Mark’s eyes went wide. Yeah, it was about to get real. “I’m sorry. I had every intention of telling you.”
“You had no right. No fucking right at all. This was my fight. And you know how important it is to me to be the one making decisions. Hell, you know how much it bothered me when Brian overstepped and paid for my PI to keep track of Rob. So, how did you think this would go over? How can you say you’re crazy about me and then go behind my back this way?”
His face blanched. “Jules, I only wanted to make it better. I didn’t want you to suffer during the next few months, waiting on the money and, worse, trying to anticipate what new awful thing they’d come up with. I had them sign away their rights to go after anything more, including custody. I was only attempting to help.”
“You would’ve helped more if you’d discussed it with me. I’d already decided to settle. I was only waiting to see if I received all of the insurance money first. That was my attorney’s advice. Advice I was following until you intervened. Then you go and lie to me by telling me you were traveling to New York when instead you were in North Carolina.”
“I did go to New York. I flew to North Carolina this morning.”
“Semantics. You still fucking lied to me.”
“I know, and I’m sorry. I didn’t realize how it would all look to you. How it would make you feel. I was only trying to close this door for you, honey, once and for all.”
I pointed to myself. “Did it ever occur to you that I needed to close this door for myself? That this entire thing—from moving up here, taking favors left, right and center from friends and family—has battered my pride? But more importantly, I needed to close this chapter. I needed to do this for my son and for myself to prove I could.”
“You have to trust I had the best intentions.” His expression was as sincere as his voice. There was no doubt Mark was a good man. He’d only wanted to make life easier on me. But his actions still made me feel as though he hadn’t thought I could do it without his help.
I blew out a breath, adrenaline waning. “I believe you, but it doesn’t make me any less upset with you right now.”
He sighed, taking my hand. “I know. I should’ve discussed it with you first. I really am sorry.”
“How much?”
“What?”
“How much did you pay them?”
“Uh, it doesn’t—”
“Don’t you dare tell me it doesn’t matter. One, it very much does. Two, I’m paying you back once I receive the settlement or sell the house.”
“You don’t need to. I have absolutely nothing else to spend my money on.”
“How much?”
“Jules—”
I dropped his hand and put mine on my hip. “Dammit, Mark, don’t you ‘Jules’ me. Now tell me how much and show me the agreement they signed before I call Harvey and have him nullify the whole thing. You did not have permission to act on my behalf.”
“One hundred thousand.”
My breath left me at the amount. “Holy shit.” I paced, finding it hard to believe he had the money to be able to write a check for that amount. Truth be told, I’d been thinking of giving Rob’s parents the same amount. But the problem was I had no guarantee I would receive all of the insurance money, and I would be lucky to make that amount from the sale of my home since we hadn’t built much equity.
“The money doesn’t matter to me. Only you and Tristan do.”
I stopped and stared at him. “I can appreciate that. I really can, but it doesn’t change how it made me feel to discover you did this without consulting me.”
He stepped closer but, at my warning glare, didn’t touch me. The last thing I needed was to have him think he could pacify me with a hug.
“I know, but please don’t make me go.”
I lifted a brow. “I’m hardly in the mood to slip into bed with you right now. I need to think. Need to figure out how to get past this. And don’t fight me on paying you back. This wasn’t your debt. It’s mine.”
His jaw ticked, but he nodded. “I won’t. And I realize it’s a lot to ask, but let me hold you tonight. I won’t talk, won’t try anything. Just hold you.”
I was indecisive.
He must’ve seen it on my face. “Be mad. You’re certainly entitled. But please don’t make me go. I can’t stand it. Please.”
Something vulnerable reflected in his eyes, and I wondered if I was seeing shadows from his past here. It gave me pause about telling him to go home. Besides, as upset as I was, I wasn’t willing to throw away what we had over it. “Okay. You can stay.”
As I crawled into bed and his arms went around me a short time later, I understood the irony that I wanted comfort from the man who’d caused the pain to begin with. It wasn’t long before I felt the familiar hardness pressed up against my stomach.
“Ignore the erection. My cock doesn’t understand that when you’re mad at me, it includes him, too. But he’ll get the message eventually.”
Despite my best efforts, I giggled. Then I sighed. It was difficult to stay angry at him, but I needed for him to understand why I was so upset by his actions.
“I feel like you didn’t think I was capable of dealing with this on my own. That I wouldn’t be smart enough and needed rescuing.”
His arms squeezed me tight. “I absolutely didn’t think that. You’re the most capable woman I know. As a single mom, you’ve made the hard decisions despite how rough it was on you. Through it all, you’ve never played the victim. You brush yourself off and keep on going. You’re unbelievably strong. That’s why, for once, I wanted to take the burden off your shoulders. And maybe part of it was self-serving in that I wanted to show how I can contribute.”
“I don’t want you for your money.”
“I’d never think that. I didn’t mean a monetary contribution. I only meant I don’t know what would you need me for. You have it together, you and Tristan, so I suppose I was looking for a way to show that I could help. And in my mind, I’d thought to surprise you with no longer having to worry about it. It’s not because I thought you needed rescuing. I guess I wanted to be the hero in putting this whole mess behind you. It was selfish, but I did it because I can’t wait for us to start our lives together.”
“You can and have been my hero in so many other ways, but I have to be able to trust you in order for us to work. I have to believe you value my opinion and thoughts. I don’t need you to solve all of my problems. I need to do some of it for myself.”
“I don’t want to solve all your problems. I simply want to be there for you, so you aren’t facing them alone.”
His reply brought a flood of emotions over me.
He rolled towards me, stroking my face. “I’ll never lie to you again.”
I leaned up on him with a smirk, never one to be able to hold a grudge, especially when the intention had been good even if the action wasn’t. “What if I ask you if certain jeans make my ass look fat?”
“I would tell you. Maybe from a hundred feet away, but I would tell you. Scout’s honor.”
I lifted a brow, fighting the smile. “Were you ever a scout?”
“Eagle Scout, actually. Nerdy, I know.”
That didn’t surprise me. “Nerdy Mark is a big turn-on, to be honest.”
“Oh, yeah? At the risk of sharing too much information and keeping you mad at me, you should know feisty Juliette is a big turn-on, too.”
“Seriously?”
His warm lips trailed down my neck. “When you put your twenty in the jar, it made me part fearful, part turned on. Although I don’t like fighting with you, I do love that you stood up for yourself. I clearly didn’t see things from your perspective and how it would make you feel. I’m sorry.”
“You’re kind of hard to stay mad at with your heartfelt apologies, so it’s accepted. You know, I don’t think I used most of that twenty.”
“In that case, feel free to ask me to fuck you, fuck you harder, and never fucking stop.”
&n
bsp; His words instantly shifted the vibe in the bed. “Are you angling for make-up sex?”
His hands had already moved down to the elastic of my panties. “I sure as hell hope so. You don’t mind if I use some of your credits with my cursing?”
I moaned when his fingers found my clit. “I’d be disappointed if you didn’t.”
“Where do you keep your vibrator?”
“Uh, in the nightstand. Why?”
One of his fingers entered me. “I was thinking of something a bit more naughty. Matter of fact, I’ll be right back.”
He was out of the bed and bringing his bag into the bedroom in a flash, wearing only his boxers and a T-shirt. That left me to grab my vibrator. By the time I’d shed my clothes, he stood there watching me. Since our time together in North Carolina, I no longer felt anxiety at being naked with him.
He grinned at me in the moonlight. “You’re so sexy. So beautiful.”
“You make me feel that way. Uh, what do you have in your hand?” He had a pouch of some sort.
“Toys I bought for you. Unless you’d rather wait. I suppose it’s rather presumptuous to think a butt plug has a place in make-up sex.”
I burst out laughing. “Oh, I don’t know. It might really make me feel good sliding it home in your ass.”
He froze, a look of panic on his features. “It’s not for me. It’s—” He grinned. “You were totally messing with me, weren’t you? Hopefully.”
My body was so wracked with laughter I could barely speak. His fingers tickling my sides as he moved to hover above me didn’t help. “Oh, my God. Your face.”
Laughter turned to a gasp, however, when he stopped tickling and pressed my vibrator up against my center. Throwing my head back, I let my legs fall to the sides as his hands gently pushed them.
“I deserved that. Now, hold the vibrator on your clit.”
I took the device from his hands and moved it in circles, watching with curiosity while he stripped, then opened his bag of goodies. He took out what looked to be the plug as well as a small bottle of lube. “When did you get these things?”
He blushed slightly. “They came in the mail while I was gone. If there’s anything you don’t like, tell me.”
“You go from all alpha to considerate in a hurry.”
“Which one do you prefer?”
“I don’t want to choose as I like them both.”
He smirked. “Good. Get up on your knees and keep that vibrator pressed to your pussy while I play with your ass.”
Damn. He was taking the dirty talk up a notch. I moved the pillows so I could put my head and shoulders into them and position my backside in the air. With my one arm under my body, I positioned the vibrator as he asked.
“Gorgeous.”
I’d been prepared for his hands, so I wasn’t expecting his mouth to feast on me from this angle. “Oh, God.”
“I missed the taste of you. Sweet and sassy, just like you.” His fingers joined the assault, and my climax rushed over me without warning.
As I was coming down from my high, I was aware of the sound of lubrication and then his finger circling my tight bud, working itself inside. Then there were two fingers stretching me before the hard object was inserted. Breath rushed out of my lungs at the foreign sensation.
“How does it feel?” He leaned forward, kissing the small of my back before I heard the familiar sound of him opening a foil packet.
“Strange, but good.”
“I’m going to slide inside of your tight pussy now. Fuck you so hard you’ll have to bury your face in your pillow to muffle the sounds of your orgasm.”
He filled me then on one stroke.
The pleasure from the fullness took my breath away. I could feel his hips pounding against me, thrust after thrust. When his fingers started moving the plug in the same rhythm, working my tight hole, I had to bite down on the soft cotton pillow to keep from crying out. When my climax rolled over me, it took no mercy and left no coherent thoughts in my brain. I saw white light and felt every nerve ending explode with ecstasy.
He had slowed his pace of moving in and out of me and removed the plug. “Fuck, that’s sexy. Did you like it?” His fingers quickly replaced the object.
“Yes. And I don’t care if it makes me dirty, but now I want you there.”
He stilled.
“Mark?”
“I’m here. But I think my neurons fried with that statement. Are you sure? I may not fit.”
“We could try it. I mean I never have.”
“Me, neither.”
The thought of doing something so intimate and new for the both of us fueled my desire for him. “It felt good, before, so…”
Evidently, I didn’t have to convince him. He pulled out of me and replaced his fingers with the head of his cock. But since that wasn’t enough for him, he grabbed my vibrator and put it inside of my pussy. “I’ve fantasized about filling you both ways. About giving you so much pleasure that you come harder than you ever have. But if this hurts, you have to tell me.”
He slid forward an inch, and I let out a shaky breath. There’d been a sting of pain, but it wasn’t intolerable. The pressure was already mounting from his hand working the device inside of my pussy. I pushed my hips back to take him deeper.
His gasp was my reward. “You’re tight. I don’t think I’ll go all the way in, honey, but this, this feels amazing.”
He moved with controlled thrusts then, his breathing labored, his one hand gripping my hip, the other moving the dildo in and out.
I wasn’t sure my body would survive this latest assault, but I was certainly willing to find out.
When his groan filled the space and he folded over me, smothering the sound on my back, my orgasm followed, slamming into me as if the other two hadn’t just happened. It left me completely and totally spent. My knees buckled, no longer able to hold my weight once he pulled out.
He left for a couple minutes to go to the bathroom but then returned to get back in the bed and pull me close.
“I should probably put my vibrator away,” I murmured, barely able to stay awake.
“I’ll take care of it.”
I smiled, snuggling into him. “My hero.”
***
A hot mouth fastened on my breast woke me up. My eyes snapped opened to see a dark head of hair hovered over my nipple and lips teasing it to a stiff peak.
“Good morning.”
I stretched, running my hands through his thick hair. “’Morning. What time—?”
“A little after five. And before I started my exploration, I ensured Tristan was still sleeping.”
I was grateful he understood my priorities.
“I missed doing this last night, and when I saw your gorgeous body in the morning light, I couldn’t help myself.”
“Mm, I’m glad.” Talk about a boost to my self-confidence.
His lips moved up onto my collarbone and from there onto my shoulder. That’s when I noticed the smell of his minty breath and covered my mouth.
“No fair. I’m brushing my teeth.”
He laughed but let me up for the fastest teeth brushing in history.
Soon I bounced back into bed with him. My hands rubbed down the planes of his chest, exploring, before I scooted down to flick my tongue over one of his nipples. With his sharp intake of breath, I knew I’d found his sweet spot.
“At some point, I’m exploring your body inch by inch.”
He smiled, kissing me on the lips. “I won’t argue a bit. But for now—” He rolled me onto my back, pinning me down with his body.
I sighed in bliss.
“Open your eyes.” His voice cajoled as he eased inside of me.
His forearms were on either side of my head, his hips pressing into mine as he possessed me fully. Lips met mine as he robbed me of breath and then gave it back to me.
Then he suddenly stopped. “Shit. I forgot a condom. No wonder it felt so different.”
“Better different?”
He tried to back out, but I locked my ankles around him, pulling him deeper.
“Yes. Fuck. And if you keep doing that, I won’t last long.”
“Sorry.” I let him go with regret.
“Unless…” He’d pulled out but was still at my entrance.
“Unless what?”
“What if we took the chance?” He eased back inside.
“What are you saying?”
“I’m saying you told me you want more kids someday. And I, I hope I’d be a great father.”
Even as I gasped in pleasure, my mind was working overtime. “You realize there’s only room for one crazy person in this relationship, and that spot is already taken. I mean, that’s a big step.”
He pulled out and grabbed a condom from the dresser. “It is, and I’m sorry. Decisions such as this shouldn’t be made in the heat of passion.”
He reentered me, taking us both to orgasm and not leaving a lot of room to discuss the subject further.
***
Mark’s arms came around me from the back while I was making pancakes. Tristan was in his high chair, happily starting breakfast with fruit.
“I’m sorry for bringing up a baby the way I did this morning. I didn’t mean to rush you into anything.”
I took the golden cakes off, sliding them onto a plate on the counter, and then flicked off the stove. I turned, wrapping my arms around him. “You aren’t. I definitely do want more kids, and I think you’d make a fantastic father. But have you thought about the rest?”
He leaned back and smiled. “If you knew how much, you’d probably be alarmed.”
I studied the seriousness in his expression and swallowed hard. “Like what?”
He hesitated but then leaned in, whispering in my ear. “Like marrying you. Building a house with you. Waking up with you every morning. Making more babies with you. And eventually, once Tristan gets old enough to decide and if you’re okay with it, adopting him as my own.”
Wow. So, yeah, he’d definitely thought about it. When he moved back and cupped my face, I took a shaky breath. “I don’t know what to say.”
He kissed me softly. “Don’t say anything. Not until you’re ready. I don’t mean to push. It’s just that—”
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