“I’d love nothing more,” I told him.
Amy took his hand. “Let’s go pick out a book.”
I watched them head for the stairs before turning my attention over to Laura. She’d moved over to seat herself on one of the rocking chairs on the porch. When I didn’t move, she pointed to another chair. “Would you please sit?” she asked.
I joined her and we began rocking slowly and staring out to the star-filled sky. A falling star flew past and she reached out to pat my arm. “Make a wish.”
“I already have everything I could ever wish for and more,” I started to say, but then something else occurred to me. “The only other thingI would wish for is for us to get along. If not for me, then for Amy and Henry.”
“Why wouldn’t we get along?” She still wasn’t looking at me.
“Because I remind you too much of Luke.” There. I’d said it. Silence followed, surprising me. I’d expected her to agree.
Finally, she spoke. “After the car accident, I would sit out here and wish on the stars, begging to be allowed to go back in time. Stop the two of them from going out. Stop Luke from drinking or give Marshall the foresight to take the keys and insist on driving.”
So, that’s what happened. I’d known it was a car accident, but no one had mentioned to me that Luke had been drinking.
Laura continued. “But eventually, I realized that if I truly wanted to fix things, I’d need to go back farther. Back to when Luke was little. He was our pride and joy, and we showered him in attention and affection…but I think we should have spent more time teaching him empathy and respect for others. Thank God for Amy. Because of her, Henry won’t take after his father in that way.” She turned her head then to look at me. “And with your help, Henry will grow up to be the kind of man his father should have been.”
Laura turned to face me, reached for my hand and held it in both of hers. “I don’t regret giving you up for adoption. Not really. I grieved at first, but the adoption agency assured me that your new parents were good people. I had to trust that it was true. Having met you, I know it was. You, Cal Pierce, are the kind of man I wish Luke could have been.”
“I— Well, shoot. I don’t know what to say.” What did I say to that? Everything I’d thought or assumed didn’t appear to be true.
Laura rose and I leaped up with her. She turned and leaned up to kiss my cheek. “I suspect we’ll have more to talk about later. At least, Ihope so. In the meantime, Henry is waiting and I’m sure you’re eager to spend more time with Amy, so I will bid you good night.” Without waiting for my answer, she walked inside, leaving me alone with my thoughts.
I rubbed my chest to try to smooth out the whirl of emotions. I couldn’t believe she’d accepted me like that. I still had questions about the things I’d overheard her saying to Amy before, but Laura was right when she said that it could wait. I entered the house and almost ran into Jake.
He clapped me on the back. “Try not to make too much noise. Amy’s room might not be all that close to mine, but it’s a nice night and our windows are open.” He lifted one eyebrow before giving me a wink. Then he headed for the living room.
I jogged up the stairs and found Amy just leaving Henry’s room. She held her finger to her lips. “He was falling asleep, so I told him you’d see him tomorrow.” She took my hand and led me down the hall to her bedroom. I followed her inside.
We’d made love in here already—more than once—but for some reason this felt like our first time. She reached for my hat, lifting it off and setting it on her head, catching me by surprise.
“I heard that when women do that to rodeo competitors, it means they want to have sex. Is that true?”
“It is.”Wear the hat, ride the cowboy.“Is that what you’re wanting?”
She’d already kicked off her shoes and was unbuttoning her blouse. She slipped out of it and went to the button on her pants. As for me, I was frozen in place. She gave me a little smirk. “Well, in case the hat didn’t work, I’m hoping me getting naked will clue you in.”
I grabbed her around the waist and lifted her up just as she stepped out of her pants. Tossing her on the bed, I followed her down. When thehat got knocked askew, I pressed it back down in place. I liked her in my hat. Preferablyjustthe hat, and nothing else.
Our lips crashed together in a fiery mix of passion and urgency. Part of me wanted to slow down and savor the moment, but I didn’t think I could. I vowed I would go slower next time. For now, we both needed this hard and fast. When we finally came up for air, we were both panting.
I pushed back to get to my feet, yanking my Henley over my head while toeing my boots off at the same time. I loosened my belt buckle and then tugged at the button on my jeans and drew the zipper down. I’d intended to speed through it, but Amy sat up and was watching me through lust-filled eyes. Enjoying her attention, I gave her a bit of a show and relishing the way her cheeks pinked up.
She reached for the clasp on the front of her bra and popped it open. I damn near started drooling when her breasts were finally free. Amy kept her eyes on me as she laid back and lifted her hips to slide her panties down.
“Beautiful,” I murmured watching her skin flush with a rosy blush that spread down her neck to her chest. She started to cover herself but before I could stop her, she stopped herself. Instead, she pushed her shoulders against the mattress and arched her back, looking like the goddess she was.
I grabbed a condom before I was too far gone to think straight and tossed it up by her head before pushing her legs farther apart and stretching out between them. I pressed kisses to the inside of her thighs, working my way up. When I kissed her mound, I felt her slight tremble. Another kiss and I worked my way around, using my thumbs to rub along her groin. With each touch, her trembles increased.
Parting her folds, I was gratified to see how wet she was, even though we’d barely started. Another kiss, and then I licked up the partedseam. Working my tongue in and out, I mimicked how I intended to make love to her later. Amy’s arms were flailing as if she didn’t know what to do with them.
“You can touch me,” I told her, my warm breath making her twitch. “In fact, I’d love it if you did.” She finally settled on tangling her fingers in my hair, her nails scraping at my scalp and sending a shiver up my spine. My cock was rock hard and I had to shift to alleviate the pressure where I was laying on it.
She pressed against the back of my head and I went to work, licking and sucking, loving all the noises she was making. She couldn’t seem to hold still, so I pinned her torso down with my arm, and I would swear that action alone triggered a small orgasm. I kept going, wanting her to come at least twice before I chased after my own pleasure.
I licked her clit, making her jump. Then I kept at it, sucking and nipping. When I thought she was close, I inserted two fingers, twisting and turning, looking for that sensitive spot that would send her over the edge. When I found it, I pressed down, tickling that spongy part while I sucked harder on her clit.
