by Marie Force
“Two can play at the game,” she said, reaching around grasp his erection in her tight little hand.
Hunter saw stars when she began to stroke him. “Maybe you’re right. We ought to move things along here.”
Her laughter went straight to his heart. “I like when you see things my way.”
With his hand over hers, he extricated himself from her grip and turned her to face him. She was so pretty and so damned sexy, especially with arousal heating her cheeks and her lips already swollen from the many times he’d kissed her during their wedding.
Reaching behind her, he released the clasp on her bra and watched with desperate desire beating through him as her breasts sprang free. “So beautiful,” he whispered. “And all mine.” He put his arms around her and brought her in tight against him for a deep, passionate kiss. While he kissed her, his hands moved over her, touching her with the kind of reverence required for a wedding night, but the reverence only amped up the desperation for both of them.
She tugged on him, drawing him down over her on their bed, her legs opening to welcome him.
He pulled back, only to remove the garter belt, stockings and thong, leaving her bare to his ravenous gaze.
“Hunter,” she said, reaching for him. “Make love to me. Please.”
He could deny her nothing, especially when she asked in such a pleading tone for something he wanted more than his next breath. They both wanted a baby as soon as possible, so they’d stopped trying to prevent pregnancy a while ago. He’d hoped she’d already be pregnant by now, but it hadn’t happened yet.
Sliding into her with nothing between them but raw desire and love was like finding paradise on earth. He had to take a minute to get himself together or risk this being over way before he wanted it to be.
Megan held him close, caressing his back and running her fingers through his hair. “You feel so good. So, so good.”
“Mmm, you do, too. Best thing I’ve ever felt is your skin against mine. And to know I get to have you in my bed every night forever . . .” He raised his head to meet her gaze. “There’s nothing else I could ever want as long as I have you.”
“Me, too.” Lifting her legs over his hips, she arched into him, asking for more.
Hunter was more than happy to give it to her, surging into her until they both came with sharp cries of pleasure. Every time they made love, he wondered if it would lead to the child they both wanted so badly. He kissed a path from her neck to her lips, kissing her softly in the calm that followed the storm.
“Thanks for marrying me, Megan.”
“It was a tremendous hardship, but somehow I’ll cope.”
Smiling at her witty reply, Hunter dropped his head to her shoulder, as content as he’d ever hoped to be in this lifetime.
CHAPTER 24
Risk it; go for it. Life always gives you another chance, another go at it. It’s very important to take enormous risks.
—Mary Quant
The days between Hunter’s wedding and Christmas passed in a whirl of work and holiday parties and long hours in bed with Charley. Tyler had never neglected his business as much as he had since Charley had been staying with him, but he figured it was a small price to pay to spend hours lost in her.
She’d been quieter than usual since the drama with Max and Chloe at the wedding, and he’d wanted to ask her what was on her mind, but he’d held back, afraid of what he might hear. Despite all their many steps forward, he knew it wouldn’t take much to send her spiraling backward.
On Christmas Eve, they wrapped the last of the presents that had been delivered to his house from her rash of online shopping.
“I’ve got to admit there’s something to be said for having it all show up in the driveway instead of slogging through malls in the cold and snow,” she said late in the afternoon.
Wearing only a Dartmouth T-shirt of his, she sat on the sofa and he was on the floor as they used the coffee table to wrap. He knew there was nothing under the shirt because he’d put it on her when he dragged her out of bed earlier to attend to the wrapping that had to be done before the gathering at his parents’ home later.
“I won’t tell anyone you said that.”
“Please don’t. I’ll get run out of the family.”
“Who would manage their systems if they ran you out?”
“Systems administrators are a dime a dozen. They’d find someone.”
Tyler studied her intently, one of his favorite pastimes. There was so much insight to be found in her many expressions, her tone of voice and the things she didn’t say. “Do you think Hunter would be as easily replaced because CPAs are a dime a dozen?”
“He’s way more than a CPA. He manages the whole show. We’d be lost without him.”
“How about Will? Couldn’t just anyone run the Vermont Made line?”
“Will knows this state better than the governor does. He’d be hard to replace.”
“How about Ella and Wade?”
“Ella is magic with the employees. They absolutely love her. And Wade, as our resident healthy living fanatic, is ideal for running the health and wellness line. They’re all really good at what they do.”
“And you’re not?”
“I am, I guess. I’ve spent a lot of time building the systems and making them talk to each other. But that doesn’t mean someone else couldn’t come in and take over for me.”
“If you ask me, you’re selling yourself short. You’re as essential to that business as any of your siblings are.”
“Dad’s making noise about a catalog and distribution center after the first of the year. That’ll make for a nice juicy challenge.”
“And you love nothing more than a nice juicy challenge.”
She smiled, flattening him with the punch of emotion that hit him when she looked at him that way.
“Don’t look now, but I think we’re done wrapping,” he said.
“Thank God. I don’t know how the ladies in the store wrap all day at work and then go home to do their own. They must see dancing Santas in their sleep.”
He stood and stretched, working the kinks out of his back from an hour sitting on the floor. Wearing only boxer briefs, he tried not to think about all the keys he’d handed out to her family and how often they’d made use of them. Then he opened his eyes to find her staring at him. “What?”
“You.”
“What about me?”
“I like to look at you.”
Taken aback by the statement and the blatant invitation in her eyes, he said, “You can look at me any time you want, free of charge.”
She held out her hand to him and brought him to lie next to her on the sofa.
“You rang?”
Charley laughed and flattened her hand on his chest, stopping his heart. He was still getting used to what it felt like to be touched by her. “I wanted to tell you that I think that having a boyfriend is . . .”
Tyler died a thousand deaths waiting to hear how that sentence would end.
“. . . pretty nice.”
“Pretty nice, huh? I suppose that’s better than pretty awful but not quite as good as pretty awesome would be.”
“You never give up, do you?” she said, her lips curved in amusement.
“No, I’ll never give up on you, unless you tell me I have to. But please don’t do that.” He ran a finger over the furrow that had frequently marked her brows since the wedding. “What’s this about? You’re stewing over something, and you have been for days now.”
“I’ve been thinking about Max and the baby and what Chloe did—and how hard it must’ve been for her to decide that motherhood isn’t for her.”
“She probably should’ve thought about that before she had a baby.”
“He wasn’t planned. Accidents happen—and they happen to people who don’t want to be parents.”
“True, and I don’t mean to be judging someone I don’t even know, but I can’t help but feel sorry for Caden. Someday he’s going to learn that his mother didn’t want him, and that’s going to be tough.”
“He’ll have plenty of people who love him and want him.”
“But his mother isn’t one of them, Charley. Whenever he figures that out, he’s going to have a lot to deal with.”
“I know,” she said with a sigh. “You’re right.”
“So what else is bothering you about this? I know it’s more than Max and Chloe.”
She rolled her lip between her teeth and glanced up at him with huge brown eyes gone liquid with emotion.
“What is it? Just tell me and we’ll figure it out. Please don’t cry.” He kissed her cheek and lips.
“You want kids someday, right?”
“I guess. I like being an uncle. I like that a lot, but I’ve never even come close to having my own kids. Of course, there’s no comparison between an occasional visit and a daily commitment that lasts for eighteen years. Why do you ask?”
“Because I don’t think I want them. I never have. While my sisters and cousins were playing with babies, I was shooting baskets or wrestling with my brothers or skiing. While they were babysitting, I was waitressing. I’ve never been into babies and kids, and at thirty, I’m not expecting to change my mind about that.”
“Okay.”
She eyed him skeptically. “That’s it? Just okay?”
“What do you want me to say?” He twirled a strand of her hair around his index finger. “I’d never try to talk you into something you don’t want, especially something as important as a baby.”
“You built this house for the family you hope to have someday. Those are your words.”
“If my family were you and me and Rufus, I’d be pretty damned happy about that.”
“That’s a lot of empty bedrooms, Tyler.”
“Who says we’d have to stay here?”
“You love this house.”
“I love you more.” The words were out of his mouth before he took the time to weigh the pros and cons of telling her that.
Her eyes went wide with surprise—or maybe it was shock. “You . . . You . . .”
“I love you, Charley. I’ve loved you for a while now, even when you were pushing me away and shooting me down.” He leaned in close enough to kiss her, forcing her to make eye contact with him. “I. Love. You.”
“Oh,” she said on a long exhale. “Well . . .”
Laughing at her befuddled reply, he said, “No need to panic or freak out or run away or do any of your usual things. It doesn’t change anything.” Even as he said that, however, he knew it wasn’t entirely true. It actually changed everything.
“Yes, it does,” she said softly.
“If I get to have you but I don’t have kids, I’d be just fine. I’d be better than fine. I’d be fantastic because I had you.”
“Your parents would hate me if I kept you from being a father.”
“They won’t hate you. They’ll love you because I do.” Now that he’d said those three powerful words out loud, he couldn’t seem to stop saying them. “And they’d never know anything other than we decided not to have kids.”
“This conversation is getting pretty far down the road seeing as how you’re my temporary boyfriend.”
“I thought we decided deadlines were silly.”
“We did and they are, but still . . . Nothing has been decided, and we shouldn’t even be talking about this stuff.” When she would have pulled away from him, he stopped her by tightening his arm around her.
“Don’t, Charley. Don’t run away from me because it’s gotten intense between us.” He moved ever so slightly to position himself on top of her, looking down at her as he spoke. “Don’t run. Stay here with me and freak out. I’ll hold you until you get it out of your system.”
“What if I never get it out of my system?”
“I’d hold you forever if you’d let me.”
“You’re too good for me, Tyler. You deserve someone who can give you everything you want and need.”
“I already have her. I have what I want and need. The question is, Charley, what do you want?”
—
What do you want? Tyler’s question stayed with Charley as she showered and changed for the gathering at his parents’ home. It stayed with her when she met his brothers, Rob, Chris and Dave, as well as his sisters, Cheryl and Paula, and their husbands and children. It stayed with her while she chatted with his dad and watched Tyler on the floor wrestling with his nephews and later, allowing his nieces to paint his nails a bright shade of pink.
What do you want, Charley? Her heart melted at the sight of his littlest niece, Violet, asleep in his arms while the family chatted in their big family room after dinner. The tiny girl’s face was flushed with holiday excitement. Tyler ran his fingers through her blond curls while talking football with his brothers.
I love you, Charley. I’ve loved you for a while now, even when you were pushing me away and shooting me down.
He caught her eye and sent her a private smile that warmed her all the way through.
She thought about everything he’d done for her since her accident, the nights he’d spent by her side in the hospital, bathing her face with cold cloths while she burned with fever, carrying her around those first painful days at home, helping her in the bathroom, setting up his bedroom for her, holding hands in the dark with her night after night, encouraging her through physical therapy and cooking delicious meals. Even when she was cranky from the pain, he’d never lost his sense of humor or his ability to cheer her up.
I want him, she thought with sudden clarity that left her breathless. I want to always feel the way I do when he looks at me. I want to stop being so afraid and take everything he’s offered me. The decision sent her reeling, which of course he noticed, his brow raised in inquiry. That he could be so attuned to her in a room full of people validated her life-changing decision.
On the verge of overheating, she got up and hobbled into the kitchen in search of a glass of ice water.
Vivienne, who’d been unloading the dishwasher, stopped what she was doing when Charley entered the room. “You shouldn’t be on your feet, honey. What can I get for you?”
“Just some water, please, and I’m fine. My knee is feeling great.”
“I’m so glad to hear it.” Vivienne filled a glass with ice and poured water from a pitcher. “Here you are.”
“Thank you.” Charley took a greedy drink of the cold water and felt her nerves begin to settle ever so slightly. “And I’ve never gotten the chance to thank you for what you did to help Tyler get his place ready for an invalid.”
“It was my pleasure to help you—and him. He was out of his mind after you got hurt.”
“So I’ve heard. He’s been really great helping me get back on my feet.”
“He cares for you very deeply.”
“I know.”
Though Vivienne smiled and began to wipe the counter, Charley could tell there was more she wanted to say.
Charley went to her, put her hand on the other woman’s arm. “Don’t worry. I think it’s going to be okay.”
“Oh, honey . . .” Vivienne took a deep breath and blinked back tears. “I’m so happy to hear you say that.”
“What’s going on in here, ladies?” Tyler asked when he joined them.
“Just girl talk,” Vivienne said with a smile for Charley. “None of your business.”
Charley laughed at her saucy reply. She glanced up at Tyler, who was looking sexy in a gray cashmere sweater and dark jeans that hugged his muscular body in all the right places.
His eyes heated with awareness of her. “My girl and I need to head out. I don’t want her overdoing it.”
“And he thinks I buy that,” Vivienne said, rolling her eyes.
Charley cracked up laughing as Vivienne hugged her. “Thank you for a lovely evening.”
“It was delightful to have you here with us, Charley. I hope you and all the Abbotts have a very merry Christmas.”
“Same to you.”
Tyler hugged and kissed his mother. “Thanks for a great night, Mom. I’ll call you tomorrow.”
“You enjoy your time with Charley and her family.”
“I will.”
They said good-bye to the rest of the family and went out into the frigid night.
Tyler kept his arm tight around her as they walked to the Range Rover. “Look up.”
“Oh wow,” Charley said of the stars that filled the night sky. She brought her gaze down from the heavens to find he’d been looking at her while she looked at the stars. And then he was kissing her with hours of pent-up desire.
She curled her arms around his neck and lost herself in the kiss—and in him. The kiss was so hot she could barely feel the cold.
He pressed her against the car and destroyed her with deep sweeps of his tongue and soft bites of his teeth on her bottom lip. “Charley,” he whispered when he finally broke the kiss many minutes later. “I’ve been dying for you for hours. How do you do that to me?”
“The same way you do it to me, I suppose.”
“Let’s go home.”
When, she wondered, had his home become their home? When had she stopped thinking of her apartment as home and started thinking of the spacious home on the hill as theirs rather than his? Maybe it was when he brought home a huge Christmas tree and she helped him decorate it. Or perhaps it was when she tried to cook for him and burned pancakes beyond recognition, forcing him to open windows to let in fresh, freezing air while praising her efforts. It could’ve been the many times they’d stayed up all night talking and laughing and making love.
How was it that tearing up her knee could’ve led to some of the best times of her life?
She stared out the passenger window on the way home, fully aware that at some point over the last few weeks she’d stopped pushing Tyler away and had begun to actively pull him closer. And now he was closer to her than any man had ever been, and she was actually okay with that.