by Natalie Ann
Trey kissed her on the forehead. “Well said.”
The last thing Trey thought was going to happen was that his family would side with Whitney today.
Yes, they’d been asking to see her for weeks and he’d put it off. Not because he thought this was going to happen. If he had he would have put it off longer.
But because he was busy more than anything and maybe selfish in that he wanted their time alone when they were both available.
“Do you mind if we bring your gift to your house?” he asked. He shouldn’t be shocked that she’d gotten Ben a little firetruck that would double as a toy to ride on and one to help him learn to walk. “Your house is a lot bigger and you could see he wanted to take off on it and was running into things at my parents. He won’t get far at my house.”
“Sure. He might start racing up and down the hall on my hardwood floors. I was thinking I should get some throw rugs like you’ve got.”
“You don’t need to change anything for us,” he said. When she frowned he added, “Ben’s going to be walking soon. He won’t have to worry about tripping over the corner of rugs. I’ll probably pull mine up too.”
“Oh. I didn’t even think of that.”
“Why would you? I wouldn’t have either other than he was standing against the couch and moving around and his foot got stuck on the corner and he fell.”
“Did he cry?” she asked.
“No. He went down on his butt and started to giggle. Then he thought it was a game.”
She laughed. “You should have taken a video of it.”
He’d thought of it after the fact. That he wanted to share that with her when he’d never thought to share those things about Ben before was just more proof that his heart was pretty much gone for Whitney Butler once again.
Now he had to do what his parents joked about. Not be stupid and lose her like he had before. And that meant to stop being so insecure about everything she had and what little he did.
18
Giving Thanks
“Are you sure you’re okay with this?” Whitney asked Trey when they pulled into Ryan’s driveway on Thanksgiving Day.
“It’s a little late to ask now,” he said, patting her leg when she frowned.
“Sorry. I guess I wasn’t thinking that it might be hard to move around like this with naps and all.”
“It’s fine. Ben had his nap. And we had one meal already.”
They’d eaten an early dinner at Trey’s parents’ house around noon, then left at two before dessert was served so that Ben could get a nap in. They’d gone back to her house for it since they had to be at Ryan’s before dinner at five with her family.
It reminded her that they’d done this once before. Had an early dinner at Trey’s parents’ and a later one at hers. Of course back in the day her metabolism was better and she didn’t think she’d be this stuffed. Her first meal was finally not making her want to nap.
“I know you wish Ben slept longer,” she said. Two hours was pretty much a given every day, but today he was barely ninety minutes.
“I didn’t think he’d even sleep this long having been moved around and then eating later. He’s a creature of habit. Dinner with your family will be about the same time as his normal dinner, so that helps.”
They got out of the truck, Ben bouncing and kicking his feet in the back. “He’s ready to go. He’ll have fun with Maddie and Jeffrey today.”
“Where is the rest of your family today? It’s just Ryan’s family and your parents?”
Trey got Ben out of the back while she grabbed the pies she made earlier and Ben’s diaper bag. “Yes. Parker is cooking for her brothers and family, and my Aunt Judy and Uncle Michael went there along with Christian. Evan’s house has probably never seen a meal like this cooked. Kaelyn and Harris cooked earlier for his parents and his sister, Sarah, and her fiancé, Caden.”
“I remember when you were younger everyone was together on this day,” he said.
“Times change when people have their own families.” They walked into Ryan’s, the two French bulldogs charging them, then dancing around their feet. “Hey, Oreo. Hi, Taffy,” she said bending down to pet them both while she balanced holding the pies in the other hand.
Ben was leaning over in Trey’s arms so far he was bound to fall out. “Easy, Ben.”
“He wants to see the dogs. Ever think of getting him one?”
“Please,” Trey said, following her to the back of the house, then setting Ben down to get closer to the dogs. “I haven’t tried potty training yet and you think I want to house train a dog?”
“Taffy still pees in the house when she is mad,” Jeffrey said. “Ryan said it’s because she’s a woman and they get that way while they make a point.”
“Shhh,” Ryan said to Jeffrey, laughing. “That was man talk.”
“It better be the last of the man talk too,” her mother told her brother. “Your wife isn’t looking so happy with that comment.”
She looked at Shannon trying to scowl at Ryan and then wink. She always thought she’d have a relationship like that with her husband, but it had never materialized. Maybe because Ryan was joking and Kevin never did.
Nope, Kevin would make some dickhead comment about her being a bitch or on the rag. Not having dinner on the table. People would laugh, but he was serious. She realized later on that most knew Kevin wasn’t joking but didn’t want to start something in front of her.
It was probably better anyway. She would have felt the need to defend him like she had so much when her family said something negative. He was her husband and that was what a wife did.
Then she realized she was the only one that took their relationship seriously. Or honored their vows.
Her past crappy marriage had no place in her mind when she was feeling like she was about to get a holiday dinner with the family she always wanted and dreamed of.
“Is there anything I can do to help?” she asked her sister-in-law when she walked into the kitchen.
“Everything is under control for now. I’ll be taking the turkey out in about thirty minutes to rest, then Ryan can carve it and I’ll get everything else put on the table. Most things are done and just warming. The potatoes and rolls are the last,” Shannon said.
“Then let’s all have a glass of wine and relax until it’s the mad rush to put food on the table,” her mother said.
“Sounds like the best suggestion yet. But I’ll have water.”
Whitney lifted her eyebrow at her sister-in-law and caught the smirk. “Are you...?”
Shannon poured her a glass of wine, then handed it over. “Trey, can we get you a beer?” Shannon asked.
Ryan jumped up and grabbed one, then handed it over, moving to stand next to his wife of fewer than six months and put his arm around her waist. “Now that you are all here.”
Oh boy, she knew what was coming. She suspected her parents and Zoe did too when they turned with massive grins on their faces. “Come here, Maddie and Jeffrey,” Shannon said. “We have something to tell everyone.”
“Are you having a baby, Mommy?” Maddie asked.
There was a lot of laughter at that question. “Would you be happy if I was?”
“Yes,” Maddie said, jumping up and down.
“What about you, Jeffrey?” Shannon asked. She realized now how hard it might be to have a blended family like this and looked over at Trey to see if he might be thinking the same. He was showing no reaction though.
“Only if it’s a boy. There aren’t enough men in the house.”
“Shhhh,” Ryan said. “Geez, Jeffrey, you’re going to have me sleeping in Oreo’s crate tonight.”
“But I want a brother. Can you give me a brother?” Jeffrey asked Ryan.
Watching her brother move closer to Jeffrey and put his hand on his shoulder just warmed her in a way she never thought she’d see. “I can’t promise that. I don’t have as much control over it as you think. But you’d be fine if you had another little sist
er, right? You do such a good job with Maddie.”
“I’ll be fine,” Jeffrey said. “I just really want a brother.”
“Then I guess we’ll find out if you’re going to have a little brother or sister in a few months. But Mommy is going to have a baby.”
“Yay,” Maddie said, moving to her mother and hugging her. Lots of hugs and congrats went around the room, then Whitney moved over to sit by Trey and watch Ben on the floor with the dogs.
“How are you feeling about that?” Trey asked her quietly.
“Thrilled,” she said. “Why wouldn’t I be?”
“Just curious,” he said, leaning closer. “There are a lot of eyes on you. Like many were afraid you might be upset over it.”
She let out a sigh when she looked around the room and saw there were glances her way. “Because they don’t know what you do.”
“No. They only know how much you wanted your own and didn’t get it and they think you might never.”
“That still might be the case, but I’m not as worried about it now as I was years ago.”
He kissed her on the forehead and pulled her closer. She laid her head on his shoulder and took the comfort he was giving her.
Unfortunately, two hours later she was in the kitchen with her mother getting desserts ready while they told Shannon and Zoe to go have a seat. The two of them had been doing most of the work. “Are you happy for your brother?”
“Of course I am,” she said.
“I saw Trey with his arm around you. I wasn’t sure if you were upset.”
She realized now that her family would have taken that move differently than it was. She knew Trey was comforting her over the lie she was keeping. Or the hell she’d lived with. Her family might have read it as if she wasn’t happy for her brother’s future child.
“Not at all. Trey is just a very loving person. He likes to touch me. Some men do.”
Her mother sighed. “I hope you aren’t comparing Trey to Kevin.”
“No. Never. No comparison. Believe me.”
“We know that. I just hope you aren’t rushing what you’ve got with him.”
“You like attacking me today, don’t you?” she asked her mother.
“I don’t mean to. It’s more like we all know how much you wanted a child of your own. You’re young yet. I don’t want to see you holding onto something or seeing something for another reason.”
Her shoulders dropped. “I’m not. Yes, Trey has a baby that I care a great deal for. I also care a great deal for Trey.”
“No one wants you hurt again.”
“Meaning I need to dial it back so I don’t scare him away like I did years ago? You don’t have a lot of faith in me.”
“I’m sorry. That is wrong of me. It’s just...what you went through with Trey last time and then Kevin. I always thought you moved so fast with Kevin because of Trey. Then I wondered if it was in your nature to do that with a man in general.”
“But I dated other people after Kevin and it went nowhere.”
“Exactly. So then I realized I was wrong. The bottom line is, it looks like what you’ve got with Trey is good and maybe everyone wants to see you both happy again.”
“And that is what I want too. Everyone needs to cut us some slack and stop harping on the past. We aren’t. So you need to stop too.”
Hours later, Ben was in his playpen in the room next to Whitney’s. “Is he out?” Trey asked her. She’d told him that she wanted to bathe and put Ben to bed and see if he’d go down for her. She’d offered to take Ben at night before, but she wondered if he was worried Ben wouldn’t cooperate.
“Yes. I laid him down and then went and put laundry away and when I checked on him, he was sleeping.”
“It’s been an exciting day for him,” Trey said, holding his hand out for her to join him on the couch.
“It has. He seemed to have a lot of fun playing with Ryan’s kids. He ate well too.”
“He always eats well. He’s probably stuffed as much as that turkey was and will be out all night,” he said, his hand moving up and under her shirt.
“I feel like a stuffed turkey too. Maybe we need to find a way to work some of those calories off.” She turned and straddled his lap. “I even have a condom right here,” she said pulling one out of her pocket.
“Coming prepared, I see,” he said, tugging her shirt over her head and tossing it on the floor.
“We don’t always have to do it in a bed.”
“We didn’t before,” he said, his hands making quick work of her bra, his mouth moving closer and covering a nipple.
No, when they were younger, they were having sex anywhere they could find a place alone. His bedroom, her bedroom, one of their cars parked at night. They didn’t care where they were, just any place they could get the other naked.
She was glad to know that it hadn’t changed as much as their opportunity for the past few months dating made it harder.
“No. We need to get back to the fun part of the relationship. No need to be boring old people.”
“I’m not old or boring,” he said.
He pushed her off his lap and helped her remove her jeans. Then she got down on her knees in front of him, undid his pants, released him and lowered her head to take him into her mouth. “We used to find a lot of places to do this,” she said. They’d be in the finished basement at her parents’ house and they sneak into the bathroom down there where she could do this without anyone knowing. She was much more daring than she was as she got older and wanted to feel like that kid again.
She went so deep on him he all but shot off the couch and gagged her. “Jesus,” he said.
“You used to like that.”
“I did. I do. I just didn’t expect it.”
“The unexpected is the best,” she said, moving her mouth up and down, her hand going with it.
“Slow down,” he said. “It’s going to be over too soon.”
“But you’re up for more. Let me have my way with you like I used to.”
“You always got what you wanted,” he said. She wasn’t going to read more into that statement. She never got her way like many thought. Not even when her ex told her that so many times.
“Yep, and I’m going to get it again,” she said, going deeper. She’d never enjoyed doing this on anyone other than Trey. Not because he was her first but because he never asked. He never demanded. He didn’t tell her what to do or how to do it.
He let her do her own thing and did not make her feel bad if it wasn’t good enough. If she didn’t want to finish it completely.
But for once she did want to go all the way. She wanted to know what it was like to taste him to the end like he’d done to her.
“Slow down, Whitney,” Trey said, almost like he was in pain. “I’m so close. You need to stop.”
She lifted her head and grinned at him. “Thanks for the warning, but I’d rather try not to.”
His head fell back. “I warned you.”
And because he did, she wasn’t going to stop and didn’t. When he started to come, she swallowed quickly but still started to gag and cough and had to stop, then found her shirt and got rid of the rest and wiped her face.
She felt bad doing that, waiting to see what he did or said, but when she looked up, he was smiling at her. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah. I didn’t think I’d gag that much.”
“I tried to stop you.”
“You’re not mad?”
“What? Why would I be? I get it. I’m not sure I’d want to do it either.”
She burst out laughing. It was the funniest thing coming out of his mouth. “It wasn’t horrible. It’s just fast.”
He reached his hand out for her to come closer, but she grabbed the condom and opened it, started to stroke him ready, then covered him.
“I’m not done with you,” she said.
“So I see.”
“And now that you’ve finished once you can go even longer for me to do everyt
hing I want.”
“There is something you want I haven’t given you?” he asked as she started to ride him slowly.
“No. Just that I like to go longer. Long and slow and now I can go as long as I want.”
“Don’t be so sure of that,” he said. “You can tempt me to not last long at all.”
“That’s so sweet,” she said, still moving on him. “But we are done talking now.”
“By all means,” he said, his hands on her hips as he eased her up and down. He was increasing her speed, slowing her, then almost slamming her down on top of him.
It was like he knew exactly what her body needed and was darn well giving it to her.
He was one of the most selfless lovers she’d ever had. Even when they were younger, he was all about making sure she felt good.
“I love watching you fuck me,” he said.
His words sent something deep within her. A warming that turned into a speed.
She put her hands on his shoulders and rose up so that her feet were on the couch next to him, her almost squatting down and up.
All he did was put his hands on her to hold her steady but nothing else.
She was using his body to get where she needed to be. Where she wanted to be.
He was along for the ride and when their eyes met, she realized that yeah, he did like watching her. That it might be turning him on more.
“I’m so close,” she said.
“Do what you need to get there,” he said. “I’m waiting for you.”
“Are you close?”
“Focus on you.”
She did. She was. And then she was screeching out his name as she came. As she rode him harder and faster.
She was ready to ask if he finished but didn’t have a chance before he quickly turned her, had her on her back, her knees up to her chest as he was pounding into her so hard she thought she might have an out of body experience as her orgasm continued on, even when he collapsed on her, panting out a few breaths.
“Damn,” he said. “Talk about giving thanks.”
She burst out laughing. Only Trey could make her do that at the oddest of times.