by Lacey Black
“He can’t do that!” AJ says, causing us to all glance to the small circle around us.
“Legally, no, but I wasn’t exactly looking to go to the cops with this shit. So, I stepped up and paid.”
“You paid the fifteen thousand dollar debt?” Meghan asks.
“Well, not all of it. Hector, the man in the photo, told my mom the debt was two grand. Over the last nine months, she has been paying what she could and still get by raising my brothers,” he adds.
“You told her it was a two thousand dollar debt,” I figure out. “You didn’t tell her about the rest owed.” It’s not a question, but a statement.
Linkin shakes his head. “She didn’t need the stress of wondering how she was going to pay the other thirteen grand.”
“You paid it.” The realization is heady and sends me reeling. “And you never told her.” Linkin doesn’t need to confirm. I already know the answer.
I already know what kind of man he is.
“That picture was me paying the final five grand. And, before you ask, I made that money legally. I work two jobs and every tip, every bonus received at Christmas went to pay off that man. I needed his hold on my family, on my mom, gone forever.”
My heart is pounding in my chest and I’m unable to keep myself back. I need to have his arms around me, I need him to know I understand. I launch myself at his chest and he easily catches me, holding me tightly against him. My lips seek his, needing the feel, the coarseness, the closeness of his lips on mine.
He’s not expecting my kiss, but recovers quickly, swiping his tongue along the seam of my mouth and delving in urgently. The kiss is vital to my very being, a burning sensation spreading through my body, taking over my lips. I’m practically climbing him like a tree, my body wrapped around his much bigger, much taller, much firmer one.
“You’re amazing,” I tell him without removing my mouth.
“I’m not really. Not as amazing as you are, Lexi,” he says, tightening his hold on me. I can feel his hard-on pressed exactly where I want it – well, with far less clothes.
“I love you,” I blurt out, not able to keep the words contained any longer.
If Linkin is shocked by my confession, he doesn’t show it. Instead, he smiles brightly; you know that ornery smile that makes me wet and wanton. “That’s actually pretty fucking great because I’m in love with you too,” he says.
“Oh my God, that’s the sweetest ever!” Jaime proclaims beside us, clapping her hands. When I turn and look, everyone seems to have those big dopey smiles on their faces. Well, everyone but Chris.
I untangle myself from the man I love and turn to face my ex. “I’m sorry, Chris.”
He nods. “Me too,” he says, his eyes filled with his sadness, as he turns and heads towards the front door.
“So…” AJ says, not really sure what to say.
“A vasectomy?” Jaime asks, shaking her head.
“I knew there was something up with you not being able to get pregnant,” Meghan says.
“I was worried it was you,” Payton confesses. “You know, like with me.” She’s referring to her diagnosis of PCOS, or polycystic ovarian syndrome and the effects it has on her ability to conceive.
“No, definitely not me. I’m actually very much able to conceive,” I say without thinking.
Payton stares at me hard, her all-knowing little eyes focused on my every move, her brilliant mind working to decipher my words. “What does that mean?”
“What?” I ask, fretting ignorance.
“You know exactly what. Are you…” she asks, leaving her question completely open.
“What? No.”
“She didn’t drink tonight,” AJ adds, causing me to look at her. “What? You didn’t think I’d notice? You drank clear liquid but I’m guessing it was water or Sprite. You also didn’t take the shots. Linkin did.” She smiles smugly and shrugs her shoulder.
“You’re pregnant?” Jaime asks, surprised, yet very excited.
“Pregnant?” Linkin says, turning and facing me. A look I can’t read on his face.
“I’m…well, I was…it’s not the right…fine. I’m pregnant.”
My frantic eyes collide with his wide brown ones. They’re filled with so much hope and enthusiasm that it makes me smile. “Really?” he asks, stepping forward and reaching for me.
“Really,” I confirm as he wraps his arms around me and lifts. Before I know it, I’m being spun around in circles and laughing uncontrollably.
“We’re having a baby?” he whispers against my ear, his hot breath short-circuiting my brain. “We’re having a baby,” he states a bit louder. “We’re having a baby!” he hollers at the room, making me giggle.
Carefully, he sets me down in front of him and grabs the sides of my face. “You’re knocked up.”
“I am.”
His lips are firm against mine as he places a chaste kiss on my lips. “Fuck, I never thought hearing those words would feel as amazing as it does hearing them come from your lips.”
I feel the strength and validation of his words as he gazes down at me, holding my head with his hands. They’re rough and strong, yet so soft and tender at the same time. Much like this man.
“I love you,” he says and it’s all I need to hear.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Linkin
“I love you too,” she says sweetly in return, my heart pounding a heavy rhythm in my chest.
I never knew saying, and hearing those words, would feel as good as it does to say them with Lexi. She’s smiling up at me, her emerald eyes shining with unshed tears, and I feel complete. Everything I’ve endured, all the dues I’ve paid, every moment has come to this.
To her.
And our baby.
My hands drop to her stomach as I touch the place my son or daughter is nestled snuggly. She grins down, putting her hands over the top of mine and linking our fingers.
“I can’t believe this,” Meghan says happily, wrapping her arms around both Lexi and me.
I’ve been hugged more times tonight than ever before, and it doesn’t look to be slowing anytime soon. I’m almost kinda glad Lexi’s grandma isn’t here right now as I’m hugged by each of her sisters and given those one shoulder bro-hugs from the guys.
“Sorry about the disruption,” Lexi says to the group.
“Are you kidding? I haven’t been this entertained since Grandma thought Linkin was a stripper,” AJ replies.
Reaching over, I grab my girl and pull her to me. She nestles into my front perfectly, and it doesn’t take her long to discover what’s going on in my pants. Hell, what’s been going on in my pants for over an hour. “Really?” she asks, moving her ass against my cock, almost making me come on the spot.
“You have no idea,” I groan. “I’ve been hard since we danced. I’m starting to think something’s wrong,” I tell her chuckling, but to be honest, I’m not really joking. I’m a little concerned. I mean, I just stood beside my girl while she went toe-to-toe with her ex-husband, not to mention the fact that I just spilled the details of my past. In front of an audience.
And I did it all with a woody.
Lexi turns her head and gives me a look over her shoulder. “Really? We should go do something about that,” she says, flexing her ass and wiggling it against my engorged groin.
“Stop that or we won’t even make it out of the bar,” I practically growl.
She opens her mouth to speak, probably something sassy that’ll turn me on even further, when she’s interrupted by Jaime. “Are you kidding me? How can you even be hard right now?”
Ryan glances around before looking down at his fiancée. “I don’t know but I’ve been hard for the past hour!”
“Dude, are you really talking about your hard-on right now?” AJ asks, slurping up the last of her mixed drink.
Levi comes up behind Abby, interrupting Ryan before he can answer. “We need to go. Now.”
>
“Are you okay? Why are you all sweaty?” she asks, concerned as she checks over her boyfriend.
“I’m fine, I’m just…” he glances around and whispers, “I’m fucking harder than concrete right now and it’s starting to hurt.”
“What?” she asks loudly, glancing down at Levi’s crotch, which he adjusts.
“Yeah, if we could go now, that’d be great, Pay,” Dean says while holding a jacket over his front.
“Not that I’m not super excited to get that out and play with it, but is something going on here?” she asks Dean, looking around to the others.
“Something is definitely going on. I’m two seconds away from jacking off, but even then I’m not sure it would help. This hard-on is fucking intense,” I add. I make sure to hold Lexi still to keep her from sliding her delectable ass against me. It’s torture and making my balls bluer than a cobalt crayon.
“I agree. I couldn’t even pee earlier.” Ryan moves his hips and continues to adjust himself.
“Oh my God, this is great! It’s like you got into some of Grandpa’s Viagra or something,” AJ chirps.
Her words seem to hit everyone at the same time and the light bulbs start turning on.
“Orval!” Levi says, immediately followed by Dean. “The brownies!”
“You ate Grandpa’s brownies?” Meghan asks, concern mixing with humor. “Last time he made them they were laced with pot.”
“He said he made them while Emma was getting her hair done,” Ryan groans.
The girls all start laughing. “Let me get this straight, you all ate Grandpa’s brownies, and now you’re sporting more wood than a baseball dugout?” Payton pants through laughter.
“Pretty much,” Dean grumbles.
“He made Viagra brownies. Who does that?” I ask.
“Grandpa!” everyone hollers.
“We need to go. I’m going to explode,” Ryan says, grabbing Jaime and throwing her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. “You guys got this?” he asks, not even bothering to hear our answers. He’s heading towards the door so fast, his shoes are practically smoking.
“Road-head!” Jaime hollers, smacking him on the ass while he grabs their coats off the table and is out the door.
“Not fair,” I grumble, glancing around at all the clean-up we still have to do.
“What an asshole,” Levi says, watching them leave.
“Good thing it’s his party or I’d hate him a little right now.” This from Dean.
“Pshhh. I do hate him,” Lexi says. “He better not make me waste a perfectly good erection because I’m cleaning up the four thousand dicks Grandma bought as party decorations.”
“I’ve got an idea. How about I see if we can get in here first thing in the morning before Lucky opens up,” I offer.
“What are you waiting for?” Lexi exclaims, pushing me lightly towards the bar.
It takes me approximately one minute to ask my boss if we can just come in before we open and clean up the mess. He agrees, as long as every sign of the plethora of penises is gone before the neon beer signs go on in the window.
“Done,” I say, returning to the group of eager beavers.
Literally.
They all scramble to grab their jackets as Lucky starts to turn off the lights and secure the building. “Meet here at ten a.m. We’ll clean up the joint and deliver the gifts to their place,” I instruct, reaching for my girl.
“They can make us breakfast as a thank you for their cockblocking,” Levi agrees, grabbing Abby’s hand and practically dragging her to the door.
Dean and Payton are making a beeline for the door themselves, leaving me and Lexi…and Meghan and AJ behind. “Well, looks like you ladies are with us,” I say to the two remaining sisters.
* * *
I think my dick is going to fall off. Think I’m joking? I’ve had a hard-on for so long, I’m afraid there might be some sort of long-term permanent damage at this point. It doesn’t help that Lexi keeps teasing the shit out of me, showing me little peeks of cleavage or eye-fucking me while I’m trying to drive her car to take her sisters home.
But now we’re home.
Now she’s mine.
As soon as we step inside the elevator, I’m all over her. She’s pinned between the wall and my hard body, our mouths clashing in a frenzy of urgent lips and frantic tongues. She fits perfectly against me, her smaller frame lining up so fucking seamlessly with mine. It’s like she was made just for me.
“God, I love you,” I tell her once more, the bell indicating we’ve arrived on the third floor. I don’t put her down as I grab her ass, hold her tight against my body, and slip out of the elevator before the door closes.
“Do you have my keys?” she asks, attacking my neck with her mouth. My brain short-circuits with every swipe of her tongue and graze of her lips against my sensitive skin. “God, I love this beard,” she says, running her hands against the abrasiveness.
“I love seeing the marks it leaves on your thighs,” I say, unlocking her door and slamming the door behind us.
“Yes, that. Leave marks.” She’s breathless and panting already and I haven’t even gotten her naked yet.
“My pleasure.”
I carry her to her room and set her on the floor. My lips only leave hers long enough to pull her sweater over her head and do the same with my t-shirt. She kicks off those little black ankle boots that I fucking love and starts working on the belt around my waist. I leave her to it and decide to feast on those glorious tits of hers. They’re covered by ivory lace, her nipples poking into the material and begging for my mouth.
And who am I to deny?
Moving the lace aside, I audibly groan as my lips feast on one tight little bud, then the other. Her hands grip my head, threading into my hair, and giving it little tugs while I suck and nip with gentle teeth.
Her hands drop back to my pants, ripping them open and diving her soft fingers inside. She grabs my hard cock, wrapping those fingers around my hardness and giving it a not-so-gentle squeeze. “Fuck,” I moan, fighting against my body’s desire to thrust into her hand. Instead, I grab her hands and pull them from cock. It practically starts to cry, but I ignore him.
“Come here,” I tell her, practically tossing her on the bed. I pull those tight jeans from her legs, catching my first glimpse of the ivory lace hidden within.
I waste no time. Starting at the inside of her knee, I drag my tongue all the way up to her sweet pussy. She’s wet. I can see the way the light lace between her legs darkens a bit. But also I can smell it. There’s nothing sexier than the scent of a woman who’s turned the fuck on.
Swiping my tongue over the panties, we both groan as her taste hits my tongue. Instead of moving those panties to the side and diving in, I start over on the other leg, sliding my tongue from her knee to her pussy. This time, I don’t deny either of us the pleasure. I move that little scrap of material aside and run my tongue from the bottom to the top.
Her moan is music to my ears.
Using one hand to grip the panties and keep them out of my way, I use the other to tease. I coat my pointer finger in her wetness, paying a little extra attention to her clit. I have to rest my arm across her gyrating hips as I lick and suck and devour her. Using a single finger, I gently push inside her body. She’s already clenching, pulsing around me, a prime indication that she’s so close to coming. When she comes, it’ll be with my mouth all over her.
I slide a second finger inside of her and keep licking her clit. She’s getting so damn close. Her legs wrap tightly around my head before falling open and riding my face. My cock is like steel, weeping as I continue to ignore his needs. Once I get her off, I’ll bury myself so far inside her she’ll feel me for days to come.
And speaking of come, it’s time for her to do just that.
My tongue work turns into lip work as I latch onto that tight little bud and suck hard. At the same time, I slide a third fin
ger into her pussy. The grip is almost unbearable as her muscles squeeze and pulse around me. Lexi’s panting and begging, riding my face and chasing her orgasm.
When it starts, I feel it clear down to my own toes. My balls tighten as her internal muscles squeeze the hell out of my fingers, milking and pulling them in farther. “God, yes!” she screams, rotating her hips at a frenzied pace.
She falls limp against the bed, her body sated and sweaty. I can already see the red burn on her thighs and the sight makes my cock jump in my pants. Unable to deny him any further, I get rid of my boots, socks, and jeans. My boxer briefs quickly follow until I’m standing before her completely naked, aching cock seeping with pre-come.
Gazing down at her gorgeous body, my sights fall to her still-flat stomach. The place my child grows. Her eyes are on me as I kneel between her legs, but my mouth goes to her belly. I rain tender, open-mouthed kisses on her skin, hoping that baby inside can feel the love I’m sending him or her. Jesus, my heart practically hurts it’s so full.
When my eyes gaze back up at her, there are tears swimming there, but I don’t need to ask; I already know these are the good ones. A single tear slips from her eye and falls into her hair, my thumb there, wiping away the residual moisture.
“Do you know what this means to me?” I ask, my hands holding her waist, my thumbs rubbing circles on her skin.
She doesn’t speak, but shakes her head.
“This baby, our baby, is already my entire fucking world. You and this child are everything,” I confess, my vision suddenly blurry.
More tears fall from her eyes as she reaches for me, pulling me up her body. Our lips meet in a slow, passionate kiss. I feel everything she’s telling me, everything she’s giving me. I rip the panties from her body, careful not to hurt her. Her legs wrap around my waist, lining up her pussy with my cock. In one long thrust, I’m there, wrapped in pure heaven and breathing her in.
She’s tight, her body still riding high from the previous orgasm. As I slowly move within her, I commit everything to memory: the feel of her body, the scent of her skin, the taste of her lips. The love I feel in the way she holds me against her, moves with me, is something I’ll never forget.