes to the grill every morning and sits in my section, which I now find adorable and look forward to. I just love watching him stroll in like the model he is. I’ve become used to his flirty ways and have even become sure of myself when flirting back. Gavin has made it clear how much he loves it when I flirt with him. The first few nights he’d join us, he would show up with dinner, and after I told him to stop buying food, since I cook, he let me know that he didn’t want me to think he expected me to cook for him when he was inviting himself over every night. I realized then that Gavin didn’t know I looked forward to his visits and expected hi
m to show up. After figuring that out, I made sure to let him know how much both Logan and I wanted him there. That seemed to make him very happy since he kissed the hell out of me at the grill before he left. I have never been so embarrassed in my life, but at the same time, so damn happy.
I’ve also started to bring him lunch at his shop this past week. I realized that either him, Hunter, or one of his other employees would come by the grill and get lunch for everyone at the shop. Sometimes I noticed nobody would come by and wondered if he had eaten that day. When he would arrive at the apartment later that night, he would express how famished he was. I knew all too well what it was like to go without a meal. Granted, in Gavin’s case, it was different, but still, I felt horrible when he would tell me he didn’t have the time to grab lunch. After a few times of hearing that, I brought it upon myself to drop by the shop during my break with food for him and his team. Gavin wasn't too thrilled that I bought food for everyone, at first. He didn't want me spending my hard-earned money on others. Right away he insisted on everyone paying their way and throwing in a little extra to compensate for my time. I tried to refuse, of course, but Gavin wouldn't take no for an answer. Since he insisted on giving me money, I decided to add a few of my momma’s famous custard tarts and my famous banana chocolate chip muffins. Hunter, on the other hand, loves that I bring food every day and flirts relentlessly. This riles Gavin up even more when Hunter flirts with his girl, his words, not mine.
I can hardly believe the life I’ve come to have. Logan and Gavin get along so well, it’s as if they’ve known each other their whole lives, and Zeus is such a fantastic dog, even though he’s protective by nature, the time he has been spending with us has made him super protective of Logan and me. It’s the sweetest thing. Things have been going almost perfectly. Too perfect, if I’m honest with myself.
I can feel it changing, and part of that is my fault. I know I deserve happiness and love in my life, and I think with Gavin, I could have that. It’s just that…I haven’t told Gavin the truth about me. I don’t want our first date alone to be ruined by talking about the past. Although I keep telling myself that I’ll let him know when the time is right, after three weeks of spending almost every day together, I still haven’t found the right time to talk about it. I’m certain that when he knows the truth he won’t think twice about leaving me. My past is definitely complicated, to say the least. I know I’m selfish, but gosh, I don’t want to let him go. The way I feel for him, I’ve never felt this way about anyone. It’s like we’ve known each other in another life, and somehow, we found each other again in this one. I just want to have him for myself, just a little while longer.
Tonight is our first official date, just the two of us. I have no idea where he is planning on taking me. All Gavin said was to wear a dress and comfortable shoes, and to be ready at seven sharp. When I told him that I had to find someone to watch Logan, he said it was taken care of and for me not to worry. So, here I am in my room, wearing a forest green sundress that hugs my bust and flares out at the waist. The dress is strapless and has a built-in bra so I wouldn’t have to wear one. It’s beautiful and does wonders for my green eyes. Ash made me go on a shopping spree with her, and when she saw this dress she made me buy it. I’m not kidding, she literally grabbed the dress in my size, dragged me to the cashier, and had me pay for it, or she would. That is Ash, a no-nonsense kind of a girl. She kills me, but I don’t know how I would have made it these last few months without her.
I paired the dress with black ballet shoes, again, Ash’s idea, and tonight I have my hair flowing down my back with the right side clipped back, away from my face. Ash did my makeup, even though I had refused with all my might, as I have never worn makeup before. She did a fantastic job, just adding what she called a smoky eye effect and some colored lip-gloss.
There’s a knock on the door just then and Logan calls out for me. Logan knows the rule, he is never allowed to answer the door, no matter who is calling from behind it.
“Mom, you look so different.” Logan looks up at me with his big, green eyes bugging out.
“Umm, yeah, Bubba, I do. Is it in a bad way?” I question as I began to think twice about this whole dress idea.
“In a good way. Like Gavin says, you look beautiful.” And that right there is why I haven’t found the right time to tell Gavin the truth. Without knowing, he is teaching my little guy how to treat and respect a woman.
“Babe!” Gavin calls from the other side of the door. “Are you going to let me in?”
Logan and I both burst into laughter. I pull the door open and Zeus comes right to my side so I can give him some love before he moves onto his best pal.
“Bailey…” Gavin stands in my doorway, wearing dark blue jeans and a buttoned-up powder blue shirt, the first three buttons from the top are undone, giving me a slight peek of the ones that run across his chest and his sleeves are rolled up to his elbows which showcases half of his tattoos. He looks like a Greek god with his dark hair tousled, the five o’clock shadow on his defined jaw, and those dark chocolate eyes gazing intensely into mine.
“Hi…” I manage to whisper. I can feel my cheeks heating up from the way he is looking at every inch of my body. With every movement of his eyes, it feels as if he is undressing me and caressing my bare skin. I can feel my heartbeat grow more rapid when he lets his stare linger on my breasts before continuing down to my legs and back up again.
“Gorgeous,” he finally says, in a much huskier voice than I’ve ever heard him use before.
“You look very handsome yourself.” I smile sheepishly.
“I brought you these.” He shows his right hand, which was behind him until now, and the most beautiful bouquet of lilies appear, white with bursts of purple. I’ve never had anyone bring me flowers before, and these are beautiful.
“Gavin… Thank you. You didn’t have to do this, really.” I try to swallow back the tears that are trying to break free.
“Hey, look at me.” He reaches for me and wraps me in his arms, making sure our eyes are locked.
“I wanted to get them for you.” Is all he says before pressing his lips to mine and holding me in his arms a little longer.
“Okay, love birds, off you go.” I step out of Gavin’s arms and look past him to see Hunter trying to get into my apartment. My confusion must be written all over my face as to why Hunter is here.
“He’s gonna be watching Logan for us, but don’t worry, Ash will be here any second now to make sure he doesn’t burn the place down.”
I don’t know how I feel about this, I mean, Hunter is Gavin’s best friend, and while Gavin has convinced me a few times to let Logan stay with him at the shop where Hunter has also watched him, I just don’t know. Hunter just gives me this kid vibe, more than an adult one.
“Sorry I’m late. I had to pick up dinner and grab my overnight bag.” Ash hustles through my door and right to the kitchen table to drop off her stuff and dinner. Now, I am worried. I make my way over to the kitchen to place the flowers in a vase and grab Ash’s arm, dragging her with me.
“Are you sure about this?”
“What do you mean? I’ve watched Logan before, remember?”
“That’s not what I meant, Ash, and you know it. Hunter?”
She lets out a big huffing breath that moves her bangs to the side. “B, it’s fine,” she says without looking me in the eye. That is her tell, Ash is lying.
“Eyes, Ashton.” The use of my “mom voice” as well as saying her full name has her being truthful.
“Fine. Look, Hunter, and I have a past, but we’ve come to an agreement, for your and Gavin’s sake, we will not let it get in the way of you two being happy. So, to prove our truce, we agreed to watch Logan for you, while you go on a much-needed date with your sex-on-legs man, and do the bow-chicka-wow-wow!” She does “the dance” while saying that.
Sweet Lord, almighty.
“You seriously are something else, and I’m still not sure if I’m spendi
ng the night.” She bursts out laughing while rolling her eyes and pushing me toward the front door. Before I’m within hearing distance of the guys, I turn back around and whisper, “If I spend the night we’ll go into work tomorrow morning so we can have breakfast and alone time, and you, Miss know-it-all, will tell me the story behind you and Hunter, no ifs, ands, or buts. Got it?”
“You will be spending the night, and I will when you tell me your story, missy.” We lock eyes, and at that moment, I know I have to trust someone with my past, and who better than Ash? With a slight nod from both of us, I walk over to Logan and give him a kiss good night. Whether I spend the night with Gavin or not, I won’t be back for Logan’s bedtime.
“You know the rules, Bubba. You listen to Ash and Hunter. Bedtime is at the same time, no arguments, okay?”
“I know,” he says from his sitting position on the floor with Zeus.
“I know you do, Bubba.”
I’m about to kiss his little head again when he practically shouts out, “Can Zeus sleep with me tonight? Please!” He begs on his hands and knees. No joke. I look over at Gavin, to see he’s trying to hold his laughter.
“Sure, bud, I don’t see why not.”
Logan jumps up and lets out a “whoop” that has Zeus barking in excitement too. These two, just priceless.
“All right, beautiful, let’s go.” Gavin reaches for my hand and waits for me to take it. I close the distance and slip it into his, feeling the warmth that only he seems to be able to give me.
As we walk out of the apartment, the damn butterflies that seem to have taken up residence in my tummy take flight, erupting into fireworks complete with a whole damn parade and marching band.
Chapter Thirteen
Gavin
For three weeks, I’ve been going with the pace Bailey’s set. Granted, we’ve seen each other every single night, and I’ve had my mouth on hers every chance I could get, but I was dying on the inside to have her. I can’t say I’ve been a complete saint though, that’s impossible with a woman like Bailey. After putting Logan to bed last night, we settled in to watch a movie, her scent was all around me, and I couldn’t contain myself. I leaned in to kiss her and she quickly took it deeper. Before I knew it, she was straddling me, and fuck me, she was wearing her little sleep shorts and a fitted t-shirt. I slowly slipped my hand down her stomach and inside her panties, to find she was already soaked. I waited for just a second to see if she would stop me, but the moment her little moans slipped out, and she tried to grind into my hand, that was all I needed to go ahead. I played with her swollen lips and then slipped my index finger inside her. She was so goddamn tight; I could feel her walls sucking my finger in a vice grip. I kissed her softly as she tensed up at my intrusion but quickly relaxed and began slowly fucking my hand.
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