“I wish I had a dad. I have Uncle Evan, but he doesn’t live with us. Dads live with you.”
“You have a great mom. I lost my mom when I was a little younger than you. I remember her, but not as well as my dad.” I leaned forward and rested my elbows on my knees.
“Think my dad would like me?” Jack’s hopeful smile squeezed my heart.
“I knew your dad. He was a nice guy.”
Jack’s eyes grew wide. “Youdid?I heard he was funny. I’m not that funny. I don’t know any jokes.” He gave me a sad shrug.
I squeezed his shoulder. “You are a great kid.Ilike you a lot. Your dad would, too, I’m sure.” A slow grin spread across Jack’s face.
“Okay, Jack. You’re up.” Jack’s eyes lit up as he popped off the couch.
David showed Jack the controls and how to fight. It took him a few minutes, but once he had the hang of it, even my nephew seemed impressed. Jack had more heart and determination in his pinky than most adults had in their whole bodies. Any father would be lucky to have a kid like him for a son.
My stomach clenched as the realization hit me. Ellie wasn’t the only one I was falling for.
Later that night, I backed Ellie against her bed as I fisted the hem of her dress, inching it up to her waist.
“We’re home, and Jack is asleep. Why do you still have clothes on?”
My lips brushed against hers and pressed more little kisses down the side of her neck. A moan escaped her as my tongue trailed their path.
“I . . . I said I bought something for tonight.” I ignored Ellie’s hoarse whisper as I lifted her dress over her head and pulled her body against mine. Hooking my thumbs into the waistband of her panties, I knelt before her to inch them down, kissing a path from her thighs to her ankles. Once they pooled at her feet, she stepped out and kicked them aside. I stood and took her back into my arms.
“What is the point,” I murmured against her lips before flicking the seam with my tongue, “of putting something on that will only come off in thirty seconds.” I reached behind her to unhook her bra and tossed it next to the heap of clothes on the floor. “You’re gorgeous just as you are.” I cupped her breasts, and she arched her back, pushing them farther into my greedy hands. Her nipples pebbled against my thumbs before I sucked one into my mouth. My other hand dropped down between her legs where she was soaked, swollen, and ready for me. I kept my mouth and hand moving as she dripped all over my fingers.
Ellie clutched the back of my head as she thrust her body against me. The little moans and mewls that fell from her lips made me work that much harder. I wanted to burrow myself inside her so deep we couldn’t tell where I ended and she began.
I lay her on the bed as she pulled at the material of my shirt. I lifted it over my head and shivered as Ellie dragged her nails down my chest. She sat up and traced the inked script along my ribs with her tongue.
“Sweetheart . . .” I groaned as her mouth trailed wet kisses across my chest and down my bicep. Her hand drifted down my stomach, and I growled when her fingers traced along my denim-covered shaft. I was already hard enough to burst through my zipper.
Ellie peered at me with hooded eyes and a crooked smile. “You’re beautiful, Nick,” she whispered as she framed my face and gave me a slow, sensual kiss.
I lowered her back onto the bed, my lips not leaving hers, before unbuttoning my pants and kicking them off. The way Ellie raked her eyes over me, how she touched me, was too much and not enough all at once. If I didn’t get inside her soon, I was sure I’d lose my damn mind.
“So, youdothink I’m handsome,” I smirked against her lips. She bucked her hips off the bed as I slid inside her. Since Ellie was on the pill now, we didn’t need condoms anymore. Nothing compared to moving inside her bare, with no barriers between us. I dragged my bottom lip across both of hers and loved the purr I always got in return. We rocked into each other in perfect sync. Ellie was my home, and it should’ve scared the shit out of me how sure I was about that. I wasn’t certain if it would terrifyheror not, so I kept that to myself. I was in love with her—beyond a shadow of a doubt—but I feared she wasn’t ready to hear it.
“Nick . . .” Her voice croaked as her eyes bore into mine. “Sit up.”
Still inside her, I flipped us over so she was on top. She moved her hips in circles as I buried myself even deeper. I sat up and cupped the back of her neck to tug her lips toward mine. She rode me over and over, ruining me as she inched me all the way out and slammed me into her again. I clutched the small of her back as I dropped my head to her chest. My mouth clumsily searched for a nipple and sucked hard when it made contact. Ellie’s full, soft breasts in my face, my cock buried in her wet heat, I was about to come so hard I was afraid I’d leave scratches across her hips.
“Ella-Jane,” I grunted. “I don’t have long, sweetheart.” I grabbed her hips and pounded a rhythm that made her eyes roll in the back of her head. Once she quivered around me, I was finished. We fell back onto the bed, limp with a sheen of sweat covering us.
“You wouldn’t let me wear the nightgown, so I improvised.” Ellie’s lips twisted in a smirk as she sat up to rest her head on her elbow. “I needed to give you an extra something.”
“That was extra, all right,” I panted as I pulled her to my chest. “I had no idea you were this much of an animal.” I kissed her forehead, and a giggle fell from her lips.
Ellie pushed off my chest and rested her head on her elbow. “You . . . being with you . . . you brought me back to life.” Her hand drifted down my cheek as she gave me a soft kiss. “Happy birthday.” Words unsaid dangled between us. She was here, and she was with me. Right now, that was enough.
I woke up alone. I usually blanketed my girlfriend’s tiny body with mine, but now she was nowhere to be found. The mystery was solved when the piercing creak of the faucet drifted from her bathroom. I made a mental note to look at that in the morning.
Rising from the bed, I crept into the bathroom and peeked behind the shower curtain. Ellie shut her eyes under the stream, oblivious to my ogling her gorgeous and wet naked body. She swiveled around and jumped when she noticed me.
“Do you always have to sneak up on me?” She cocked her head.
“I was hoping you’d start soaping up before you noticed me.” I climbed in and wrapped my arms around her.
