by Marie Force
“Then that’s what we’ll do.”
—
They never left her bed that night, except for the twenty minutes it took Tyler to cook a pizza he’d found in her freezer. Working in her small but tidy kitchen, he cut the pizza into slices that he put on a plate to carry back to her room where he kissed her awake.
“What time is it?” she asked as she blinked him into focus.
“After eight. I thought you might be hungry.”
“Mmm, I’m starving, and that smells awesome.” Keeping the covers tucked in over her bare breasts, she pushed herself up against a stack of pillows. The girl liked her pillows.
When she was settled, he handed her the plate and returned to the kitchen, hoping against hope that there might be a beer in her refrigerator. Pay dirt. She had an entire six-pack of Sam Adams. He opened one and took it as well as a glass of ice water for her back to the bedroom.
“Give me some of that,” she said, pointing to the beer. “And before you can object, I haven’t had pain pills in more than twenty-four hours.”
He handed over the beer and watched her take a long, lusty drink that had his cock standing up in response to the movement of her throat.
Of course she noticed and up went her eyebrow. “Knock it off.”
“What?” He laughed as he got back into bed and took a slice of pizza before she finished off the whole thing on her own.
“You know what.”
“I’ll stop getting hard every five minutes if you stop being constantly sexy.”
“I’ll work on that,” she said dryly, smiling at him.
They ate the pizza and shared the beer, which was gone within minutes, so he got another one when he went to put their empty plate in the kitchen sink.
“That is so good,” she said of the new beer.
“I had no idea you were such a beer lover.”
“I’m not, really, but something about not being allowed to have it for weeks makes it extra good.”
“Careful. It won’t take much for it to go straight to your head.”
She sent him a sly, sultry smile. “I get horny when I’m drunk.”
“Then by all means, drink up.”
Her lusty laugh was added to his new list of favorite sounds.
Then she surprised the shit out of him when she reached out to tug him closer to her. “What’s that look?” she asked when he was curled up to her.
“What look?”
“I don’t know what to call it. You just looked at me funny.”
“I like that you want me right here next to you.”
“Only ’cuz I’m cold.”
“Ouch,” he said with a chuckle.
“Ty?”
Those closest to him called him that, but to hear it from her . . . “Yeah?”
“I was kidding about being cold.”
“Were you?”
“Uh-huh.”
“So you wanted me for something else then?”
Her hand moved over his arm, restarting the slow burn. “Maybe.”
“Do you think you could handle lying on your belly?”
“How come?”
“Just wondering.”
“I could try.”
Working together, they managed to turn her over. Tyler made use of the huge selection of throw pillows to put one above and one below her knee. “How is that?”
She looked at him over her shoulder. “Feels fine.”
His gaze immediately zeroed in on the adorable dimples at the base of her spine. He wondered if she knew they were there.
“What’re you doing?” she asked after a full minute of silence.
“Admiring the view.” He ran his hands from thighs to supple cheeks, squeezing and shaping them to fit his hands. His thumbs delved into the dimples. “Did you know you have two sexy-as-fuck dimples right here?”
“Do I?”
“Mmm-hmm.” He bent over her to touch his tongue to one and then the other, groaning at the sweet taste of her skin and the way she trembled under him. “I love the way you respond to what I do to you.”
“I love what you do to me.”
More words added to his list of favorites. Hearing her say she loved what he did to her gave him ideas about things he wanted to do. “Would you let me tie your hands sometime?”
“Are you into that?”
“Only if you are.”
“What else do you like?”
He cupped her ass. “Have you ever been spanked?”
“Hardly. I haven’t yet met a guy who thought it would be a good idea to spank me.”
“Now you have, but again, only if it turns you on, too.”
“What else?”
“Toys.”
“What kind?”
“All kinds. You name it, I’d probably like it.”
“To give or receive?”
“Mostly give, but I’m not opposed to experimentation.” As he spoke, he continued to run his hands over her back and bottom, making her squirm. “Hold still.”
“I can’t.”
“Why not?”
“Because! You’re making me crazy.”
“That’s how I want you.” His lips skimmed a path down her backbone. “Tell me what you like. I want to do everything with you.”
“I . . . I don’t know what I like. I haven’t done that stuff.”
“None of it?”
“No,” she said on a long exhale that made him smile as he continued to kiss her back.
“Mmm, we’re going to have so much fun.” Cupping her cheeks, he let his thumbs delve between them to discover how wet their conversation had made her. “I think it’s safe to say you like to talk about it.”
Her soft moan was the only reply he got.
Moving her good leg farther away from the leg that was propped on pillows, Tyler lowered himself and guided his hard cock into her tight, wet heat.
Her head came up, and her hands fisted the comforter.
“Easy, baby. Nice and easy.” The position made for a tight fit, which had him trembling to hold still until her muscles yielded to allow him in. “Is this okay?”
She groaned and pushed back against him.
“Words, Charley. Give me words.”
“It’s okay. It’s . . . Ahhh, God. Don’t stop.”
“Those are good words.” Wrapping his arms around her so she couldn’t move and possibly hurt herself, he slid deep into her before retreating and doing it again and again and again until her entire body seized up and her internal muscles clamped down and finished him off, too.
His forehead dropped to her back as he fought to catch his breath while aftershocks from her release fluttered like butterfly wings against his sensitive flesh.
“Charley.”
“Yeah.”
“You okay?”
“Mmm, yeah. I’m good. Really good. You?”
“I’m great.” He wanted to wallow in the scent of her, the feel of her soft skin, the heat of her. But he was afraid to put too much weight on her, so he lifted himself up and withdrew before helping her to turn over. Brushing the hair back from her face, he gazed down at her as she looked up at him, her expression one of wonder and disbelief.
“What’re you thinking?”
“That I can’t believe what a dirty dog Tyler Westcott turned out to be.”
Her comment drew a huge smile from him. “I’m just full of surprises.”
“Yes, you are.”
“I hope these are good surprises.”
“They’re very good surprises.”
Tyler caressed her face and leaned in to kiss her, loving how her hand curled around his neck to keep him there for a deep, searching kiss. Her tongue sought out his, and he hardened again, like he hadn’t just come f
ive minutes ago. That’s what she did to him.
Rather than give in to the reawakened desire, he gathered her in as close to him as he could with her leg positioned on the pillows. “Comfortable?”
“Very.”
“Tell me something about you that I don’t know,” he said, his hand moving from her belly to her breast, because he couldn’t resist her gorgeous breasts.
She winced ever so slightly.
“Sore?”
“A little. You gave them a hell of a workout earlier.”
“Want me to kiss them better?”
Laughing, she said, “That’s probably not the best idea.”
“I thought it was a great idea.”
“You would. And I thought you already knew me better than I know myself?”
“I’m still finding out all sorts of new things.”
“Like what?”
“I love that you do this cute little snore when you’re asleep,” he said, imitating the sound.
“I do not!”
“Yes, you do. It’s not all the time, just once in a while, and it’s so cute. And then there’s the way you set your jaw when you’re pissed about something, which seems to be often when I’m around.” Again, he mimicked the expression to show her what he meant. “And let’s talk about the sounds you make when you come.” He shivered. “I love those.”
“Let’s not talk about that. Ever.”
“Why not? They’re on my list of favorite sounds in the whole world.”
Charley put her hands over her ears, making him laugh. “Stop it right now, or you’ll never hear them again.”
“Never?” He slid his hand down to cup her, dipping a finger into the well of moisture between her legs. “Never, ever?”
“Ugh, stop. You’re out to kill me, aren’t you?”
Kissing her shoulder, he said, “Not even kinda.”
CHAPTER 19
To be alive at all involves some risk.
—Harold Macmillan
On Thursday evening, the Abbott and Coleman women invaded Tyler’s house so they could keep Megan entertained during Hunter’s bachelor party. In addition to Molly, Hannah and Ella, Megan’s sister Nina, Cameron, Lucy, her sister Emma and niece Simone, and Charley’s aunt Hannah and cousins Isabella and Vanessa Coleman were in attendance.
Not only had Tyler invited the girls over, but he’d cooked for them, too.
“If you don’t marry this guy,” Izzy said as she devoured the pulled pork he’d made, “I call dibs.”
“I’m not marrying him.” No, I’m just having astounding sex with him.
“So he’s fair game, then?” Izzy asked with a challenging look.
“I didn’t say that.”
Izzy pounced on that. “Ah-ha!”
Charley wasn’t prepared to answer questions about her and Tyler, what they meant to each other or what the future held for them. She was taking things a day at a time, and so far that strategy was working for her. It had really worked for her yesterday when they spent the entire afternoon and night in his bed, getting up only to eat before going back for more.
“Her face is all flushed,” Vanessa said. “What do you suppose she’s thinking about?”
“Whose idea was it to invite the Colemans tonight?” Charley asked, making the others laugh.
“For what it’s worth, I think Tyler is incredibly sexy,” Megan offered.
All eyes turned to the bride-to-be.
“Not as sexy as Hunter, of course,” she said, smiling. “Not even close.”
“Ewww,” Charley said. “He’s way sexier than Hunter ever thought of being.”
“No one is sexier than Hunter,” Megan declared, drawing groans from his sisters and cousins.
“Will is way sexier,” Cameron said to more gags from Will’s family members.
“Let’s call it a draw,” Molly said. “This is a family full of good-looking men, particularly their father.”
Charley covered her ears. “Tell me when it’s over,” she said to her sister Hannah.
Hannah patted her good knee. “There’s nothing sexier than the smell of motor oil and sweat on a man after a hard day of work,” Hannah said, fanning her face as the others screamed with laughter.
“I can top that,” Lucy said. “Wood smoke and maple syrup. Yum.”
“Chalk dust,” Nina said with a dramatic shiver that got everyone laughing again. Her husband, Brett, was a teacher at a school in France.
Charley’s aunt Hannah got up and left the room, heading for the kitchen where she began doing the dishes. Charley got up and went after her, moving slowly on a leg that was getting stronger all the time. “You okay, Auntie?”
“Sure, just tending to some of these dishes.”
Charley stood next to her aunt at the sink, drying as she washed.
“Don’t let all the lovebirds push you into something you don’t want,” Hannah said after a long silence. “Marriage isn’t for everyone.”
“I agree. I’m not so sure it’s for me.”
“Nothing wrong with being single. Plenty of women these days are choosing to forgo marriage and families to focus on their careers and their own aspirations. You shouldn’t feel pressured into doing what your sisters and brothers are doing.”
“I don’t.” She didn’t feel pressured, but the more time she spent with Tyler, the more panicky she felt about the deadline she’d put on their relationship. As the end of the year loomed large, she began to wish she hadn’t insisted on a time limit.
“People settle down expecting it to be forever, but sometimes it doesn’t last and you’re left to fend for yourself.”
It was as much as Charley had heard her aunt say about her husband’s betrayal.
“I’m sorry that happened to you, Aunt Hannah. I can’t imagine how difficult it must’ve been for you.”
“No, you can’t, especially because I had no idea he was unhappy.”
“You guys hadn’t been . . . You hadn’t had problems?”
“Not that I knew of. One day everything was fine, the next day he was gone.”
“And he didn’t say why?”
“Nope. What does it matter?” She scrubbed vigorously at one of the few pans Tyler hadn’t already washed before he left. “Gone is gone.” When the pan was clean and rinsed, she handed it to Charley to dry. “It would be so easy to get caught up in all of this,” Hannah said, gesturing to Tyler’s lovely kitchen and the rest of his home. “The point is, don’t feel you have to jump on the bandwagon just because your siblings are doing it.”
“I won’t.”
“You remind me a lot of myself at your age, Charley. I wasn’t in any great rush to settle down and get married, but then I met Mike and let myself get swept away. I don’t do regrets, and I love my children very much. But sometimes I wonder what might’ve been if I’d taken the road less traveled, you know?”
“Yes, I do.”
“What’s going on in here, ladies?” Molly asked when she joined them, carrying two empty bowls that Hannah took from her to wash.
“Just chatting and washing dishes,” Hannah said.
“You should get off your feet, honey,” Molly said to Charley. “I’ll take over in here.”
“I’m okay, Mom. If I don’t stop sitting around, I’m going to weigh a thousand pounds by the time this knee is healed.”
“You look as fit and trim as you always do,” Molly said.
“Maybe so, but I feel flabby and soft.”
“If that’s flabby,” Hannah said, “sign me up.”
“No kidding,” Molly said. “I want to be flabby like you.”
Charley laughed at their commentary. “You two have eighteen kids between you. I think you’re due a little extra flesh here and there.”
With the dishes done, the three of the
m returned to the party with fresh drinks to enjoy with the delicious brownies Hannah had baked.
“Are you nervous, Megan?” Lucy asked. Her niece Simone had curled up in Lucy’s lap and was on her way to dozing off.
“Not at all,” Megan said. “I can’t wait.”
“When it’s right, it’s right,” Hannah declared, her hand curving over the rounded hump of her pregnant belly.
“What’s the deal with this Pig’s Belly place you all are taking us tomorrow night?” Ella asked.
“It’s where Hunter and I had our first date,” Megan said, smiling widely. “It’s a special place for us, and we wanted to share it with all of you.”
“I can’t picture my brother Hunter taking you to a place called the Pig’s Belly Tavern for your first date,” Charley said.
“It was wildly romantic,” Megan said, blushing to the roots of her blond hair.
“This I have to see,” Charley said.
Megan grinned at her, the picture of happy satisfaction, and Charley experienced an almost painful yearning to experience that for herself. The tingling sensation in her chest was reminiscent of the feelings she’d had in the hospital when the blood had begun to flow to her frozen feet and hands. Only this time, it felt as if blood were once again flowing to her injured heart.
—
Hannah dropped Molly at the red barn shortly after ten. Molly leaned over to kiss her daughter’s cheek. “Get some sleep, honey.”
“I’ll try, but the little monster is freaking out in there tonight.” She took hold of her mother’s hand and placed it over her extended belly, where Molly could feel her grandchild doing gymnastics.
“Oh wow,” Molly said. “That’s amazing!”
“All the times you were pregnant, and you still find the wonder. That is amazing.”
“I can’t wait to meet this little person and watch you and Nolan raise him or her.”
“Her,” Hannah said softly, revealing previously undisclosed information.
“Oh! Oh, Hannah! A little girl.” Molly’s eyes filled with tears as she hugged her daughter. “I can’t wait.”
“Neither can I. We weren’t going to find out, but at the last ultrasound we couldn’t resist, and then we said we weren’t going to tell anyone, but you’re not just anyone.”