I can’t wait to see my little man. I haven’t seen him since my first full day in the hospital. Bronson snuck him in, and he was distraught and knew something was wrong. They got kicked out of my room despite the fit Bronson threw, and I was a wreck afterwards. He sees me as soon as we walk in the office and begins toddling his way over. “Can you pick him up?” I nervously ask Bronson.
“Sure, you still sore?”
“Yes,” I lie. I’m fucking terrified to hold my child. The little strip of stitches my reminder of what could happen. Once he is in his dad’s arm he is squirming towards me so I lean in and smother kisses all over his face. He giggles and I keep doing it until Bronson lets out a deep groan. It’s then I realize I have smashed my chest against his arm and hand, particularly by tit against his knuckles. That sound makes me shiver. My nipples tighten. I step back and sit down, letting Angelo get on my lap. All is healing per the doctor so we head to my house after dropping Gianna off.
“You could have just dropped me off first.”
“Mom was tired from the last few days, this way I don’t keep her while I help you get settled.” Once he carries our stuff and our child inside, I expect him to leave. He doesn’t, instead ordering lunch.
“Make yourself at home.” I quip.
“Thanks,” his angelic smile isn’t fooling me.
“I was kidding.”
“I wasn’t.” He eats lunch, sharing it with his greedy son and then gets Angelo settled for a nap. They’re in there so long I doze off on the couch and wake up just before dusk. I notice the quiet of the house and become panicked because Angelo should be awake by now. I jump off the couch and on the way to the one bedroom I catch sight of the beach, and see father and son sitting, playing in the sand. I snapshot that to my memory and then wonder why the hell that man is still here.
“Hey, I’m up, you can bring him back in.” I holler through the screen door.
He wipes the sand off both of them and they walk towards me. “You didn’t have to keep him occupied after his nap, I would have gotten him.”
“You were so peaceful and you need your rest. It’s fine, we had a good time.”
Instead of leaving, he goes to the fridge and grabs a beer and takeout containers. “I had some groceries delivered while you were asleep.”
“Um, thanks.” I notice the pantry is stocked to. “This is too much. Let me repay you.”
“I’m going to pretend you didn’t just insult me. I figure it’s good for the week and then you should feel up to grocery shopping.”
“This is enough for a month.”
“You forget how much I eat.”
“You aren’t here. Eat at your own house. Pack it up and take it with you.”
“I am here. I will be here for the duration.”
“That’s not what we agreed upon.”
“I didn’t agree to anything.”
“You said okay.”
“Did I?”
“Bronson, you aren’t staying here.”
“Callie, I am. It will be fine.” I stomp my foot. He just chuckles as he passes me, kissing my temple and tweaking my chin. “Hey Angelo, want to watch the game with Daddy?” That’s how I finish my night, those two thick as thieves settled in the couch watching baseball. The next day is more of the same. He is taking this overboard.
By the third day I’m about to lose my mind. “I’m evicting you.”
“You can’t evict me, you’re renting this place.”
“I’ll call the leasing office, they can evict you.”
“Oh, Shawn? He and I are great friends, go ahead and call.” I decide I will ignore him. I start searching the help wanted ads, sure that I no longer have a job since I walked out and then missed six days of work. He stands over my shoulder, “What are you doing?”
“Job hunting.”
“For what?”
“For shits and giggles. A job you dipshit. I need to pay rent, groceries, keep our child fed and clothed.”
“I can do all that. You need to be here with Angelo.”
I roll my eyes. “Angelo is perfectly fine with your mom and you can’t pay my rent.”
“Well in Miami you won’t have my mom to watch him and I didn’t think you wanted him in daycare yet.”
“Well, in Miami I won’t be there so it’s a moot point. By the way, when do you go back?”
“I took a short leave. I have another three weeks,” I may kill him. Or myself. One of us isn’t making it out alive.
I go back to circling jobs I don’t really want, but really need. “Why don’t you hold off for another week? Catch your breath.”
“I have rent due and I can pay this month but next month I’ll be cutting it close.”
“Callie, take my money. I’ll pay your damned rent.”
“No, you won’t.”
“Okay, suit yourself.”
I learned later that week when Bronson says ‘okay’ he really doesn’t mean ‘okay.’ His first okay in the hospital . . . he moved in with me. The second over money and rent . . . he bought my fucking bungalow so now I don’t have rent.
“You crossed the line here, Bronson.”
“Sorry,” he shrugs.
“You sound like it.” He isn’t sorry. He’s getting his way and is fucking back to his old ways with me. “We need to set some boundaries.”
“Okay,” he smiles.
“First, don’t use that fucking word with me again. No more ‘okays’ from you because what that word means for you and the definition of that word are two completely different things, and you are using it out of context.”
He is laughing at me. Full out, sound escaping from his mouth, body shaking laughing at me. “I’m glad I can entertain you.”
“That, you could always do.”
“Can’t you go for a movie for that? I’m sure it’s much cheaper.”
“No, I’m good.” I flip him off and go make dinner. Secretly, I’m thrilled he is still here but I don’t trust it yet.
Another week and I still have company, so I decide to use this built in babysitter I have.
“Girls night?” I ask as soon as Bianca answers the phone.
“Hell yeah,” she readily agrees. “Big brother driving you insane?”
“He’s fucking nuts, Binks. What did I ever see in him?”
“He’s nuts alright but you love him.”
“So.”
“That’s progress. You aren’t denying it anymore.”
“Shut up and be here at nine.”
“He has no clue we are going out does he?”
“Nope.”
“Well make it worth it. Dress like the slut I tried to be in college.”
I snort, “Oh god, Bianca. You kill me.”
“I suggest you start drinking now because you are going to need it to deal with him tonight.”
“It’s like two in the afternoon.”
“You should have started at noon.”
“See you soon.”
“Oh, yes. I wouldn’t miss this. I’ll be the one standing in the corner laughing.”
“You are such a bitch.”
“Oh, if my brother wasn’t going to spank your ass for your stunt tonight I may be tempted to do it for that insult.” I hang up on her. I don’t think he will be that upset, but he is walking around my house like he owns it. Well, technically, he does, but he doesn’t own me, damn it.
After dinner I ask, “Hey can you put him down after his bath? I need to take a bath tonight?”
He raises his eyebrows, “Special occasion?” He is so barking up the wrong tree with those expectations. Sure, I used to soak in the bath before sexy time years ago, so he always equated bath with sex.
“No, just cleanliness. Ya know that thing that’s close to godliness?”
Shaking his head at me, “Yes, I’ll put little man down. We need to think about taking a day trip to Miami, I want you to check out the area and see if you like it.”
“Doesn’t matter if I
like it, I don’t live there. As long as you aren’t on the corner of Heroin and Main then I think we are good. I just don’t want my son to get any ideas on a career choice at such a young age.”
“Smartass,” he smacks my ass as he walks by.
“Hey, hands of the merchandise.”
“I wasn’t offered a proof of purchase.”
“I don’t take payment plans.”
He gets real close to my face, “Don’t offer what you aren’t going to back up. Lay out your terms right now and I’ll meet them.” Holy shit, I think I just came. I mean, it has been two long years and his breath is like a bullet. Right to the clit and sends vibrating pulses through your body. I swallow and step back. “Yeah, I thought so, baby.” Jesus, I’m playing with the master.
I make quick work of bathing our son and then carry him to the living room with all his stuff. “See you shortly.” I make sure I have everything I need, including the bottle of wine I stashed in here earlier. I’m not coming out until Bianca is knocking at the door.
I loofah, shave, exfoliate, pluck, apply, take off, reapply, curl, straighten and recurl. I’m wearing a one-piece strapless shorts set that is rather short, and when I pair it with a pair of heeled sandals I almost wolf whistle at myself. I hear the door open and Bianca’s voice. Chugging down the rest of my wine I hurry out grabbling my purse on the way to the kitchen.
“Hot damn, mamma, you look hot,” Bianca draws attention to me.
“Oh, fuck no.” Is he kidding right now?
“Alright, let’s roll Bianca. You driving?”
“Of course, this is your first night out in how long? I think I hear some lemon drops calling your name.”
“Oh, fuck no.” He repeats. I wonder if he is stuck on that phrase, maybe if I pop him in the back of the head he will jump forward to the pacing and forbidding part of the evening.
“Bianca, can you give us a minute?” His jaw tight, his eyes smoldering and he runs his tongue over his lips to wet them.
“Nah, I’m good here.” I can’t help but laugh. He shoots her a look and strides until he is right up on me, and I mean right up on me, touching me with the entire length of his body. I step back but he catches me around my waist.
“Nice plan, Callie. Now, I raise you. Come back here somewhat sober and I promise I will own that ass tonight. You let me know how you’re gonna play this and I’ll be right here.” He runs his nose up the side of my face, and my eyes flutter close. He gets to my ear and whispers, “Want to wager?” I stupidly nod yes. “You get back here before one and I’ll have you on your back, legs by my ears and my tongue so deep in your pussy within five minutes of you walking in that door.”
“A-and if I’m late?”
“Plan on sucking my cock for a very long time.” See that right there isn’t a fair wager. No matter how you look at it, I can’t lose. He lets his hands glide down from my waist to right under my ass and strokes for a few minutes, each time his fingers getting closer to my core. “See you . . . soon.” He smiles at me.
I stumble outside, “Holy fuck, Callie. That’s my brother and even I can admit that was fucking hot as hell. Why are we going out?”
“Because I need alcohol to figure out if I’m going to be on my back or my knees tonight. Now come on.”
Chapter 31
Bronson
I knew eventually she would give up on this game. I had to prove to her I wasn’t leaving. Maybe buying a house was over the top, but I promised her I’d do whatever it took. I hate that I still see doubt in her gorgeous eyes, but tonight I will try my hardest to alleviate that. Her love was never a question, not after listening to her, but her trust is what’s holding her back. I’m a man of action, not words, so I pulled out all the stops the past two weeks.
Part of me doesn’t want to go back to Miami, but I love my job. The time spent as a family has been everything to me and I won’t give it up. Sure there are issues, but aren’t there in every relationship? I glance at the clock. How the hell is it only ten o’clock? She’s been gone for an hour and I’m still hard. My first instinct was to forbid her to go out, then I realized that was what she was expecting, and it would have given her another opportunity to fight with me, use her anger as a defense, so I changed tactics on her and I’ll be damned if she didn’t respond.
So I wonder which option she will take? Either way I’m tasting her tonight, so really she is just determining if I have my dick in her mouth or not. I grab a beer and sit back to watch the game and pass the time until she comes home. Twelve forty nine and doorknob jiggles. I hear her giggle and I smile. She wants my mouth and that she will get . . . and I don’t give a fuck if she is sober or not. I stand and adjust myself. Once she gets through the door, I pounce. She squeals and then throws her hand over her mouth so she doesn’t wake our son up. I meet her gaze and the passion shining in them about tips me over. I have approximately four minutes left so I waste not a second. I drape her over the couch so her legs are dangling over the side and remove her shoes. I give her a rough kiss, opening her mouth with my tongue and I plunge it inside of her mouth just like I’m about to do her pussy. I grab the top of her outfit and pull it down in one movement catching her panties on the way down. Three minutes to go. I pull away from her mouth and drag my tongue down the middle of her body straight to her dripping core. I meet her eyes and suck her clit into my mouth. “Aaah,” she moans.
I lick her from her clit to her opening and stab my tongue in lapping up all her juices. Reaching my arms up I throw each leg over my shoulders and then drag them back up her body to tweak her hardened nipples. “Fuck,” she says.
“Later, baby.” I murmur against her pulsating clit. She begins grinding her hips against my face, riding me. I make my way back to her opening and dive back in. I eat like she is my last fucking meal and she tumbles over grabbing a throw pillow to cover her scream. I’m not done. I bring her back down gently and then shove two fingers deep inside her and begin pumping them in and out. Pressing the palm of my hand against her clit so she gets some friction when she begins fucking my hand. I need to taste her again so I nibble and lick around my fingers. So damn addicting, and I’ve missed this. I unbutton and unzip my pants and let my cock spring free. I watch her face, and when she explodes again, I wish I had a camera to capture her.
Pulling her up I turn and sit on the couch bringing her down on me and push up inside of her. I stop to get my bearings but she doesn’t. Placing her hands on my shoulders she raises up and eases back down, squeezing my dick with her muscles on the way back down. I grab her hips and push her all the way down on me. She hisses, “Yes.” I fuck her with earnest, sweat dripping down my face and chest but she is right there with me. For each thrust up, she meets me coming down. Our pelvic bones grinding on each other once I’m all the way in and then starting all over again. I feel the tingling at the base of my spine and know I’m close.
I pick up the tempo and force of my thrusts and watch her face as she comes all over me and I follow over. She immediately falls forward, her hair creating a blanket on my chest and sticking to me. I’m still pulsing inside her and feel the ripples of aftershocks inside her. “Now, I guess I can go to Miami.” She laughs.
“There was never any doubt.”
“Bronson,” she whispers in the side of my neck. “I’m scared.”
“Why?”
“We had the world in our hands two years ago and couldn’t make it work, what’s different now?”
“We’ve come full circle. We’ve loved and we’ve lost. Now we just love again.”
“Promise?”
“Swear.” I brush her hair back from her face and place my lips on her temple and I inhale when she exhales, like we are one.
“Okay,” she says.
“Does your okay mean the definition of the word or is it like my okay?”
“Can we talk in the morning?” My girl is sleepy.
“Yes.” I carry her to the bed and climb in behind her. I look around the dark
ened room lit only by the moonlight and see her tucked against me and my son sleeping in the crib in the corner. Knowing I have this, I won’t make the mistake and lose it. This is my everything.
“Can you tell me about Amy?” I thought she was asleep.
“Now?”
“Yes. It really bothers me she knew so much, that you shared some of our most intimate times.”
“I didn’t.” Wrong thing to say.
Her temper flares as she sits up. “Did she have a fucking crystal ball?” My fiery red head.
“No but she had a relative named Marco.” I see the second that sinks in. She deflates right beside me her head dropping to my chest, kissing right above my heart.
“Fuck, does it ever stop. Is there no end with this?”
“Yes. Right here, right now. We let go of it all, we concentrate on our love, our family and let the past pain go. Are you willing?”
“Are you going to bet me again?”
I laugh, “You name the terms.”
“Love me.”
“That’s already a given. Anything else?”
“Don’t ever say okay to me, again.”
“Sure,” she groans when I answer.
“I have a feeling that means the same thing in your world.”
“Baby, this,” I sweep my arm over her and towards Angelo, “is my world.”
“Good. Now can I go to sleep?”
“Yes, Callie. But first tell me you love me and give me a kiss.”
“Tyrant,” I smack her ass. “You love me.” And she kisses my lips and goes to sleep. I can promise life will never be dull with her.
Our move was relatively easy, some tears from my mom, but I think we have talked her into moving. Bianca is moving down in a few months, she got a teaching position at the high school, god help those kids. Callie is going to wait another year or two before applying. I don’t care if she ever works, but if it’s important to her I’ll support it.
Epilogue
Bronson
6 months later
It is two o’clock in the morning, so who the fuck is pounding on my door? I slip out of bed and pull the door closed behind me and make sure Angelo’s door is shut on my way to kick whoever’s ass is waking me up. I check the peephole and Dakota is on the other side. Judging from the way he is slumped against the doorjamb, he is drunk.
Bellissimo Fortuna (Beautiful Fortune) Page 19