Finally, it’s time to head home… only I’m not heading to my rental house, I’m heading towards Prue’s. She is my home now. No four walls could ever offer the solace that being with her does. We could live in a cardboard box, and as long as we were together, I would be happy and at home.
Prue lets me in after just one knock. I sweep her up into my arms, kissing her soundly. She returns my kiss, but something about it feels off. I pull away, really looking at her for the first time. Her eyes are red and puffy, and it looks like she’s been crying.
“Baby, have you been crying? What’s wrong?”
She shakes her head as her eyes turn glassy, telling me without words that she has indeed been crying. “I can’t see you anymore,” she says around a sob. “This just isn’t going to work. It’s over, Clay.”
My heart clenches in my chest, seizing up and becoming a hard lump of flesh. One that will never recover if we end things here and now.
“What changed since this morning? I thought we were happy…”
She smiles through her tears. “It was wonderful… perfect. It doesn’t change the fact that this needs to end now before it’s too late.”
“Is this because I said, ‘I love you?’ Princess, you don’t have to say it back. I’m not pressuring you to feel the same. I just need you to know where I’m at… that I’m all in.”
“That’s not-”
“Do you love me?” I ask, already knowing the answer. She does love me even if she’s not ready to admit it.
“It’s not that, not at all…” Love shines in her eyes, along with an aching sadness.
None of this makes any sense. She’s obviously upset about something, yet she doesn’t really want things to end. She just feels that they must end for some reason.
“Baby, talk to me. I don’t think you mean it.”
She doesn’t answer at first, she just shakes her head, warring with herself to not hold back. Prue opens her mouth to respond, but all that comes out is a sob. Unable to help myself, I grab her up in my arms. I hold her while she cries. Carefully, I lift her off her feet and carry her to the couch where I sit with her curled up on my lap. She’s soaking my shirt with her tears as she cries herself out. Purging whatever emotion she’s kept bottled up.
Once she’s done crying, she buries her face into my shirt and starts talking. Telling me her worries and concerns.
“You see? We can’t be together because we want different things. You want kids, and I just don’t, and that’s never going to change for me.” Tears start slowly slipping down her cheeks again. I cup her face in my hands and wipe them away with my thumbs.
“Prue, look at me, princess. I know what I said, but that desire was in the abstract. It held no substance… it’s just something I could see in my future. But baby, I can’t see anything in my future but you. You’re the only thing I need.”
“I don’t want you to regret this… I would die inside, knowing that your life isn’t being fulfilled in the way you want because of me. I couldn’t survive it,” she confesses. “I won’t do that to you to us.”
I hold her face between my hands. “You listen to me, Pruette Olsen. The only thing in this world I need is you. If you never want to get married—fine, as long as you’re mine, that’s good enough. If you don’t want to have kids? That’s fine too. We have Lolli. She’s a big enough handful. You are what I need. You, Prue, nothing else. Just you, princess.”
15
Prue
Clay sounds so sincere. His words ring in my ears over and over as he tells me he wants me over any abstract dream he had about what his future could look like.
“Don’t call me that,” I say through a watery laugh feeling lighter than I have in days.
He chuckles and hugs me close. I wrap my arms around him, holding him to me in a way that says I never want him to let me go. For some reason, I think I might just get my wish.
“I love you, princess.”
I roll my eyes and laugh. “You’ll never quit calling me that, will you?”
“Nope, you’ll always be my princess… even when you’re being a pain in my ass.”
I slap his chest, feeling the worries leach out of me. “I love you, too, Prince Charming.”
Clay stands with me still in his arms and marches us to the bedroom, where he spends the rest of the night showing me through touch just how much he loves me. It’s the best night of my life. I’m happier than I’ve ever been in my whole life.
It’s been two weeks since my failed attempt to break things off with Clay, and I couldn’t be more thankful for his stubborn refusal to listen to me.
“Wow, this place is amazing,” Margo says as she takes in Sweets Tavern for the first time since Clay put the finishing touches on it.
Tonight is the grand opening, and our friends are all here to help celebrate. Lani stands beside Torin, her arm wrapped around him as he holds my nephew, who was born just a few short days ago. I tried to tell them to stay home, but they wouldn’t hear of it. They wanted to be here to celebrate.
Amos makes his way to the small kitchen, taking in the stainless-steel appliances and top of the line everything. “I have to admit, your kitchen is awful nice for someone who is just serving bar food.”
Clay laughs, “Admit it, you’re jealous of the shiny new toys that you don’t get to touch.”
“Touché, my friend, touché.”
Clay gives him a slap on the back. “You can come cook any time you want, brother.”
“Prue told us you’re going to have live music…” Ana says, practically bouncing on her feet.
“Yep. There are several local bands in the area. I thought having them come play would give them an opportunity to show off their skills.”
“That means dancing!”
Carson groans. “Baby, you know I don’t dance…”
She shrugs. “Guess I’ll just have to find another dance partner.”
He growls low in his throat, a threatening, feral sound. “Like hell you will.” Carson lifts Ana carefully in his arms—aware of her slight baby bump—then stomps out of Sweets.
“Thanks for inviting us,” Ana shouts over Carson’s shoulder. “The place looks amazing!”
We all laugh at their antics. Of all of our men, Carson is definitely the most possessive. Though all of our guys are to some extent. Carson just takes it to the next level.
Lani comes over and gives me a hug, and I give my nephew a light kiss on his downy-soft head. “I hope opening night is amazing. We’re going to take this little one home before things get crazy.”
“Thanks for coming,” Clay replies, lightly touching Shane’s hair. I look at him for signs of regret, but I see none.
The opening goes off without a hitch. Sweets Tavern is a complete success. It feels like everyone in town showed up to show their supports. Clay had a rocky start here in Sugarhill, but he’s quickly becoming a beloved resident of our little town.
“I’m so proud of you,” I say as I lock the doors after the last customer leaves.
He comes up behind me and wraps his arms around me, kissing my neck. “I couldn’t have done this without you.”
“I mean, you could’ve always hired a different plumber…”
Clay pinches my ass in retaliation for my snark, and I squeal, running away from him. “You can run all you want, princess… I’ll always catch you in the end.”
Epilogue
Prue
I admire the ring on my finger for the fiftieth time since I said the two words that tie me to the man I love for the rest of my life: ‘I do.’ We opted for a small wedding at the courthouse with just us and Margo and Amos to stand witness. Now that we’ve promised ourselves forever, we’re celebrating with half the town at Sweets.
“You okay, princess?” Clay asks with concern.
I give him a bright smile. “I’m great. Sorry, I don’t mean to be quiet, I just can’t believe this is my life now.”
He tips my head back and presses a kis
s to my lips. “Better believe it, baby. I’m yours, and you’re mine, and it’ll always be that way.”
I have a tiny little fission of doubt, that same old fear that one day he will regret not marrying a woman who wants kids…
“Quit it, Pruette York. I won’t change my mind. You’re it for me, and we’re going to live the best life together.”
I smile at him, loving how well he knows me. “How do you do that?”
He smirks at me. “I just know you and that big heart of yours. No regrets, my love. Never.”
Clay leans in and gives me a toe-curling kiss. “I love you,” I gasp when our lips part.
“And I love you. Are you about ready to get out of here?” He looks around the room at our dwindling guests.
I purse my lips, thinking of all the things on Lani’s “must-do” wedding reception checklist. Mental note never let Lani plan any parties. She went all bridezilla on me over the courthouse thing. Then she freaked out further when I told her we didn’t have plans for any kind of formal reception—just our friends at Sweets Tavern.
“We cut the cake, we had our first dance, we took a million pictures, I tossed a bouquet I didn’t carry down the aisle… I think we did everything on the checklist,” I give him a playful smirk, “Let’s get out of here.”
Clay throws me up over his shoulder, man-handling me like the crazy alpha man he is. Loud clapping and cheers follow us out of the bar and into the night.
CLAY
“Come here, wife,” I growl, ready to rip that dress right off of her and have my way with her. I’ve been patiently waiting all night to have my new bride, and my patience has run out.
She giggles, slinking over to where I’m standing with my arms crossed over my chest. “You beckoned, husband…”
“If you don’t want me to rip that dress off of you, you better take it off now.”
“Ooo… Feisty tonight.”
“Damn straight. You’ve been teasing me all night with this sexy little body of yours, and I’m done waiting.”
She turns so her back is facing me and looks over her shoulder at me with a sultry look. “Unzip me?”
I grip the tiny zipper and slowly pull it down, unwrapping my prize one bit at a time. The dress pools around her ankles, and she steps out of it. She turns to face me, and I get a look at what she’s been wearing under that prim and proper dress of hers.
Fuck me. She’s a vision. She’s wearing a tiny white lace thong that does nothing to hide her pussy and the wetness that’s coating her. Her strapless bra is also white and pushes her small breasts up like they are being served to me on a platter of lace.
“You’re a fucking vision, baby.”
Prue’s cheeks flush a pretty pink. My wife doesn’t blush easily, but complimenting her body never fails to bring the pinkness to her cheeks. I reach out and grab her around the waist, pulling her in for a searing kiss. Our tongues tangle and dance together as our passion rises.
She starts unbuttoning my dress shirt, the tie, and jacket long-abandoned already. I run my hands up and down her back, touching every inch of her soft skin. I grip the firm globes of her ass, pulling her even closer so she can feel how hard my desire for her is.
Her hand travels downward until she’s cupping my hard length. She gives it a squeeze, then works at opening my belt and slacks. Before I realize it, she’s on her knees in front of me, and her mouth is on my cock. She licks the head, and I groan, winding my fingers in her hair. She moans around my cock as I start playing with one of her stiff nipples. Her head bobs back and forth, her tongue working magic on the underside of my cock.
“Fuck, princess,” I growl through gritted teeth. Before I can come, I yank her off of my cock. “I’m not coming down your throat. I want to come deep inside my wife’s tight pussy.”
She looks up at me through lust-filled eyes. “Then fuck your wife.”
With a growl, I pick her up and toss her on the bed. The little shriek she lets out when I toss her down is broken off on a moan as I bury my face in her hot pussy. I lick and suck her through those barely-there panties until she’s begging me for more. Only then do I rip the filmy lace from her body and thrust inside her tightness.
I should do sweet and slow, but I don’t think I have that in me right now. As if she can sense my dilemma, she grabs my shoulders, digging her nails in. “Fuck me. You can do slow later. Right now, I need you.”
Her words set me free. I thrust into her hard and fast. Fucking her just like she likes. Both of us quickly dancing the edge of release. It’s always like this with Prue. No matter if it’s hard or soft, fast or slow, we always find an almost brutal climax together. Her body arches, and her pussy clamps down on my cock.
“I’m coming! Oh, God, Clay… Yesssss!”
I bury myself deep, my cock jerking inside of her as I reach my own climax.
I collapse on the bed beside her, pulling her on top of me so she’s perched over my still hard cock. “More?” she asks.
“More,” I say with a cocky grin.
Prue smiles down at me. “I fucking love you, husband.”
“I love you too, wife.”
Epilogue Two
Prue—Five Years Later
“Careful!” I shout at my husband as he chases our two-year-old around the house, making monster noises at him. Charlie squeals in delight when his daddy catches him and blows raspberries on his stomach.
It’s incredible how things change. My friends were right when they said, sometimes dreams change. After almost three years of amazing marriage, I started to change my mind about children. I could picture babies with Clay’s smile and my eyes… it was something I couldn’t chase from my mind no matter how hard I tried.
After a lot of talking… Clay and I decided we would have a baby… Best decision ever. I love being a mom. I rub my stomach where our second little one is resting… well… not resting, I think as another contraction rolls through me. This time I must make some kind of noise because my boys stop their play, and Clay is by my side in a flash.
“What’s wrong?” he asks, looking worried.
“Nothing, just a little twinge is all.”
Clay gives me side-eye, even our son looks at me skeptically, a perfect mirror image to his daddy.
“How many “twinges” have you had?”
I shrug. “A few.”
Another contraction starts, and I look at the clock… five minutes.
“How long?” Clay looks at me with accusation in his eye. I didn’t tell him about the contractions because my husband does not handle me being in pain well. He may have cussed the doctor and nurse up one side, and down the other anytime I cringed with Charlie. Staying home as long as possible and staying calm is all I can do to help keep him calm longer.
“Five minutes.” I look down at our son. “Ready to go play at Auntie Ana’s house?”
“Yay!” he shouts with a toothy smile. Charlie loves going to Ana’s and playing with Raymond and Jason.
We drop Charlie off and head to the hospital. My contractions have increased in both frequency and pain level, though I’m doing my best to stay calm and not freak my husband out. The last thing I need him doing is hulking out.
Once we get to the hospital, things happen fairly fast. My water breaks in the parking lot, causing Clay to freak out and go all caveman on me. He swings me up into his arms and carries my cumbersome body into the hospital. I tell him repeatedly to put me down that I’m too heavy, and he just gives me a dirty look. If I weren’t in labor, he would’ve made a big deal out of it, but there are other things to worry about right now.
He rushes us up to the Labor and Delivery area and demands for someone to check me in. I slap his shoulder, and he finally puts me down.
“Sorry, this caveman is my insane husband. I’m Pruette York. I called to let Dr. Janek that I’m in labor, and he said to come right in.”
“Yes, Mrs. York. Let’s get you checked in and straight to a room,” the nurse says, keeping t
he same calm I’m projecting.
“Thank y-” My words and breath are stolen by another, harder contraction. I have to hang on to the reception desk and ball into myself to keep from crying out. I breathe through it like we learned in Lamaze class, but it hardly feels like it matters.
I’m quickly brought into a room, and Dr. Janek rushes in. “Prue, Clay, what brings you in today?” he jokes.
Clay gives the doctor a disbelieving look and growls at him. Dr. Janek and I laugh because we know he’s merely poking the bear. “Let’s see how far along you are, shall we?”
An hour later, Sadie Ann York comes into the world, screaming her adorable little head off. The nurse puts her on my chest, and I cry at the sight of our daughter. I look up at Clay, and his eyes are shiny with tears as well. He leans over and gives me a fierce kiss. “Thank you, princess. You really are my dream come true. I love you.”
“I love you too,” I say through my happy tears.
THE END
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About the Author
Rory Reynolds is a stay-at-home mom of two little monsters. She's a ravenous reader of romance and firmly believes that you can never have too many book boyfriends.
She writes feisty heroines, alpha heroes, and panty drenching smut with happily ever afters.
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Losing Her Heart (Sweet Somethings Book 4) Page 6
