“I’ll trade you,” I offered, holding my hand out to him. “You take her, I’ll take the wagon.”
“Deal,” he replied with a grin. “Hey! Little love! Should we load up the wagon with more apples for Mav?”
“Yes! All the apples!” Aria shrieked as she came running back our way.Ah, the simplicity of kids.Sometimes, just changing the topic was needed. Harley let out an overly loudoompfwhen she collided with him, throwing her arms around his waist. “Can we super fill up the wagon? Get all the apples! Apples for Millie! And us! And apples for Holly!”
“Done deal,” Harley said. I stepped back, giving him the room he needed, and watched as he lifted her up on his shoulders. Her laughter bubbled out when she set her snake in his hair as if his wayward strands were a nest. One arm rested around her back as she regaled him with a story about how he had eggs in his hair and had to stay that way.
The smile on his face was easy and relaxed. Happy. That’s what he was. He was so genuinely happy that it bled from every bit of him, infectious and beautiful.
“Okay, so we have to be careful,” Harley informed me. “I now have baby snakes in my hair.”
“Oh, that does sound like something we should be careful of,” I agreed. I dragged the wagon along behind me as we started back down the aisle. “Holy shit, this thing is heavy.”
“Well, that’s your own damn fault,” he retorted. Under his breath, he added, “You have to learn how to say no.”
“I know how to say no,” I muttered.
“Hey, Maverick?” Aria asked. I paused, waiting while she leaned over to make sure I heard her. “Can you find me more snakes so my snake can have babies? I want like… three. No five. Five is good.”
“Absolutely,” I said without hesitation.And without fully realizing that meant I had to make her five more.Next to me, Harley laughed as he walked away from me.
Okay, maybe I did need to work on saying no.
CHAPTER 109
harley
Stop worrying. I’ve got her,” Maverick said in a hushed whisper. We’d stayed out past Aria’s bedtime.Waypast her bedtime. It wasn’t his fault. The evening just got away from us. Apple picking and hayrides led to the petting zoo and pony rides led to donuts and cider for dinner—I had feelings about that one. Afterward, we ended up going for a walk on the beach, in which we carried Aria for most of it, followed by s’mores and acampfire. The minute she was in her car seat, she passed out. Nothing and no one would wake her.
“Okay,” I replied softly.
The motion sensor nightlights flipped on as I walked ahead of them to her bedroom. I switched on her crystal pumpkin desk light and pulled down the sheets in her bed. Maverick was as gentle as I would be as he lay her down. Her curls splayed across her pillow, and she rolled away from him, her little body wrapping around one of the many stuffed animals she kept in bed.
“Night, spooky queen,” he whispered and brushed a strand of hair from her face before stepping back. He hovered in the doorway while I carefully took off her shoes and socks. It wasn’t the first time she’d fallen asleep in a dress, and it wouldn’t be the last, so I just left it alone. I tucked the blankets up around her cheeks like she liked, kissed the crown of her head, and double checked that her light was plugged in.I didn’t need her waking up without it on.
Maverick stepped into the hall as I joined him, easing the door shut behind me. I drank him in as the dark shadows carved out the handsome features on his face. His dark hair fell across his forehead, unkempt and wild from a busy day outdoors. He smiled at me, and I felt it low in my core.
Taking two quick steps toward him, I took hold of his face and dragged him to me, kissing him the way I’d wanted to most of the night. Deep and needy. Desperate and uninhibited. His lips parted with a low groan, and my tongue swept against his. Rough fingers fisted my shirt as he pulled my body closer to his. I kissed him harder, my chest heaving against his, as my desire took over.
Backing him up step-by-insistent-step, I pushed him into the wall with a soft thud. His fingers dug into my sides and held my body flush against his, and I felt the hard ridges of his cockthickening through his jeans. My hips rolled against his as my dick ached for more of him, my breath hitching in my throat at the friction. His thigh nudged between mine, pressing against my length. A needy whimper escaped me. Breaking the kiss, I dragged my teeth over his lower lip.
“Fuck.” His breath ghosted hot against my mouth, that single word unraveling me further. Hour after hour of the perfect day with him—as a potential daily—had me wound up tight. I couldn’t help it. Hooking my fingers through his belt loops, I tugged him away from the wall with a firm yank. He followed without resistance, his rough hands slipping under the hem of my shirt. The scrape of his calluses over my skin sent a shiver down my spine.
We stumbled down the hall together as I led him to my room. My heart hammered in my chest, and liquid heat pooled in my core as my dick strained harder against my jeans. My teeth grazed over his jawline, and my mouth trailed down his neck in a series of licks and nips, savoring the taste of salt on his skin. When I hit that spot under his ear, he let out a low moan, one that rumbled through his chest.
I dragged him through the door and quietly kicked it shut behind us. As I did, he tore his mouth from mine.
“Are you sure this is okay?” Maverick asked softly. He glanced over his shoulder, and I knew exactly what he was worried about.Aria. I couldn’t blame him. This wasn’t just new territory for him. It was for me, too, but I knew he wasn’t familiar with her sleep habits the way I was.
“The door will be locked, handsome,” I assured him as I reached around him and pushed in the button lock.
“But what if she wakes up and your door is closed?” he replied.
“I always close my door. It’s a fire safety issue,” I said. “I went to this community event at the firehouse by my house, and theydiscussed all the ways to make your house safer in the event of a fire.”
“That is the most Harley thing you’ve ever said.” Maverick chuckled and kissed me once.
“This is one of those things you have to get used to,” I told him seriously, leaning back as he tried to kiss me again. “I can’t ask Holly to watch her every time we want to have sex, and I can’t leave every time.”
