Sex & The Single Dad_Single Dad Club_Book Three

by Emma Nichols

  Sex & The Single Dad

  Single Dad Club: Book Three

  Emma Nichols

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Epilogue

  About Emma Nichols

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  Books by Emma Nichols:

  Copyright © 2018 by Emma Nichols

  1st Edition

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever, including Internet usage, without written permission of the author.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  Cover by Megan J. Parker-Squires of EmCat Designs

  Formatting by: Love Kissed Books

  Created with Vellum

  1

  Tradd

  What the hell is Lauryn doing here? My mind raced to make sense of this while I went through the motions of performing at Liz and Leo’s wedding. Moments before, I spotted her wandering the venue, dressed in a tight navy pencil skirt and a cream colored sleeveless blouse. She clearly wasn’t pregnant anymore. And other than her increased bust size, if I hadn’t seen her a few months before, I’d never know she’d had a baby. Yet here she was alone and I needed to know why. More than that, I needed to talk to her, touch her.

  I knew she’d seen me. As I studied her, the color drained from her face. A waiter had offered her a drink, but she smiled and waved him away. All I could think about was finishing this set so I could go to her. Because this was a favor for a friend and not a paying gig, I didn’t have the band with me. Tonight, it was just me and my acoustic guitar until later, when the hotel provided a DJ for dancing.

  Anxiously, I glanced over at my sometimes-bodyguard, and all-the-time friend, DeSean. When our eyes met and he followed my gaze, there was no denying the shock on his face. Then he kissed his wife on the cheek, whispered something in her ear, and raced from the pool area where the reception was being held.

  Digging deep, I somehow managed to find the strength to keep performing. I’d been there when Leo first told Liz he loved her. No way was I going to mess up their wedding, but it seemed like Lauryn was leaving and I was stuck. Then a thought occurred to me. Our song. I’d only ever performed it for her. When I sang it now, in my heart, I’d still only be singing it for her.

  “This next song is special to me. I wrote it for the woman I love. I love her still, and always will.” I murmured into the mic.

  Lauryn froze at the door. Slowly, she turned to face me, her cheeks flushed.

  “And while this song has never been sung for anyone else, tonight it’ll be shared with all of you.” I forced a smile and slowly strummed my guitar.

  The door behind Lauryn opened and DeSean walked through, followed by the happy couple. They looked guilty. No doubt he’d caught them in a delicate position. My mind wandered to the delicate positions I’d shared with Lauryn.

  As I began to sing, her eyes met mine and her lower lip quivered. If I could just get through this song, I could go speak with her. In the meantime, DeSean hugged her and started a conversation. They’d known each other from touring during the US leg. DeSean refused to leave his family to go abroad and had sent other members of his team in his place. I completely understood.

  Leo and Liz wandered among their guests, quietly greeting the small crowd before sitting down at the center of the long table. I recognized some of the people, like Paxton and Avery, and DeSean’s wife, Tegyn. There was even a spot at the table for me. I guess I balanced things out, since Leo’s mom would’ve been the odd one out.

  Finally, the song ended, and I barely remembered any of it, other than the way Lauryn looked at me, blinking back tears. When I set the guitar down, she tried to make a hasty exit, but DeSean obviously urged her to stay to speak with me.

  In all of fifteen strides, I’d reached them. “Hi,” I whispered, not trusting my own voice to give me away.

  “Hello,” Lauryn responded, then she stood there shifting on her feet and looking anywhere but at me.

  “Can we talk?” I asked quietly. “I have a room if you’d rather go off somewhere private.” I stared at her while gnawing on my cheek, hoping she’d accept my suggestion. “We haven’t seen each other for so long and you left without saying goodbye. And I have no idea what I did….”

  “My office,” she grumbled as she turned on her heels. “The last thing I need is to be alone with you in some room with a bed.”

  I snickered. I couldn’t help it. Maybe she wasn’t so over me after all. I had to know because I’d never get over her. I hadn’t dated. I hadn’t slept with anyone. Nothing. I was a completely reformed bad boy from the minute we started seeing each other. In fact, I was my new publicist’s nightmare.

  We entered the hotel. Lauryn was walking so briskly I could barely keep up.

  “What’s the rush?” I asked.

  “I just want to get this over with,” she shot over her shoulder.

  We turned a couple of corners. There was no way I’d find my way back to the reception without a map or a guide. I hadn’t been able to pay attention to anything but the sway of her hips. My Lord, that woman had one fine ass. I ached to get her in my arms again.

  Finally, she stopped in front of a door and unlocked it using the key attached to the spiral bracelet on her wrist. “Come on.” She sounded annoyed.

  I followed her into the office which was labeled ‘Event Coordinator.’ “Oh, you work here?” There was no hiding the surprise in my voice.

  “Yes. I needed a job,” she huffed. “No doubt my old position has been filled.” Her brow arched in both a challenge and a question.

  I nodded and released a breath. “Yeah.”

  “So, you sleeping with this one too?” Lauryn crossed her arms over her stomach.

  I took a step back and made a face. “With Ross? No. He’s not my type.” I stuffed my hands in my jeans. “In fact, I don’t seem to have interest in anyone but you.” I hoped my honesty might soften her. This was the kind of admission she’d longed to hear from me back in the day, but I refused to share.

  Her eyes widened and her nostrils flared. “Well, that’s new.”

  “It’s because of you. I’ll tell you anything you want to know, but I need you to do the same for me. Think we can do this? Even if it’s just for a few minutes.” My shoulders were up around my ears, my head hung. I feared her rejection more than I feared performing in front of sold out venues.

  Lauryn licked her lips and I could tell she was considering my words carefully. “We can try, I suppose. Although I don’t know why it matters much now.”

  My shoulders sank in relief. “I should’ve told you what I thought and how I felt so long ago. I mean…you always knew I love you. I told you. All the time. After I finally found my nerve.” I smirked, wondering if she remembered.

  Sitting on the edge of the desk, Lauryn sat on the edge of the desk. “I remember.” After a few seconds of uncomfortable silence she glanced up at me. “You said ‘love.’ Not loved.”

  “Well, that’s because it’s not past tense,” I explained patiently. “Nothing has changed for me. Has
it changed for you? Is there a new guy in your life?”

  Her head tilted and she snickered. “Yes…and no.”

  I frowned. She might as well have torn out my heart. The thought of her with anyone else had me laying a hand against my chest.

  “Stop,” Lauryn urged as she stood and strode over to me. She tugged my hand away and I wrapped it around her instead.

  She felt the same, and different. There was a distance I needed to conquer, but there was also a chemistry I couldn’t deny. I stared into her eyes, wondering if she felt it too. Then, without waiting or asking permission, I leaned in and pressed my lips to hers. She gasped, giving me the opening I needed to truly take possession of her mouth. My tongue darted out to dance with hers. I could feel her melting into me. And for some reason, I had to know how far I could push it. How far would she let me go?

  My hands roamed over her body, rubbing her back, holding her tightly against me. She didn’t push me away. She didn’t object in any way. And it was all coming back to me, the need we always had for each other, the insatiable desire. We couldn’t get enough of each other. She was the only woman I’d ever woken in the middle of the night to have sex with. Only it didn’t feel like sex. And I was too cool to suggest we were making love, but my God I’d never felt like this for anyone. How does a guy recover from that?

  In my experience, he doesn’t. And now I was here with her again and she seemed to want me as much as I wanted her. Soon, I was hiking up her skirt, setting her on the edge of her desk, unbuckling and unzipping my jeans so I could free my throbbing erection. Pulling her panties to the side, I realized how wet they were. Somehow, Lauryn was ready for me. I ended our kiss just long enough to stare into her eyes as I slid into her. Closing my eyes, I savored the feel of her, wet and warm around my cock.

  When she moaned, I guessed she needed this as much as I did. Only I feared I wasn’t going to last long. I’d even stopped masturbating because nothing felt as good as this…with her.

  “I love you, Lauryn.” I slammed into her again and again. I worried I was hurting her with my enthusiasm, but when I tried to go more slowly, she took my face in her hands.

  “Harder. Faster. It has been almost ten months.” She hooked her legs around my waist.

  I didn’t need to be told twice. With one arm wrapped around her back and curled over her shoulder, and the other around her ass, preventing her from sliding on the desk, I stopped thinking. I stopped worrying. I stopped doing everything except savoring this moment with her.

  I could feel the pressure building in me and I wanted to hold out longer. I tried. Really, I did. But this was so much stronger than I that soon I had erupted inside her. Fully prepared to apologize, I started to open my mouth when I felt her contracting around me and Lauryn whimpered in pleasure. Instead, I smiled. “God, you’re amazing.” Slowly, I pulled out and grabbed some tissues from the box on the other corner of her desk and passed them to her before taking some for myself.

  “You’re such a gentleman,” she muttered.

  “Babe, what’s wrong?” I tilted my head, completely confused. My brow furrowed as I waited for a response.

  “It’s not you. It’s me.” She finished cleaning up, tossed the tissues in the garbage, slid her panties back into place, tugged her skirt over her luscious ass, and smoothed out her clothing.

  “That’s what people say when they’re breaking up,” I mumbled. “We can’t break up.”

  “Because we’re not together?” Her brow shot up and a scowl took up residence on her face.

  “No, because we just found each other again.” I shrugged. “I thought this might change things.”

  She rubbed her temples a moment. “Well, allow me to set the record straight. All of it.” Lauryn walked around her desk and pulled an envelope from her purse. “Read it,” she urged.

  I studied the return address, which was from the Register of Deeds in Charlotte, North Carolina. “What’s this?” I asked before I even removed the paper from the envelope.

  She pulled out her desk chair and sat hard in the seat. After licking her lips, she murmured, “Spoiler alert. It’s your son’s birth certificate.”

  Swallowing hard, I nodded and turned my attention to the paper I pulled out. My hand trembled slightly. When I saw his name, I grinned. “Ripley?”

  She nodded and her cheeks colored.

  “You remembered,” I whispered.

  2

  Lauryn

  Relief washed over me.

  “Yes. How could I ever forget?” I asked quietly. “We snuck off before the concert in Myrtle Beach and did all the touristy stuff.”

  “The super strong margaritas at Margaritaville.” He chuckled. “He could’ve been Jimmy.”

  I snickered. “But that wasn’t where you told me you loved me.”

  “I remember.” Tradd sat in a chair across from me. “We were in the Ripley’s Aquarium. The place was cool, but seeing it through your eyes was the best part. The look of wonder and awe on your face. I wanted to do everything with you from then on.” He shook his head and leaned closer. “That’s when I knew how I felt about you.”

  Closing my eyes, I recalled every minute detail. I could see the way his sandy brown hair hung in his face and he kept pushing it out of the way. I remembered his scent. I could smell it clinging to me now after our little tryst. Tradd had suddenly closed what little distance was between us, wrapped his arms around me to pull me into his chest and dipped his head. “I love you, Lauryn.” He’d grinned then. “Believe it or not,” he added.

  I laughed, thinking he was being clever. Then I saw something in his eyes and realized as much as he was trying to keep it light, he was serious. He really did love me. I opened my mouth to reply, but he covered it with his and kissed me in a way that made my toes curl and my body yearn for us to be alone. In fact, I’m pretty sure that was the night our son was conceived.

  “So why did you leave?” Tradd asked while intently studying my face. “Did you know you were pregnant?”

  Licking my lips, I tried to buy myself more time. “After you told me you loved me—”

  “Love,” he interrupted. “I still love you, Lauryn. This thing I feel for you, it’s not going anywhere. Time and distance haven’t diminished it one iota. You’re it for me.”

  I could feel the frustration mounting in me. “You say that, but we don’t want the same things. You want me. You wanted only me. You wanted us to travel. You basked in the public adoration of your fans, and in private, mine.” I growled in frustration. “You didn’t want a family.”

  “You were my family, Lauryn.” Tradd blew out a breath and leaned over, his elbows resting on his thighs. “How can you say that?”

  Folding my hands on the desk, I glared at him. “You told me you didn’t ever want to stop touring. You told me the road was no place for kids. You went so far as to suggest that getting married would ruin your reputation, make you less desirable, kill your brand.” My knuckles were white from pressing so hard against the wood.

  Tradd looked down at the floor. I waited and tried to be as calm as possible. I was so close to getting answers to questions I never thought I’d get a chance to ask. In the back of my mind, after I left, I suppose I always wondered what if. What if I’d stayed? What if he’d have been fine with it and I blew it? Mostly, however, I feared the answer to one question most of all.

  “I still don’t get it. Why wouldn’t you tell me you were pregnant?” Finally, he met my cool gaze again.

  Here it was, my big chance and my greatest fear, all wrapped in one simple question. “What would you have said? Everything I knew about you, and us, suggested you’d ask me to get an abortion.” As my vision blurred from unspent tears, I looked away. “I didn’t want to hate you. I wanted to be able to raise our child and still…care about you.”

  Tradd slammed against the back of his seat. “An abortion?” His brows rose. His mouth opened. His natural inclination would always be to argue with me, try to tell me
how wrong I was. At least, that was his way in the past. This time, however, his jaw snapped shut and he nodded. “I can’t tell you I wouldn’t have said something stupid like that.” He glanced around the office, looking anywhere but at my face.

  For the first time, he seemed to realize I had a picture on the corner of my desk beside the tissues. He reached out and turned it to face him and I mostly held my breath while awaiting his reaction. After all, it was a picture of our son.

  “Ripley,” Tradd whispered as he stared at my little chunky monkey. The baby had darker hair, like me, but those striking blue eyes were from his daddy. “He has a little cleft in his chin,” Tradd noted. “Just like me.” His thumb traced the outline of our baby.

  “Yes, he looks a lot like you,” I muttered. My heart raced. He hadn’t really answered my question and already I was thinking so many steps ahead. What would we do next? What would happen now? How much harder would it be for me to be away from him from now on, since he knew? Dear Lord, what if he asked to meet Ripley? I yanked my hands down into my lap. I didn’t want to be wringing them in front of him.

  “Where is he? Who watches him while you work?” he wondered quietly.

  “I have a sitter. She’s young. And cheap.” I sighed. Money had been a factor ever since I’d left my semi-lucrative position as his publicist and girlfriend. After all, he was quick to pay for everything when we were together.

  “Right.” Tradd blew out a breath. “Money.”

  “I don’t want your money,” I blurted out without really considering the ramifications.

  His eyes narrowed. “You might not want it, but you sure as hell are going to get it. This isn’t about you and your stupid pride. This is about me contributing to our son’s life.”