by Nixie Taylor
Flint easily reaches out and taps it into the air. “See, all we needed was one more person. That record doesn’t stand a chance.”
“What record?” I ask, easing my way into the water. “I don’t think we’ll be breaking any official Guinness records.”
“Of course not,” Maggie says. “Not without months of training. But Flint says the resort record is ninety-nine hits. We made it to sixty-four once.”
The three of us go silent as we focus on keeping the beachball in the air. For the next fifteen minutes or so, we lunge and splash, laugh, and shout, as we close in on Flint’s made-up record, let the ball drop, and start over again.
I can’t remember the last time I’ve let myself do something so carefree and senseless.
It’s not senseless. Maggie needs this kind of fun in her life.
As a single mom, it’s hard to make that kind of time amidst the hundreds of other things I have to get done each day. Would opening myself up to Flint help remind me to live in the moment and focus on the little things more?
“Ninety-seven, ninety-eight,” the two of them count off together.
“Count with us, Mom,” Maggie says between numbers.
We all chat the rest of them in unison, “…ninety-nine, one hundred!”
Maggie spikes the ball at Flint.
I’m certain he could have volleyed it back at her if he wanted, but he lets the ball hit him in the face, and then fall dramatically onto his back in the water. He flails around like a fool and then resurfaces with a gasp that earns a giggle from Maggie.
The moment is perfect.
“Flint is your dad.” The words are out before I even realize I’m thinking about saying them.
We all freeze in place, suddenly silent.
Maggie looks back and forth between Flint and me.
I brace myself for an outburst. It was all too much, too fast. I should have researched and planned how to let her know. I’ll be paying her therapy bills for decades for my rash decision.
Flint looks as stunned as I feel. He seems stuck between wanting to rush and hug us all and waiting to be chased away.
I should have consulted with him, first, too. With one impulsive act, I’ve taken away his one chance to have input on how his daughter learned the truth. I won’t be surprised if he’s mad at me, either.
When Maggie finally moves again, it isn’t to hit me or yell that I’m a horrible mom. She lunges into Flint’s arms, “I knew we’d find my daddy someday. He’s perfect!”
I tip my head to the side to take a fresh look at this amazing man who’s fallen back into my life once more. We might have missed many years together. I can’t do anything about that, but I can do my best to make sure I don’t miss any more because of my cowardice to commit to a relationship.
Work will just have to adjust to my new priorities.
“He is,” I agree.
“I’m just some big ugly guy, lucky as hell to know two women as beautiful as you.”
“Gross,” Maggie says. “Is he always this mushy?”
“I don’t know, Mags. What do you say we keep him around a while and find out?”
“Kind of like when we fostered that Mr. Piddles, and you said that if he didn’t stop peeing in the house we wouldn’t be able to keep him?”
I boop her nose with my finger. “Exactly like that, and the same applies to Flint. Shape up, mister. No more peeing on the carpets.”
“Just the carpets?” he asks, sending Maggie off giggling again.
Hearing her laugh so often is amazing. She’s always been such a serious child. I forget sometimes she’s only five.
“Who wants pizza?” my sister calls out from the edge of the pool.
“Me, me, me!” Maggie starts splashing her way out of the water.
Flint and I reach for each other’s hands and slowly follow.
“What do you say you take Maggie back to your room and eat?” I ask Heidi, begging her with my eyes.
A wide smile spreads across her face when she realizes what is happening between Flint and I. “Come on, Maggie. Let’s go have some real fun so these two fuddy-duddies can take a nap.”
“Can we watch cartoons?”
“Absolutely.”
Flint and I help carry the food and escort them to their room. When we’re alone in the hallway, we look at each other. Instead of nervous butterflies like teens attending their first school dance, there’s only desire.
His hands wrap around my waist and squeeze my ass.
The only thing preventing me from kissing him right where we stand is knowing they could see us out of the peephole in the door.
I push against his chest, not relenting when he groans in dismay.
“I’ve got to have you right now, April.”
“We’ve waited this long. We can wait until we get back to the room.”
We both start off walking. Our leisurely pace quickly increases until we are racing down the hallway. By the time we get to my room, my legs are tired and I’m short of breath.
And he hasn’t even touched me yet.
7
Flint
“Listen,” I say when I lock the door. “I need to say a few things before we get started. You need to know a couple of things about me that might make you change your mind.”
I know I could have my way with her first and then tell her, but that would feel too close to a lie for my comfort. I don’t want to ever lie to April.
“Nothing you could say is going to make me change my mind, Flint.”
“That’s fine, but I still want to speak, okay?”
She nods and sits on the bed.
It’s so damn tempting to push her onto her back, pull off those bikini bottoms, and see how wet and ready she is. Lord knows, watching her body at the pool has me hard as a rock.
This will just take a minute. Tell her the truth.
“If you were smart, you’d run far away from me. I’m a fuck up. I just lost my job because I took that fight too far last night. Without that job, I’ve got no money, I won’t have a home much longer. I’m bad for you and Maggie, and I don’t want to take advantage of you by hiding the truth.”
April purses her lips, deep in thought. “I don’t know if I agree with all of that. Would you ever hurt Maggie or me?”
“Fuck no.”
She places her soft hands over my tightly balled fists. “Relax, Flint. Nobody is trying to hurt me right now. But you’re just going to need to learn that I’ve managed to get by just fine all these years. I’m not looking for you to throw punches each time someone disrespects me. Maggie doesn’t need that either. Do you know what we need?”
Her soft tone has started to unknot the muscles in my back. I shake my head. “No,” I admit.
“I need a man who can make Maggie laugh and make sure she’s on track with her homework. Someone who can remind me to log off at night and play a game. Someone who can make sure I’m eating enough vegetables when I’m buried in a rough work project. Someone who can rub my feet while listening to my worries and telling me how his day went. I just need a man who will be there for the little moments in life rather than thinking the only thing he’s good for is his muscles.”
Her hands slide up along my chest, across my shoulders, and down to my biceps. She gives them a squeeze. “Mmm. Don’t get me wrong, I love your muscles. I’d just prefer to see you put them to use in the bedroom rather than because you can’t control yourself when someone is being an asshole. I need a gentle giant, not an enforcer. Do you think you can do that…for Maggie and me?”
After my years in prison and working as a bouncer, I’m not sure I know how to be gentle. But my life before them had never brought me a hint of the happiness I’ve had since I reunited with April. “I’m not gonna lie, I’ve been in a holding pattern for so long, unsure what I was even waiting for. But as soon as I saw you again, I knew I’d just been waiting for you to come visit the island. And nothing has made me happier than making you and Maggie laug
h in the pool. I need more of that in my life.”
She kisses me.
And this time she doesn’t run away, ending years of pent-up desire.
Our hands are all over each other as we make our way to the bed. She pulls me down on top of her and wipes her lipstick from my lips.
I grab her wrist. “Don’t. I like getting messy with you. We can shower together after.”
“After? Got big plans?”
I press my erection against her mound, only our swimsuits separating us. “Big promises. My life is dedicated to making you happy from now on. I love you more than anything, April.”
“I love you, too.” She threads her hand down between our bodies and palms my cock. “Now, if you want to make me happy, fuck me until I come all over this big dick of yours.”
“Not so fast. It’s been so long since I tasted you, and I intend to refresh my memory.”
“That’ll work just fine.” She sets the bottoms of her feet on my shoulders and uses them to push me down to her delicate core. Then she wraps her thick thighs around my back and pulls me against her pussy.
I pull her bikini bottoms to the side and lap up her sweet juices, getting my beard nice and wet.
“That tongue of yours is magic.”
“Wait until you see what my cock can do.”
I don’t rush, though. I plan to cherish every moment with the love of my life without hurry or fear of losing her again. I work her pussy, focusing more and more on her clit the louder she gets until she screams my name and comes against my mouth.
“Wow. Damn,” she says. “I might need a nap after that.”
She starts to roll onto her side. I grab her legs to pull her to a stop. “Don’t you dare, you little tease.”
I position myself against her opening but don’t thrust in immediately.
“What are you waiting for?” she asks.
“You’re going to beg for it.”
“Oh, am I?” She flashes a challenging smile.
“Damn straight you are.”
I let the tip of my cock bounce against her clit. She arches her back, but rather than beg, she bites her lower lip to keep herself silent.
Using my hand, I raise my dick and let it drop once more. She moans while writhing beneath me, but keeps her lips firmly pressed together.
She’s close to giving in. I slide the length of my shaft lightly against her hard little button. She whimpers and scratches my back with her nails.
By the time I slide back and stop just before claiming her, she finally relents.
“Give me that big dick, Flint! I’ve waited for so many years. I can’t wait any longer.”
“Anything you want, hon.” Her pussy is so tight as I inch my dick inside her like our bodies were made for each other. When I’ve filled her completely, I ask, “Are you ready?”
She answers with a move so sudden it catches me off balance and rolls me onto my back. Somehow she’s seated on top of me with my cock still deep inside her. “You were taking too long.”
And just like that, my shy, delicate flower turns into a wild, sex banshee.
I hold onto her hips and enjoy the ride.
8
April
He fills me so completely. Not just with his dick. It’s something deeper than that. The lonely woman I hadn’t really known I’d become suddenly has the man I’ve always secretly needed.
Someone to cheer for my victories and help me through my sorrows. Someone to share every aspect of my life in a way I’m discovering I desperately need.
I place my hands on his firm, steadying chest and start fucking that long, thick, magnificent cock of his.
His hands squeeze my ass, encouraging me to find the pace that brings me my greatest pleasure. No man I’ve ever been with has been so completely content to make sure I’m completely satisfied before worrying about his own needs.
It makes me want to satisfy him all that much more.
I increase the pace, and soon the sound of our bodies slapping together fills the room.
“Jesus, April. You are a goddess.”
I pull his hands up to my breasts. He obediently squeezes them and toys with my nipples, filling my entire body with pleasure.
An orgasm hits me so quickly there’s nothing I can do but continue to ride his cock until the wave has passed.
“Goddamn. I wanted to make you come, but now my legs are exhausted.”
His smile is the only warning I get. He flips me onto my back and his dick fills me once more.
He fucks with a strength and an urgency on a completely different level than I could have imagined. It’s absolutely sublime. Despite it all, there’s a control, too. Somehow, he’s still managing to hold himself back a little.
I don’t get time to wonder why.
Another orgasm builds, this one slower and about a million times more powerful. I nearly shout in frustration as it hovers just off in the distance, refusing to release its awesome power.
“Come for me, baby,” Flint orders.
His words unlock the gate that’s been holding it back.
As he sees me starting to come, he kicks it up into that final gear, and I finally understand why he’s been holding back. He wanted me to find my pleasure once more.
I’m crying tears of love and joy as he continues to fuck me until he grunts and fires his seed deep inside me. I immediately wonder if we’ll have another baby, and what Maggie would think about becoming a big sister.
And then I’m wrapping my arms and legs around his sexy body and laughing and crying.
“Are you okay?” he asks.
“I’ve literally never been better,” I admit. “I love you so much.”
“It’s just the beginning. Every day will get a little better as we get to know even more about each other,” he promises. “Just wait and see.”
We kiss and make love once more before falling asleep for a nap, our naked bodies entwined. My ringing cell phone wakes us a couple of hours later.
It’s my sister. “Are you decent? Maggie and I want to go downstairs to get some dinner. She wanted me to see if Flint wants to come with.”
“What am I? Chopped liver?” I joke.
“She still loves you. He’s just the new shiny thing.”
I ran my hands over his chest. “Yes, he is. Can you hold her off for fifteen? We need to shower first.”
It takes us thirty minutes. Turns out that showering together leads to slippery, soapy fun.
“What are we eating?” Flint asks, kissing Maggie on the top of her head before sitting down in the booth next to her.
“Pizza and ice cream,” Maggie says.
“Perfect. All the basic food groups.”
I roll my eyes at both of them. “Things are going to change when we get home, you two.”
“Are we going to keep him?” Maggie asks, snuggling against his body, his arm draped over her shoulder.
Flint and I haven’t specifically talked about whether he’d be moving in with us. We’ve been so caught up in the moment and in the vagaries of the future that we haven’t taken the time to imagine how that will really work.
“I hope so,” I say. “The invitation is there, but he might need some time to get his affairs in order before he can leave the island.”
“This old place?” he says. “I’ll need five minutes to get packed. There’s nothing important for me here. Everything I care about is back…where is it you live?”
He asks the question of Maggie.
“Illinois.”
“Hot summers, cold winters, bad sports teams? Sounds perfect.”
“I have a bunk bed. You can sleep in my room.”
My sister coughs up some of this drink she keeps trying called the Slippery Pole Plunge. I keep forgetting to order one.
“I think I’ll be sleeping in your mom’s room, if that’s okay?”
Maggie makes a face. “Okay, but she snores.”
I throw my straw wrapper at her. “I do not.”
Flint joins in with her, and soon we’re all laughing until the waitress arrives with our pizza.
“Flint’s going to be the best daddy ever,” Maggie announces between bites. “I’m going to take him to school for show and tell.”
“I bet the teacher is going to love that,” my sister says.
I nod my agreement before realizing how jealous it’s going to make me, knowing other women are ogling my man.
“Like, enough to give Maggie straight A’s?” Flint asks with a wink at my sister.
“Depends. Probably not if April comes with you.”
“Promise you’ll stay home, Mom.”
This sets off a fresh wave of laughter that leaves Maggie looking at us like we’ve all gone crazy.
When we settle, Maggie asks Flint, “Wanna see my bug collection?”
“Sure, but maybe in the morning.” He fakes a yawn.
My sister squeezes my hand. “Maggie, why don’t you come to my room after dinner for another night of movies and sodas? It sounds like your boring mom and dad are going to go to bed early.”
I hide my mouth from Maggie and silently mouth, “Thank you,” to my sister.
“I’m not tired at all,” Flint says. “Maybe I’ll come watch the movies with you girls.”
“I saw you yawn, Daddy Flint. You stay in Mom’s room so the two of you can snore together. We have lots of stuff to do tomorrow. I don’t want you falling asleep like you keep doing today.”
“You’re probably right,” Flint concedes.
“I’ll see you first thing in the morning, though, right?” Maggie asks.
“That’s the plan from now on, squirt.”
“Can we take him to Paris with us, Mom?”
“You’re going to Paris?” Flint asks.
I pat his hand. “I figured I’d need a vacation to rest after this vacation.”
He growls deep in his throat. “Sounds like I’ll need to keep you good and busy this week, then. And, yes. I’ll definitely come with you to Paris. We’ll have an artist paint us in front of the Awful Tower.”