by Amy Brent
I put my fork down and wrapped my arms around her, running my hand up the back of her neck and through her hair. Dinner was no longer my priority, and all I could think about was getting her clothes off. I was hungry, but now it was for something way better and much sweeter.
Chapter 26
Emma
My plan was to get through dinner and dessert before seducing Brandt, but that didn’t happen. As I sat there at the table listening to him talk about his work, I got really turned on. I was always turned on these days but especially so when I realized how brilliant Brandt really was. Straddling him and feeling his cock pushing against his pants turned me on so badly all I could think about was getting his clothes off. I reached up and undid his tie as his tongue swirled around in my mouth. I started to unbutton his shirt, but he reached around and grabbed me under the ass and stood up, walking us both to the bedroom. He sat me down and closed the door, walking toward me with dark eyes. He walked to the back of me and unzipped my dress, pulling the straps down and rolling it over my curves. He unclasped my bra and tossed it to the side before pulling my panties down and off. I bit my lip, watching his intense stare as his palms moved slowly over my perked breasts.
“I want you to get on the bed and play with yourself while I get undressed and watch,” he said, filling me with lust with his dominant approach.
I smiled and nodded my head, walking over to the bed. Still wearing my heels, I climbed up to the head of the bed and leaned back against the headboard. He stood there slowly unbuttoning the cuffs of his shirtsleeves, watching as I spread my legs apart, digging the heels of stilettos into the bed. I pulled my fingers up to my lips and sucked on them, gently lowering them down over my body and pushing them through my folds. I breathed deeply, watching as he pulled his shirt over his strong muscular shoulders, my fingers rubbing through my juices. He smiled as I pulled them back up and pressed against my clit, tilting my head back and moaning.
My fingers swirled around my nub, pushing down and sending waves of pleasure into my stomach. I groaned as my body writhed against the pillows, pulling myself closer to climax. He unbuckled his pants and dropped them to the floor, rubbing up against his hard shaft inside of his boxers.
“Keep going,” he whispered as he pulled his cock out and began to stroke. “I want to see you come.”
“Mmmm,” I moaned, sliding my fingers down and dipping them inside of me, feeling just how sopping wet I really was.
I pulled them back up to my clit again and began to circle around it hard and fast, clamping my other hand against the bedspread. He climbed toward me and watched, his hand stroking his cock with intensity. I screamed out, pushing faster and faster, pulling the heat from my belly up into my chest. He reached forward and pinched my nipples, forcing me over the edge. I thrust my chest forward and tilted my head back, screaming loudly as my orgasm took over, pumping through every muscle in my body. He pushed his hand over mine and rubbed until my body twitched and relaxed.
He grinned, pulling his boxers all the way off and moving toward me. He reached down and turned me over on all fours, grabbing my ass and massaging it in his big strong hands. I moaned, feeling the lust in us both, ready for the next round. He moved forward between my legs and rubbed the head of his cock through my juices before pushing hard inside of me. He pressed his stomach against my ass and held it there for a moment before starting to thrust his hips forward and back. I groaned, feeling his long, hard shaft sliding through my pussy, rubbing against the sides and digging deeper and deeper inside of me. He leaned forward and grabbed my shoulders, pushing deep and hard before sliding back up, his fingers trickling down my spine.
The moans that escaped my throat were deep and strong, and I started to rock my body back and forth, meeting him as he thrust forward. I screamed out, feeling the ecstasy behind it, feeling his muscles rippling behind me. I could barely control myself, and I gripped down on the bed beneath me. He leaned forward once again, but this time, he wrapped his arm around my chest and pulled me upright on my knees. He scooted me forward, closer to the headboard and wrapped my hands around the wooden posts in the center.
He pushed back into me, holding down on my shoulder as his body thrust upward inside. I screamed in ecstasy, feeling every inch of him inside of me. I gripped onto the bed and pushed into my knees, forcing my body still as he pushed in and out of me, faster and faster. I could hear his breath increasing, his hands strong against my waist. He pulled his arm around and pushed his fingers between my legs, cupping my pussy. I groaned loudly as he began to press down on my clit and rub it back and forth as his cock slid through my juices. He slammed his body into me over and over again, the headboard smacking against the wall. The chorus of our moans echoed through the room as we entangled our bodies in complete desire.
He growled loudly, pushing faster, his fingers picking up speed. My body shook as he controlled every inch of me, my head leaning backward and my hair tickling my back. As the need in his movements intensified, so did the fire in my body, and I found myself screaming out, yearning for release. He groaned, rubbing my clit fast and pushing up inside of me deep and holding himself there. As his cock began to pulse inside of me, I erupted, waves of orgasm crashing over me. He groaned, and I felt his cock explode, his hot seed shooting up into me. His hips continued to thrust short and slow until they came to a stop, both of our bodies, weak from pleasure. I let go of the headboard and sank down onto the bed as he moved to the side and lay down with me.
We lay next to each other, holding hands and collecting ourselves. My breathing began to slow, and my heart rate decreased as he moved onto his side and kissed my cheek. I smiled and turned over, pulling my hand under my face and smiling at him. He propped himself up on his elbow and moved the wild pieces of hair from my face.
“You are so beautiful,” he whispered. “And I am so excited that you’re going to be moving here permanently. At the office today, I did some research on moving, and the things we’ll need to do to get you here.”
“I did too,” I said smiling. “I had Lily look up moving companies, real estate companies, and all sorts of things.”
“You had a busy day.” He laughed.
“I did,” I said proudly. “It’s not just the move that’s exciting, but it’s also what the move really means. It is a fresh start for both of us. It’s the beginning of our life together, the beginning of a family for me. It’s everything I’ve always wanted, including such an amazing little girl like Sicily.”
“I feel the same way,” he said. “It’s a beautiful thing, and I know that the three of us, four with my mom, will make the most amazing memories together. Christmases, New Year’s, Easters, and birthdays are going to be so amazing with you here by our side. We really hit the jackpot.”
“Aw,” I said. “That’s such a sweet thing to say.”
I sat smiling at him with a bunch of butterflies in my chest. I was falling madly in love with this man in every way possible. He was smart, kind, charming, and he treated me like I was a princess, someone so very special to him. Not only that, but I was also falling in love with his family and the family we would one day have. I had so many emotions floating around in me, and I wanted to tell him all of them. At the same time, I didn’t want to spill it all too soon. In reality, we had just gotten to know each other recently, and I wasn’t sure if telling him how I felt was a good idea, at least not just yet. I wanted everything to be perfect, everything to be cemented, before I burst wide open with the big I love you. I knew he probably felt the same way, but I also knew that when it was the right moment, we would both know. So, instead of saying it, I leaned up and gently kissed his lips, sliding back down onto the pillow.
“Thank you for tonight. It has been amazing,” he said.
“It’s not over yet.” I laughed. “It’s only eight. Now I know you’re older than me but not eight o’clock bedtime old.”
“You’re right,” he said, laughing hard. “I may have a sore hip from time to ti
me, but I still got some life left in me.”
“We can get you a walker,” I said sarcastically.
“You are too much.” He laughed, shaking his head. “I have an idea.”
“What’s that?”
“Why don’t we pull all the covers off the bed, drag them out into the living room and make a comfy little nest,” he said. “We can turn on some movies and lie together doing whatever it is normal couples do.”
“I’m not sure what exactly a normal couple is,” I said, laughing. “But that sounds like an amazing idea. I love snuggling up in a nest of blankets and watching television. Just let our brains relax and release for a little while.”
“Yep,” he said, jumping from the bed and pulling the blanket off of me. “And no clothes are required.”
We dragged all the pillows and blankets out of his room and into the living room. I stood back and watched as he arranged them all perfectly, making a soft and comfortable place to lie down. He sat down on the blanket and opened his arms, calling me into him. I smiled and raced over, nestling down with my head on his lap. He pulled the other blanket up over us and snuggled in, turning on the television. My hand moved down over my baby belly, and I rubbed gently against it, thinking about my child growing inside.
He flipped through the channels until we found a movie and just relaxed. Life had been so hard back in Camden, and I thought that I would never be happy, especially facing being a single mother. But when Brandt had arrived, everything started to change. The light came back into my life, and for the first time, I was excited to be having a child. Everything went from dismal to perfect almost overnight, and I was positive there was nothing that could get in the way of our happiness. We had come so far in such a short amount of time, and I knew it was because it was all meant to be.
Every kiss, every tear, every whisper, and every wonder had collected together to create this little family that we were growing together. I was finally in Brandt’s arms, and I would finally be able to have the family that I had always wanted. I might not be in Camden, but it didn’t matter. Home was with Sicily and Brandt, and wherever they were, that would be where anyone would find me. I yawned and let my eyelids drop, feeling so completely relaxed. Before I knew it, I had fallen gently to sleep, wrapped in Brandt’s arms.
Chapter 27
A Week Later
Brandt
As I walked through the aisles of the supermarket, I stared down at my list, making sure I was getting everything I had come out for. I had gone out that morning to run errands, grocery shop because our cupboards were bare, and then pick up some movies for me and the girls to watch later. It was movie night, and Sicily was really looking forward to relaxing with the two of us. She had gotten to the point where she craved time with Emma and me like a real family. I knew she would be bouncing off the walls that night, so I tried to pick up snacks with the lowest sugar concentration possible. I wanted the night to be relaxing for all of us. We had really needed it with as busy as we had been.
Emma had been at the apartment for over a week at that point, and she had really gotten comfortable there. She couldn’t sit around, so she cleaned, made dinner every night, sometimes with my mother, and sat out on the balcony getting some fresh air. She had even started feeling comfortable going for walks during the days over to the flower market. The apartment always smelled so fresh and floral when I came home, and it was a nice change from before she came. There were constantly beautiful and exotic flowers in a vase on the counter, and Emma had started researching all of them when she got them. She even got Sicily involved, having her help her figure out the different species of plants and where they originated from. I knew that eventually, she was going to have to go back to Camden to take care of things, but for now, I was enjoying the downtime with her.
As I passed through the frozen food section, looking at the different ice creams I could take home, my phone buzzed in my pocket. I pulled it out and opened up the texts. It was from Emma. She was asking me to pick up some fresh strawberries, something she’d been talking about for several days now. I meant to do it the day before, but work had me there until late into the evening, and I just wanted to get home when I was done. I smiled, thinking about some of the cravings she was starting to get. Beyond making everything smell amazing, she was constantly in the kitchen cooking something. Our counter looked like a bakery with cakes, cookies, and fresh bread all over the place. My mother thought it was the most adorable thing she had ever seen.
I texted her back, promising I wouldn’t forget this time and then picked out a couple different ice creams for the freezer. I looked at my list, happy that strawberries were the only thing left and headed over to the produce section. I picked out the biggest, juiciest strawberries I could find and then put a second carton in there for good measure. I knew if she didn’t eat them straight out, she would use them to make something else delicious. I was going to gain a hundred pounds before this baby was born. I headed over to the checkout and unloaded my cart, staring at the tabloids in the racks as the lady checked me out. I always found them so funny, especially anything that had to do with aliens. When she was done, she took my payment, and I met my driver out front. As he packed the bags in the trunk, my phone buzzed again, but this time it was Trevor.
“Hey, man, where are you?” Trevor said when I answered.
“I’m at the market loading my groceries into the car,” I said. “We were out of food at home. What’s up? You sound panicked.”
“Bosworth Financial is trying to pull out of the whole financing deal unless they can speak to you directly,” he said. ‘They said they’re worried about getting too many non-qualifying applications and having to hire more staff to deal with the influx.”
“So, they want more money is what you’re saying,” I said.
“Well, we aren’t paying them anything.”
“Yeah, but they want to raise the APR that we negotiated,” I said. “I knew something like this would happen. All right, connect me, and we can have a conference call.”
“I’m afraid he wants a face-to-face,” Trevor said. “He’s here in the office now, and he’s expecting you to come in and talk to him.”
“All right,” I sighed. “Give me a few minutes, and I’ll be over.”
I climbed into the car and let the driver know I had to go to the office. I pulled out my phone and sighed, not wanting to give up my time with my family. I knew Terri Bosworth was not going to let this go easily, and I would be there for a while. I called Emma to explain.
“Hey,” she said. “Did you forget the strawberries?”
“No.” I laughed, though not with as much enthusiasm as usual. “But there’s been an emergency at work, and I have to go in for a little while.”
“Oh, no,” she said. “Is everyone all right?”
“Yeah, it’s nothing like that,” I said. “It’s a partnership that I thought we had on lockdown, and now they’re going back on their promises just hours before signing the contracts. I guess I have to start the negotiation process over with them.”
“Okay,” she said. “I’ll get Sicily started on her homework if you aren’t back in time.”
“Thank you, my love,” I said. “I will try to hurry, and I’ll have my driver bring the groceries over.”
“Sounds good,” she said happily before hanging up.
I put the phone down in my lap and smiled, thinking about how normal it sounded to have her talk about getting Sicily settled in when she got home. Emma was so amazing. She had never even hesitated when it came to being there for Sicily. It all had fallen into place naturally, and she took on the duty of mother to my little girl without question or fear. I had really hit the jackpot with this woman, and I didn’t know how I survived without her.
“Will you take the groceries back to my apartment after you drop me off?” I asked the driver. “Emma is there to accept them, or you can leave them at the front, and they’ll get them up there.”
“Absolu
tely, sir,” he said, nodding his head.
When I got to the office, I groaned, pulling myself out of the car, thinking I wasn’t going to see the place for a few days. I went straight up to my office, wanting to be briefed before sitting down with Bosworth. Tucker met me at the elevator when I arrived.
“What’s his mood like?” I asked, walking beside Trevor to my office.
“He’s playing hardball,” Trevor said. “I knew we should have gone with the other bank. This guy really gets under my skin.”
“Relax,” I said. “Take a big, deep breath and remember that hardball is my specialty. This guy thinks because he’s old money, he can throw his weight around, but a higher APR will drive potential customers away. There has to be another way around it, maybe paying for the new employees or starting a small sector of our offices just for vetting all applications before sending them to the bank.”
“This is why you’re the boss.” Trevor laughed.
I went into the meeting headstrong, not backing down when it came to Bosworth’s threats to back out. In my mind, this was icing on the cake for us, and if we lost it, it really wouldn’t be that big of a deal. The idea had only come to fruition a week before. I knew that if he backed out then, he would be back when he saw the sales of the AIs skyrocketing. This man was stubborn, but he wasn’t stupid. During the meeting, I ignored two calls from Josie. Josie was the last person on the planet I wanted to deal with, especially when I was in a meeting like that. By the end of it, everyone was happy, and we were starting a branch for financials in my offices to help with the overload. Bosworth wanted more money, but he could tell I was willing to walk away before raising the rates on the loans.