Mine Would Be You: A Bad Boy Rancher Love Story (The Dawson Brothers Book 3)

by Ali Parker

  “Oooh girl, yes,” he said, laughing. “You do that.”

  The rest of the party went off without a hitch, and by the end, it was Mikey passed out on his bed from too much birthday cake and me, Dalton, and Elon cleaning up the mess. I wiped the table down with a rag and tossed the plates in the trash, smiling as Elon walked up. He looked at me like he wanted to kiss me, but he didn’t.

  “So, the place is back to its formal glory.” He smiled. “All spic and span.”

  “Thank you for staying to clean up,” I said. “You didn’t have to do that for me.”

  “You can do something for me then,” he said. “To make up for it.”

  “What would that be?” I replied, raising an eyebrow.

  “Go out to dinner with me tomorrow night,” he said. “I’ll pick you up and take you on a real date.”

  “I would love to,” I said. “But I don’t have a babysitter for Mikey and finding one last minute on a weekend is nearly impossible. I don’t like to leave him with just anyone. You never know these days.”

  “I’ll watch him,” Dalton said, popping his head in. “She will go to dinner. In fact, she would love to go to dinner.”

  “Well,” he said, smiling and shoving his hands in his pockets. “Then it sounds like it’s a date.”

  “Yeah, um, yeah,” I said, glancing over at Dalton. “What time?”

  “How about I pick you up at six?” he asked, looking between me and Dalton as he backed toward the door.

  “Six is perfect,” Dalton said, elbowing me in the side.

  “Yeah, six is great.” I smiled. “Where are you going?”

  “I’m leaving before you change your mind,” he said with a big smile, opening the door and closing it quickly.

  I stood there a moment, staring at the place he had been standing, realizing I had been pushed into dinner with Elon because Dalton had been standing there. I wanted to be angry, but I couldn’t be. I was excited to go out with him. Dalton leaned his head on my shoulder, pulling the back of his hand to his forehead.

  “Girl, I am swooning,” he said. “And you’re welcome. I knew you were going to try to pull some bullshit. Besides, that kid is going to have a sugar hangover tomorrow. He’ll be easy to take care of.”

  “Thank you,” I said, shaking my head and snatching the bowl of chips from his hand.

  I had been to dinner with Elon before, but after the other night in his office, I felt completely different about dinner this time around. I hadn’t been on a real date with a man that I knew for sure was interested in me in a really long time. I was already skimming through what I would wear while I was standing there shoving chips in my mouth.

  “What do I even wear to this?” I said with a mouth full.

  “If you don’t stop emotional eating, you’ll be wearing a muumuu.” Dalton snatched the bowl from me. “Not to worry. Your fairy godmother is here to make you look fabulous.”

  Chapter 38

  Elon

  I had changed my tie at least five times, and that was only after changing my suit three times. I stood in front of the mirror trying to decide which one to go with. Should I go with blue to match my eyes? Should I go with polka dots to show my fun side? Would she even give a shit about the kind of tie I was wearing? I put the blue one on and stood there, brushing the lint off of the front. I glanced over at the clock and jumped, realizing I was going to be late if I didn’t leave immediately. I grabbed my wallet and keys and raced out the door and down to the car waiting for me out front.

  As we drove along, I tried to take deep breaths, noticing that my nerves were getting the best of me. I hadn’t been that nervous over a date in really long time. It wasn’t like me to be this way. I was usually calm as a cucumber when it came to women. I was starting to think my feelings for Amanda were a lot deeper than I realized at the beginning. She was a beautiful woman with so much spirit and fire in her. How could I not be incredibly into her? Just then, we pulled up to her complex, and I went upstairs to get her. She opened the door and smiled, looking so beautiful in a tight black strappy dress and heels. Her long hair was cascading down over her shoulders, and her smile lit up my world.

  “Hi, Mr. Truitt,” Mikey yelled from the background.

  “Hey, buddy,” I said. “Hey, Dalton.”

  “You two have fun,” Dalton smiled mischievously. “Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”

  “That is a very short list,” Amanda said, smiling. “I’ll see you guys tomorrow. I love you, Mikey.”

  “I love you, Mom,” he said, turning back to the movie on the television screen.

  “You look beautiful,” I said, giving her my arm after she closed the door behind us.

  I took her to one of my favorite restaurants that sat right outside the city. It was in an old Victorian-style home that had tables placed all throughout it. They only took fifty reservations per night, and I’d made sure we were one of them. The hostess took us to our seat, and I ordered a bottle of wine.

  “How was your day?” I said, looking at her.

  “It was okay,” she said. “I went and saw my mom this morning and then hung out with Mikey and Dalton.”

  “Good. How is she doing?”

  “She looked good, you know, as good as she can,” she said. “The scars from the accident have faded a lot.”

  “You said it was an accident,” I replied. “But you never said what kind of accident. If you don’t want to talk about it, I understand.”

  “No,” she said with a smile. “It’s okay. Let’s talk about it. It was a January afternoon, snowy as usual, and we were out of coffee and a couple other things. Mikey and I had walked across the street to the park to build a snowman, so she took the car down to the market. There was ice on the road, and this car just couldn’t stop coming through the intersection. She was hit right in front of us. One of my friends had taken Mikey to the store on the corner to get some gloves, and when she saw the accident, she took him straight home. He didn’t know it was his grandma. There was a hemorrhage on her brain and a whole lot of swelling, and they didn’t get to it in time. She went into a coma and then was put on life support a week later, and that’s how she’s been ever since. It’s been over a year since that day.”

  “Wow,” I said. “Does Mikey know how she is?”

  “Somewhat,” she said. “But I haven’t really told him a lot. Just that she was really hurt and that kids aren’t allowed in where she is. I told him she doesn’t talk or walk but not the life support stuff. It’s not necessary for him to know that, and I don’t think he would really understand it anyway.”

  “I think that’s a good choice,” I said. “He seems like a kid who wears his heart on his sleeve.”

  “He does,” she smiled. “He loves everyone and everything. It would stress him out, and I don’t want that for him. I want him to be a kid as long as he can.”

  “So, your father has passed, right?”

  “Yeah,” she said. “A few years before my mom, which is why she was living with me in the first place, to help with Mikey and to not be alone so much. She and I were always incredibly close, so I liked having her there.”

  “Do you take care of her bills and stuff now?”

  “Yeah,” she sighed. “It’s hard. In fact, I don’t think I’ll be able to afford to keep her on life support much longer. They’ll make her a ward of the state and take her off support. That was why I was considering taking the job at Diamond. It wasn’t really as much for me and Mikey as it was for her. Mikey and I would do fine on my salary, but those bills at the hospital take up almost half of my paycheck every month. The health insurance stopped paying for it when the doctor gave his diagnosis, saying there was less than fifteen percent chance that she would wake up from the coma or survive off of life support. I guess they figure they won’t be getting any more payments from her, so why keep covering her?”

  “That’s bullshit,” I said, shaking my head. “That is total bullshit. I can’t believe you can buy e
verything known to man to hurt your body, but when you go to the doctor to prevent illness, you’re punished for it. I think if you go on life support, it should be covered until the person in charge of the estate says so. It shouldn’t have anything to do with money.”

  “I agree,” she said. “But sadly, it isn’t like that. They even charge me for the meals she can’t eat because she’s fed through an IV and a tube. Of course, I get charged for those too. They tried charging me for the television, but I fought that and finally got it taken off the bill. They won’t let me provide her things like blankets and clothes because of sanitary reasons.”

  “So, you have to pay for theirs,” I said, shaking my head. “Like you don’t have enough to deal with trying to get through the fact that your mother is on life support. God, Amanda, I am so sorry about this.”

  “Sometimes, it really gets to me, wondering how I’m going to make it work, but I usually just have to let it go and keep on pushing, making it through one day at a time,” she said.

  “Amanda,” I said, leaning forward and taking her hands. “I’m going to figure something out for this. You don’t need to deal with this alone.”

  “I really appreciate you caring about this,” she said. “I really do, but this isn’t your cross to bear. Everything in my life up to this point has been possible because of her, and I owe it to her to see her through this, at least until it’s a point where I can let her go.”

  “I’m here for you,” I said, looking into her eyes.

  Just then, the waitress walked up with our food, ending the moment. It was probably better that way, so she could have a good dinner without getting upset over her mom. My heart broke for her, and I felt terrible for treating her the way that I had over the job. Had I known, I might have let her go. The rest of dinner was nice, our conversation floating back and forth, talking about our childhoods, our lives in college, what it was like being such a young mom, and anything else we could think of. We really started to build our relationship stronger, one that I knew for the first time I actually wanted to have. She was too special to give up, and I wasn’t about to walk away from the first woman I had ever met who made me feel the way that she did.

  Her laughter filled the room around us, and her eyes lit up with excitement every time I told a story or a joke. She made me feel special, like I was the only person in her world at that moment. When dessert was done, and the check was paid, I leaned forward across the table.

  “You can say no,” I said.

  “To what?” she laughed.

  “I texted Dalton, and he said he would stay the night at your house if you want to come back with me to mine,” I said with a smile.

  “That sounds like a fantastic idea,” she said.

  We left the restaurant, and I helped her gently into the car, sitting in the back and holding her hand tightly as we drove to my house. She was so beautiful, and I couldn’t wait to show her where I lived and what my life was like outside the office. That and get her into my bed for the night. When we got to the building, she looked up into the sky at the top, shaking her head and laughing.

  “Let me guess, you live all the way at the top,” she said.

  “Of course.” I laughed. “I like a room with a view.”

  We took the penthouse private elevator up, and I let us into the place, switching on the lights. I walked into the kitchen and grabbed a bottle of champagne, pouring us each a glass. When I turned around, she was standing in front of the large windows, looking out over the Chicago skyline. The lights sparkled around as she stared off into the lights. I walked up behind her and handing her a glass of champagne.

  “To success, new relationships, and a really bright future for both of us,” I said, holding up the glass.

  “I’ll drink to that,” she smiled, taking a sip.

  Her ruby painted lips pressed gently against the glass as she sipped her bubbly, staring up into my eyes. I took a sip of mine, too, holding it to mouth until she pulled her glass down. I ran my hand over her shoulder, feeling her soft skin, and smiling softly at her. I took her glass from her hands and set them down on the coffee table, turning back and pulling her into my arms. I leaned forward and kissed her lips, tasting the sweetness of the champagne. She closed her eyes tightly, leaning into me, letting me wrap her in my arms. I couldn’t deny how amazing she felt against me, how amazing it felt to simply have her close to me again. This wasn’t rash and instantaneous like the first time. Our lips moved slowly and seductively over one another’s, taking in every moment of being together.

  I leaned down and scooped her up, cradling her in my arms and kissing her passionately. She wrapped her arms around my neck, as I walked back through the living room and down the hall to my bedroom. I dimmed the lights inside and closed the door behind us, standing at the foot of my bed, still kissing her deeply. The mood was passionate, and her body was warm in my arms. I couldn’t wait to feel her around me, her soft skin caressing mine. I wanted to show her just how I felt.

  Chapter 39

  Amanda

  We had now already had sex once, so I should have known what to expect, or at least I thought I would, but this time, it was different. I didn’t know how to explain it really. It was slow, passionate, and almost like I could feel the emotion behind it. He stood there in front of his bed, cradling me in his arms, his lips pressed against mine, moving with the waves of passion that blew through us. I could feel his fingertips clutching into my sides, and it turned me on. After a few moments, he sat me down on my feet, carefully unzipping my dress and tossing it to the side. I stood in front of him in nothing but heels and a black lace thong, my hands pulling at his tie.

  He helped me, removing his tie and unbuttoning his shirt while I loosened his belt and pulled his pants down to his feet. I pushed his shirt back on his shoulders and kissed his skin as he ran his lips down my neck. Goosebumps rose on the back of my neck, and my breathing grew heavier at the sight of his cock bulging from his boxers. He stepped out of his pants and kicked off his shoes, watching as I walked over and grabbed a pillow from the bed. He smiled when I walked back, plopping the pillow down on the floor in front of him and slowly sliding down his body, breathing heavily against the bulge in his boxers.

  I looked up at him and bit my lip, pulling on his boxers, bringing them to his feet, and tossing them aside after he stepped from them. I brought my face back to the main event, grabbing ahold of the shaft and rubbing my hand slowly up and down. He groaned as I lifted it up and licked from his balls to the mushroom tip, circling my tongue around before taking him into my mouth. I sucked on the end, moving my head back and forth, moaning as I tasted him. He ran his hands through my hair, groaning loudly while I played with his nuts, rolling them gently around in my small palm. I reached up and held the shaft firmly in one hand, right below my lips as I carefully pulled him into my mouth and down my throat.

  My head twisted passionately back and forth as I bobbed up and down, deep throating him and pulling a growl from his chest. He gripped into my hair and pushed me down to the base, holding me there for a moment before letting me come back up. I looked up at him with watery eyes, before going back down, this time faster and faster. He gripped tightly to the back of my head, his thighs flexing as I bobbed up and down. I pushed my head all the way to the base and held it there for a moment before slowly and steadily rising back up, sucking hard at the back of my throat until his cock dislodged from my mouth.

  He smiled as I looked up at him, tilting my chin up and reaching up with my hands. He leaned down and grabbed me under the arms, lifting me up and dropping me onto the bed. I giggled as I bounced up and down, watching him stroking his cock and walking toward me. I scooted back until my head was on the pillow and watched him kiss up my thighs and up to the band of my panties. He latched down on them and pulled them off me, smiling as he tossed them to the side. He dove down on his stomach and pulled my legs apart, immediately putting his mouth in my folds. I moaned loudly, feeling his warm tongue
lap at my juices as he pushed two fingers inside of me.

  He moved his tongue up to my clit and circled around it wildly, building a heat in my belly. I screamed out, pulling my arms over my head and holding tight to his iron headboard. He fingered me faster, his tongue matching the speed as I quivered and shook beneath him, trying to get away. He grabbed my waist with one hand and held me down, rocking his mouth back and forth over my hard nub. As he pushed his fingers inside and flicked his fingertips, I moaned before taking in a deep breath and arching my chest upward. The waves of pleasure were on me before I could even think, and I whimpered in pleasure, coming hard against his mouth.

  When my body had relaxed, he looked up at me and smiled, pulling his fingers out and moving up my body. He pressed his lips against my skin, kissing as he moved. His mouth stopped at my breasts before pulling my nipple in his mouth and sucking hard. I groaned, reaching down and scratching my nails gently down his back. I could feel his thick cock against my thigh as he played with my tits. After a moment, he began to rise, licking me from my neck to my lips and then pressing his mouth hard against mine. I opened my legs wider and wrapped them around him, feeling my pussy pull him inside of me.

  I groaned into his mouth as his shaft slid up inside of me, his hips beginning to slowly pulse. He pulled my arms up above my head and wove his finger through mine, dragging his body up and down me, making me feel things I had never felt before. I gripped tightly to his hands, the emotion swooning through me and into him, our tongues wrapped tightly around one another’s. He groaned, the vibrations moving down my throat and into my chest arousing me even more. He unlocked his fingers from mine and ran them down my sides, bringing more goosebumps to the surface.

  Slowly, he pushed his hands underneath me and raised his chest up, pushing his raw cock deep inside of me. I gasped, feeling the entirety of his shaft, filling me to the brink over and over as he thrust inside of me. He lowered his body back down and gripped tightly to my back as he rolled over, pulling me with him. I put my knees underneath me and slowly sat up, rubbing my hands up my body and grabbing my tits. I spread my knees farther apart and sank down onto him, feeling him deep inside. Almost instantly, my hips began to move, grinding against him as I went.