“I do. But I don’t have any right to ask them.” I’ve come to learn that being honest with someone is the best way to be comfortable with myself. It’s also the best way to gauge how he will react when I tell him about my past.
“Yeah, Laken, you do.” His head tilts to the side as he glances from me and then to Jesse and back again. “You have every right to want to know more about my life, about Jesse’s life, about the life we had before you because I’m going to work damn hard to ensure you are part of the life we have in the future.”
I can’t think when he says things like that. Bringing my wrist up to his mouth, his lips touch slightly before his tongue peeks out, and he’s licking across my fluttering pulse and moaning.
“You can always ask me anything about whatever you want.” Our eyes meet, and they’re pools of pure lust that I want to get lost in. But I’m so damn afraid.
“Were you married?” I blurt out before I beg him to take me to bed.
He shakes his head. “We were together for a short time before Jesse came along. We wanted to make it work. I think we always knew that we weren’t each other’s forever. It was just…convenient.” His gaze moves back to his son, a boy who is his near twin. “When Cassidy left, he was only three. I thought it would break him. He loved her fiercely, but it didn’t faze him, not like I thought it would. Now, though, I think her popping in and out of his life is doing more harm than good. He takes longer and longer to get back to his normal self after one of their visits.”
When his eyes return to me, there’s a sadness that only a parent can feel when something or someone is harming their child. I empathize with him. I wish they didn’t have to go through that. That I could help in some way. “What are you going to do?” I can’t imagine being in his position.
“Truthfully? I haven’t a fucking clue. How do I do anything without breaking his heart?” It’s my turn to offer him comfort. Gripping his hand in both of mine, I lean forward to kiss his knuckles, my tongue swipes out for a taste of him, and Hale grows tense. Alert. His eyes blaze with unfiltered hunger.
With the hand I’m holding, he clasps my fingers and uses his strength to pull me around the table and sit in his lap, where his lips immediately find their way to my neck. The heat of his breathing makes me squirm, and when he flattens his tongue against my throat, licking from the base to up behind my ear, I bite my tongue to hold in my moan of pleasure. I never thought licking could be sexy, but the way he does it is constantly surprising and always leaves me wanting more.
“Come home with me. Let me show you everything you’ve missed out on.” I feel the words vibrating from his chest, and when I look down at him, I see so many promises. Promises I never knew one could make with just a heated look. Biting my lip, I debate going with him. I want to know what he means by all his promises, but I’m terrified that I’m just not wired to enjoy intercourse.
Closing my eyes, I let my heart lead the way.
I agree, and he’s on his feet a second later, calling Jesse over so we can leave. It’s still relatively early, with the sun only beginning to set, but as we move swiftly back to his truck, I can see time doesn’t matter to Hale. He wants a dark room with a closed door and privacy.
The more he touches me, sends me fiery looks, I kind of want the same.
Nine
HALE
The beginning of the end…or is it?
Iheard Laken calling Lauren as I was putting Jesse to bed. Shockingly, he was nearly asleep before his head hit the pillow. I think he’s going through another growth spurt because I noticed his shirt was looking a little snug tonight, as well. Leaning against the wall in the hallway, I watch Laken as she studies the pictures of Jesse and me on the walls. Some have my parents and brother, but most are of us. Jesse also has a couple of him and his mom in his room, but I won’t put her out here. She doesn’t deserve to be on display to the world.
“He loves baseball. Been playing since he could pick up a bat.” Her gaze keeps returning to last year’s championship picture of Jesse sitting on my shoulders, holding his trophy up high.
“He could be your twin.” She turns to face me, cheeks rosy and breathing labored.
“Yes.” Walking forward, her hands begin to fidget with the side of her capris. She’s nervous, and I hope, excited. She doesn’t back away as I approach, so when I reach out, I don’t expect the reaction I get.
Tears in her eyes.
“Tell me,” I whisper. “Tell me everything.”
Using my size to my advantage, I pick her up by her thighs and lean her back against the wall, nuzzling her neck. I kiss, nip, and lick until she relaxes in my hold. Her hands move from nails clawing into my shoulders to brushing through my hair. Digging my fingers into her thighs, I slowly massage up to the globes of her ass and press my swollen dick into her core.
“Whatever it is, I’ll help.”
“It was never consensual with Mason. He took, and he stole, and he forced himself on me. I never had any choice, and I never enjoyed it. I hated him, hated the way he made me abhor sex.” Her voice shatters with each word, and all I want to do is find this son of a bitch and bury him alive.
“I’ll never do anything you don’t want me to, Laken. You say stop, and it stops. You say go, and we go. You want me to slow down, and I will.” Dropping open-mouthed kisses along her jaw until I reach her mouth, I lick across the seam until she opens for me, and her delicate pink tongue peeks out to meet mine. I vow I will go to hell and back for this woman.
“I believe you.” Her arms wrap tightly around my neck as she holds me as close as I hold her. “I want to be with you, but could we go slow?”
“Snail’s pace.”
Her laughter makes my dick twitch, and I know she can feel it. She can feel everything.
The pounding of my heart.