by Taryn Quinn
This way, we could both get what we wanted. And I wouldn’t lose her. She wouldn’t walk away from town for school, or if she did, she’d come back.
She’d always come back to me. To us.
Ally backed up and spun around, facing the stacks of boxes along the far wall. “What about Laurie?”
The question barely registered, because all I could think about was that she hadn’t said no.
Hadn’t said yes either, but she definitely hadn’t said no.
“She wants another sibling. You know that.”
“But if it’s me you have the child with, won’t it confuse her? We’ve spent years telling her we are just friends.”
“She loves you. She’d be thrilled to have you around more. As would I.” Unable to stay away a second longer, I wrapped my arms around her from behind.
She not only bristled, but she pulled her body not so subtly away from mine. Something else she was always doing lately. Now that I knew she was attracted to me too, it seemed like just one more confusion to pile onto the rest. But maybe she wasn’t comfortable being attracted to me yet. In her mind, we were still off-limits. Still strictly friend-zoned.
“Hey,” I said gently. “It’s just me. Last night doesn’t change all that came before.” She let out a broken laugh and I swallowed over the dust in my throat. “Does it?”
She laughed again, weakly. “I know you’re not a chick.”
“Not so much, no.”
“But yeah, for women, sex changes stuff. Probably not all women. I’m sure there are plenty who can do it and not overanalyze, but I’m not one of them. Not when it’s you.”
I stroked a hand over her arm. “Plus, it was your first—“
“God, don’t.” She buried her face in her hands. “So embarrassing.”
“What is?”
“I’m almost thirty and I hadn’t done it with anyone yet. I’m a freak with super-high expectations.”
“Having super-high expectations makes you a freak? Good to know.” Carefully, I turned her to face me and skimmed my thumb down the side of her throat. The skin was more than a little pink there, and my dick stirred again. My stubble had branded her as surely as my cock had.
Mine. I would always be her first. No matter what.
“I’m glad it was me,” I said hoarsely, tightening my hold on her throat. That brief show of dominance had her glancing up warily, but she didn’t back away. “That it was us. You gave me a gift I won’t ever forget.”
“Yeah, well, ditto, Hamilton.” She took a breath and the next time she spoke, her voice was stronger. “It didn’t quite compare to your Mustang exploits for your first time, but as far as first time fucks go, it probably wasn’t too bad.”
“Probably not.” I brushed a kiss over her forehead and she softened in my arms, melting against me in a way that didn’t make me want to stop kissing her. Or touching her.
Ever.
“Now we have time to perfect the technique,” I added as lightly as possible when my vocal cords were squeezed as tight as my swollen cock in my jeans.
“Do we?”
“Oh yeah. If you want to.” I wrapped my hand around her ponytail and tugged. “With or without a baby, I want you again. In every goddamn way possible.”
Her chin trembled. “But the baby is important to you. You wouldn’t have gone to a lawyer to draw up a contract if it wasn’t. It wasn’t a lark.”
I was tempted to deny what she’d said, but I couldn’t. She was the only person I’d always been honest with.
Her and my little girl.
“Yeah, it matters. Not just because Laurie’s asked for one. That might be a passing whim, who knows.” I shuffled my feet, feeling idiotic. Still, telling the truth was important. “Growing up without my mom around for more than random holidays was rough. Not because my dad raised us, but because he wasn’t into it. He cared more about his work. And yeah, I know I have the tendency to get caught up too, so I want some insurance Laurie has what I did.”
“Your twin,” Ally whispered.
“Yeah. We always had each other. Even when he stole my Legos or hid the second Xbox controller or put rice in my socks, the little fucker.” I had to grin. “She should have that too, and soon, before the age difference is too much. She’s already almost four, and it’s not like there’s anyone special in my life.” I sucked in a breath. “Except you.”
She shifted out of my arms, but not before the wetness in her eyes stole the oxygen right back out of my chest. “Ally—”
“Give me a few days, okay? Some time to work through all of this, to figure out how I feel.”
I wanted to argue. To try another tack. That was what I did. I negotiated for new angles, new perks to throw into the deal. Whatever it took to close the sale.
And she deserved so much more than that.
“Okay.” I nodded and shoved all the jagged edges inside me back in line. “As long as you need.”
She glanced back, surprise erasing the raw emotion on her face. “Seriously? Maybe I wasn’t the only one who needed to get laid.”
I laughed, shocking us both before I leaned forward to press my lips to her forehead again. “Definitely not.”
Though it about killed me to walk away from her, I headed for the door. I placed my hand on the knob and looked back, memorizing the way the lone overhead bulb gave her dark hair an angelic glow. But those deep brown eyes were temptation unparalleled.
“If people ask what we did in here, don’t suppose you could say you found out my little problem was miraculously solved?”
Her lips twitched. “Never said it was a little problem, Hamilton. All your problems,” she cleared her throat, “are huge.”
I grinned and stepped out, shutting the door behind me. Now I just had to wait.
A peal of girlish laughter flowed down the hall and my grin widened.
And eat ice cream with my baby girl.
9
Seth
“No, Bart, I don’t foresee any additional holdups with the check. Like I told you yesterday, we’re just waiting on the bank to—”
“Fucking bureaucrats,” Bart Jenkins mumbled. “I don’t have time for their bullshit. Maybe if I golfed more often with old man Chandler, I’d get better service.”
“Doubtful. I’ve heard his swing is killer. He’d probably annihilate you.”
Bart huffed out a laugh. “You know, Hamilton, you’re the oddball in your family, aren’t you? Your father and Oliver, they’re the serious ones. The sharks. You just make jokes and amble through life, smiling at everyone while you quietly pile up your assets.”
“Some of my friends would debate the quiet label, but yeah. That’s me in a nutshell.” I smiled and kicked back in my chair, crossing my legs at the ankle on the edge of the desk. It was almost lunchtime, and I was starving.
Maybe I’d meander over to the diner and—
Nope. With a side of hell no.
Ally had asked me for space to make up her mind, and I was going to give it to her even if it drove me crazy. I was already more than halfway there, so it wouldn’t take long.
“All right, I’ll check in again tomorrow.” Bart sighed. “I hate fucking waiting.”
“You and me both,” I said under my breath as I hung up.
Phone in my hand, I debated my lunch choices. If I wasn’t heading to the diner, I needed some sustenance. Maybe I’d ask Shelly to pick me up a sub when she was down at the bank, since Thursday was payday.
Thursday already. I hadn’t talked to Ally since Saturday afternoon. Almost a freaking week.
But who was keeping score? Not me. I scarcely had even noticed that we never went this long without talking. Even after the kiss following Laurie’s bathtub adventure, we’d bumped into each other at the diner midweek.
Bumped into meaning I’d gone over there intentionally because her blueberry pie was the best on the planet, but whatever. I wasn’t going to do that this time. Even if it meant I starved to death.
“Sure. Pastrami on rye, light mayo, extra Russian, leaf lettuce, not shredded, tomatoes, extra peppers and onions?”
“You’re the best. And a brownie. Cheesecake if they have it.” Damn sweet tooth.
“Of course. Grape soda?”
In front of anyone else, I would be slightly embarrassed about my pedestrian food choices. Shelly, however, had worked for the family business for more than a decade. She knew my weaknesses.
Even those that came in purple cans.
“Yes, please. Thanks so much.”
“No problem. One more thing, sir.”
“Ahh, Christ, not the fucking sir shit—” I broke off as the door to my office swung open and Ally stepped inside carrying a Hamilton Realty folder.
The one that contained the contract I’d had drawn up, probably. Why else would she be toting around a folder?
I swallowed deeply enough that Shelly probably heard it. Maybe Ally too. Fuck, had she always been this beautiful?
Probably. I’d just been blind. A complete fool.
“Sorry to interrupt,” Ally said tentatively, gripping the folder until it dented.
Good sign? Bad sign? Impossible to say for sure. She might’ve returned the signed version, or she could be plotting to throw it in my face. With Ally, one was never certain.
Just another thing I loved about her. Platonically loved. Like a friend I had sex with.
Great sex.
“You’re not interrupting,” I said to Ally. “You know you have a standing invitation. Just a second.”
I returned to my phone call. “Thanks so much, Shell. Gotta go.” I clicked off without finding out if Shell’s one thing was to announce Ally’s impending arrival.
It didn’t matter. I’d deal with anything else later. Like next year.
“It’s the middle of the workday. I should’ve called first, but—”
“No need. Standing invitation,” I repeated, rising and coming around the desk. I met her at the door and closed it, using the wood for support as I indulged in a nice long look at her. “You look incredible.”
It wasn’t an exaggeration. Her dark hair had been left long and loose, flowing down her bare back. She had on a red sundress type thing that showed off her breasts and narrow waist, not to mention her long legs that went on forever and ended in strappy red sandals.
Even her toenails were a dark, vampish red. My tongue tingled. I’d never been one for sucking on feet, but for her, I just might start.
Her cheeks reddened. Seeing Ally blush was a new thing. I liked it. A lot.
“Thanks. Had the day off today, so I figured I’d wear something fun.” She walked toward the windows, checking out the view from this floor as she always did.
The building that contained Hamilton Realty had a primo view of the lake, and today the sunshine was dappling the restless water. It was breezy today, and the whitecaps proved it.
“Day off? Imagine such a thing.” Feigning nonchalance, I sat on the edge of my desk.
No part of me was nonchalant around her, not anymore. Not after we’d had the most amazing sex of my life and all I wanted was to do it again. And again.
Oh, and maybe have a baby with her. Even that paled in comparison to fucking her.
Of course the insistent pressure in my cock was making everything pale in comparison to sex right now. Not just sex. Sex with this gorgeous, funny, intelligent, perfectly imperfect woman.
“Then Jean called off and Sage is probably going to get stuck working a double, but she was insistent she needed the money.”
“I thought she was set financially from her parents. The Hummingbird’s Nest always did well. They certainly got a nice check from the sale of the property.”
I frowned. Why did I care? Sage was a nice girl, and I didn’t want her to struggle financially, but her family wasn’t exactly poor. At least I didn’t think so. Her parents had sold their B&B and retired to the west coast, leaving their sheltered only daughter on her own.
Working at a diner. Hmm. So yeah, maybe they hadn’t left her as much as I thought. Not my business though.
Ally shifted away from the window, standing sideways so she was framed in sunlight. “It did, but Sage wants to make her own way. A loft on the lake doesn’t come cheap.”
“I should know,” I said drily, “seeing as I brokered the sale.”
“Yes, real estate guy extraordinaire.” She fingered her arrow necklace. “Is your father back yet?”
“Later today supposedly. Al, why are you here?”
A wrinkle formed between her brows. “I thought you said I had a standing invitation.”
“You do, always. But you’re fidgeting and you’re holding that folder and c’mon, you don’t really care where my dad is. You’ve never liked him.”
“More like he never liked me. I wasn’t good enough to be friends with you.”
“He never said that. Not once.”
“But it was heavily implied. And of course he’d wonder what you saw in me. Our worlds couldn’t be more different. We just happened to land in the same classroom in the same high school and somehow we ended up here.”
I pushed off the desk and stalked closer. Somehow now that I’d been inside her, even having a room’s distance between us seemed like too much. “Right here.” I brushed my hand down her hair and she shuddered, and fuck if that didn’t make me harder than steel. “My father hasn’t mentioned you in years.”
She rolled her eyes. “Probably hoping if he denies my existence in your life, I’ll disappear.”
“I don’t give a shit what my father thinks, and you shouldn’t either.”
“Sorry to say, I’m not as good at going with the flow and just doing it as you are.”
“Just takes practice. I’d be happy to demonstrate anything you’d like.”
“Mmm-hmm, I just bet.” Her lips twitched with the beginnings of a smile, then she pushed the folder at my chest. “Okay.”
I took the folder with suddenly boneless fingers, but I didn’t open it. “Okay?”
“Okay, I’ll do it. I’ll have a ba—”
“Fuck yes.” Threading my hand into her hair, I tugged her against me and dragged her lower lip between my teeth. Her pupils flared wide and I did it again, making her moan. “Say it again.”
“You didn’t—” She paused to drag in air. “You didn’t let me say it the first time.”
“Sorry. Say it now.”
“Bossy.” She smiled as she stroked a hand down my tie, and I swear she might as well have stroked my dick. “It may be the craziest thing I’ve ever done, but I’ll have a baby with you.”
I slanted my mouth over hers, slipping my tongue inside. She curled hers around mine, all heat and need, as she rose up to her tiptoes and tightened her grip on my tie. Pulling me closer, sinking deeper into the kiss. I dropped my hand from her hair to her ass, palming it brazenly, hauling her against me so that she could feel the rigid outline in my pants. She gasped, her eyes popping wide, and I relinquished her mouth long enough to fumble for her hand and drag her around my desk. I opened the top drawer and threw the folder inside without looking at the contents, then pointed at my chair. “Wait here.”
I opened the door and leaned into the hallway until I caught Shelly’s eye. She had the phone cradled against her ear. “Hold all my calls until further notice.”
She nodded and waved me off. It didn’t look like she’d be going out for lunch just quite yet, which might be awkward if I gave a shit.
I stepped back inside my office and shut the door, locking it. Then I glanced toward my desk.
Ally was not sitting. She had her arrow necklace up to her mouth, between her teeth, sucking on it as I hadn’t seen her do in a million years. Nervous habit 101.
“What’re you doing?” she a
sked as I skirted the desk. Coming toward her like a damn panther scenting his mate.
Because she was. She would be. Again and again until we accomplished our aim.
Not just mine. Ours now. That it was a joint mission made it more important. This would be the biggest thing we’d ever done together. The absolute best. A little of her, a little of me. Combined into a little person with all their own hopes and dreams and wants.
It was scary as fuck to do this again. To make the choice this time. The circumstances weren’t perfect, and most people—including the members of my own family—would think I was loco for ever posing the suggestion. They would think she was just as nuts for agreeing.
But in my gut, this felt right. Being with Ally had felt right since the very first day. Nothing else in my life had ever felt this natural. This perfect.
I picked up my desk phone and set it on the floor. Then I did the same with my iMac, power strip, and various peripherals. Overkill, perhaps, but I wanted us to have space.
“Seth…” God, that tremulous tone of hers was making my balls throb.
Once I’d gotten the tech stuff out of the way, I leaned over the desk and swept everything to the floor, blotter included. Ally screeched and jumped back, sending the desk chair rolling away across the hardwood floor. Worked for me. I needed room to move.
“I didn’t mean right now,” she said as I approached. “Like right this instant.”
“You didn’t, but I did.”
“You’re at work.” She took a step back, then another, finally bumping into the wall. “Clients are coming and going. Oliver is on the other side of this wall.”
“In the field,” I said easily, drawing her purse strap down her arm before setting the small, weathered bag aside and caging her in with my arms on the wall. “But I wouldn’t care if he was standing in the hallway. Let the jealous bastard listen.” At her gasp, I dropped my mouth to her ear. “I can’t walk out of here until I’ve had you again.”
“You’re insatiable. I never guessed.”
“Did you think about me in bed?” I trailed my finger underneath her jaw and down along the tops of her cleavage. She fought not to shiver and to hold my gaze, but she was on the verge of losing it, I could tell. “I thought of you.”