I locked the door, reset the alarm, and then headed into the kitchen. Willow stood at the island chopping vegetables and she seemed off. “Willow?”
“Hmm?” she murmured without looking up.
“No kiss hello?” I challenged.
She set the knife down, walked over to me, and gave me a quick kiss on the lips, then immediately went back to what she was doing. I frowned. “Babe, what’s goin’ on?”
“I’m goin’ to go out back and grab a smoke,” Gator said, making himself scarce.
“Willow?”
She shook her head and focused on the veggies again.
I sighed, closing the distance between us and carefully prying the knife out of her hand. “Talk to me.”
She dropped her head to my chest. “I just... feel... I don’t know... like an errant child.”
“In what way?”
“You wouldn’t understand.”
Admittedly, this irritated me a little. “Try me.”
“Brad accused me of prostituting myself—”
“Stop,” I growled.
“I knew you wouldn’t understand.”
I lifted her chin. “Okay, first, fuck Brad and the horse he rode in on. Second, you are not a whore, but you know what? Even if you were, he’d have no right to judge you. And believe me, baby, that asshole’s probably got more skeletons in his closet than he’s willing to admit.” She bit her lip and I kissed her gently. “You’re perfect just the way you are, Willow. Don’t ever doubt it.”
“I appreciate that. But it’s just hard to dismiss those bits in the Bible that say premarital sex is wrong.”
“You love me?”
“So, so much,” she whispered.
“You ever want to fuck Brad?”
Her face screwed up into the cutest expression of disgust and I had to force myself not to smile. “No, I didn’t even enjoy his kisses... I mean, I guess I did back then, but now that I’ve kissed you, I realize he kind of sucked at it.”
I chuckled, kissing her again. “I’m gonna make an honest woman outta you, Willow, so don’t listen to the people who want to drag you down.”
She grinned, wrapping her arms around my waist. “Thanks, honey.”
“It’s all good.”
“Are you okay with the whole Brad thing?”
“Why wouldn’t I be okay?”
She shrugged, going back to her veggies. “He can be mean.”
I grabbed a beer from the fridge. “I can handle douchebag Brad.”
“Will you tell me why you were giggly before?”
“Giggly?” I challenged.
“Oh, sorry, that’s not very manly, huh?” she retorted. “The part where you said you’d tell me inside.”
“I know what you were talkin’ about, baby, just like to give you a hard time.”
She rolled her eyes.
“You said you didn’t want Gator to get in trouble. You put his well-being before Brad’s.”
“Well, yeah.” She waved the knife in the air. “I don’t want a repeat of what happened when you and I met.”
“For the second time.”
“I wasn’t sure if you remembered that.”
I cocked my head. “Not remember the fuckin’ hot piece of ass who got her back up ’cause she wanted to change her own tire?”
“I didn’t ‘get my back up,’ I just didn’t know you and you were really gorgeous, and that made me all nervous.”
I kissed her again. “Glad you don’t get nervous anymore.”
“Oh, I do, I’m just better at hiding it.”
I laughed. “You hide it well.”
Gator walked in just as the oven timer started to beep.
“Timer’s goin’ off,” Gator retorted, parking himself back on a bar stool.
“You want to chop more veggies, old man?” Willow threatened, turning off the timer.
Gator chuckled. “I’m happy to chop veggies if you feed me like this every night. I ain’t never had better food in my life than when you cook.”
Willow beamed. “You’re a boost to a girl’s ego, Gator.”
I wrapped an arm around her waist and kissed her temple. “You need help?”
“Do you know how to set a table?”
“Probably not the way you want it.”
“Love how honest you are.” She smiled. “How about you watch the veggies and turn them when the timer goes off? I’ll set the table.”
“I can do that.”
“Thanks, honey.”
Willow instructed Gator on what she wanted carried to the dining room and left me standing at the stove. Lucky for her, I could cook... not like she could, but enough to know what turning the veggies meant.
* * *
Willow
I loved Dash. More than anything, but I couldn’t seem to get the little insecurities that filled my mind to disappear. The biggest problem was that I was a verbal processor and we were hosting our friends tonight, so I wouldn’t be able to break it all down until they were gone.
So, I shut down a little. This wasn’t like me, but it was all I could do in order to keep myself from completely losing my mind.
Badger and Alamo arrived first and made themselves comfortable while Dash grabbed them beer. Jasmine and Parker walked in not long after, and they’d brought wine and dessert, which sent me looking for the wine opener. I hadn’t had a decent glass of wine all week and I suddenly needed it.
“Can we help?” Jasmine asked.
“Nope. I’m pretty much done.”
She cocked her head and studied me. “You got a second?”
I was mid-sip into my wine, so I swallowed and nodded.
Jasmine headed toward my dad’s office and I followed, closing the door as I stepped inside. “What’s up?” I asked.
She crossed her arms. “What’s wrong?”
“What do you mean? I’m good.”
“You’re a shit liar, little miss, spill.”
Because it was Jasmine, and because she was impossible to stall, lie to, bamboozle, or accomplish anything shady involving her, I told her everything. Brad’s visit and all of my insecurities and feelings about Dash and sex...all of it.
“Okay, give me a second to process the fact you’ve lost your V-card,” she said, with a cheeky grin.
“Jasmine,” I hissed.
She giggled. “I think it’s awesome.”
“That’s because you like sex.”
“Well, that’s true. I do like sex. But it’s not like I’ve slept with a hundred men or anything.”
I rolled my eyes. “I know that.”
She’d had two serious boyfriends in her life and made a (very loud) point of waiting seven months and two days (she was a total weirdo like that), and if she was in love by that date in the relationship, she’d have sex. Two men had made the cut, and she’d just broken up with Wally, so the clock would start again when she met a new man.
“And I get where you’re coming from with the sex before marriage and everything, but I think what you have with Dash is realer than what you had with Brad, and realer than what a lot of couples have, period. He’s good for you, Willow. Really good for you.”
“I know he is.”
“So, do you really think God is concerned about a piece of paper? In Biblical times, they had sex first and the ceremony after, so if you marry him, you’re kind of covered, right?”
“What if I don’t marry him?”
She grinned. “Oh, then you’re definitely a whore and you’re going to hell.”
I sighed. “Thanks, butthead.”
Jasmine giggled. “You’re welcome. Feel better?”
“Much.”
“Good,” she said. “And, F.Y. information, Brad’s a dick. He’s always been a dick and he’ll always be a dick, so listen to nothing he says, got it?”
“Good advice,” Dash said from the doorway.
“So, he doesn’t knock,” Jasmine deadpanned. “Good to know.”
Dash grinned and clo
sed the distance between us.
“I’ll give you guys a minute,” Jasmine said, and left the room.
“How much did you hear?” I asked.
“Most of it.”
“Didn’t your mom tell you eavesdropping was rude?”
“Never knew my mom, so no.”
I frowned, sliding my hands up his chest. “You didn’t know your mom?”
He shook his head. “Nope. She died when I was about two... drug overdose. Was raised by my aunt.”
“What about your dad?”
“He was some john she’d fucked to get high.”
I frowned. “You were a drug baby?”
“Believe it or not, no. The second she found out she was pregnant, she did everything she could to get sober. But she couldn’t stay that way once I was born. My aunt got custody before she OD’d and it was her and I against the world until I was eighteen. She met her husband Tony when I was sixteen, but didn’t marry him ’til I was technically an adult. She wanted me to know I was her priority. So, I left and she and her hubs moved to Atlanta about six years ago.”
“She kicked you out?”
“No. I took off on my own. She sacrificed a shit ton for me, and I was holding her back, so I packed up and left. I’d met Doc a few months before I turned eighteen and he offered me a place and I never left.”
“Do you still see your aunt?”
“Not as much as I’d like to,” he admitted. “She’s got a couple of kids and her husband’s cool, but it’s a trek to get there and they’re busy.”
I wrapped my arms around his waist. “I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be sorry, baby. My life’s good and it’s all because of Brooke. We’re still tight, it’s just distance that makes it difficult.”
“I can’t wait to meet her.”
He grinned. “Can’t wait to introduce you two. She’s gonna love you.”
“You think so?”
“I know so,” he said, giving me a gentle squeeze. “I’ve already told her about you, and now I get a text every couple of days asking when she gets to meet you.”
“So, when’s that going to happen?”
He chuckled. “Want to go before school starts?”
“Yes.”
“I’ll set something up.” He lifted my chin. “You feel better?”
I nodded. “Yes.”
“Good, ’cause Gator wants food.”
“Gator always wants food.”
“This is true.” He grinned, leaning down to kiss me gently, then we headed back to our friends.
* * *
Everyone was gone and I had rushed to get naked... I needed Dash in a bad, bad way. He was taking a little longer than I liked, but the second he’d slid his jeans off, I knelt in front of him and slid my mouth over the tip of his cock.
“Fuck, Willow. You sure you wanna do this?”
I nodded and smiled as he threaded his fingers into my hair. Admittedly, I had no experience, but I had an idea of what I needed to do and I wanted to do it well. I took him deeper, but my efforts didn’t last long. Strong hands hooked me under my arms and I was lifted onto the bed.
“Dash! I’m not—” I never got the rest of my complaint out, as Dash thrust inside of me and all breath left my body with a squeak, “Oh!” It was our first night without condoms and it felt amazing.
His mouth claimed mine as he continued to surge into me, his hand cupping my breast before sliding between my legs. My orgasm flooded me, but I didn’t have time to enjoy it, as I was flipped onto my stomach. “Cheek to the mattress, baby.”
My heart raced as I did as he directed. He lifted my hips higher and slid into me from behind and I lost my mind. “Oh, my word,” I breathed out.
“Don’t come,” he ordered.
“I don’t think I can control—” Before I’d even gotten the sentence out, I exploded around him again.
Dash groaned, sliding partially out and then back in. “Fuck, baby, so good.”
I mewed as another climax began to build.
“I’m gonna try somethin’,” Dash said. “You trust me?”
“Yes,” I rasped, and he smacked my bottom. I let out a shocked cry, but my body immediately responded.
“Too much?” he asked.
“No. Oh... my...”
“More?”
“Yes, honey. More.”
He slapped me gently again and I closed my eyes, my mind and body overwhelmed with pleasure. Dash moved slower, his hands settled on my hips, and I continued to moan as my orgasm built. He shifted slightly, sliding his hand to my belly. “Spread baby.”
I spread and he lifted me, keeping himself firmly inside of me, so I was straddling him backwards. I dropped my head back, onto his shoulder and whimpered.
“You okay?”
“Yes,” I panted.
With his left arm anchoring me against him, he rolled a nipple between his fingers while his right hand slid between my legs. I rose slightly, then lowered slowly.
“That’s right, baby,” he whispered, and I raised up again, mewling as I slid back down. “Holy shit,” he rasped, and his finger found home.
I called out his name as I came and he pushed me back down and slammed into me, over and over, until he let out a satisfied groan.
“Just gets better,” he whispered, rolling us to our sides.
I wanted more, so I reached between my legs as I rocked my hips, dropping my head back against him.
“I’ve created a monster,” he whispered, replacing my hand with his, his finger going straight to my clit and bringing me to yet another perfect orgasm.
“Yes, you have,” I agreed once I caught my breath.
He slid out of me and left the room, returning with a warm washcloth to clean me up.
“Even as messy as this might be, it’s so much better without a condom.”
Dash chuckled. “Hell, yeah it is.”
He climbed back into bed and pulled me onto his chest. “Was I okay?”
“You were incredible, baby.”
“Then why did you make me stop?”
He sighed. “Because if I didn’t, I was gonna come in your mouth. I figured you weren’t ready for that.” He ran a finger across my lower lip. “For someone who’s never done that before, it was amazing and I knew I wouldn’t be able to wait.” His finger continued down my chest and across my breast, rolling my nipple. I arched into him.
“Honey,” I whispered.
His hand slipped between my legs and he kissed my neck. “I love you, Willow.” I spread a little so he’d have better access. “More than I could have ever imagined.”
“Dash,” I whispered again, and he kissed me deeply.
He slid his arm to my waist and rolled with me, landing on his back. I straddled his hips, lifting up slightly as he guided himself inside of me. I lowered myself with a sigh, bracing my hands behind me on his thighs.
“Fuck me, I’m hard again.”
I smiled. “Yes, yes you are.”
I raised up again and Dash ordered, “Slowly, baby.”
I fell forward and kissed his chest. “Killjoy.”
Dash’s hand went between us, his finger to my clit, and he grinned. “Rock back and forth, baby.”
I pressed into his fingers and rocked gently, my hands on his chest, my head back as he brought me to the edge of a cliff, then over. As I came around him, he rolled me onto my back and slammed into me, dragging my thigh up as he thrust in harder.
Yet another orgasm came just before his, and he kissed me as I wrapped my arms around his neck and slid my fingers into his hair.
“Wow,” I breathed out as he rolled off me and onto his back.
“We’re gettin’ married tomorrow.”
I giggled. “Are we?”
“Hell, yeah. I’m not lettin’ A-Plus pussy get away.”
“Excuse me?”
He grinned, facing me and settling his head in his palm. “Somethin’ you need to understand about men...”
; I faced him, mimicking his pose. “Oh, please enlighten me, sir.”
“When a man finds a woman who satisfies him in bed, he doesn’t let her go. For any reason.”
“Oh, really?”
“Really,” he confirmed. “I’ve been around, I’ve had my share of pussy, but yours is pure gold, and there’s no way in hell—”
“Wait,” I interrupted him. “We need to shut this conversation down, because you’re starting to irk me.”
“Why’s that?”
“Because you’re diminishing what this is. You’re putting me in the same category with all your other ‘pu-pu-pussy.’” I slid out of bed and stalked to the bathroom.
Dash followed. “Will—”
“I’m not having this conversation with you,” I said, pushing the door closed.
I started the shower and climbed in. I wasn’t in there long before Dash stepped in behind me and I closed my eyes forcing the hurt away.
“I’m sorry,” he whispered, kissing the back of my neck. “I was tryin’ to be funny and instead sounded like a dick.”
I nodded, keeping my head under the spray.
“Baby,” he said, turning me to face him. “Don’t be mad.”
I wiped the water from my eyes. “I’m not mad. I’m hurt.”
He frowned. “That’s fuckin’ worse.”
“Then don’t relegate me to ‘class A’ pussy.”
“Technically I said ‘A-plus pussy’ and that it was ‘gold.’ That’s way better than class A.”
“Dash,” I hissed.
He chuckled. “I’m sorry. Bad joke.”
I sighed. “Can we please make it a point not to bring up the current rankings of the industry standards of my genitalia? Because it reminds me just how much of it you’ve had and it makes me feel lacking.”
“Baby, you’re not lacking, that’s what I was trying to say... badly, but true.” He pulled me closer. “Fuck, I’m sorry, Willow. Seriously. I’ve never had this.” He lifted my chin. “I might be ‘experienced,’ so to speak, but this, this is new to me. I’ve never been in love. I don’t know what the fuck I’m doin’ most of the time, and if I lost you, I’d lose my mind.”
“You’re not going to lose me,” I said, exasperated. “Not over something like this, anyway.”
“No?”
“No.” I rolled my eyes. “Dash, I love you. Yes, you hurt my feelings, but you’ve soothed that hurt in your strange and unique way.”
Saving the Preacher's Daughter (Dogs of Fire: Savannah Chapter #1) Page 13