I glance down and see her peeking out from behind Emberleigh. Her eyes are just as striking as Emberleigh’s, and her hair is the same blonde. Emberleigh looks down at her and reaches back to bring the girl forward.
“This is my friend, Nathan.” Emberleigh looks at me. “My sister, Avery.”
I adjust the bag to my other arm and squat down, holding out a hand. “Hi, Miss Avery. It’s nice to meet you.”
Timidly, she reaches out and takes my hand, offering a sweet smile. “Hi. Are you going to watch a movie with us?”
I look up at Emberleigh and lift a brow, leaving it up to her. She’s frowning as she looks at me, then to Avery.
“I think Nathan may have plans tonight, Avery. Maybe next—”
“Do you have plans?” Avery interrupts her, and I look back at her. It’s uncanny how much they look alike.
“I don’t know,” I tell her, tipping my head to the side. “Depends on if your sister will allow me to crash your girls’ night.”
Dimples appear in her cheeks when she smiles up at Emberleigh. “Can he, Em? I don’t care if he watches a movie with us.”
Emberleigh takes a step toward me, and I stand. Her brows dip when she leans in a couple of inches. I fight the need to look down at her chest.
“Are you sure?”
“Yes,” I answer without hesitation. I wouldn’t say I have an aversion to kids, I’ve just never been around them enough to know if I like being around them. But for some reason, I really want to sit and watch a movie with Emberleigh and her little sister.
She watches me for several moments, her eyes going back and forth between mine, before nodding and stepping back.
“Yah!” Avery hollers, earning a chuckle from me and a smile from Emberleigh.
I walk in and close and lock the door. Tipping my chin toward the kitchen, I tell Emberleigh, “I’ll get the popcorn started and make some hot chocolate. Why don’t you go get dressed?”
I lower my eyes to the hand holding the towel between her tits, then lift them back to Emberleigh to find a blush forming on her cheeks. The pink turns brighter when she sees the lingering desire I’m trying my best not to feel in current company.
She turns to Avery and shoos her to the living room. “Can you make room for Nathan on the couch while I get dressed?”
“Yep!” she chirps.
I chuckle as I take the bag to the kitchen and pull the popcorn and hot chocolate pouches out of the paper bag and place them on the counter. I throw the popcorn in the microwave and rummage around until I find a couple of big bowls. Finding a pot in one of the bottom cabinets, I grab the milk out of the fridge, pour some into the pot, and set it on the stove.
That’s where I’m at, stirring the milk, when I feel a presence at my back. I pull the pot off the burner, then turn around and find Emberleigh standing in the doorway, much more dressed than she was before in a black V-neck T-shirt and yoga pants. She still fucking looks delicious.
“Avery looks just like you,” I state, then eye her closely.
She looks behind her to the living before walking the rest of the way into the kitchen. She goes to the bag of popcorn I set on the counter and pulls it open, then dumps half in one bowl, the rest in the other.
“She does.”
Carrying the pot of milk with me, I stand beside her and pour some into the mugs.
“How old were you when you had her?” I make sure to keep my voice quiet.
Her gasp of shock has me looking over at her. Her eyes are wide and her mouth is open. It takes her a minute, but then she closes her mouth and swallows deeply. “How—” She clears her throat before trying again. “How did you know?” she whispers.
“I didn’t. Or rather, I only suspected, until you just confirmed it.”
She nods and looks down at her hands on the counter. Several minutes pass before she looks back at me.
“I was fourteen when I got pregnant with her. Fifteen when I had her.” She takes a step closer and lowers her voice even more. “She doesn’t know.” Her eyes plead with me to understand.
I hold back my surprise to her admitting it, but even more so to the age she gives me.
Grabbing her hand, I lay it over my chest. “I’m not going to tell her, Emberleigh. It’s not my business to say anything.”
She nods again, relief relaxing her features some.
“What happened?” I ask, because I know something did. I don’t know how I know, I just do.
She’s shaking her head before the question leaves my lips. “I can’t talk about this right now.”
Understanding now isn’t a good time, I jerk up my chin in acknowledgement. “Okay.”
Releasing her hand, I turn back and stir the contents in the mugs.
“Why did you come here tonight, Nathan?”
I look over. “I didn’t want to wait until Saturday to see you.”
She bites her lips. “You know we can’t….” She pauses. “With Avery here, we can’t have sex.”
I nod once. “I know, and I didn’t come here expecting that. I came because I wanted to watch a movie with you both. Nothing more.”
She turns and leans a hip against the counter. I mirror her stance.
“But why? You have to have more interesting things to do than hang out with Avery and me.”
Crossing my arms over my chest, I tell her the truth. “I don’t know. This is new for me. I’ve never wanted more than sex with a woman, but even standing here making hot chocolate and getting ready to eat popcorn while we watch a scary movie with Avery sounds a lot better to me than anything else I can think of.”
She smiles, and it fucks with my chest, sending a weird feeling to the center. Accepting my answer with a single nod, she turns and grabs both bowls of popcorn. “I’ll grab these, you get the hot chocolate.”
I watch her ass sway as she walks away, then maneuver all three mugs in my hands and follow her.
ChapterTwelve
Nathan
I HANG UP THE PHONE, EAGERNESS making my body tight with need. Everything is set, with ten minutes to spare before I’m due at her apartment.
Willow’s warning from the other day is coming back to bite me in the ass. It’s obvious that I want more from Emberleigh than just a good lay. Spending time with her and her daughter a couple of nights ago was way more than I imagined. I liked it. I liked it a lot. I enjoyed watching the two girls huddle together as Jack Nicholson tormented his family on the TV. I wanted them to huddle up next to me.
It kind of freaked me out at first, the need to be the one comforting them, but it quickly dissipated until it was all I could do to keep from hauling them both to my sides.
Avery is such a sweet kid, and she’s obviously close to her mother. I saw the love shining in Emberleigh’s eyes each time she looked at her, so I know her feelings for Avery run deep. Even though it isn’t my business to ask, I want to know the story behind Avery not knowing the truth, and hope one day Emberleigh will tell me.
It only takes me five minutes to leave my apartment and take the short walk over to Emberleigh’s. When she answers the door, I’m once again assaulted by an unimaginable amount of lust. My body’s never gone from soft to rock-solid so fast as it does when I’m around her.
I rake my eyes up and down her body, taking in the lime green sundress she has on. It stops midthigh, leaving most of her gorgeous tanned legs bare. The top portion dips down into a V, showcasing her cleavage in a mouthwatering display.
Her lips part when a growl slips past my lips. A sexy as fuck blush creeps up her cheeks, and it only makes me want her more.
“Jesus fucking Christ,” I mutter, then say more loudly, “What in the hell are you doing to me, woman?”
Before she has a chance to answer, not that there’s really an answer to my question, I walk forward so she has to take several steps back. Once I’m in the door, I slam it shut with my boot, snag an arm around her waist, and haul her to me. She lands against my chest with a squeak, then my lips
are on hers in a brutal kiss. I take her mouth like I want to take her body: hard and unforgivingly.
She clings to me like she never wants me to let her go. It’s a good thing too, because I don’t know if I could release her if she wanted me to. It’s scary as hell to want someone so bad that you lose control.
I barely manage to rein in my need and pull back from her mouth, but I still keep my hands on her ass, and grind my cock against her lower stomach.
“You drive me fucking crazy, you know that?” I ask huskily.
She giggles around the heavy breathing she’s doing. “Sorry.”
From the look in her eye, she’s not sorry at all. “Liar.”
Throaty laughter leaves her lips, and I like the sound a fuck of a lot.
I lift my head when a delicious smell hits my nose. “What’s that I smell?”
She smiles up at me, her hands gripping my shirt right above my jeans. “Chicken teriyaki.” She grabs my hand, turns, and starts dragging me behind her to the kitchen. “I wasn’t sure what you liked, but figured chicken was a safe choice. Would you like something to drink?”
“Sure.”
She drops my hand and walks to the fridge, grabbing out a bottle of wine and a beer.
“This okay?” she asks, holding up the beer.
I nod, then take the wine from her to uncork it. She goes to the stove, stirs something in a pot, then turns the burner off. Turning to me, she leans back against the counter. Her hands rest by her sides; the position causes her tits to slightly jut out. Once I’ve poured her a glass, I carry it and my beer over to her. I hand her the glass, but set my beer on the counter beside her. After she’s taken a sip, I take it away and set it beside my bottle, then crowd her against the counter.
It’s amazing how comfortable we seem to be around each other. I may sound like a sappy asshole, but it almost feels like we’ve known each other for years. In a sense I have known her that long.
“I wanna try something tonight.” I nip her bottom lip with my teeth and enjoy the low moan I get in return.
“What?” Her question comes out breathless.
Instead of answering, I cup her ass through her dress and tell her, “Take your panties off.”
She pulls back, her eyes glazed over, and looks up at me. “What are you going to do?”
I grin. “You’ll see.” Taking a step back, I point my eyes to her waist. “Take them off.”
Hesitating for only a second, she shimmies her skirt up, reaches underneath, then slowly begins to slide her panties down her legs. Blood rushes south and my mouth waters. Her tits fall forward slightly, deepening her cleavage when she bends over, lifting one leg and sliding her foot out, then doing the same to the other.
I grab the panties from her once she’s standing straight again.
“Hey,” she snipes. She squints, but a smile plays on her lips. “I want those back. And speaking of, I want the other ones back too.”
I only smirk and stuff them in my pocket. The ones I got from her the first night we were together are in my nightstand drawer. These will go with them.
She huffs out a breath when I don’t confirm they’ll be returned. Stepping back up to her, I steal another kiss that leaves her whimpering against my mouth and my body straining to get closer to hers.
After several seconds of heated kissing, we’re interrupted by a knock at the door. She turns her head toward the kitchen doorway, then looks back at me. “I don’t know who that could be. I’m not expecting anyone.”
I kiss her lips once, then lean back. “It’s for me.”
She frowns. “Who is it?”
“I invited a friend to join us.”
Her frown deepens before realization dawns. Her eyes widen and her mouth forms a cute O. Her voice is just barely above a whisper when she stammers, “D-do you mean…?” She trails off.
“If you don’t feel comfortable, or want to stop at any time, just say the word,” I tell her firmly. It’s important for her to know she doesn’t have to do anything she doesn’t want to. Yes, I would be disappointed, especially because I’ve already got the vision in my head of what tonight could bring, but I’d stop everything immediately if she wanted to.
She thinks about my proposition for a moment before giving me a brief nod.
I gently grip her chin with my thumb and forefinger when she looks down, and bring her eyes back to mine. “I need more than that, Emberleigh. Is this something you want?”
Her throat bobs when she swallows, but I see the desire form in her eyes. Biting her lip, she says with a husky murmur, “Yes.”
My jeans get even tighter with her answer, and I suddenly feel like a goddamn teenager about to get my first fuck.
“Finish up in here, and I’ll go answer the door.”
“Okay.”
Before walking away, I lean in for one more kiss, then leave her in the kitchen. I adjust my aching dick as I go to the door and pull it open. Wyatt’s on the other side. Normally, I would have asked Tegan to join us, but since he started seeing Willow he’s a one-woman man. I never thought I would see the day the man-whore committed to one woman, but after witnessing the chemistry between the two, and being part of it, I can’t blame him. Willow is a good woman, and sexy as hell.
Wyatt tips his chin at me, and I step back to let him in.
“Everything cool?” he asks quietly.
“Yes. But if I give the word, you leave.”
He nods. “Got it.”
We’ve done this a few times when Tegan wasn’t available. It’s the only reason he’s here. No fucking way would I allow just anyone to touch Emberleigh. Usually it’s me who’s the third party, and in a sense tonight I still am, but we both have agreed in the past that all parties involved have to be willing and comfortable with each other. Emberleigh’s met Wyatt before, which should make things a little easier for her.
I lead him into the kitchen. Emberleigh spots Wyatt behind me, and her eyes widen in surprise. When I spoke with him earlier, he said the first night he had met her was the night I saw them talking, and the first time he had touched her was the night I watched them on the dance floor.
“You remember Wyatt?” I ask, walking over and pulling her against my side.
She’s nervous as she shifts under my arm.
“Yes. It’s nice to see you again, Wyatt.”
His lip quirks up. “It’s good to see you too, Emberleigh.”
“Beer?”
“Sure.”
Leaving her side, I grab a bottle out of the fridge and toss it to him. The next few minutes are spent putting food on the table. As much as I want to get down to business, I want to give Emberleigh time to calm her nerves. Her hands shake when she sets a bowl of rice down on the table, so I grab one and bring the tips of her fingers to my lips. I kiss them, then suck just the tip of her middle finger in my mouth. Her eyes darken, and I hear the little hitch in her breath.
Smirking, I release her hand and pull out her chair. “Sit. I’ll grab our drinks.”
Seconds later, I’m taking the seat beside her, purposely making sure my chair is close to hers. We eat in silence for several moments. When I see her leg bounce under the table, I rest my hand on her upper thigh. Her skirt has ridden up in her seated position, so my hand is on bare skin. The minute my hand touches her, her leg stops, but I keep my hand there. Wyatt and I make small talk about work, and to anyone looking in from the outside, it would appear like a normal dinner. But there’s tension in the air. Sexual tension. I feel it from Emberleigh beside me, see it in Wyatt’s eyes every time he glances at her, and I damn sure feel it in my bones.
I pour Emberleigh another glass of wine when she finishes off hers. I don’t want her incoherent by any means, but a small buzz should help loosen up her anxious form. I rub circles with my thumb on the inside of her thigh, and after several moments, I feel the tension leave her body little by little.
“That was delicious, baby,” I tell her once we’re finished.
She smiles, and it looks relaxed. “Thanks.”
Wyatt throws his napkin on the table. “It was definitely the best I’ve had in a long time.”
She turns her smile his way. “I’m glad you both enjoyed it.”
When she gets up to take her plate to the kitchen, I subtly lift my chin to Wyatt. He understands, and we both get to our feet to carry our dishes in behind her. I leave the kitchen before they do and retake my seat.
When Emberleigh comes back to the table and reaches for her glass of wine, Wyatt walks up behind her. He’s not touching her, but she knows he’s there. Her body stiffens, and her eyes swing to me. I hold her gaze and lift my bottle to my lips, taking a long pull before lowering it to the table.
Her lips part and a rush of air leaves them when Wyatt puts his hands on her waist and steps closer. His hands slowly snake around her middle to her lower stomach, and when his hardness meets her ass fully, she pulls in a sharp breath. Her eyes never leave mine as he runs his hands up her torso and stops just below her tits. His head dips to her ear, and I hear him whisper, “Tell me to stop if it gets to be too much.”
Her eyes flutter twice, then she murmurs breathlessly, “Okay.”
She seems to relax more with Wyatt’s reassurance of what I told her earlier.
His hands move to her arms and he gently places her hands on the table in front of her, bending her at the waist so she’s resting on them. Her head tilts back so her eyes stay connected to mine.
When he runs his hands down the bare skin on her back exposed by her low-cut dress and bends to kiss the back of her neck, my blood runs hot. I grab my dick through my jeans, trying to find more room that I know isn’t there. She’s right there in front of me, only four feet away, with Wyatt’s hands on her, and the scene looks so fucking hot, and I know it’s only going to get hotter.
Her tits test the material of her dress as her chest heaves with her heavy breathing. Her face carries a sexy blush and her nails dig into the wood.
Wyatt’s hands travel down her back, over her ass, to the bottom of her dress. Emberleigh lets out a moan and her eyes droop when he reaches beneath the material. I don’t know what he’s doing under there, but a second later, her moans become louder. Her bottom lip gets abused by her teeth and she tries to fight back her natural reaction to Wyatt’s hand on her pussy.
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